The first village pre-school we went to was Aththudawa Learning Centre and it was simply amazing. The Sarvodaya Organisation and members of the village held a formal opening ceremony for us, which was kind of them. The monks, who attended this ceremony, prayed for us and gave us their blessings before they departed. The pre-school classes started at 9am and ended at 11:30am, while the after-school club started at 1:30pm and ended at 3:30pm. Even though the kids could not speak English, the fact that they were extremely eager to participate in all activities we threw at them, gripped us by surprise. These activities involved arts, music and games, just to name but a few. They showed the kind of zeal that is truly hard to come by. The teachers and assistants were very generous and nice to us; feeding us with food enough to feed the multitude. In addition, the after-school club was also amazing. Children ranging from age 5 – 16 attended the after-school club and the session was overwhelming. We played paper games and musical chairs with the kids and they absolutely loved it. At the end of the day, we both agreed that the monks’ blessings definitely surrounded us.