The children of Seenigama are climbing greasy poles, eating buns with their hands tied behind their backs and throwing eggs at each other – all in the name of New Year fun.

More than sixty children enjoyed a day of traditional games, dancing, food and gifts on the Seenigama Oval last Sunday, thanks to the sponsorship of the Asian International School in Colombo.

The New Years celebration was organised by students from the Asian International School’s (AIS) ‘Interact Committee’, who were inspired to do something for the village after watching a presentation by the Foundation of Goodness founder Kushil Gunasekera.

‘We wanted to do something for the kids that would be fun for them,’ said Interact Committee members, who traveled down from Colombo to oversee the day’s proceedings – and to take part in a few games themselves.

The games included lime and spoon races, paper dancing, pot smashing, musical chairs, pillow fighting, sack racing and more, and culminated in the crowning of ‘Audu Kumari’ – the prince and princess of the day.