Penny for the Guy

The Guy Fawkes Rally at Koputaroa School, in rural Levin,  is always enjoyable, and this year was no exception.  We arrived about 4:30pm to find the playing fields adjacent to the school filling up rapidly.  The total on site for the weekend were sixty nine assorted motor homes and caravans, with about twenty children in attendance.

Lots of motor homes and Romany Rambler just to the right of the goal post

The children were busy on Saturday morning making their guys.  These were judged in the afternoon.  “What about that poor Santa Guy?”, I asked the kids, “I don’t think he should get burnt up”.  “It’s OK”, they assured me, “he’s a Bad Santa”.  Well, I thought to myself, I had never heard of a Bad Santa!

The children with their Guys

With daylight saving in place, darkness is a long time coming.  A couple of excited little boys ran around knocking on all the doors to tell us all that it was finally time for the bonfire and the fireworks to be lit.  We joined the crowd and watched the poor old guys burn up to nothing on the fiercely burning bonfire.

The blazing bonfire

The watching crowd was safely over the fence from where all that action was, but that didn’t stop a few sparks and cinders blowing into the crowd.  A bit of deft stamping soon put them out, but it was a warning not to be too complacent.  Whoosh, went the skyrockets, as they soared up high, then burst into lots of little stars overhead.

  Skyrocket in the sky

There were hisses, bangs, flares and flashes as the fireworks were lit one after another.  The little children were enthralled with the colourful sight, and lots of the adults were oohing and aahing too.  Several had their cameras out, trying to capture that special picture.   

 

 

 

 

 

Fireworks in action

 

Soon it was all over, and time to head back to the caravan for a hot drink to warm us up.  It was another very enjoyable Guy Fawkes celebration.