A day at Tiklibottom

Nestled close to the Arivali hills beyond Gurgaon is a little haven of tranquility and tastefulness. Some years back Annie and Martin Howard found themselves being propositioned by friends to take on two acres in this area next to a stud farm.They did so and Tiklibottom is the outcome - Just the name conjures up all sorts of interesting thoughts but actually visiting is an even richer experience and very happily so for the whole area.

Tiklibottom itself is built by an Indian architect in a style I hugely admire- rooms around a basic courtyard. In this case an attractive courtyard with a fountain and a lovely airy rooms leading off. They look as if they have come out of House and Garden and I suspect that this is a lot to do with Annie's wonderful style.

The lawns at the back have flowering beds and guinea fowl walking through. A camel with a wooden cart lies on one side to take its guests for an amble in the countryside. Annie and Martin have four double rooms to rent out and this is a perfect weekend gateway but in our case it was a day excursion with a purpose- to enjoy the lovely lunch they had prepared for us complete with the quintessential english apple crumble and the most wonderful banana pancakes but also as an opportunity to see the Howards' school which they started with the purpose of educating the children of the three villages that surround them.

It is a private school and it is run like one with motivated teachers, rigorous but engaging educational programmes and the proof of how successful this is, was the statement from the headmistress that the children come to school early and want to stay after school is over.

We visited the school and had the opportunity to listen to one of the classes belting out "This old man, he played one he played knick knack on my drum...we all joined it and really enjoyed it.

The school has been built in bits and pieces, basically as the money comes in and the latest and encouraging benefactor is none other than Sir John Major who had the opportunity to see the school and who offered to build additional classrooms which were much needed. The Howards are constantly raising money for the school because there are so many running costs like staff salaries, subsidies for books and uniforms and much more but they are doing a great job and you can see the results in the childrens faces and their engagement with a truly vibrant learning environment.

If you want to get involved, visit or donate please do - this is such a worthy cause.
Go to http://www.tiklibottom.com/