Belonging to the same generation of school going kids (ok, probably a few years older than them... sigh...) I can just see the wide difference in the way summer vacations are enjoyed today than those of just a decade ago. Here�s a comparison to kindle all those nostalgic moments of fun and happiness.

Waiting for the two months of summer vacations all through the year just to be lazy! There would be nothing to do yet the day has set schedules to follow. All those important things which hold the major place in the agenda! The day exams are over bags are packed to land in one of the relatives' house where the whole family invariably ends up. Poor the resident family! All working parents happily leave their kids in this place close to a month under the special care of grand parents.

With almost a dozen of cousins, there used to be a lot of time for bonding. Each one from different place and those cousins out of city have a ball of time showing of their superior difference. The day starts very early. With an early morning race to bath first and then for a morning walk. I am probably one of those blessed people to have spent holidays at villages, cities, and even those vast government employees� quarters.

Well, I don�t want to make this sound like a retro thing, but it still holds so much true. From playing cards and carom all through the day and a good afternoon nap with cousins all around and grand ma�s lullaby. Those days can never return. The best part would be the time the entire house is blacked out just to watch a movie in the rented video cassette player.

After so many days of blissful joblessness, one day a family outing is planned to very own Vandalur zoo or the Sattanur Dam. With preparations running close to mid night the whole family sets out on this joy trip.

Now for todays vacation! The timetable goes like this. Morning starts the swimming class, back home for breakfast, then to build vocabulary in set classes. Half sun dried returning home for a small nap and a whole lot of video games with the neighboring kids in the flat. God, its evening, run to the badminton class, and then dance class. At night an outing with parents!

This one has major advantage of optimum utilization of time. There are also tours and how can one forget the summer camps. Probably after few years one might write about this way of enjoying holiday, and that might kindle nostalgia. So proves that change is inevitable.

SOWJANYA.S