<h2>Kite- Flying as a Hobby of Bangladeshi Children</h2>

Little Children fly their Kite

                                             

Kite-flying is favorite hobby with many children both in towns and villages of our country. Kite are various kinds and shapes. Some of them are like square plates, some like snakes, some like men, while some others are like birds. One kind of them looks like an aeroplane and its framework is made of four pieces of bamboo sticks.

A Lot of Kites Fly in the Sky

       To make a kite, we need two thin sticks of bamboo, a certain length of string, some glue and some thin paper. On the upper surface of the kite, the two thin sticks are placed cross-wise, the one being straight and the other curved like a bow. They are tied together with a string. The four ends of the two sticks are then connected with a certain length of string to make the four edges of the kite. All these make the frame which is then covered with a piece of thin paper. The piece of paper is glued with the string on its four sides. It is also pasted with strips of paper with the sticks. Sometimes a tail is furnished to the kite to keep it steady in the air.       

        Latai is used to fly a kite. It is the reel round which long and thin thread, sharpened with froth of rice mixed with powdered glass, is wound up. One end of this thread is tied to the kite which is then let in the air. The kite is pushed up into the air from a distance and the man holding a Latai in hand turns it round to wind up the string. Then the wind pressing upon the kite tends to blow it away and the string joining it to the reel tends to keep it in. Thus it rises up to a height and stands still there. It then looks like a dot against the blue background of the sky and offers a very fine sight.

         The children of two countries, in particular, are very fond of flying kites. They are China and Japan. The children of these two countries make kites of various shapes and sizes. There are many festivals in these lands and kite-flying forms an erssential iteam of sports in them. In our country the winter is the best time for flying kites. Then there is an even flow of the wind and there is neither rain nor heat. So children take to kite-flying with great joy. They are seen running madly here and there with kites in there hands. In open fields or on house tops they meet and fly kites. Even the grown-ups stand by and enjoy the sight.

         The most interesting thing about kite-flying is the kite match. The thread of one flier is entangled with that of another. They by all their skill and device they try to get each other’s thread cut off. It is so exciting that even old people enjoy the fun. When one competitor succeeds in cutting the thread of his rival he wins the match. Though an interesting pastime kite-flying is always a joy.