Wearing her ‘heart’ on her sleeve

Bahrain continues to live on in the heart of young former resident Kimaya Kapoor, who recently delivered a presentation on Durrat Al Bahrain at her school in Canada where she now resides, writes Melissa Nazareth.

The 12-year-old Grade Seven student attending Dr David R Williams Public School in Oakville, Ontario, even has a favourite ‘Bahrain T-shirt’, which she often wears to school.

She wore it on the day of the assignment too, for which she scored 100 per cent.

Having lived on the island with her family for 10 years before migrating in 2019, she wanted to bring alive her love for Bahrain.

When the project was announced at her school, she decided to choose ‘Durrat Al Bahrain’ based on her memories of the place from when she lived in the kingdom. Durrat is the third-largest artificial island after Northern City and Diyar Al Muharraq Islands.

“I researched about Durrat Al Bahrain and prepared a write-up for the presentation. I wanted to choose something about Bahrain, and I remembered the islands,” the former Juffair resident told GulfWeekly. “What I miss the most is the food and the lifestyle,” she added.

Father Vivek Kapoor – a chartered accountant and former chairman of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India Bahrain Chapter – reminisced about his daughter’s birth at the Royal Bahrain Hospital and their time together in Bahrain.

“We have beautiful memories of our time as a family in the kingdom. My wife Shanu arrived in Bahrain with our elder daughter Ayana when she was an infant. Both our children studied at the International School of Choueifat in Amwaj Islands.

“The warmth we have received from the people there and the safe environment we lived in hold special significance for us. If life offers another opportunity to move, Bahrain will undisputedly be the choice,” Vivek added.

The family hopes to visit soon and have many friends in Bahrain. Kimaya cannot wait to tuck into a plate of hot balaleet – her favourite dish – when she is here again, with her family, including mum Shanu – a finance and banking professional – and elder sister Ayana, 17, who studies at the White Oaks Public School in Oakville.

Excerpts from her presentation read:

‘Durrat Al Bahrain is a big gain for Bahrain, helping it increase its land reclamation area. 

Durrat Al Bahrain definitely came out successfully.

...tourists would come just to see this project, boosting the economy for Bahrain.’