Balancing the hectic school hours followed by home assignments hardly give students any time to indulge in sports. What can be a better time than the long winter holidays when you can actively participate in various sports activities? Be it outdoor games like basketball, football (soccer), volleyball, Karate, gymnastics or just indoor games like chess, table tennis (ping pong), among others, the benefits of sports are aplenty. [break]
It not only makes you physically alert and helps maintaining a healthy body but also makes you creative intellectually.

It boosts your cognitive activities, inculcates team spirit, boosts confidence, helps maintaining a healthy lifestyle, builds team spirit and helps meeting new people who are likeminded and share the same passion.
If you don’t have enough space to play your favorite sports, Dashrath Stadium at Tripureshwor offers membership with minimum charges for students for sports like Taekwondo, Judo, Karate, among others. They also have basketball and football camps regularly.
Read
As soon as you flip the pages of a book, you’re transported into a different world. That’s the power of reading. The hectic schedules of school may not have allowed you to spend time reading books that are other than the course books.
So winter holidays are the time to start that active mental process when you have all the time in the world. Reading not only makes your senses active by exposing you to new and different ideas, it also relaxes you.
The benefits of reading are aplenty. Reading gives you an insight into the culture of others, boosts your general knowledge, increases your vocabulary, and improves your concentration, and much more. So rather than glaring at the so called idiot box, why don’t you glean the pages of some fascinating books?

Hiking
Taking a stroll into the wilderness of the nature can be enthralling. Vacation is the apt time to go for hiking, which will take not much of your time and is also very feasible.
Hiking not only relishes your senses but keeps you physically fit as well. The country is surrounded by beautiful landscapes and beautiful villages. Not far from the capital there are many places to explore which you can do along with your group of friends. So pack your bag and get ready.
If you want to take a one-day hiking, then you can take the route to Changu Narayan. For two-day hiking, you can try the Chisapani route, one of the most popular trekking trails in Nepal and also the Nagarkot hiking which will take three days.
Volunteering
It takes commitment and passion for one to take out their time to volunteer. It’s selfless deeds that help in learning so much. If you’re bored staying at home and don’t have anything substantial to do, then volunteering can be the right thing for you to do. You can volunteer for various causes that are taking place in the society.
Volunteering also helps in skills development, helps you interact with different people, learn from them and also makes you feel good as you’re doing something without expecting anything in return. You can also take an initiative to start your own campaigns, like a cleaning campaign in your neighborhood.
Try your hands in gardening
One of the best ways to be with Nature is gardening. It not only reduces stress but is a perfect way to unwind. It also teaches one to have more patience and also is a great way to exercise.
Gardening also helps in getting to know your creative side. Most of you have gardens at your place, big or small, or some greenery at your neighbors’ place. You can also assist your elders or your seniors when they are gardening. You can help them sow some seeds or at least water the plants and flowers.

Try enhancing your culinary skills
Due to their hectic lifestyles, people usually don’t have the time to prepare food and tend to eat out. So, during free time, it’s always fun to try your hands on making something new at your home and hone your culinary skills.
Cooking is an art and also helps people to relax. Cooking also allows people to bond with their family. You can also assist your mother in the kitchen and in the meantime learn from her as well. During this free winter, you can learn new recipes that you always wanted to and never had the time to.
Attend creative workshops
These days, a lot of workshops are taking place in the capital, be it workshops on scriptwriting, creative writing, photography and arts, among others. It provides an apt platform where different people can come together, share their ideas, learn and socialize as well.
Because such workshops don’t have a formal environment, unlike the classrooms, it allows students to express themselves freely. It helps in building creativity and teaches the importance of teamwork. So during this vacation time, you can look around and participate in any of the workshops that are happening currently.
The Image Park and Artudio are presenting a ten-day ‘Digital Photography Workshop at Lazimpat from December 22.
Word Mill Special is a writing workshop on poetry, fiction and non–fiction facilitated by Samrat Upadhyay from Indiana University and two American writers, Katie Moulton and Nandi Comer, at Thames College, Old Baneshwor on December 21
Indulge in your hobbies
Everyone has a hobby but it’s always hard to maintain one. So this holidays, make it a point to stick to your favorite pastime. Be it painting, sketching, making arts and crafts, knitting, making scrapbooks or working with clay, hobbies help in stimulating your mind and also help you get rid of your mental fatigue. Moreover, what can be better than just doing what you’re really into?

Try adventurous sports, like rafting
One of the most recreational outdoor activities is rafting. It’s not only challenging but will completely refresh you as well. The degree of risks involved in such a sport gives you an adrenaline rush and rejuvenation as well.
Such sports are also believed to teach people to be self-reliant, make them get out of their comfort zone, develop communication skills and also help in working in a team.
For beginners, you can try the short river rafting on Bhote Koshi, Trishuli and Seti which is a package of one night and two days.
Winter travel tips