One Month in....

Welcome Back!

I’ve officially completed my fourth week here in Anadur, India.  And to tell you the truth, I’m loving it.  Now, I can’t say that I don’t miss the conveniences that city life brings – especially one in the US.  But it has been fantastic to get away and become more in tune to life without things I often take for granted: TV, air conditioning, forks...  You know.

I’ve finally gotten settled, got together a bit of a routine, and have started to make this little campus my home.

I'll start you off with a beautiful picture taken from
 the balcony at work.  This looks onto the front "lawn" of my NGO.

My Daily Schedule

-- 6:30am: The natural alarm clock of 3 barking dogs RIGHT outside my window begin.  If only other things in my life could be so constant.  I attempt to fall back asleep.

-- 7:30am: My electronic alarm clock goes off. 

-- 7:45am: I finish hitting the snooze button. 

-- 7:45 – 9:00am: Wake up, throw on some clothes, and run to the hot water tap with my two buckets: one for shower and one for laundry.  Cross my fingers that we have hot water today.

-- 9:00am SHARP: Whether I want to or not, I will get a fierce knocking on my door forcing me to breakfast.  It doesn’t matter that I’m in the middle of a Skype conversation, or need another five minutes to finish my shower, breakfast is currently being served and I need to be there.

Breakfast!  This dish is sushila, a puffed rice dish cooked 
with onions, chilis, peanuts, and turmeric.  Some lime on the side.  

-- 9:30am-ish – 1:00pm: Work.  I say 9:30 ish only because…by the time I get downstairs to the office and people actually start to show up.  What’s the difference, 9:30/10:00.  The Indian working environment is DEFINITELY different from the high-pressure, high-stress American one.  I have never felt so relaxed and at ease (the most stressed I’ve been is when I accidently misplaced my phone).  Some days are more productive than others.  Other days you might find me catching a few ZZZs in a corner chair.

The office!  As you can see, it's crowded at 10:00am.

-- 1:00pm: LUNCH…which I’m usually starving for.  And I have recently discovered probably the most ingenious thing: the afternoon nap.  By 1:30, I am sprawled on my bed, fast asleep for a nice 30 minute snooze.

-- 2:00 – 5:30pm: Let’s finish up this day!  Chit chat with the colleagues, get some work done. All in a day’s work.

-- 5:30pm: TEA TIME. A great afternoon break. 

-- 6:00 – 8:00pm: Relax from the day.  Usually I’ll hang around the campus, go for a walk, grab some personal internet time, or relax with my new friends on the campus.

-- 8:00pm: Dinner.  Same rules for breakfast apply here.  If I’m not at the mess by 8:00pm, someone’s coming for me.

-- 9:00pm: Back to my room, unwind, and get ready for bed.  Many of you have utilized this time to pester me with your Skype calls (actually, keep at it.  It might be the only thing keeping me sane).  I’ll grab a book, get some reading in, and just relax from the day.

-- 11:00 – 12:00am: Put up the mosquito net.  Turn on the electronic mosquito repellant coils.  Take my malaria pills. (Do I sound paranoid yet).  And sleep.

And it all starts over again.  Monday through Saturday, you’ll find me with the above routine.

My work

So I’m sure you are all very interested in learning what I’m actually doing here in India.  Well, I’ve just recently figured that one out myself (whew…) and I’m really looking forward to it.  My task (at least right now): to create a data management system so that my NGO can accurately/reliably track one of its programs.  In layman’s terms: create a monster excel spreadsheet that can store a lot of info.  In professional jargon, create a Management Information System (MIS).  The program I’m currently working on is a health/microfinance program, called “Women’s Empowerment”.  The idea is that women’s microfinance groups within villages can help empower women to better take charge of their health, local governance, domestic violence, etc. 

So, in order to learn more about current MIS systems in place, I traveled to Solapur (the closest city – 40 km away) to shadow coworkers in a project that works in the city’s slums.  The project encourages women’s microfinance groups within the slum to “adopt” pregnant women and ensure that they get proper prenatal and postnatal care.  I have to say, this has been one of the most sobering and fascinating experiences in my life.  Every person I met was happy to see/meet me and proud to show me the work that they had been doing.  Aside from the conditions of their homes or the depth of their bank accounts (which wasn't much), I felt a genuine sense of warmth from the community.  

Now, I want you to forget Slumdog Millionaire.  This isn’t Mumbai. The slums that I went to were not as destitute as the ones you are thinking of.  Many of Mumbai slums are illegal communities that spring up around the city.  Solapur's slums are legal (oxymoronic...I know).  And maybe it was because Solapur isn’t as poor (maybe?) or that I wasn’t taken to those slums specifically.  Most homes were concrete, or were mostly concrete with some corrugated metal roof/walls.  Main features were that: people were poor.  And people were lower caste.  I didn’t realize it, but caste is SUCH a major player here in India.  In one slum, the entire slum community was dalit (or community below the entire caste structure).  Interesting tidbit, they were mostly Buddhist.  Why?  My guess is that back in the 1950s, a very famous Dalit leader Dr. Ambedkar (who actually wrote the Indian Constitution) converted to Buddhism.  This prompted a lot of dalit communities to convert as well, hoping to leave the caste system behind.  Unfortunately, it didn’t work, and a lot of dalits still find themselves poor and excluded from most social/public roles.


I went with coworkers, meeting the contact people within the slums, and doing some home visits to pregnant women and recently delivered mothers.

A "candid" photo with members of the Ragwarda slum in Solapur.  
These women are a part of the local women's microfinance group. 

Grabbing some tea at a community volunteer's house in 
the Municipal Corporation slum before heading off to another 
Bachat Gat, or microfinance meeting.

A microfinance meeting at the Municipal Corporation slum. 
 Here, they are showing me how they explain to pregnant mothers
 about the need for good nutrition during pregnancy.  
As you can see, these meetings become a family affair.

Drinking some tea at the home of a recently delivered 
mother who had been "adopted" by the local microfinance 
group.    In this house, about 4 families live together.  
I think this stop was my 7th cup of tea for the afternoon.  
Each house would offer me a glass of water (which I would politely 
refuse - gotta play safe) and then boil me up some tea.  
I had to accept, otherwise it would have been impolite.

At another slum, a majority of the women generate income 
by making biddis, which are homemade cigarettes.  
A woman can make approximately 80 Rupees a day in such activities, 
approximately $1.60 USD.  Definitely not enough to cover the 
expenses of a home and family.  But this is one of the only 
professions limited to members of the community. 

Language

Well, I can carry on a simple conversation: ask about the village, your farm, questions about your marriage and kids.  I would consider this a HUGE success on my part, especially because I’m not receiving any real formal training in the language.  In the official NGO office, no one speaks fluent English.  So I need to learn Marathi out of necessity.  Fortunately, what I’ve found with Marathi (and I think this runs with Hindi too), is that about 5-10% of words are actually English crossovers (i.e. office, tension, project, etc).  So this makes things A LOT simpler. 

Last week, I went to a monthly meeting in Lohara (a neighboring county) with leaders of women’s microfinance groups of about 15 surrounding villages.  I went with the NGO’s accountant, who does speak English.  The meeting was in a city about 40km away.  However, it took over 2 hours to get there – by way of 2 buses and a stop for tea.  We arrived at the meeting site.  I gave my “Namaste”s around the room and sat on the floor.  During the course of the meeting, I mainly sat aside and watched as women discussed (in Marathi) issues in their villages with regards to local governing bodies, a health insurance scheme run by the NGO, microfinance issues, etc.  The accountant occasionally turned to me and translated so I understood the gist of what was going on.  As the meeting wound to a close and financial matters were being taken care of, the accountant looked at me and said “It’s your turn.”  I looked at him, “For what?”   “To speak.”  I think as punishment for being silent during the meeting, I was forced to speak to the group of 20 women before me…in Marathi.  Well, here I go.

The group of women village leaders during the meeting.  

So now, everyone in the Lohara area knows I come from America, am not married (I use my age as an excuse…but that usually doesn’t fly with most people. Marriage is early here), have an older brother who works in IT (sorry, closest I could get to what you actually do) and is also NOT married (a big shocker here), a father in IT, and a teacher mother who is now retired.  Yes, the Adelman life history has spread all across the Anadur/Lohara region.  And this is actually the course of most conversation I have, so I wouldn’t be surprised if all of Maharashtra knows by now.

And so the trip back to Anadur, I must share, took approximately 3 hours by way of 3 forms of transportation: shared jeep, shared rickshaw, private rickshaw.  Shared vehicles attempt to pack as many living bodies (notice I say living bodies and not people) into one transportation device as possible.  In the shared jeep we took, which should comfortably fit about 10 people, we had squeezed 19 people (4 of them being children), 5 crates of eggs, and a sack of potatoes.  On other vehicles I had seen goats and chickens as well.  I WISH I had a picture to share with you, put seeing as I had one leg out the back of the car and half a butt-cheek on a seat, I wasn’t able to reach my camera.  But I thought the mental picture might be enough.

Holidays

And just in case you were wondering, we’ve just finished celebrating two holidays here in India: Navratri and Dasserha.  Now, Navratri is actually a really really fun holiday filled with huge dance parties late into the night for 9 days straight.  However, it’s celebrated mainly in Gujarat (the state I had my orientation in) and major cities.  So, I wasn’t celebrated out here in rural Anadur. 

We did celebrate Dasserah, which is the same 9 days of Navratri plus one – 10 days total.  Now, I didn’t understand too much of why it’s celebrated, but most/some women fast for the 10 days.  On the 10^th day, everyone exchanges a certain kind of leaf and exchanges a Hindi greeting “Gold and Silver,” meaning our relationship will be like gold and silver (I think).  And on the 10^th day we ate some sweeter than usual food.  Here's a link to the Wikipedia post for more info if you're interested...

A Dassera Pooja, or place for prayer, in the home of a 
community volunteer at Municipal Corporation slum.

And so I’m sure you’ve read enough by now.  So I’ll cut it here.  But thanks for reading!  Some final pictures to leave you with...

I really do see some gorgeous sunsets here.  On my evening walk.

A picturesque view of the sky and farms.

Andrew

I thought I'd leave you with this happy picture.  
Sons of some of the volunteers of the Ragwarda 
slum. On the left, Abizek aged 8 and on the right 
Saheb aged 6.  It was Saheb's birthday!

Adventures in Anadur

And so I’ve survived my first week here in Anadur.  I don’t think survive is quite the right word… I’ve lived my first week here in Anadur.  It has truly been a fantastic journey for me to acquaint myself to living in rural India.  I tell you, it’s a bit different than living in Los Angeles. 

You have to love an Indian sunset.  Picture taken in Anadur.

So first, my accommodations.  My work is located on a campus about 2km outside of the village of Anadur.  The closest city is Solapur, which is located about 1 hour away by bus.  I’ve visited twice for work and to get myself some personal things (toiletries, sheets, etc.).  It is a pretty standard city, population about 3 million it seems.  I’m planning on “exploring” it at some point in the next few weeks, so I’ll update with some more info then.  The same goes with Anadur, population 10,000.  I haven’t really had the chance to explore the village too well because the only way for me to get there is by own two feet, and I haven’t felt quite so motivated yet.

Part of the vegetable market in Solapur.  
I was able to see it as we were going to fix 
the company car.  
Definitely more to come about Solapur.

The “campus” of the organization that I’m working with consists of 2 buildings located off of a main highway (one of which is a hospital, so I’m safe…..), but is completely surrounded by land and farms.  It’s gorgeous here.  At night I can look up into the sky and see thousands of stars (not something we can really do in LA).  Peacocks, cows, and stray dogs roam the fields.  I’m starting to get in tune with nature.  Although I have to admit that I have a small fear that anything with more than two legs has the ability to completely devour me…insects included (although the mosquitos have already taken advantage of that one).  I know I can get over this fear, but I think it may take me some time…

The campus!  To the left is the hospital.  To the right 
is the office and guest house (where I sleep).  
In front is one of the MANY stray dogs of India.  
Read on for further information about them.

The view from my window.  In the foreground is the 
small garden planted by the organization 
(completely organic).  

I am living in a guest room, pretty standard.  But, exciting news, it comes complete with…a flushing toilet.  Oh yes, no more squatting here.  So only positivity on my end.  The best part is that the organization runs a nursing school to train Auxiliary Nurse-Midwives (ANMs), who work in the villages as a part of government health centers.  So the school consists of 19 village girls ranging from age 18 to 29 (some are married with children back at home).  So they roam the “halls”.  I’m still attempting to learn their names: 8 down, 11 more to go.  The only issue is: none of them really speak English. 

My room!  Nothing to get too excited about though.

Which comes to obstacle number 1: language.  Yes, I am currently one week into learning yet another language: Marathi.  Marathi is the regional language of the state of Maharashtra (which is where I’m located).  Although close to Hindi (which I was learning in Ahmedabad), it is different enough that my 3 weeks of Hindi classes don’t help much.  Well, I’ve started learning this language.  However, I can currently only speak in singular first person present tense, which limits me to sentences like “I want food” and “I dance with my feet”.  Some other basics I’ve learned are: Maza nau Andrew ahe (My name is Andrew), and a good one: Tumza gau kotay ahe? (Where is your village?).  But then again, I’m only one week in.  We’ll see where I stand a few months from now.

The food, as I’m sure you all want to know, is pretty standard fare.  I eat in the mess with all the other students (although they usually eat at different times than me).  Breakfast will usually consist of some sort of grain dish with roasted peanuts and onions and chillis.  Such dishes are called: poha or sushila.  Lunch and dinner are the same: a vegetable (which varies from meal to meal. Examples include: bitter gourd, cabbage, or potato), chapatti (toasted flat bread), rice, and a watery lentil dish (called warad).  So although it seems like I’m carbo-loading, there is no planned marathon in sight.  I can only hope that I’m getting enough protein….

But the people here have been really warm and welcoming.  I’m currently in this position where I’m still very much considered a visitor at some points, where at others I’m just another employee.  The students have taken to calling me “Andrew Sir”, which flies really weird with me.  But then again, it’s not like I can tell them to stop (seeing as I can’t form that kind of sentence yet).  The NGO employees are again very nice and welcoming.  I’m trying to learn everyone’s name, but then again that’s a challenge because it isn’t American names I’m trying to learn, but Indian names that are really unfamiliar to me.  And Obstacle 2: none of the employees really speak too much English.  So…I guess that’ll force me to learn Marathi?  Or have no substantial conversations for the next 10 months.   I think I’m going to go for the former.  Fortunately, the teachers of the Nursing School are three guys aged 24/25 and speak very fluent English.  Hence, 3 new friends!  It’s very exciting.  They’re from Karnataka, a bordering state to Maharashtra, and speak Kannada (no, not Canadian...), with only varying degrees of Marathi. 

The first day I arrived in Anadur was the last day of the holiday of 
Ganpati, which celebrates the god Ganesh.  
It lasts 10 days, and on the last day a statue of Ganesh 
is thrown into a lake.  Here, all the people of the 
organization are preparing to throw the statue 
in the lake.  To the left are the girls of the Nursing School.

The work…oh the work.  I’m still figuring out my place here at work and what exactly I’m to be doing.  I know they want me to be creating information management systems, but I’m trying to figure out exactly what that means.  So for this week, I am merely trying to orient myself into the organization, finding out more about their programs and projects, and mentally coordinating the structure of the organization.  Pretty soon I have to develop a workplan, so hopefully I’ll be better situated to do that. 

And so my week ends.  I try to walk around the campus after dinner each day.  I’ve spent a fair amount of time reading.  And I am woken every morning at about 6:00am by 3 stray dogs barking their guts outside my window…why? I’m not entirely sure.  But I have no desire to get in the middle of it. 

One morning the head of the organization (who also
 lives on the campus) woke me up at 7:00am - yeah, 
that's early - to go to Naldurg, a city about 5km away, 
which has an impressive fort that was built 
in the 1500s.  Here's a view of the fort.

Certain years when there is enough rain, 
the fort forms these waterfalls.   This year, there was 
enough rain (actually a lot in India).  
Here I am sitting in a room underneath one waterfall 
and looking out to another.  
It was gorgeous.  Again, this is about 7:30am.

I’ve heard LA had some scorching temperatures.  But luckily monsoon season is coming to an end here and weather is really evening out.  So I can’t really relate to the heat anymore. 

Stay cool!

Andrew

Reporting Live from Anadur

Just wanted to post a quick note that I've arrived in Anadur!  By way of plane, train, and automobile, I've finally made it!  It is a weird feeling to be separated from the rest of the fellows now that we've all split up to our different placements.  But then again that gives us each the opportunity to grow and form a community here in India.  I don't have too much to report, but just want to let everyone know that I'm safe and still alive. 


I'll let you all know how I do settling in and getting started with work!


Missing you all!


Andrew

Orientation Ends

And so orientation is drawing to a close. On Sunday evening, our work counterparts from our partner NGOs will arrive to spend our last few days together, and then we all depart our separate way for the next 5 months. It’s ridiculous to think how quickly the past four weeks have gone by, and that only makes me more nervous about the next 10 months. But, day by day I continue to tell myself. No need to freak out too early…

I had my last evening with my host family a a week and a half ago.  They are probably the nicest couple I have ever met!  In order to better accommodate all of our schedules, we decided it would be best for me to spend the night at their house.   Well, for dinner I had CHICKEN biryani.  Yes, chicken!  I slept in a room that had not only a fan, but AC!  I had company in the form of their 70lb Doberman sleep with me throughout the night.  And they took me to their gym the next morning where I went for a swim!  As you can tell, I was pretty excited by the whole experience.  The greatest part is, they're a a genuinely warm and open couple.  I asked about their relationship, which they said was accepted wholeheartedly by both their parents.  Overall, this has been a fantastic part of the orientation.

My host mom, host dad, and me!

The past few weeks have really allowed us to delve into some serious subjects about Indian society: Hindu/Muslim relations and the Caste system. We’ve had some amazing guest speakers at the ashram and trips related to these issues. Some highlights:

• Hindu/Muslim Relations: After the creation of Pakistan as an Islamic state in 1947, many Muslims in India left. Now, Hindu’s make up about 80% of the Indian population, with Muslims coming in second at about 15%. In 2002, Gujarat (the state I’m currently living in) was the site of a huge riot against Muslims by Hindu nationalists. The attacks are extremely politically controversial, with many claiming them to be supported by the political elite. Whatever the case, it means that there are some major tensions that continue to impede progress toward reconciliation between the two religious groups. This has huge implications for politics and cricket (the Pakistan v. India cricket match is supposed to be epic!). But a fantastic movie if you have some time: Parzania. It’s a fictional movie based on real events about the riots.
  

• Caste System: We were fortunate enough to be able to go on a few community visits to talk with people of the dalit community. Dalits are at the bottom of the caste system and were traditionally limited to work dealing with human excrement and animal skins. The caste system is ingrained into the Hindu religion and all people are put into this social hierarchy. It goes, from top to bottom:
  

o   Brahmin (typically priests)

o   Kshatriya (the warrior caste)

o   Vaisyas (merchants and farmers)

o   Sudras (unskilled workers)

o   Dalits (the bottom of the social food chain)

Fortunately, there are some fantastic NGOs in India working with Dalit communities to help empower men and women to expand their public and social roles. We were able to have a few roundtables with men and women from different villages and hear about their experiences. Unfortunately, no pictures here. But I’m sure with my NGO I’ll be able to do similar work and I can share it with you then.

Field Trip! Yes, we had a field trip this week. We were headed to Politana, a pilgrimage site of temples for people of the Jain religion. Jainism is an off-shot of Hinduism whose most orthodox participants are stricter than vegans: they don’t eat meat, dairy, root vegetables, or after dark (for fear that they might accidentally eat an insect).

So let me tell you how this field trip went. Our day began at 6am, at which the 11 of us fellows boarded a bus. What we thought was a 3 hour bus ride turned into a 6 hour journey…in a cramped, Indian charter bus. We arrived at Polytana and were confronted by 3200 steps leading to the peak of a mountain. It turns out Polytana is actually at the top of the mountain. Well, I thought to myself, it must be worth it right? Shortly after we began the ascent, it began to monsoon rain for about 1.5 hours. So, soaking wet and sore, we finally arrived at the top of this mountain. And I have to tell you, these temples are gorgeous (you’ll notice from the pictures). Was the trek worth it? Definitely. We then made the journey back down the mountain (no rain this time) and the 6 hour bus ride back to the ashram. I came away with an immense appreciate for the work it took to make those temples...and a cold, which has caused me to skip the past 3 days of scheduled programming here at orientation.

Some of the stairs leading up to Politana.  You can see a couple of people walking up.

A few from the peak of teh mountain.  And yours truly!

The entrance to Politana.  We have Sami and Jamie posing in front!

Some of the beautiful architecture of the temples.

But on a better note, for breaking the fast on Yom Kippur we’re having bagels and lox!! As you can probably imagine, we’re pretty excited about this!

Yep, that's lox and bagels...in India!  Not exactly the same as home, but good enough!

If you couldn't guess, this is a McDonald's here in India.  Menu complete with: McVeggie, McRaja Mac, and Paneer Salsa Wrap.  And what could be better than some McDonald's French Fries.  Um Um good!

Well, the next time I update I’ll be in Anadur! Hope all is well stateside!

Andrew

Doing it Indian Style...

Picture this: 5 young 20-somethings rocking out to Justin Bieber while washing clothes with a bucket and spicket.  And thus began my Thursday afternoon.  I think the Justin Bieber was our small longing for American culture, but I will not deny my utter enjoyment from the experience.  But, all aside, I officially completed my first attempt at laundry.  7 buckets worth of clothing and 5 hours over 2 days, I was able to successfully clean my first set of dirty clothes.  I think I’m going to reform how I wear/wash clothes… as in reduce, reuse, recycle.  However, overall it is an extremely grueling process that I need to get used to because I will have to continue to repeat it over the next 11 months. 

The laundry crew, clothes in the background.  Success!

         Well, overall this has been a fantastic week.  Prior, we really had been secluded to our ashram and hadn’t really seen too much of the city of Ahmedabad.  It was as if we were in a bubble, shielded from many of the realities of our city and the opportunities that existed past its gates.  But, fortunately, this week we began to explore.  Some of the activities of the week:

• Homestay Family: We have all been broken up and given “homestay” families.  Every Sunday night, we spread out to our homestay families for dinner and cultural immersion.  My family is fantastic.  They are a couple, married within the past year, and recently returned from Toronto, Canada where they completed their Masters in architecture.  The husband is Rajasthani(a northern Indian state) and the wife is Iranian.  They’re young, hip, and are excited about their new architecture business here in Ahmedabad.   Best part of the evening, I was served eggs (which are almost considered black market here) and beer (which you need a special permit to buy in the state of Gujarat).  I can tell you all the other fellows were jealous about the above two.  I’m really interested in learning about the acceptance of their international/racial relationship, but I think I’ll ask that at our second meeting on Sunday…save the sensitive subjects for later.
• HINDI CLASS: So, I’m finally fluent in Hindi.  JUST kidding.  But we have started to take our language classes.  We are being thrown into the language from the beginning and have immediately begun learning to speak.  Who needs the alphabet….  But I have begun to pick up some essentials, like the numbers and some basic greetings and questions.  (Un)fortunately, I’m going to have to learn another language when I get to my placement, Marathi, which is very close to Hindi and shares the same alphabet, but is slightly different.  Taking it one by one though…
• Scavenger Hunt: WOW.  What a way to spend the afternoon!  Last Tuesday, as a part of our programming, we were split into pairs and given a list of tasks/places to visit around the city.  My partner (Shaina) and I were determined to get through the entire list.  However, all the clues were “coded” and, with our minimal Hindi, provided some difficulty in figuring out where to go.  We got through most of the tasks, and had a great time exploring the city.   Some pictures of where we went:

Find Pani Puri, an Indian street food.

Find a live chicken.  Not so easy in a city that is mostly vegetarian.

Find Gandhi's 3 friends.  This is located on the famous Gandhi ashram (not the one we're staying on, but another).  We added a couple of our own as well...

• An Indian Jewish community?: Believe it or not, we went to synagogue this week.   Wednesday marked the 76^th anniversary of the synagogue here in Ahmedabad.  The bustling Jewish community here in the state of Gujarat boasts a staggering 125 members.  So, needless to say, this community and building really is a testament to their faith and dedication.  The entire experience was surreal.  Indian people, praying in Hebrew and doing the HavaNegilah, with names like “Elijah Jacobson”.  The community was really excited to have us, and are looking forward to have us as a part of their high holiday services (which are next week and the week after – Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur).  I think the feelings are mutual, as many of us are just as interested in seeing how this community celebrates these holidays.

A processional around the synagogue with their Torah.  What a sight

• Holidays…Indian style: So, I would have to guesstimate that about every other week in India there is a holiday.  Since I’ve been here, there have been 2.  Please forgive me if I get some of the details wrong in describing them, but I’ll give it my best try

o       Raksha Bandan: This is the brother-sister holiday, where sisters tie a “rahki”, usually a red string, around their brothers as a sign of protection and loyalty to each other.  Celebrated the day of our arrival last Tuesday, each of the men in our group was tied by Sunitaji, the AJWS in-country representative, and continue to wear the red rahki around our wrists.  And we really have been taken under Sunitaji’s wing, more like a mother than a sister.  She has been an amazing guide to the city and life here in India.

o       Janama Ashtami: Thursday was the Lord Krishna’s birthday (one of the Hindu gods).  Throughout the day (and during the middle of one of our sessions here on the ashram), people in cars and floats go down the street with music and drums to celebrate the birth of Krishna.  This goes on until midnight (the exact time of his birth) where everyone gathers in the middle of the city, at which point there is a big celebration in the streets.  Unfortunately, we weren’t able to go to the celebration, but we were able to see fireworks from our ashram.

And thus was my last week here in India.  I’m going to start a Word/Phrase of the Week, where I’d like to teach you all a little something from my life here in India.  This week, it will be: bahut sundar: very beautiful.  I’m going to tell you, this one has come in handy.

Have a great week you all!!

Andrew

New Thoughts, New Masala!

I want to set a few things straight first.  Yes, cows do roam the streets at will.  Yes, you do call them chaiwallas (the men who make/bring chai) and drink it at least 3 times a day.  Yes, poverty is very apparent and children will often come up to you asking for money or food.  Shoes are taken off before you enter a house.  My hands are my main and only utensil.  And yes, there are probably about 20 spices that go into every single dish.  But then again, it wouldn’t be India any other way. 

You can correctly assume that I’ve arrived in India safe and in one piece.  The program so far has been fantastic, and the fellow “fellows” have made this a great learning experience: a pluralistic community of people from many different backgrounds both religious and not.  Ranging from orthodox to agnostic, business majors to artists, it is a great group of young adults who are really interested in issues of development and social justice. 

We are living on Kochrab Ashram, the first ashram that Gandhi started in India.   An ashram is a community for spiritual and personal growth.  Our accommodations, I’m sure you all want to know about, are very…spartan.  Yes, squat toilets, bucket showers, and no internet.  It’s a great escape to actually be disconnected to the world and finally reconnected to yourself and your immediate community.  And in case you were wondering, I have successfully used a squat toilet.…not that bad.  The entire ashram is also vegetarian.  So that means no meat or eggs.  In fact, the entire state of Gujarat for the most part is entirely vegetarian...and dry (alcohol-wise).  I do have to say, the food has been fantastic.  I'm definitely not starving over here. 

Kochrab Ashram.

Our bathroom facilities.  Toilet on the Left, and shower on the right (complete with bucket).

The ashram is located in Ahmedabad, the largest city in the state of Gujarat.  Unfortunately, we haven’t had too much of a chance to explore the city of Ahmedabad given our schedule. However, I can tell you the temperature has been about a steady 85 degrees with probably 85% humidity.  Which means that I constantly have a layer of sweat and dirt covering my body 24 hours a day.  It is something I’m trying to get used to, but is really frustrating when you never get a reprieve (read down to the movie part and you’ll understand how fantastic that was).  Also, many of your ideas or stereotypes about India are true to a degree.  Extreme poverty is a blatant occurrence, with children coming to you in rags asking for money.  Yes, cows do roam the streets at will and cars swerve /stop/avoid them to the best of their abilities.  Traffic is terrible, and I am truly amazed by the ability of rickshaws and motorcycles to dodge between large trucks, other cars, cows, people, and the occasional elephant and camel.  But at the end of the day, all these make India a much more dynamic and interesting place.

Pretty self explanatory

Just a little rickshaw race.  Greeting some of our fellows during our ride.

This past week, most of our programming centered around Judaism.  I’ve never really engaged with Judaism in the way that I have this week.  India is a country filled with religions and religious complexities (Hinduism, Sikhism, Buddism, Jainism, Judiasm, etc), and it is a really exciting backdrop to think and discuss about issues of Judaism, social justice, and faith.  We had our first Shabbat together this past Friday night/Saturday, and held services together in the ashram.  It was almost…magical…in having everyone come together, each with this common thread, celebrating the Sabbath.  We celebrated in a way that made everyone able to participate no matter their religious background.

A highlight.  We went to FabIndia: THE place to go to buy your typical Indian clothing.  For men, that means kurtas (or longer shirts with a distinct collar), and for women that means either a sari or salway kameez.  We spent hours there, and I did buy myself a few Indian clothes.  Before we went however, we had a quick fashion show using some borrowed clothing from Sunitaji (the in-country representative from AJWS, a wonderful woman that is helping us navigate our time here in India).

The group of us fellows.  Don't we look dashing!

            We also went to our first Bollywood movie the other day (bollywood is the Indian film industry), a terrible film called “Hello Darling” about a chauvinistic male boss in a Mumbai office.  But I have to say that it was amazing to sit in these theaters…about the level of an Arclight in Hollywood with plush, reclining seats, AC (now you know why this was so fantastic), and caramel popcorn.  I have never so much appreciated AC as I did this past Saturday night.  Although the movie was completely in Hindi, we were able to follow the plot.  And every now and then they would throw in an English sentence that would help keep things in context (although it would mostly be them swearing).

            And so here I am.  Learning and living in India.  We start language classes this week, so I’ll make sure to let you know when I’m fluent in Hindi.  Hopefully the weather will start to cool down soon….

(and if you’re interested in learning more about my flight here, keep reading)

Oxford Street in London.

The trip here was fairly uneventful: 20 hours on a plane, 7 hours in an airport, 6 hours in London, and 5 hours of sleep.  During our 10 hour layover in London, my flight-mate (Katie) and I decided to trek into London.  We arrived at Paddington Station (on the Central London express), explored Oxford Street and the Marble Arch.  (Laurie, things are looking good for you here.)  After our journey and a final stop at Starbucks, we went back to Heathrow and found some of our new fellows.  A burger, shot of jack, and beer later (my last of all these for while…), and we made our way to Mumbai.  As soon as we stepped off the airplane, a layer of sweat appeared over my entire body.  And it has yet to leave.  To be completely honest, I have sweated constantly over the past 5 days.  The humidity does not help.  But, another 4 hour layover and 1 hour flight and we made it to Ahmedabad.  We finally made it!  An exhausted group of 11 Americans ready for the experience of their life. 

Well here I go again...

For those of you who have been here before, thanks for stopping by.  For those of you who haven't, welcome.  Below you will find a detailed account of my study abroad experience in Jordan, so if you have some spare time it's a pretty interesting read (if I do say so myself).

But to come: 11 months in India.  Yes, I leave on Sunday for the experience of a lifetime.  By way of Los Angeles, London, and Mumbai, I will land in Ahmedabad on Tuesday to begin the AJWS World Partner's Fellowship.  An eleven month, hands-on exposure to development and social justice, I hope to come away with a better understanding of what these terms mean and how I can help impact them.  And maybe some good recipe ideas.....

Please, share your thoughts and opinions.  But more importantly, keep in touch!  Just because I'm on another continent does NOT mean that our relationship ends.

See you next year!