Anjanta Pune/Pabal Gocorna

Ellora Caves

Hello Goa & Mumbai!

After a busy day in Pune running (well being chauffeured in our taxi!) picking up dresses, popping past Yogesh, getting legs waxed and popping in past the MWH Pune office we met up with Graeme and had dinner before getting on our sleeper bus to Goa.  Unfortuntaly we never got our seats on the train but luckily bus seats were still available at short notice.  Turns out the ‘seats’ though were actually beds! SO basically a sleeper bus in India is a bus full of fixed double bunk beds! This was very odd! Unfortunately because there were 3 of us I had to snuggle up to an Indian woman which was a struggle when the ‘double’ bunk beds are sized for Indian people and not us fatty westerners!   Surprisingly I got some sleep and actually quite enjoyed the journey. Next time though I reckon I will book 2 seats so I get a whole bed to myself!

We arrived in Madgoan at about 11am and hopped on another bus to Palolem where we were meeting Tommy-another Scottish EWB volunteer-poor Abi!  We were staying at the beach resort as all the other beach hut accommodation is not yet built.  We were very excited though as our room had a shower and beds that had mattresses thicker than 2cm!  We pretty much ran in the sea as soon as we got there and chilled the rest of the day with eating and drinking!-it was magical!



The next day we had booked a taxi for the day to take us to a spice plantation where we walked round and smelt and tasted all the trees. It was really fun especially seeing the cinnamon trees, nutmeg pods and vanilla vines. We had a lovely lunch there and a wee shot of the local fenny which burned our thoughts!  Back in the taxi we zoomed of to Old Goa where we looked at the old churches.  Including a mystical cross which supposedly grew after the carpenters made it and the body of Saint Xavier who only really become a saint after he died because his body didn’t decompose.  We think he must have been in a comma or something and not actually dead but I’m sure the religious Portuguese had a better idea!  On the ways home we went to Panaji where we stopped by some markets before heading back.

Fenny in coconut cups! (Check out the leaf plate again sof!)

Goa really isn’t like Pabal/Pune area at all. Its like a totally different country.  The Portugese influence is so significant-not just in the buildings such as the churches but the huge effect that the push of Christianity had on the area.  Here in Goa ladies some ladies wear skirts-I even saw some knee action! There is almost more non-veg restaurant that veg restaurants and a lot more booze shops and bellies!  It’s obviously a pretty rich state and even the roads were smooth.  I was asking our taxi driver about it all and he was saying that masses amounts of Russian tourists come to Goa and on the whole Indians don’t like them.  He also was saying that the government needs to do something about the spread of westernization that is happening across Goa.  It sounds like there is just as much corruption here as there is in the rest of India but because of the wealth of the state old people get a small pension.

The following day we had planned to get mopeds and drive up the coast. So after another morning dip we collected our bikes and went for a practice spin round the car park. Unfortunately Graeme dint quite make it and fell off his bike at the first corner! Oops.  Luckily he was only charged 2000 Rupees and realistically he saved us from potentially injuring ourselves!  We did feel utterly pathetic and British though but arranged for a boat trip that afternoon that our bike guy admitted would be less risky! Hehe  On the river boat tour we saw monkeys playing the trees which was amazing.

Us spotting Indian monkeys and Indian eagles and Indian crows-our tour guide was practically David Attenburgh!

The next day our plans for kayaking fell through as we were told it was not legal until 5 days later when permits were allowed again (you got to love rainy season!) so instead rented body boards and played around in the waves.  The beach was a lot busier over the weekend and at one point we even got a patch of blue sky!  It was nice though as it was really quiet and chilled and not including the dozens of dead fish and cow pats on the beach it was really clean.

From chatting with some of the waiters and stuff it sounds like for 4 months they do not work and then work very hard over high season. When not serving tourists many fish-both on little wooden boats and with a HUGE net that stretches over about 15 meters and needs at least 8-10 men to pull it in.  There were some ladies selling things on the beach nut I reckon in high season there are loads more.

At the weekend there were some Indians in the sea. Most of the guys seem to go in the water with their pants on and the girls in shorts & t-shirts.  We did get quite a lot of stares and even the boys had their picture taken with a group of random men.  It was funny to see 2 westerners sunbathing on the beach and the hoard of Indian men around them-I just couldn’t do it!

It rained everyday and pretty heavily and never really got blue.  It was fun though but when you look at the picture on the internet they look like a very different place!

Tommy left on the Sunday night back to Kanataka and me and Abi left on the Monday morning to Mumbai, Graeme was getting the bus back to Pune that afternoon.  Me and Abi had first class train tickets and boarded our extremely long train after having to run up the full length with our huge bags!  First class is air conditioned and has 4 people in a compartment.  Really it wasn’t any different from other carriage trains that Ive been on in Eastern Europe (except they leave the doors of the train open here!) but when we had a nosey at the seat car and 2^nd class we realized that we were actually in luxury!  The 10 hour journey was very pleasant and we were given soap and towels and later meals (that we paid for).  It was great watching all the wallahs selling in the train shouting various things as they went past our carriage.  The chai was different and not as thick as it was in Pabal but still tasty!

We arrived in Dadar station and were greeted by Holly who was in the year above me at Uni and works for Jacobs and has been living in Mumbai for a year now.  This was an absolute joy as Dadar is a very overwhelming station and we were getting a lot of attention!  We zoomed off to her amazing 3 bedroom (with mattresses at least 15cm thick!) 3 bathroom (with HOT showers and no buckets to be seen!) apartment by the beach in Juhu and felt like we were back in the UK!  She took us out to a really cool bar and had dinner.

There is currently a tuk tuk strike in Mumbai because petrol has gone up by 3 rupees. It’s pretty crazy as its quite difficult to get places without them!

The next day me and Abi planned to go on a slum tour in the morning but because of the strike we took ages getting to the station and so moved it to the afternoon.  Instead we had a walk around churchgate and had a look at the High court and university and looked across to Chowpatty beach.  We also might have had ice cream for breakfast-but only because it was Ab’s last day! We met our guide at the station and then hopped back on a train back the way we had just come.  We met some other tourists and then walked across the railway bridge to Dharvie slum.  The slum is divided into two sections-the commercial section and the residential section.  Dharvie is the biggest and most ‘luxurious’ slum in India. It has schools, hospitals and cinemas.  It really isn’t what I expected at all. There is so much industry! We saw plastic and aluminium recycling, tanning, clothes dying and baking.  Supposedly the bosses of these small industries live outwith the slums and the relationship between bosses and workers vary.  We were told that many migrants come to the slum and learn skills and earn 4x as much money as they would do in their villages.  The amount of recycling that happens is amazing! But obviously the health hazards the people are inflicting themselves to are great.  I was really surprised at the solidness of some of the buildings and the lack of smell that I was expecting.  There are some high rise apartments in the slum that have been built over the years and are supposedly very very expensive!  Its all to do with the location of the slum and the value of the land.  The government would love to take the land and build luxuary apartments on it but because of the shear volume of people (voters) the government do nothing.  We went with a group called Reality Tours that are an NGO that put the money they get from tours back into their community center that the run at the slum.

 It was a really interesting group and had a couple of links with some of the things we looked at at Vigyan Ahram.  The whole experience was amazing, some of the streets reminded me of Pabul, except that in the slums the roads are paved!  I do feel we got the ‘good side’ tour of the slum but I think that’s the aim of the group-to prevent people thinking slums are dirty and full of crime.  We had a look in some peoples homes and they were very very tiny rooms with no windows and a door onto a very very tight close.  Obviously there is very little privacy in the slums and living conditions are pretty poor. However there is electricity and water for 3 hours a day which the people are billed for.  The purpose of the slum is money. People come to make money and will do anything. The parents save for their children to send them to university.  It was really interesting and certainly changed my ‘slumdog millionaire’ attitude!

After being stuck in traffic for about 1.5 hours we got back to Hollies then quickly turned back round again to get the fast train down to Churchgate.  Unfortunately we hit second rush hour-because of all the call centers etc there are two sets of rush hours in Mumbai!  But luckily pushed our way on to the ladies carriage of the train where we got a seat whereas all the men were fighting to hold onto the door on the rest of the train!  Abi had done a days research in Pabal and decided she wanted to eat at the Taj hotel & Palace THE hotel in Mumbai for her end of project treat (Thank you Abi’s Dad!)-!  It was very lovely, we ordered sketches which meant we got 5 courses and wine for about £50 which is actually pretty reasonable but did make me feel incredible guilty!  Conscious aside though it was great fun and we had 2x starters (and then got a repeat of whatever we wanted-Abi had a full started agin-I was impressed!) then a tea pot came smoking with sorbet in it-just crazy! (it was dry ice!)  then a huge plate of lots of tasty currys and too much rice.  I couldn’t handle my paneer pudding so had round two of the tea pot sorbet which was amazing.  It really was a lovely treat and I’m glad we did it.

On the way home we got the taxi to give us a tour including the Victoria terminus train station which is like a palace, Chowpatty beach and the big sea bridge.  It was great to see Mumbai by night and to be in a car that moves!

Abi left for the airport when we got back as she was flying out super early the next morning. It was sad to see her leave after spending every minute together for the past 3 months! I now realize how lucky I am to be staying here for another month as I’m not ready to go home yet! 

Today I’ve just chilled at Holly’s and will try and write up some reports etc over the next few days both for EWB and for work.  I kind of feel like I’ve reached the end of a chapter and I’m excited for the next part!

Last Week in Vigyan Ashram

Our last week at Vigyan Ashram came round too quickly.  Desperately trying to pull together lessons on batteries and motors with very no internet for 2 days was pretty tricky and frustrating. Luckily Abi had her uni notes with her and from working from first principles over a few cups of chai and a couple of ladus we managed to convince me how they worked so that I may prepare a lessons for generators and motors! We attracted some attention from the locals with our ‘left hand rule’ and ‘right hand rule’ calculations!

Unfortunately due to other commitments at the school I was unable to deliver this lesson yet squeezed in my lessons on batteries which was ok but not what I would have chosen for my last lesson.  None the less it still gave the pupils to play with potatoes and wires.  They all thought I was crazy when I was telling them a potato acted like a battery until they got there voltage.  The principle got excited by this and sent for more potatoes and LED lights.  Unfortunately this didn’t work but I guess its good he was so excited by it.

The students were loving the old potato asd a battery experiment!

The theame of being invited round to peoples houses continued through to this week which was just lovely.  We went for lunch at the bangle lady and man’s house on Monday.  As it was ‘God Day’ the two men weren’t eating but we scoffed away with the ladies quite happily.  They made a huge veg rice thing and very tasty chapattis. They then showed us some photos of weddings-not just their own but a few of their families too. They also showed us pictures of their baby. Abi complimented a photo when he was younger and was gifted it with force which was very funny.  Then being the sales people that they are they pulled out some tacky bling and tried to flog it to us. We would have loved to have bought something but it just wasn’t as pretty as their normal bangles im afraid.  We were also offered if we wanted to buy a flute-which was odd and then she tried to make us buy ‘some ladies undergarments’ which was even better! We never got to see what she had on offer and we both regretted it!

Lunch with Bangle lady and her mother and sister

We were also invited by a lady who taught at the neighbouring high school. We first saw her one morning when we were jogging but it sounded like she had been watching us for many weeks! She was lovely though and insisted we come round to her house to make her mother happy.  After insisting that we had to be home for dinner at 9 we agreed to come round at 7pm.  She came to collect us from our room and dressed us in saris-they are so very complicated! Angita then decorated us with bangles & bindis. We felt a bit like her barbie dolls but it was very much fun! Her home was simple like Mushies and made from earth brick with a dung floor. It was pretty dark inside but still had a big tv!  Her brother (another engineer-surprise!) and mother were in the house and a few neighbours popped in to have a look at us too.  We were given some very tasty chai and we chatted about home and what we had been up to in India etc whilst her mother was cooking away. We were then given a plate with many different things on it such as rice, snozcumber chutney stuff, chippatti etc.  It looked like a sensible portion for pre dinner food but I was pretty stuffed afterwards. Then she gave us a bowl of banana wheat stuff which is very tasty but tipped me over the edge to being FULL.  It was such a lovely evening and again showed the crazy amazing hospitality of Indian village people.  On the way back poor Abi got pooed on by a bird which was quite funny as we had both tried SO hard to keep our saris clean whilst sitting on the floor and eating rice with our hand-it’s a challenge and a half-especially when there are about 4-5 people watching you eat!  So we got back to the school at about 8.55 and rushed out or our saris and expressed our huge thanks to Angita and her mother. Bless her she gifted us with a blessing bracelet and some bangles-as if she hadn’t given us enough! We then woddled over to dinner where we forced our tea down our second dinner.  I’ve never felt so full and had to lie down after dinner. Abi genionly looked in pain as she forced her second chapatti down her throat! We can laugh about it now but at the time I genuinely thought I was going to die from over consumption!

Us in saris with Angita and her mother and neighbour

In between these these meals we fitted in our last Vigyan Ahram meals which we thoroughly enjoyed.  I will miss my dal and red stuff (the rice however I fear I’m not going to escape so quickly!)

The evening before we left there was a ‘good bye ceremony’ for us which was just lovely.  We were pulled to the front of the classroom and gifted a  (very cool fab lab made) trophy, Dr Kalbag’s book & Vigyan Ahram CD and a pencil holder from the IBT department.  It was such a lovely gift and I was so very touched.  Then some students came up and spoke about us which almost set me off in front of the school. Promote came up to speak about me and then one of the girls came up and (through translation) told us how she liked we were interested in making tea and how we had danced with them and how she was now trying to learn English because of us which was so beautiful.

For the next 1-2 hours there were photos (no joke!) everyone wanted a pic with us-my cheeks have never hurt so much from smiling! I genuinely felt like a celebrity it was crazy!  We had a cup of Tea at Annans and then he insisted we drive his little Tata Nano new car! Eek I was scared but it was fine once I got the hang of it and enjoyed my tooting almost as much as the driving! We found out that the breaks were not as bad as we originally thought but there had actually been a teddy bear underneath them! Oh you got to love safety in India!

The Vigyan Ashram Family

And the rest of the Vigyan Ashram family taking photos of us!

We had a handover meeting with Annan & Ranjid where we spoke over our projects and what we did and suggestions for the curriculum etc.  This was really good and it made us realize how much we had done and how much knowledge of the school we now have. 

That evening at dinner we gave all the students and staff ladus at dinner and gave out notebooks with a good luck message in them from us.  The students soon started asking us for our email ids, addresses, signatures and even passport photos! I fear for my identity! Hehe.  They were all so lovely though and even students we hadn’t taught or spent much time with were very excited by it all!

Our 'food account' now closed!

We had a taxi arranged to pick us up early in the morning and had a farewell breakfast with Annan and Madame and then went for tea and (more biscuits) at Ranjid’s and Palavi’s.  It was a lovely farewell and was a bit sad but because I get to go back it was ok.  I will miss teaching the students and the way of Vigyan Ahram life.  I feel totally connected to the school now and properly feel like I have a family in Pabul!

The week I learnt about the amazing hospitality of Indian people

 

 This week has been a busy one with festivals, school visits and electricity lessons!

I have finished the Environmental lessons at the school and have put forward some suggestions for future projects that hopefully will benefit the school and the pupils. I have yet to discuss these over with the staff. I will arrange a hand over meeting soon to do this, and have prepared a brief summary to issue the director. So I am now knee deep in electricity! This has been a very interesting learning experience for me and yet again I had been so very thankful of ‘BBC Bitesize’ for their assistance with standard grade physics! I have prepared and delivered lessons on ‘Basic Electricity’, ‘Circuits & Ohms Law’, Wires & Cables’ and ‘wiring accessories’.  I’m currently preparing a lesson on ‘Cells & Batteries’.  To prepare these I have really relied heavily on the existing curriculum and stuck to this a great deal more than I did with environment.  Yet I still adjust it significantly and have added further explanations and omitted parts which I just don’t believe are relevant for anyone.

Me giving a lesson on circuits. The lights around Ganesh to my right actually short circuited during the lesson which was funny as we were able to speak about what happened!

Electricity is the Energy & Environment Teacher’s specialty and I am pleased to say he has been able to help me in class by translating on one occasion. Although his English is limited his confidence in electricity is high. I must admit that I am surprised that the students are not bored in my lessons and are still learning new things. I had the impression that they had focused so very much on electricity for the past few months with the exception of my lessons. However it’s evident that there have been things that the Teacher simply hasn’t gone over or the students have completely forgotten it!  Initially I wasn’t even going to spend time teaching and simply preparing lessons for the next class, however it is evident that the students are still learning from these and hopefully benefiting.

Me baffeling my way through different types of wire & cable!

Last Thursday was the beginning of the Ganesh festival which can last for 3, 7 or 10 days. Ganesh is the God of prosperity (the one with the elephant head and lots of hands). In Maharasta it is the favourite festival and it is celebrated most in this region.  Each school/community gets a Ganesh Idol and decorates him and establishes a shrine for him. Once in the morning and once in the evening the whole school/community gather to sing and eat sweets. It’s a lovely festival with lots of other things going on as well.  At the end of the period the idol is taken to water and submersed and returned to the earth.   The idols used to be made from clay but now they are made from ceramics and painted with fluorescent paint.  So every year, after all other Maharasta idols are submersed in water, the next day 1000s of fish die from the toxic loading.

Ganesh being paraded to his shrine. 

The Ganesh at the school was greeted by a ceremony of dancing and drum playing which was amazing.  It was then decorated and offerings were made. These included fruit, rice, sugar and sweets.  Everyone took their turn to bless Ganesh and sprinkle chilli powder, sugar and turmeric on him.  Then we ate a sugar and coconut mixture which was tasty.  All the students and staff were really excited-it was really very special to be involved in the whole experience.  So this process went on all week.

Us offering Ganesh spices and rice

One afternoon I was informed that I was giving ‘Arti’ the next morning which I eventually found out meant that I had to provide sweet treats for the students and staff. So off we trecked into Pabal for 50 sugary fried stick things. The next morning I was called to pray to Ganesh and wave around a plate with burning rice on it.  I’m fully sure that the school knew I had no clue what I was doing and was very touched to be involved in the ceremony.

Me giving 'Arti' to Ganesh

On Monday it was ‘Teacher’s Day’ which celebrates the birthday of the second prime minister of Independent India.  Instead of himself being celebrated he insisted that all teachers be celebrated. In the morning after Ganesh prayer all the teachers were given roses and pens which was lovely as we got one too!  Then the teachers and some of the students switched roles and responsibilities for the day. We thought this would result in carnage as it would do at home, but it turned out that everyone just took the day off! Luckily I was still able to give my lesson but apart from that the teachers were nowhere to be found!  The students enjoyed playing at the staff, some were giving lessons, others were sitting in offices chatting and generally everyone was having a good time! They couldn’t believe that we did not have teachers’ day in the UK. I tried explaining what would happen if we did but I still don’t think they understood that it would just never happen!

On Tuesday we were escorted by a student to see ‘home temples’.  Actually we didn’t have a clue what we were going to see and only worked it out after we had seen our first one! Some people set up Ganesh shrines in their homes and people are welcome to come in and bless Ganesh.  The shrines we saw were amazing with beautiful decorations and lights.  At the second house we went to we were invited for ‘lunch’. We were very confused as it was almost dinner time but out they came with rice, spicy dahl and sweet chapatti with this golden syrupy thing. It was so tasty but oh dear were we full and struggled with dinner that evening! It was amazing though to be shown such generosity when we had only just met and had no connection.


Us at our second Home Temple



Us haveing 'lunch' (or dinner no 1) at the home temple



 On Thursday we went to visit two IBT (Introduction to Basic Rural Technology) schools.  These schools teach classes similar to that at Vigyan Ashram for the equivalent of 1 day a week.  There are approximately 120 schools around Maharasata that are under this umbrella with Vigyan Ahsram as the focal point.  The schools also have the four sections, agriculture, energy & environment, engineering & home & health.  Looked after by an IBT member of staff we sped off along the bumpy rural roads in a Huge swanky 4x4.  The scenery to the schools was amazing with lots of agriculture, hills and rivers.  The first school we were at it was a community sports day and we were special guests.  Teams from the local area had gathered at the school to participate in Indian sports.  We were sat alongside the Mayor and the founders sons (who were dripping in gold despite the fact they were ‘Humanitarian workers’) on the stage in front of a hundred or so students.  We were then awarded a coconut which is presumably a very significant gesture in this area but admittedly it was confusing!

Abi accepting her coconut. Mine is on the table. You can see how pleased I am that I have been given a coconut!

We then helped start the games and assisted in the blessing of the ground by sprinkling spices and rice over a rock.  I was very confused but also very honored to be involved in this ceremony. 

Us waiting in line to bless a rock

The school was very proud of it involvement with the IBT program.  They showed us their wormary and crops and their energy & engineering rooms.  They appeared to work very closely with the village and fixed a lot of their problems such as their water pump.  There appeared to be a strong focus on the technical side of IBT and the school was hoping to get some new machines & apparatus soon.  When asked how the IBT section of the school mixed with the normal curriculum we were informed that they did not mix at all. This is obviously not the point of practical lessons in a theoretical school.  They should be there to enhance the theory not to ignore it completely.  The school informed us that the students always attend the IBT classes but often miss their theory lessons.  We suggested that there should be more mixing between the two parts of the school and they should work together for the benefit of the students.  Originally we thought that our lessons may be introduced into the IBT program but I think realistically there is no space within the curriculum for this. Instead the schools need to focus more on integrating IBT into the existing government curriculum so that the students see that theory and practical lessons are beneficial.

We drove another hour or so to the other school which like the first was set in a beautiful hilly landscape.  Because Pabal and the surrounding area is so flat we were taken away by the scenery. Although the hills only take an hour or two to climb they look like Munroes!  This school was even more welcoming than the first. We were given lunch by the teachers and had a mixture of many home made curries and chipatis-it was all very very tasty!

We then presented a lesson to a class which was an amalgamation of the first ever truss lesson that we delivered and another lesson Abi did with her Engineering group which involved building a tower that will hold the weight of biscuits from straws and pins.  This was a great lesson which we think the students really enjoyed.  We started off with a few slides about us and what we have been up to in India and our favourite Indian things etc which they found amusing.  Before we could commence teaching about compression and tension we were pulled away to ‘plant trees in the field of dead people’.  So we were ushered into a car and taken to the field next to where they cremate bodies and yet again posed for a photographer as we pretended to plant trees! It is obviously the hot thing in Indian publicity at the moment-getting a gora to plant trees!

Pulled away from our lesson to plant trees in the 'field of dead people'

We then were taken back to our lesson where we finished teaching and lead the activity. The students really enjoyed this.  Only one group succeeded in building a tower that could hold the weight of 2 packets of Parle G’s (the most popular biscuit in India) and won the biscuits!  The girls in that class in particular were very on the ball and answering all questions correctly.  We have seen this throughout our time in India with girls speaking to us and always keen to talk about school and making there parents proud.  I think this is down to the pressure they feel from their culture of being second best so they feel they have to work hard in an attempt to get their parents favour.  Boys are preferred in India, and we were told that if parents find out the sex of their baby before birth many will abort.  This is obviously very sad but on the other side it is great to see so many intelligent and outgoing young girls who have so much respect for their families.

Me showing the difference of size on strength of structure

The girls and their winning structure

I really enjoyed the trips to the schools as it was a lovely opportunity to see what else Vigyan Ashram has had an effect on. It was also great to see another part of Maharashta and some very enthusiastic students and teachers.

Us on stage (again) and informing the students what we enjoyed from our visit (See on table coconut number 2!)

On the way home the guy that was looking after us wanted to go to this temple that was a replica of the Burga temple.  Due to the bombings in Dehli no bags, mobiles, shoes etc are allowed within the vicinity of the temple. So off we trod in bare feet alongside many other Indians to go through many barriers to get to the temple.  It was very new and heavily decorated with lots of security!  We were just in time to see the last ‘showing’ of the evening which involved some horn blowing and half naked men waving fire around in front of a God idol made from flowers.  It was a very bizarre experience! We then followed the crowd around the temple to look at other God Idols and were then given a bowl made from leaves which had little sweet ball things in it. We ate these outside the temple among many other people.  It was so very lovely but also very odd!

Idea for Vegware Soph!

Then we stopped by one of the teacher’s homes for tea and a plate of rice which was again another act of the amazing hospitality that so many Indian people have shown us. Then back in our jeep to drive two quickly over pot holed roads back to Vigyan Ashram.

Friday was market day so I set off for our weekly fruit purchasing.  I got chatting with the bangle sellers about all sorts of things and they invited us for tea later that day. It makes me giggle as never would that happen at home! The rest of the day was a bit lost due to lack of internet, learning how to make chai and attempting to string a ‘Battery & Cell’ lesson together.  As promised we went for tea at the Bangle sellers house and met her very cute son who although only 4 spoke some good English as he went to an English school where all his lessons are in English!  We showed our photos and pounds and they invited us for lunch on Monday.

That evening Amma, the wife of the founder of the school called us to come to her room after dinner.  She gave us beautiful scarves that she said would ‘keep us warm with love’ which was so very lovely.  We had a chat with her and asked her about the new building and what she thought of Vigyan Ashram at the moment as it is evident it is changing with time.  She was very honest with us and said she did not agree with the new build and that it was out with Vigyan Ashram principles.  She also mentioned that she would never interfere with the management of the school and only says her opinion when asked.  As long as the people in charge do what they think is best for the school and stick with it she is happy.

Today we took the day off and went for a long jog in the morning up the hill we have been eyeing up for two and a half months.  It was an amazing view from the top. We were relaxing at the top when an old man came and started wailing (singing/praying I think) and watering rocks (one god takes the form of anything-even a rock so I’m guessing that’s what it was) and ringing the bell in the temple.  I think there should be more random wailing and watering of rocks at home!

For lunch we were invited round to one of the teacher & one of the kitchen ladies (Jado sir & Mushie’s) house which is just outside Pabal.  They live in a rustic farm building that is made from 2 sheds.  It is made from mud brick and dung floor and was very pretty.  She made us an amazing lunch of pakora, chapatti, popadoms, dhal, rice & banana wheat stuff which is so very tasty!  It was really nice to see her house eventually as she has been inviting us round every week for the past month and only this time did we manage to arrange a time and someone to show us where she lived! 

Us with Jado Sie, Maushie & her family (Look how tall I am in India!)

It has been the same wherever we have been granted some amazing hospitality.  The hosts prepare the food/tea for guests but the host does not eat or drink.  Mushie’s children only ate after we had finished but still she did not eat.  I guess this demonstrated further their generosity and delight in hosting.  But it does make you feel very guilty when your host has been slaving away over a hot stove and then does not get to enjoy what she has prepared alongside you.  I suppose it’s just another cultural difference.

I reckon half of Pabal was squeezed in that little room!

On the walk home we went to go see some Weaver bird nests and saw a snake in the well! Eek!

This evening we went to Rowel (the school admin guy)’s house for his nephews 8^th birthday party/` 1 year anniversary of their house being built/last night of Ganesh festival.  When we arrived the room was packed with women and we squeezed in alongside them. Then the boy was blessed and I assisted with putting spice on his head, sprinkling rice over him and giving him some sugar.  This was done by a few ladies and then he had cake smeared over his face!  Some of the people left and some including us stayed for dinner. We were then ushered out the room so the men could eat. The whole experience lasted about 30 mins and I think I am still recovering from it! It was very random and just so very quick!

The poor wee dude knew I had no idea what I was doing and wasnt giving any hints!

Pune Pizza & Pants!

Last weekend we had another adventure trip  to Pune.This time unattended so we had to battle the fun of the country buses ourselves!  We were doing pretty well and only waited about 40-50 mins for our second bus.  (which we skillfully pushed and squeezed our way on to).  Then we were just waiting to leave when over half the people squeezed back off the bus! We were confused but were reassured by a couple of the locals who stayed on that we were indeed heading to Pune. I must admit I still didn’t believe it until we drove up to the Pune outskirts.  We think there were maybe 2 buses heading and we got on the 10 ruppees more expensive one!  

Then we were greeted at the bus station by some incredibly cheeky auto drivers that were trying to charge us 300% more that what it actually costs. The meanies!  We came to a compromise though with a driver who was happy with ‘meter plus 20 rupees!’ J

We made it to Graeme’s flat and had a lovely dinner out in a local Indian restaurant.  I had my first lassi-a sweetened yogurt drink-it was tasty and led to many more that weekend!

Us having (yet again too much food) note little miss Abi skoffing on a whole plate of chicken-she does miss her meat!

On the Saturday we went to the snake park & zoo.  In Lonely it read like it was going to be a couple of pits with hundreds of snakes slithering around inside.  But actually it was very beautiful and clean with an amazing selection of animals.  We saw white tigers, elephants, HUGE cows and snakes and alligators and loads more!  Most of the local people were however preoccupied with one another! It appears the zoo is the place to hang out and sneakily hold hands.  We thought this was hilarious as nowhere else have we even seem young people of different sexes together never mind looking intimate! 

We saw Anna Hazare protest on way to the zoo which was pretty exciting.  It was a crowd of about 50 young people marching and chanting up the road.  They all had their ‘Anna’ white hats on.  That evening the bill was passed and there was supposedly there were parties all over the city-but we didn’t see any L

Snakes at the snake and zoo park in Pune

Again we tried to go to the Shana Wada light show (via the new town to get pants and a western style experience coffee! J) but it wasn’t on again-we now think it is all made up and refuse to try a third time!

Enjoying our 'Western style' treat at a chain coffee shop-my coffee cost more than my lunch! (it was like stepping into a coffee house in the Uk-it was the most bizarre experience!)

So we auto’d it back to Korregon Park via the off-license for cheeky wee beer then we had the consensus decision was it would be rude to go for dinner with beer breath so we ordered a pizza delivery and played cards! Completely cheating but after almost 2 months on rice twice a day I think it’s allowed.

We left Pune on Sunday morning after breakfast and began the epic trip back again.  We got back in Pabal about 430! We had about 30-40 people crowded round us at Rajgurunager  (where we change buses) all trying to speak to us-I think that’s the most attention we have had at once to date.  Everyone was lovely and pushed us extra hard when the bus came to make sure we got on!

On Tuesday I gave my last Environment lesson, I had hoped to do this on Monday but alas lack of electricity and internet got in the way. (It can get pretty frustrating at times but at least we have lap tops and don’t lose all our work when the power goes!)  My lesson was on Wind Energy and I think it went ok.  Some of the students are working on a wind turbine at the moment so I was keen to introduce some ideas that may help them.  They said it did so I was pleased.

The students with their in progress wind turbine

I have since been polishing up the environment slides and thinking about future projects and practical lessons such as covering the well etc.  I do hope that the students will benefit from these as at the moment the teacher is an ‘Electricity Man’ he has pretty much ignored this side of the curriculum in the past.  I am also making a start at producing some electricity lessons-oh my standard grade physics knowledge will need to be polished up! I’m looking forward to the challenge though!

On Wednesday we were invited to a student’s house for the Muslim Eid Festival.   So we headed down with a couple of the students to his home which again is just one room with a curtain to segregate the ‘kitchen’ from the ‘living room/bedroom’.  We were all presented with a cup of hot sweet milk with noodles in it-it was tasty! Then we were given another cup, and another cup and told to drink more! My belly was bursting with milk! But I was satisfied for it!

The rains have finally arrived in Pabal, and they have had double the amount of rain they had had all year in just two days!  It was good news for the school and village as the crops really needed more water.  Turns out that Pabal gets a lot stinkier and a lot muddier after rain! I was very pleased not to slip and end up as smelly as the pigs!

We have been heading for chai every other day which is great. Its lovely just chilling and drinking tea and half watching some funny Indian film on the small tv.  We get varying degrees of attention all the time. We have had our photo ‘slyly’ taken a few times on people’s phones and people come and try and speak to us only to realize we are useless when our mharati runs out after ‘hello’ and ‘my name is’.

Me at our 'local' with the owner and our favourite waiter