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!