Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Last Few Days...
So these have been my last few days at Sangam and working with the kids from the Creche. Starting Monday they came here to Sangam to swim and play. My kids came today, Wednesday, and we had a blast! Just seeing them stare out the window on the drive to Sangam was so cute. They loved the pool and were really confident in the water (minus the few that latched onto my neck!) But all in all they were great and it was such a wonderful experience for them, and me!
I'm headed out tomorrow for Goa, the beach! Yes Mom, I have packed my sunscreen. Yes Dad, I have packed my camera. I figured before I went away for a week and lost contact with all you faithful readers, I'd leave you with some pictures from the last few days here. The first couple are of my kids at school, then some of the girls and I here on our last Maharastra Dinner night, and then of my kids here at Sangam. Hope you enjoy! Will see you soon!
~ Namaste
I'm headed out tomorrow for Goa, the beach! Yes Mom, I have packed my sunscreen. Yes Dad, I have packed my camera. I figured before I went away for a week and lost contact with all you faithful readers, I'd leave you with some pictures from the last few days here. The first couple are of my kids at school, then some of the girls and I here on our last Maharastra Dinner night, and then of my kids here at Sangam. Hope you enjoy! Will see you soon!
~ Namaste
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Winding Down... :-(
Can you believe it...I've been here almost 3 whole months. It feels like yesterday I was walking out of the airport in Mumbai and thinking, "wow, I am in India". Now I can't imagine going back..
The past week and more has really just been a lot of bringing things to a close. Work has been a little bitter-sweet. The kids started to realize I was leaving and each day they would say, "Dee dee, No America, No America Dee Dee". It was so cute and that's what will make it hard to leave. The last few days of work I did some review with the kids then had them make a pinata. I am going to take it into work on Thursday (which is my last day in the Creche). Friday was my last full day in the Creche so the teachers threw me a little party. During lunchtime they each brought out something that they had made. One woman was in charge of the rice and had cooked a lot of wonderfully flavored rice. Another woman did chappattis, while one teacher made the most delicious chicken curry I had ever had. (Unfortunately I had to break my lenten fast, but I figured this was acceptable). It was such a delicious meal and they even had sweets for dessert. I had to take it all in and it was hard to realize this was the last time I would eat lunch with these women, on the floor, in India. It was a really nice day at work, one I will never forget.
We had our last Hindi lesson this week as well and afterwards met with some of the Sangam staff to do some closing things and evaluations. This coming week we will have an official closing and dinner/bowling night. This weekend was pretty fun. Holly and I went out Friday night to a cafe just to hang out and listen to some music. We met some friends that we know from here, but they had to leave early. So, as Holly and I just sat chatting (taking up a very large seating area meant for more people) 3 guys approached trying to explain there were no more seats and would we mind if they joined us. Holly and I looked at each other and figured it was ok, and it turned out to be such a cool night. The guys were from Iran, they came to India to study and also to learn English. Their English definitely wasn't that great, but they were trying and Holly and I had a blast listening to the expressions that they got wrong or were slightly off but hilarious. The part that I found the most interesting though was listening to them speak about their country and their experience. One of the guys explained that they can't "be free" in Iran, and he said that he has been more relaxed in Pune for 2 weeks than he was his country for his whole life. They explained that their country is beautiful and breathtaking, but it's just difficult to live there. As we left he said "I hope I change your idea of Iran and people of Iran". Another thing I love about being abroad; meeting people from all different backgrounds and changing your perceptions. I had a whole new idea of the country and learned a lot that I hadn't known before.
So now it's Sunday and Holly and I are being lazy bums. Next week, Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday the kids from our creche's are coming to Sangam. Each creche will come for one of the days with 30 kids. My day is Wednesday! So we won't be going into creche those three days. But Thursday will be our last actual day in the creche. I'm just going to play games with the kids, bring the pinata, and I bought them icecream as well which will be delievered at lunch. We have a half day, so Holly and I are going to pack up for GOA! We are leaving for Goa, THE beach city in India,on Thursday and staying there until Tuesday. So, you won't be hearing much from me after this! When I get back from Goa on Tuesday I have 3 days in Pune to tie up any loose ends and say goodbye to my second home, then I leave for Jersey on Friday. So,
maybe you'll hear from me once more, but for now I am going to get ready for my vacation - I'm just bringing sunscreen, a towel, my bathing suit, and my i-pod. It will be a nice ending to an amazing life experience...
I'll catch some rays for you.
~Namaste
The past week and more has really just been a lot of bringing things to a close. Work has been a little bitter-sweet. The kids started to realize I was leaving and each day they would say, "Dee dee, No America, No America Dee Dee". It was so cute and that's what will make it hard to leave. The last few days of work I did some review with the kids then had them make a pinata. I am going to take it into work on Thursday (which is my last day in the Creche). Friday was my last full day in the Creche so the teachers threw me a little party. During lunchtime they each brought out something that they had made. One woman was in charge of the rice and had cooked a lot of wonderfully flavored rice. Another woman did chappattis, while one teacher made the most delicious chicken curry I had ever had. (Unfortunately I had to break my lenten fast, but I figured this was acceptable). It was such a delicious meal and they even had sweets for dessert. I had to take it all in and it was hard to realize this was the last time I would eat lunch with these women, on the floor, in India. It was a really nice day at work, one I will never forget.
We had our last Hindi lesson this week as well and afterwards met with some of the Sangam staff to do some closing things and evaluations. This coming week we will have an official closing and dinner/bowling night. This weekend was pretty fun. Holly and I went out Friday night to a cafe just to hang out and listen to some music. We met some friends that we know from here, but they had to leave early. So, as Holly and I just sat chatting (taking up a very large seating area meant for more people) 3 guys approached trying to explain there were no more seats and would we mind if they joined us. Holly and I looked at each other and figured it was ok, and it turned out to be such a cool night. The guys were from Iran, they came to India to study and also to learn English. Their English definitely wasn't that great, but they were trying and Holly and I had a blast listening to the expressions that they got wrong or were slightly off but hilarious. The part that I found the most interesting though was listening to them speak about their country and their experience. One of the guys explained that they can't "be free" in Iran, and he said that he has been more relaxed in Pune for 2 weeks than he was his country for his whole life. They explained that their country is beautiful and breathtaking, but it's just difficult to live there. As we left he said "I hope I change your idea of Iran and people of Iran". Another thing I love about being abroad; meeting people from all different backgrounds and changing your perceptions. I had a whole new idea of the country and learned a lot that I hadn't known before.
So now it's Sunday and Holly and I are being lazy bums. Next week, Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday the kids from our creche's are coming to Sangam. Each creche will come for one of the days with 30 kids. My day is Wednesday! So we won't be going into creche those three days. But Thursday will be our last actual day in the creche. I'm just going to play games with the kids, bring the pinata, and I bought them icecream as well which will be delievered at lunch. We have a half day, so Holly and I are going to pack up for GOA! We are leaving for Goa, THE beach city in India,on Thursday and staying there until Tuesday. So, you won't be hearing much from me after this! When I get back from Goa on Tuesday I have 3 days in Pune to tie up any loose ends and say goodbye to my second home, then I leave for Jersey on Friday. So,
maybe you'll hear from me once more, but for now I am going to get ready for my vacation - I'm just bringing sunscreen, a towel, my bathing suit, and my i-pod. It will be a nice ending to an amazing life experience...
I'll catch some rays for you.
~Namaste
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Holy Holi !!!!
So this past Wednesday I took part in one of the greatest celebrations/holidays that I have ever seen (I am not saying it was anything like Christmas, this was a whole new ballgame). The holiday is called Holi, and some call it the Festival of Colors, for some obvious reasons. I'll give you a little background on this crazy day.
Holi is a Hindu spring festival observed in India, Nepal, and other countries with large Hindu populations. The festival lasts a few days, but the main day, Holi, (which was Wednesday) is celebrated by people throwing colored powder and colored water at each other. The spring season, which begins when the weather starts to change, is thought to cause fevers, and colds, and illness. Thus, the playful throwing of natural colored powders has a medicinal significance: the colours are traditionally made of Neem, Kumkum, Haldi, Bilva, and other medicinal herbs prescribed by homoeopathic doctors.
So that's a brief history, although there is a lot more in terms of traditions and stories and myths that I can share with you when I get back, but now you get the gist. So..what did we do to celebrate?! Well, I'll tell you...
My Holi got started a little early actually, at my Creche on Tuesday! Since the kids would be off for the Holiday they let them celebrate in the afternoon on Tuesday. It was so cute to see how excited they were all day...like kids in school at home the day before Christmas Eve. They were just hopping around like they were full of sugar! At around 4:00 we went outside and celebrated Holi. We had buckets full of water that the kids kept on dumping on each other, and me, and then refilling. All at the same time we were rubbing these colored powders in each others faces, and smearing it on every inch of body that was showing. It was so much fun and the kids were having a blast. They didn't stop until all the colors were gone and there was no more water left to take. It was so nice to be able to celebrate such a huge holiday with them.
The next day, all the Sangam staff got together and decided to start the festivities right here in our own "home", in the gardens out back. We had hoses which we were spraying each other with, and tons of colors to get completely covered. Once we were all unrecognizable, we thought it would be great to celebrate in true fashion; with our neighbors! So, with tubs of water and colors in hand we ventured out across the street. It was so much fun walking through the village looking for children to smear with colors. As long as they looked like they had already been playing, or looked mischeiveous, we didn't let them get away untouched. We had lots of children chasing us with water guns and colors as well. We even visited a lot of the women who work here in their houses and celebrated Holi by getting them with colors too! On our walk back, we had a traditional holi surprise as Sara got egged on the head. We said it wouldn't have been Holi without someone getting egged...I'm just realllly glad it wasn't me :-)
After we had colored the town, we headed back to Sangam to re-group. At this point we were pasted in these powders and soaking wet from all the buckets of water children had dumped on us. And to believe we weren't done yet! We hopped in a few rickshaws and headed out. Kids our age celebrate at home with their families first, then go out with their friends. Since this is a day festival, there are clubs that open from 11-4 outdoors to celebrate Holi. We went to one of these clubs and it was crazy! We walked past some tight security > they confiscated our colors, apparently they were handing some safe, non-toxic colors out inside. On one half of the area there were stands with food and drinks and tons of picnic tables where people were chatting away covered in colored powder. On the other side of this area, was a huge dance floor area where people were grooving to some really cool Hindi and Bollywood music. The most amazing thing though was what was going on above the dance floor. There were pipes running above the dance area which were pouring out water. Basically it was like dancing in the rain. We didn't wait long to head into the rain dance. It was crazy because as people would play with the colors the water was constantly washing you off, but the ground was just multicolored and people were having so much fun. It was the most amazing sight to see.
Coming home in the rickshaw I kept on thinking how beautiful this country is..I mean, no matter what hardships people are facing when it comes to a celebration they truly go all out. And it's so different too! I don't know when else in my life I'll be able to participate in a holiday/celebration across the world. It was one of the most fun days of my life and truly an experience I will never forget.
Holi is a Hindu spring festival observed in India, Nepal, and other countries with large Hindu populations. The festival lasts a few days, but the main day, Holi, (which was Wednesday) is celebrated by people throwing colored powder and colored water at each other. The spring season, which begins when the weather starts to change, is thought to cause fevers, and colds, and illness. Thus, the playful throwing of natural colored powders has a medicinal significance: the colours are traditionally made of Neem, Kumkum, Haldi, Bilva, and other medicinal herbs prescribed by homoeopathic doctors.
So that's a brief history, although there is a lot more in terms of traditions and stories and myths that I can share with you when I get back, but now you get the gist. So..what did we do to celebrate?! Well, I'll tell you...
My Holi got started a little early actually, at my Creche on Tuesday! Since the kids would be off for the Holiday they let them celebrate in the afternoon on Tuesday. It was so cute to see how excited they were all day...like kids in school at home the day before Christmas Eve. They were just hopping around like they were full of sugar! At around 4:00 we went outside and celebrated Holi. We had buckets full of water that the kids kept on dumping on each other, and me, and then refilling. All at the same time we were rubbing these colored powders in each others faces, and smearing it on every inch of body that was showing. It was so much fun and the kids were having a blast. They didn't stop until all the colors were gone and there was no more water left to take. It was so nice to be able to celebrate such a huge holiday with them.
The next day, all the Sangam staff got together and decided to start the festivities right here in our own "home", in the gardens out back. We had hoses which we were spraying each other with, and tons of colors to get completely covered. Once we were all unrecognizable, we thought it would be great to celebrate in true fashion; with our neighbors! So, with tubs of water and colors in hand we ventured out across the street. It was so much fun walking through the village looking for children to smear with colors. As long as they looked like they had already been playing, or looked mischeiveous, we didn't let them get away untouched. We had lots of children chasing us with water guns and colors as well. We even visited a lot of the women who work here in their houses and celebrated Holi by getting them with colors too! On our walk back, we had a traditional holi surprise as Sara got egged on the head. We said it wouldn't have been Holi without someone getting egged...I'm just realllly glad it wasn't me :-)
After we had colored the town, we headed back to Sangam to re-group. At this point we were pasted in these powders and soaking wet from all the buckets of water children had dumped on us. And to believe we weren't done yet! We hopped in a few rickshaws and headed out. Kids our age celebrate at home with their families first, then go out with their friends. Since this is a day festival, there are clubs that open from 11-4 outdoors to celebrate Holi. We went to one of these clubs and it was crazy! We walked past some tight security > they confiscated our colors, apparently they were handing some safe, non-toxic colors out inside. On one half of the area there were stands with food and drinks and tons of picnic tables where people were chatting away covered in colored powder. On the other side of this area, was a huge dance floor area where people were grooving to some really cool Hindi and Bollywood music. The most amazing thing though was what was going on above the dance floor. There were pipes running above the dance area which were pouring out water. Basically it was like dancing in the rain. We didn't wait long to head into the rain dance. It was crazy because as people would play with the colors the water was constantly washing you off, but the ground was just multicolored and people were having so much fun. It was the most amazing sight to see.
Coming home in the rickshaw I kept on thinking how beautiful this country is..I mean, no matter what hardships people are facing when it comes to a celebration they truly go all out. And it's so different too! I don't know when else in my life I'll be able to participate in a holiday/celebration across the world. It was one of the most fun days of my life and truly an experience I will never forget.
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