Meeting His Excellency

The Brigade getting ready for greeting his excellency

Well, I should have expected today to be completely busy and insane. Laxmi (my co-worker who is becoming my good friend) and I ended up leaving early in preparation for the event at a medical college (Maulana Azad). We had created our outline and our agenda was good to go.
So having arrived at the event, we met our biggest annoyance. A woman who worked for the Ambulance society who really should have hosted the show in hindsight. She got in our way and at points was obnoxiously rude to both of us for no given reason. Well , it didn’t matter- the show must go on and it did.


It actually seemed like a quick blur with lots of media and children as well from the local schools. His Excellency is actually 6ft tall and his body guards were hilarious. They had this stern look on their faces but were internally laughing because the crazy woman wouldn’t shut up on stage as well.


In my usual dorky stance in front of the awards


Well, his Excellency is definitely a politician. He can speak very well and was able to highlight the work of the St. John’s Ambulance and also the need for continued vigilance with the recent terrorist attacks. Overall, I think the event was a complete success and I was happy at the end of it


Funny story of the day: This I am sure what you guys really read: No day would be complete without a weirdo chasing me across the roads. Well, this time it was a St- John’s Ambulance member who I was keen on getting my number. He kept telling me that I had pretty eyes and eyebrow shape. Laxmi only encouraged him some more by comparing me to shilpa shetty ( a somewhat famous Indian actress?) Well anyways, needless to say it was a funny experience trying to get rid of him. He insisted on accompanying us to the hail an auto and we tried to lose him! I mean we ran across the road and the guy didn’t get the point. He still managed to cut across and ensure we were safe. I felt bad telling the auto to leave ASAP. But, what was I to do! Creepy...is creepy! Only in India.

Dreaming of Thailand

I just found out that Sudhir wants me to apply for a scholarship to Thailand! Bangkok!!!! Well, it is a workshop on Sexual and Reproductive Awareness with the Youth coalition and they are looking for candidates from South Asia and South East Asia to participate at the end of November. Now, I might be disqualified because I am Canadian but, I’ve applied anyways in hopes that I will get it. It would make it one year since my last trip to Thailand. I am praying that it comes true! It would just add to an already amazing internship.

I also found out today that I would be hosting an event with a co worker of mine for the St. John’s Ambulance Brigade and the chief guest of the event is the Lt. Governor of Delhi, Tejender Khanna. Oh my gosh! Well, I almost had an internal heart attack when I found out that I would be introducing him. What an honour and what an experience! It’s my first big media/ publicity assignment. It’s to celebrate brigade day, an annual even recognizing the effort of the St. John’s ambulance brigade especially in response to the recent bomb blasts. Nervous completely...excited completely and I get to wear a sari to look all professional yay!

Forces of Nature

Maybe it’s a combination of becoming increasingly lazy or increasingly tired ( I choose to believe the latter) I haven’t been blogging all that much. My friend was kind enough to point out that it had been more than a week and wanted to hear the different levels of drama I have encountered in Delhi...well let’s start with the biggest news so far...

Well I hope this doesn’t freak out my big brother too much but my apartment was broken into in broad day light. Luckily nothing was stolen and I was notified immediately. You see I guess in hindsight it was a smart thing that I was carrying all my things with me out of habit or if not I leave it locked up safely. My room was in complete disarray. My mattress had been lifted up. I guess the thief must have believed that my important things would have been hidden underneath the mattress. Old Indian habit I guess. But nothing was taken and since then, my landlord has provided me with a double bolted door for added security. My boss was kind enough to drop by later on and check in on my situation. Seriously, I think I am sort of force of nature...everywhere I go something happens! It’s been hardly 17 days and seriously bomb blasts, apartment break ins etc...I should really name this blog “ Hurricane Harini”.

But on a plus note, It has made me question- what is my tolerance level? This event didn’t faze me one bit actually. I carry on my life as I normally do. I wonder what will really push me over the edge. Mind you, I am not willing to find out anytime soon. Trust me.

A walk through history

I wasn’t quite sure what to expect today. How does one really react in response to bomb blasts across the city. Obviously, I was not prepared to venture out towards Central Delhi. Instead, I decided a little bit of history and culture is what I needed the most.



At Qutab Minar

So, I went off to search history at Qutab Minar. Now for those of you who don’t know much about Indian history, here is a very small synopsis of why Qutab Minar is a world heritage site. Well Qutab Minar was actually build by Mohammud Ghauri in 1193 AD and marked the first Muslim Dynasty in India. What is really unique about this site is that you can actually see the previous panels and decorative pieces from both Hindu and Jain cultures fused into the area surrounding Qutab Minar. Venturing out actually turned out to be a very smart thing because I realized that my gut instinct about this city was on the ball- life moves on, people remember...they don’t forget but life does move on. Sitting in front of this absolutely breathtaking edifice, I couldn’t but feel the conquerors of past each trying to keep control of this city and each creating a name from themselves in hopes that history will remember them. From Ghauri to Akbar the great, for every emperor who has conquered Delhi, the city has grown around them and you can still feel their presence.
I actually also found the 7 ft tall iron pillar, that to this date does not have any sign of rust on it. It was actually raised in memory of Chandragupta II who ruled up to 413 AD. Legend has it, if you encircle the pillar with your arms, your wish will be granted. Too bad they gated the pillar now! There goes my wish! It’s just really neat to see the different civilizations that have made their mark on Delhi, each adding a different flavour to this city.



The Iron Pillar-Qutab Minar

Next up on the agenda was to visit the Baha’i Temple also known popularly as the “Lotus Temple”. I absolutely loved it there. The Baha’i believe the lotus to be a symbol of purity and the nine pools surrounding the temple actually act as natural cooling system for the prayer hall and trust me was it ever hot! What I really love about the Baha’i culture is that they believe in the unity of God and accept all faiths and religions. A big bonus is that in temple, you can talk at all. Trust me, after all the hustle and bustle in the city, it is great to just meditate and say a little prayer and spend some time in some absolute silence. It was also the perfect way to really end the weekend on a reflective note...it gave me the opportunity to just reflect.



The Lotus Temple

Randomness of the day: no day off would be complete without something silly happening. Well, this time it had to do with my auto driver who insisted on talking to me the entire way I went home. Of course, part of Indian culture is to make a stranger your friend by asking every single detail of your life- from what do your parents do to are you married yet! Well, he was a really sweet man who was really struggling to feed his five daughters (that’s right they kept trying to get that boy) in a small village in U.P. Of course, that meant he had to leave town to make the money and provide for his family. He does not get to see them very often and is constantly worried about making ends meet. Well, this is the sad reality here. The disparity between the rich and poor keeps increasing on a daily basis and honestly paying a little more for a ride back home didn’t really bother me at all.
What bothered me was the fact that this man...well this budda (old man) had the nerve to ask me for my phone number and kept flirting with my incessantly...what is wrong with people here! He had just finished telling me about his wife, giving me blessings and then asked for my phone number. Only in India.

There’s no easy way.....

I am not quite sure how to recount these events. After spending some amazing time with my new found friends, I received a call from Sudhir ji (my boss) explaining to me that 5 bombs had gone off in public market areas all over Delhi. It was approximately 6:40 pm at this point. Apparently, across Delhi, a series of organized bomb blast went off in the most populated market areas (from CP- the tourist hub to Karol Bagh). An Indian militant extremist group took responsibility for the bombings and I am glad it’s not a cross border issue for once. At that point, we had just finished off a bit of shopping and we were making our way home. Of course, I was in shock. I had been in Thailand when the military coup took place (and it was peaceful) but, I did not know what to expect in Delhi. Since earlier this year, there have been bomb blasts across India from Bangalore to Jaipur, with the sole purpose of in sighting fear in the minds of the public.


Well, again I can’t help but feel so blessed to have made some amazing friends who dropped me off to my designated point when clearly it could have been a very much a situation of panic. There was very little news coming out of the media outlets at this point. The news was reporting at this point that 4 people had been killed and close to 80 people injured. It was a real sense of eeriness travelling through Delhi. You could see that security had clearly been heightened and the city was completely deserted. Now, there were additional reports that more bombs (unexploded) had been found around India Gate and close to the parliament building.


Again, this is my own personal opinion but my gut instinct kept telling me that regardless of which extremist group did this, there is something to be said about human spirit. In the face of adversity, people don’t walk away. They continue with life and try to live their lives to the fullest and make the best of any given situation. This is what I have learned in the last 2 weeks living in Delhi. No matter which strand of society you come from or which region of India or the world you might be, the fact is, this civilization is more than 3000 years old. A couple bomb blasts wont incite fear and I am so proud and glad it hasn’t because the only way to give a voice to any form of extremism is fear.

This city has taught me that it chooses not to live in fear. Yes, an immense tragedy has occurred here and everyone here is in a state of shock. My prayers are with the families of those who have been injured or lost their loved ones. Even with the toll of 90 people wounded with these blasts, life goes on. A wise friend just emailed me telling me that “You will meet people from all walks of life here in Delhi. They all face disaster in different forms on a daily basis; the chaos is part of the daily routine itself”.


I can’t help but agree with these sentiments. I think the people of this city have a lot of soul and that not a force to be reckoned with.

A wise traveller never despises his own country

This week has been intensely busy. I think I have actually lost count of the number of projects that I am involved in and I love it. I had the opportunity to document a needs assessment report for a district in Uttar Pradesh living around a sugar mill, write my first abstract for a UNESCO conference, interact in Hindi with some amazing kids at a primary school level (in their remedial classes) and finally meet the team working on landmines in Punjab. They really have done an excellent job in documenting the activities they do surrounding the issue of landmines including role play, essay competitions and art work. I was really pumped to see what has been accomplished to date and I can’t wait to get started this coming week on some awareness projects.

Saturday! Yay! I didn’t mind having to work this Saturday either. It was actually nice to keep going at it because there really is so much to do and I can already see the fruits of everyone’s labour. Again, we all work hard and I absolutely love the fact that every day at lunch, we all sit together and share food and try each other’s curries out. Sadly, my contribution for lunch is bought from the restaurant downstairs but they do make the best shimla mirch I have tasted so far. Yummy food in my tummy.

I was able to sneak away at 2pm and make my way to CP to meet up with Vasu at Khan Market. She was going to introduce me to her best friends here in Delhi so that I would have some company while she is away in Assam. Again, i have no idea how I am blessed to meet such awesome people but i will call it divine intervention for now. So, let me describe khan market. I could sense it was a little bit more upscale and kind of reminded me of shopping at home really. I has this cool retro chick look to it with lots of wonderful little cafe’s and tons of upscale boutiques.



Big Chill's- Khan Market


So we went to Big Chill’s a really cool throwback of old Hollywood with posters all over the place of black and white movies to newer action films. It completely caters to the NRI and foreign crowd in India and it’s a little bit of comfort for those far away from home. Vasundra promised me that the desserts here were to die for and she was absolutely right. All I had been hearing was “Bonafee Pie” over face book and after tasting a bit of this heaven, i was in Loveeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee! Okay maybe i can’t decide if i liked the pie better or my chocolate toblerone ice cream. Over some decadent dessert, I got to know Vasu’s friends from Delhi- Shefali ( an amazing lawyer who runs her own practice and hates when people say she looks like Maalika Sherwat – a very pretty actress who unfortunately gets slutty roles) and Suchi ( a person who is so full of life and love for FOOD! Suchi can switch between fluent Punjabi and Bengali in a matter of seconds and I am amazed!) So, needless to say, I am settling in quite well and maybe, just maybe, you can find a piece of home no matter where you go.



Vasundra enjoying her Capp :)

I have a visitor and it's name is Ratatouille

I woke up this morning to find a visitor in my home. I think I will name it Ratatouille. Since, arriving about a fortnight ago, I couldn't’t get over the sinking suspicion that I was not alone in my room. Today, I found my furry visitor. Correct me if I am wrong, if most of you saw a mouse running around sniffing everything in sight in your room, you would think “RABIES, VERMIN, DISEASE” or just plain scream. I on the hand actually like my furry friend. It (I really don’t want to get close enough to figure out its sex...does anyone know how to tell the sex of a mouse?), really does not bother me. I have decided to take the Jain approach (I will not hurt it or kill it) in this one particular manner. I think of it as my companion and I am happy to report, it hasn’t figured out where my secret stash of almonds and walnuts are (safely tucked away in my suitcase). Hopefully, Ratatouille won’t be inviting any more friends into my room and I think I can live with just him/her for now. I just need to take a picture of it and you will be able to see how cute it is. Again, yes I know I have issues and this would be one of them.

“She’s Black; She’s White”

For lack of a better way of introducing this new topic, I have decided to use Michael Jackson as to be my go to person for now. Well, all over Delhi, I have been noticing these advertisements for India today. They are trying to take a progressive view towards changing the mindset of Indians when it comes to traditional values practiced in India. One of the advertisements being a man can also be a cook and be a “Mr. Mom”. But, this one example for some reason made me think a lot about the concept of beauty. The ad states “I am not fair, but I am lovely”. Throughout Asia, having light skin has been the sign of beauty no matter where you go. This is the cultural norm in Korea, Japan, Thailand and even India. I can’t tell you the number of shops I have been in Bangkok trying to find some body lotion which didn’t contain whitening agents (hence the Jackson reference). This phenomenon has also been the part of Indian culture. Mothers have told their daughters to drink tons of milk (to keep fair), stay out of the sun and use products such as “ Fair and Lovely” to ensure that your skin will appear lighter because that is what is considered beautiful. Fair skin also maybe is linked to your economic status because lighter skinned people probably weren’t farmers and tend to lead more posh lives. I personally think is a whole bunch of crap but it is culturally relevant. It’s really ironic that in the western world, people spend thousands of dollars trying to tan, get that healthy golden glow in the sun while in Asia, people spend just about the same amount in a effort to look lighter (since that is considered to be the norm for beauty). Well my friends, this ad even though I can see the progressive elements in it, still maintains the same fact that fairness does matter. I am not sure what the India Today was getting at here with but, beauty is in the eye of the beholder and it’s really sad that the underlying tone still remains that you need to be fair in order to be considered beautiful. If they really wanted to say that darker skinned women can be beautiful, the ad should have said “I am not fair and I love it”- that would have made the right statement.

Dr. Sahib (mister) I need your help

Well, I shouldn't have said anything to anyone about being in good health since I arrived in India. I guess my pride finally got the best of me. I woke up a couple days ago with dry eyes and a slight sore throat. I kind of figured that it was nothing just adjustment to the new enviornment. Boy was I ever wrong.

Turns out, this morning I woke up with some really deep throaty cough. I know all the signs and my friends warned me before I left for india. I think I was having a minor asthma attack. So, being me, I decided hey what's the worse that could possibly happen. I am going to stick it out.

Not such a good idea especially when you step out the door and walk about 5 feet before a truck speeding along the main road, lifts up all the dust and sends it your way. Not to get you panicked big brother, but I was seriously wheezing by the time I got to work and I was trying to put on a brave front.

Well, this is why I adore Sudhir (my new boss). He actually knows a friend of his ( a really good doctor he assured me that he had recommended to past interns)and asked my driver friend to take me to the clinic which realistically was 5 minutes away. I am spoiled I swear.

So I met the doctor sahib. Well his clinic is a really really tiny version of a walk in clinic with chairs, a partioned section for examinations and him using his laptop. I basically told him my health history and without even examining me ( i love this part) agreed with my prognosis that my bronchittis was returning and if I didnt take care, it would lead to an asthma attack.

He then proceeded to use the old fashion therometers without the disposal units to check my temprature. Hey at least he washed it with water. So, I left the clinic, with my prescription in hand for steroids (to open up my lungs), antibiotics and some eye drops. Fun times

I wish I would have used my master card for payment. It really would have been the perfect ad...visiting doctor sahib:250 rupees, picking up meds from the chemist store next door: 40 rupees, finding out that a combination of the three medicines can cause heightened blood pressure and a feeling of euphoria: priceless

The old and the new

It’s been a week now for me in Delhi. So, I am doing a vital check on myself. Let’s see, health- could be better because I might have a minor asthma attack coming on me (courtesy of Delhi’s incessant pollution), stomach...still going strong. Figure...well I think I might be rounding out a little too much with all the good Indian food I have been eating. But, meh you only live once right. So, the adventure once again begins. This time I get to see Delhi.
Well, navigating into the heart of Delhi also known as CP (Connaught Place) isn’t really all that bad. It would have been better if I didn’t have my laptop with me but what can I say. I’m a woman on a mission. I must go wifi...before I go bye bye (ha! Lame joke) so, getting to the metro stations was a fun experience. I got myself into a rickshaw and almost fell flying because he was low on air pressure. Well for thirty rupees to cover 20 km, I am not complaining. I did make it alive in one piece
The Delhi metro system actually is better than London’s tubes. Its clean (shocking I know), on time (even more shocking) and there are actually seats designated for women only. That means if you are a man in a seat, I have the right to kick you out. I love it (sorry my alpha male friends). I was glad to just be able to stand in one spot and see Delhi around me as the train took me to my destination. I didn’t realize the extent as to how large the city actually is.
Well now for the fun story. Well being the silly tourist that I am, I decided to carry my lonely planet. Well, if you want to be identified by all as being a tourist, go ahead whip out that amazing book that lists off the best places to visit in the golden triangle. It didn’t even take two seconds before I was approached. Well, let’s just say the comedy ensued.
Apparently, this guy was also working in the NGO field and he was nice enough to show me to the Delhi Tourist Center. Now, there are about I don’t know a hundred official Delhi tourist centers. So, travellers do not be fooled. Who did this guy think he was messing with? Hell, I needed a map of the city so I tagged along. He proceeded to compliment me on my Hindi and then ask me why I would need a lonely planet book. (Shaney if you are reading this- Maya, my alter ego was in full force). So, I gave him my fake name and told him I was here for work while my husband was in Goa. I love BS! This guy had no shame whatsoever. He proceeded to ask me out for coffee. Okay, it’s not the worst thing to happen to a single gal but seriously the amount of hair product or coconut oil in his hair would probably feed a family of 10 for a year. Enough said
Sunday’s are actually the best days to travel into the heart of the city. No one’s around and it was great just to be able to walk around and not pass out with the heat. What’s even more stunning is that it’s not that hard to navigate around if you know which direction you are headed in. My first stop was Jantar Mantar. It’s this cool 17th Century dial that was set up by the Rajput Kings to measure...well time and the lunar calendar. I only paid 5 rupees to get in (yay for being Indian) while the rest of the foreigners get stuck with a whopping amount of 100 rupees (which still works out to a buck fifty)


Me at Jantar Mantar

India Gate was next on the agenda and it was really neat to see this memorial dedicated to all those who died in the World War and the subsequent wars as well. The entire path from India Gate to the presidential palace is humungous. That would explain why on republic day, they are able to roll tanks into this area. I also spotted my first set of foreigners. Yay! People who aren’t Indian. Sorry guys, I don’t mean to sound...well racist against my own kind. It’s just hard being away from a multicultural society especially one like Vancouver.


At India Gate- Delhi

And then the highlight of my day: Amit called! My friends from North America have made the connection. Oh I should probably say a few words about Amit because he will be making constant reappearances through my adventures. Amit is my dear friend Abhay’s cousin. We all know each from Vancouver and well he’s getting married in November and I get to go to the wedding (yay!) So, well he’s a swell guy and we got to hang out for the afternoon.
I really felt at home after meeting up with Amit. I also got introduced to his wicked Sister (vasundra and her husband Abhneet). We met up with some more friends (two Mexicans) and proceeded to just chill over coffee and lunch north Indian style. Well it means lots of tandoori chicken and lots of heavy cream in your food. I also found that I had a lot in common with Vasundra. She’s doing her PH. D in Political Science. So common, how could we not get along? They even helped me purchase my wifi card (which incidentally, doesn’t work for 48 hours because of the Indian way of things..sigh)
Btw fellow travellers, if you ever need to buy a cell phone or say a wifi card, it’s nearly impossible without having the Indian version of a SIN number (PIN) and some proof of residence. The best thing to do is to get someone you know who lives in Delhi to do it for you. Seriously a hassle but I am so grateful that I have it. But, lets just hope it works in the next 24 hours or there will be a lot of complaining to happen in this blog....nevermind...it works! I'm free at last! Well, you know what I mean

Delhi to Bharatpur

It hasn’t even been a week and I am already on the road courtesy of Sudhir. I found out late Friday that I would have the opportunity to head to see the Mewat region and meet the feild team and see their progress. The Mewat region has a interesting history. The people who live in this area of Rajasthan are some of the poorest in India. The Meo’s who live in the region are of mixed religious heritage- hindu rajputs who converted to islam. They still continue to practice a blend of Hindu and Muslim traditions and as a result, they have been discriminated against by Indian Society. Women actually have the lowest literacy rate in the region and are often the bread winners of the family. As a result, they are unable to attend school and often are the most marginalized section of society. So, basically SARD has been working in the region for the last 10 years to rectify the issue and it has had enormous support from both the village leaders and the Indian government. Currently, they are looking to expand the project into other areas of the region and address the issue of literacy by establishing community based schools that help women by providing for additional classes and tries to mainstream them into the main central school system. It’s all very neat and fascinating
So, we ended up leaving Delhi at around 2. It ended up being my boss Sudhir, Kalyaan- the accountant and Chandrapal, out sweet driver. I didn’t realize that in a span of 4 hours, I had crossed four states! I also got my first glimpses of Delhi and what exactly Northern India looks like outside of the city and it’s beautiful. I love the fact that I could feel the history of my surrounding seep into me. Especially when I hit Mathura- the hometown of Lord Krishna. I could feel the air of spirituality around me and to see the structures (the main temple) in the middle of the city really put me at awe. I also saw the stark poverty presented in front of me. Sudhir was the one who told me the real reason why the main highway is well maintained- it was done by the World Bank. The side roads are a different story of its own. The best way to describe it is that it is completely covered in pot holes. You can see the stark poverty presented in front of you as well. Most of the villages in the surroundings didn’t even have electricity. However, I couldn’t help see the beauty in the midst as well. I could see the stars clearly illuminated by the moon. Don’t get me wrong I understand the abysmal conditions the villagers live in but I was more distracted by my own thoughts and the calmness I was finally experiencing. It was great.

We finally arrived in Deeg, a remote area in Rajasthan at around 9pm. It was clearly dark by then but sudhir still made it a point to meet one of the village leaders. It was really great to see how welcoming the leader was of us. We could tell that even though he didn’t have much he really wanted us to feel at home. I felt bad not accepting the water and the cookies placed in front of me. Not to offend anyone, I ended up taking a sip of the water and then Sudhir explained to the elder that I had just arrived and I wasn’t sure if I could drink the water. So, the leader got me a cold drink. Now, Indian cold drinks are way different from the North American ones. They have a funny taste to it as well which I am not exactly sure why. Following the meeting, we made our way to the Deeg office. It was so neat to see the computer stations set up for the children to learn and their informal teaching rooms that would be used help facilitate learning for the children. I especially loved their learning materials. Fun tools to promote teaching. I also met the local staff there and they were so glad that we had all drove down from Delhi.
After some more visits (by this time it was about 9 pm) we made our way to Bharatpur. I found out that Bharatpur is actually famous for some amazing bird sanctuaries and is renowned from all over the world. We checked into the Border’s Inn (which I totally recommend). After being spoilt at the Marriott’s and well now living in my simple abode, the Inn was a great change. It was seriously a full furnished apartment, with TV and everything! AC!!!! Oh my gosh! I know it sounds silly but trust me in 40 degrees of heat AC is great
6 am really isn’t that bad of a start. I know most of you would go why would anyone wake up that early? Well, the crazy morning person that I am, got up just to see the bird sanctuary. Maybe it’s not safe for girls to go wandering off to a national park in the morning. I was accompanied by my co-worker (I find it sort of funny really) to the park. I decided for us that it would be a great morning walk and really 10 km to the central point isn’t that bad. And more over, the full cream milk with my sugar loaded tea really is getting to me. I think I’m gaining weight here and that is not supposed to happen! In India! What happened to my sensitive stomach! Damn Florastor (a really great med for protecting your stomach)


Well, we did see tons of birds. I don’t think I have ever seen cranes 5 ft tall with huge Jurassic park styled wings. It really is nuts and it just happened to be one of my favourite moments so far. There was such a variety of birds and animals. Part of me wished I could stay there the entire day and let it feel like a vacation but sadly, we left after 2 hours at the national sanctuary.



Bird Sanctuary- I see with my litte Eye


I really loved the people I met at the Bharatpur Field office. I have never met a more passionate group of people who really wanted to make a difference. I always felt that it really takes a special person to commit their lives to the NGO field. Let’s face it; people in this field don’t do it for the money. They do it for the sake of helping others and this sense of love and respect for these people overwhelmed me. I think this is mainly due to the fact that Indians are raised with the view that in order to be successful you must be a doctor, lawyer or an engineer. So, meeting people who actually really wanted to work to make their communities better hit home. It was a really cool 3.5 hour meeting and it was all done in a very community like set up. Everyone was seated on the floor and took turns to explain to me in Hindi or sometimes English, what exactly they did and the progress they had made so far in their projects. Basically because the region is so backward in terms of education, a lot of focus has been placed on increasing the literacy rates in the religious communities as well as focusing on sex education (this region is one of the few pockets in Rajasthan affected by HIV) I also learned the challenges that these people faced in the field and we also celebrated their successes.
I actually went around in my funny sounding Hindi (maybe it’s only funny to me) asking these people why exactly they are doing what they do and how do they communicate to the older community that their intentions are well meaning. I think it was when a very sweet lady told me that “look at the way we communicate, we speak in terms that both of us understand. We do the same with older women and men. We speak in terms that are relevant to their level of understanding”. Well, needless to say that even though this is common sense, it drove home the point of keeping this relative to the cultural context.



Meeting at the Bharatpur office, Rajasthan

Random fun fact of the day: If you have never tried this when you visited India in the past, the dhaba stop on the side of any major highway is a complete must. Sure, it’s dirty and you really don’t know if the servers or the cooks have washed their hands in years. But hey, its part of the cultural experience! The food is mouth wateringly good and well I would suggest a hundred Hail Mary’s just to make sure you don’t come down with a bad bout of diarrhoea.

Yeh hai “Delhi” meri jaan (This is Delhi, my love)

I woke up this morning realizing that it has almost been a month since I actually did any real form of exercise. A month! So, I got up this morning at the ungodly hour of 6 am and made my way outside to try and find a park or somewhere I could run. I didn’t have to look too far. It really is just outside my place.

Now, the Indian parks are different from the Canadian ones. For one thing, you won’t have random street dogs, cows, livestock you name it running around and you won’t have garbage from weeks sorted out to a side as well. Walking around the park, I came to a very sad realization. Even though I love my culture, history, the languages and even bollywood, I am still disappointed by the lack of care the locals have for their environment. I wish people here were more environmentally conscious. It drives me up the wall to see them just throw plastic bottles on the sides of the roads and not care and this is something I don’t want to have to get used to. I can somewhat understand the pollution and India is still going through the industrialization revolution but it still hurts. I think it was something that Mr. Kumar said tonight that hit me. Indians don’t have a sense of civic duty and I think I have to agree with him (at least when it comes to the big cities). I am surprised to find that the isn’t a sense of we that I thought would be prevalent here. It really can be individualistic at times (You guys are free to disagree with me)

Working hours at SARD doesn’t start till 9:30. It basically means everyone shows up around 10 IST. I must say that the group of individuals who I have been introduced today are probably the hardest working people I have met ever. They are very much dedicated to improving the living conditions of the under privileged and work extremely hard as well to make ends meet. There are approximately 5-6 people in the office at any given time. Most of them are accountants since the real work is done in the field. I think I am really going to enjoy working on grass roots projects and since 1996, SARD has really gained an impressive amount of support from the local governments, international NGO’s, UN as well as corporate sponsors such as Pepsi and Honda. They are really trying to focus on developing a mentality of corporate social responsibility.

SARD mainly focuses its work in education and it has several components. One area is to provide support for children who for various reasons tend to drop out from school at the age of 10 years. SARD provides community level training (informal education) in rural areas as well as additional tutoring for children who will later on be mainstreamed into the public education system. They also have achieved a lot of success in this approach. The organization also focuses on women’s rights, HIV/ AIDS Awareness campaigns (safe sex education) in various levels of society. Another component is landmines awareness and rehabilitation efforts across North India. This is the area where will be working in and I will actually be able to go to the Line of Control and see where all the devastation has occurred. I do believe that there are a lot of untold stories here that haven’t really received any media attention back home. I am really going to try to make it a part of my own self discovery to bring these issues back to Canada and really get some media attention going on. I really don’t think that good work gets recognized all that often in the media and it will be an important first step as well to honour those who live in these circumstances and those who dedicate their lives to making the lives of less fortunate better.

I am particularly excited to work with Annu who is the educational director here. She is an awesome woman with such great energy and passion about the work she does. She’s is going to try and see if she can take me to Simla to attend a conference on women’s rights at the end of this month. I hope it works out.

Now for the interesting anecdote of the day: I thought I drank a lot of tea...but holy moly people here drink so much more! I mean it’s not even the plain black tea or green tea. I mean full fat, lots of sugar, masala tea regardless of what the weather is like. I love it! HEAVEN! I practically have tea served to me every hour on the hour. It’s awesome!

I think I'm going Native

Everything seems brighter in the mornings. You feel happier, your surroundings also look brighter and you really do have a better perspective. I think mornings bring out the positive side for me. I didn’t even mind my new living conditions. Mind you, I will make it my own in the next coming weeks. Shopping here I come! This morning was particularly interesting. I was about to enter a whole new area of my life that I really haven’t ventured into before....the traditional Indian family.

I know it sounds strange but having grown up with just having my mum and brother around, I guess this experience I am about to explain is something very cool. I am not surprised by it in any means but it is something that popped out.
The family that are the landlords (The Kumar’s) actually live with their extended family meaning basically everyone lives together. To the foreign eye, this may seem strange but to the Indian perspective it makes complete sense. You have three floors of apartments and on each floor you can find a family. In this case, the top belonging to the grandparents, second to the Kumar’s and the first floor to the younger brother’s family. I am so used to having a nuclear family set up.
The Kumar’s are really very nice and friendly. They were shocked that as a person from the south that I could actually speak half decent Hindi. Again, this is a trend that I have noticed since I arrived in India and it has only been a couple hours! I think aunty (Mrs. Kumar) was very excited to be able to communicate to me since the last interns were all foreigners (mind you I am labelled into that same category here). The Kumar’s have two very sweet young girls. Pahlavi is in grade 9 and Mansi in Grade 6. They immediately started calling me didi (older sister). Being the youngest, I have never been called that so it made me happy. It’s a very simplistic sense of happiness really.

I am so glad to be eating home cooked Indian food! It really is a treat. Again, this sounds strange but when you travelled like I did for the last two years eating out all the time, homemade food is oh sooo good! It’s been ages since I had poori (lightly fried puffed up tortilla) and chole (chick peas...soo yummy)
I had found out the previous night that my boss Sudhir would be heading out for the next couple of days. So, after breakfast, I was escorted (really) to meet Sudhir. I think I will really enjoy working with him. Sudhir has a tremendous level of energy around him. He is very experienced having worked for 11 years with ICRC and then became the CEO of SARD in 1996. He is really one of the main voices that are encouraging India to sign the treaty to ban landmines. I think his approach to the issue is very realistic. He is focusing on uniting the different NGO’s here on rehabilitation efforts. Sadly, the plight of the survivors is quite tragic. The Indian government often does provide them with healthcare services and believes the issue of landmines is nonexistent because the Indian army has “cleared” all the landmines in India. So, most of the survivors here really are victims. They don’t even have artificial limbs or proper annual repairs for their prosthetics. After meeting Sudhir, I was really left with a sense of purpose. I felt like the child in me once again wanted to tear through all my practical ideas and say I too can save the world!

I have a funny feeling that over the next five months, I will not get used to being complimented on my Hindi or being mistaken as Punjabi. My accent is kicking in as well. Yes George, it can be funny at times. No, somebody is not going to get hurt yet and for all my Indian friends reading my blog right now, I have only one word to say to you- Surrey. I guess living in surrey for the last 12 odd years can do that to you.

Walking up the street in the sweltering heat, I really didn’t feel like wearing by yoga pants or western attire for that matter. No matter what you wear, Indians have an uncanny way of knowing that you don’t live around here. Again, girls in India don’t really walk around by themselves or live alone and I don’t think I want to make it overly easy for everyone to identify me. Apparently every Sunday, there are huge bazaars on the main street. Locals pretty much set up stalls and sell all kinds of stuff. Anything from underwear to yarn and all the sari material that you can possibly need. I have been told that the quality isn’t that great but who cares! It’s colourful and we all know how much I love color. So, after doing some quick shopping I headed back to my room to pass out.

Welcome to India

Sunrise at Charles De Gaulle Airport

The journey back to New Delhi was actually surprisingly smooth with a few minor exceptions. I had forgotten how much I hated the Toronto airport. The reason being that if you ask a person for help, the send you in the wrong direction and then you have to re- trace your footsteps back to where you first began. I think I am still hurting from having to give away an amazing bottle of syrah from Argentina upon arrival in Toronto a couple months ago.
Basically I had no idea where to grab my connection to Paris from. The lovely folks at the airport sent me to the Air Canada international departures area even though I clearly told them I was flying with Air France...sheesh! It meant that I had to run across buildings to catch my connection and barely made it with 10 minutes to spare! But, I am not complaining...just stating some plain facts. I.e. (sorry my Torontonian friends- your airport sucks!)
If you guys decide to travel abroad, try Air France. They are almost similar in their service to Cathay and they basically liquor you up so much that you can pass out and avoid get lag completely! Did I mention the cute stewards....oui! I am going to Paris...oui! I will meet you anywhere! (Just Kidding- sorry raj!) There really isn’t anything memorable that I can say about Charles De Gaulle airport- except for the fact that the sunrises are spectacular and seriously, Europe is overpriced. I can feel it from the airport. Holy smokes! 8 Euros for a cup of coffee and a croissant! Well I am just glad to say that I only spent 2 hours there and managed to spend 30 Euros in that time (lure of chocolate really)
I think I started to feel a bit nervous as we entered afghan airspace (I hope the no fly zone area). I was in shock that I actually decided to leave everything behind and jump on a plane and head to India of all places. Okay I know my ethnic background is Indian but I guess I just couldn’t picture myself heading to India and living there by myself. It’s something that I would do in Cambodia or Africa...but India scares me. Actually, I think it is the fear of how I will be treated or what kind of cultural shock I will experience that scares me. I know this sounds strange but I am out of my comfort zone completely. Yes, I have issues but so do you: P
Funnily enough, all my trepidations (thanks to Rahul- no burka needed) about going through customs didn’t actually pan out. I didn’t have to slip any money under the table and I wasn’t even asked why I was visiting. It was awesome! The not so awesome part- finding out that one of my bags (my back pack with basically all my medication, sports shoes, dance shoes and Indian clothes) was somehow delayed in Paris. Normally, I wouldn’t have any issues in having my bags delivered late. The real issue is that I don’t know if I will ever see my bag again. It has sentimental value and don’t want to have to rest in peace. Sigh! Another random side note: wearing a gold wedding band does work! I wasn’t bothered by anyone at all ...small victory...thanks mom!
More confusion. I was supposed to be received by SARD on my arrival...who knew Delhi had two arrival areas! Anyways after an hour it sorted itself out thanks to some quick texting to Ottawa and calling the right people. I just felt bad that the person meeting me (a really nice guy by the name of chandrapal) ended up waiting for a little over an hour and a half because of the luggage delay claims and the confusion. Oh well, so is life. I think he was in more shock when I started speaking to him in Hindi. He has a very limited knowledge of English and from what I had been told was very nervous to use English with me and have to pick me up. He is really a sweet man.
The locality in which I am staying is actually quite safe: Janakpuri and the distance between my work and home is a matter of 5 minutes walking. Great stuff! Not so great is the shock I received regarding my furnished accommodation status. Well, apparently “fully furnished” in India actually means having a bed with a blanket and running water with electricity. That’s it. I don’t mean to come off as a princess but I guess this is part of the shock value as well. I kind of figured that I might have a kitchen or even a western styled washroom (soon to be replaced to one yay). But, I guess it is human nature to just feel afraid when we are put outside our comfort zones.



My new room