Here is a photo taken a few hours ago while we were waiting to check in with Asiana.
Ron
12.09.2011
Delhi Airport
Well, we are now in the Delhi Airport, it is midnight, and our flight to Seoul leaves in two hours. To echo Daisy's sentiments, these kids are truly amazing, and it has been an incredible experience for me to share it with them over the past three weeks. I know that what these kids went through and experienced here will be with them for the rest of their lives, and they will be enriched for that. I too want to thank Daisy for the experience, and having the desire to share part of her life and her home with us and the students. It is a remarkable thing to experience at the tender age of 18 (or in some cases 17), and it will be great to watch how this influences them in the coming months and years.
Here is a photo taken a few hours ago while we were waiting to check in with Asiana.
Ron
Here is a photo taken a few hours ago while we were waiting to check in with Asiana.
Ron
12.07.2011
From Daisy with Gratitude!
I just wanted everyone who worked hard to make this trip happen, especially the parents who were generous and willing to have their children take this chance and those who worked to procure the Medical and sewing supplies and Karl and Catherine to know that all your hard work has paid off!
The kids were amazing! Organized, focused and most of all full participants.They went with the flow cheerfully, overcame the discomforts of heat and illness with patience. Every member of the group participated fully. Whether it be unpacking the medical supplies and books or painting the new building or collaborating on painting a beautiful mural or interacting with the community and children or preparing for the cultural day, they worked together, supporting each other and making sure things were done well. This was a group that even made sure the rooms were swept clean and the beds stripped before they left!
In return I hope they had an experience that they will never forget and I hope that Hope has opened their hearts and minds to the joy of learning about another culture and sharing with those less fortunate.
Last but not lease I also want to thank Mrs Lapore and Ron for being there for the kids and me.
Truly we at Hope are grateful!
Daisy
The kids were amazing! Organized, focused and most of all full participants.They went with the flow cheerfully, overcame the discomforts of heat and illness with patience. Every member of the group participated fully. Whether it be unpacking the medical supplies and books or painting the new building or collaborating on painting a beautiful mural or interacting with the community and children or preparing for the cultural day, they worked together, supporting each other and making sure things were done well. This was a group that even made sure the rooms were swept clean and the beds stripped before they left!
In return I hope they had an experience that they will never forget and I hope that Hope has opened their hearts and minds to the joy of learning about another culture and sharing with those less fortunate.
Last but not lease I also want to thank Mrs Lapore and Ron for being there for the kids and me.
Truly we at Hope are grateful!
Daisy
12.06.2011
Last Day
Today we were planning on getting up early so we could get an early start for our big cultural day down by the clinic, however we are in India, so things didn't didn't go according to plan. We woke up late, and ended up starting two hours later than expected. Although there was a late start, the cultural day was definitely a highlight of the trip.
The cultural day was basically a talent show put on in our honor. It started by introducing us all, and thanking us for coming. Then, the short perfomances began. Neighborhood kids aged about 5-18 did dances, sang, and one kid even gave a speech. Highlights included an adorable dance by two young girls to Barbie Girl, several Indian dance performances, and songs in both Malayalm and English.
We were very honored to watch these performances, especially since it was clear that they all put lots of time and effort into their acts. Next it was our turn to show what we had been practicing. The boys performed "Just What I Needed," "I Can Tell That We Are Going to be Friends," and "Halleluja" accompanied by guitar. The girls performed "Cecelia." As a group, we sang "I Get By With a Little Help From My Friends" accompanied by Colin on the guitar. It was very interesting to see the blend of American and Indian cultures. It was also fun to have the whole community come out and support each other.
Despite the heat, after the program was over, we had a giant dance party with the kids of the community. This fun way to end the cultural program.
After the cultural program, we cooled off, ate lunch, and went back to clinic to finish our mural. It was nice to see it all come together.
Our day ended with a long debrief of our time in India. It's bittersweet to see
it come to an end, though everyone will agree that it has been a life experience.
Tomorrow we head off to Cochin, where we will spend two days.
Love,
Nick, Maya, and the Bridges to India group
The cultural day was basically a talent show put on in our honor. It started by introducing us all, and thanking us for coming. Then, the short perfomances began. Neighborhood kids aged about 5-18 did dances, sang, and one kid even gave a speech. Highlights included an adorable dance by two young girls to Barbie Girl, several Indian dance performances, and songs in both Malayalm and English.
We were very honored to watch these performances, especially since it was clear that they all put lots of time and effort into their acts. Next it was our turn to show what we had been practicing. The boys performed "Just What I Needed," "I Can Tell That We Are Going to be Friends," and "Halleluja" accompanied by guitar. The girls performed "Cecelia." As a group, we sang "I Get By With a Little Help From My Friends" accompanied by Colin on the guitar. It was very interesting to see the blend of American and Indian cultures. It was also fun to have the whole community come out and support each other.
Despite the heat, after the program was over, we had a giant dance party with the kids of the community. This fun way to end the cultural program.
After the cultural program, we cooled off, ate lunch, and went back to clinic to finish our mural. It was nice to see it all come together.
Our day ended with a long debrief of our time in India. It's bittersweet to see
it come to an end, though everyone will agree that it has been a life experience.
Tomorrow we head off to Cochin, where we will spend two days.
Love,
Nick, Maya, and the Bridges to India group
12.05.2011
With this elephant I thee wed
Hello again from the best place on earth. Today, we got a bit of a late start to a very busy day. Everyone was up and somewhat ready by 9 a.m. to put on our traditional Indian garb of Sari's and 'Bollywood pants' to attend a wedding in a nearby colony. For the girls, it was like getting ready for our very own weddings, and the downstairs of the house was absolute madness. People were dressing us, styling our hair and putting flowers in it, and putting bindis on our foreheads. As for the guys, it was rather simple, as they simply came down the stairs wearing their swag, a.k.a silk shirts, Bollywood pants, turbans, and shades.
We all crammed into two Jeep-like vehicles to show up fashionably late to a wonderful and traditional Hindu wedding at a nearby Hindu temple. We were kindly ushered into the ceremony and given front row seats! Rockstar status. As the wedding commenced, the couple looked very nervous, as it was an arranged marriage, but we all saw them to be a well-matched pair. The ceremony itself was very different from any American wedding, as there were many traditions being put on display. Our attendance was very brief, yet very noted. Like in the North, people were snapping photos of us on their camera phones and introducing themselves to us. Maya received a lovely bouquet of flowers from some random guy with a mustache, which was equivalent to the catching of the bouquet at an American wedding. We also got a chance to take a group photo with the bride and groom which was quite an honor.
We left the wedding and returned to Daisy's for lunch and a bit of 'siesta time' as we like call it. It was a nice break in the day, readying us for more adventures in the Jeep. For an hour and a half, we drove through the streets of Kerala, hoping to eventually find an elephant to ride. After a bumpin' car ride with some sweet 'Hindi-step' (Indian dubstep music), we found our elephant. This elephant is a very majestic elephant aging around thirty years. We each got a chance to ride him around the yard he calls home. GUESS WHAT, we rode him bareback and we have lots of pictures to prove it. Riding him bareback was a much greater experience than that of what we did in Jaipur. It was more 'legit' as us youngins would say. Without our elephant hunt going on, it only took an hour for us to get home. The house was finally quiet and peaceful, as we arrived to Lal with a tray full of tea and a plate full of snacks. Before dinner, we got a chance to rehearse some upcoming performances. We ate a dinner of traditional Kerala bread with a spiced and flavorful potato dish and an Asian vegetable curry. After dinner we rehearsed some more to end our busy busy second to last day at Hope Charities.
We love you all,
Evy and Amy
We all crammed into two Jeep-like vehicles to show up fashionably late to a wonderful and traditional Hindu wedding at a nearby Hindu temple. We were kindly ushered into the ceremony and given front row seats! Rockstar status. As the wedding commenced, the couple looked very nervous, as it was an arranged marriage, but we all saw them to be a well-matched pair. The ceremony itself was very different from any American wedding, as there were many traditions being put on display. Our attendance was very brief, yet very noted. Like in the North, people were snapping photos of us on their camera phones and introducing themselves to us. Maya received a lovely bouquet of flowers from some random guy with a mustache, which was equivalent to the catching of the bouquet at an American wedding. We also got a chance to take a group photo with the bride and groom which was quite an honor.
We left the wedding and returned to Daisy's for lunch and a bit of 'siesta time' as we like call it. It was a nice break in the day, readying us for more adventures in the Jeep. For an hour and a half, we drove through the streets of Kerala, hoping to eventually find an elephant to ride. After a bumpin' car ride with some sweet 'Hindi-step' (Indian dubstep music), we found our elephant. This elephant is a very majestic elephant aging around thirty years. We each got a chance to ride him around the yard he calls home. GUESS WHAT, we rode him bareback and we have lots of pictures to prove it. Riding him bareback was a much greater experience than that of what we did in Jaipur. It was more 'legit' as us youngins would say. Without our elephant hunt going on, it only took an hour for us to get home. The house was finally quiet and peaceful, as we arrived to Lal with a tray full of tea and a plate full of snacks. Before dinner, we got a chance to rehearse some upcoming performances. We ate a dinner of traditional Kerala bread with a spiced and flavorful potato dish and an Asian vegetable curry. After dinner we rehearsed some more to end our busy busy second to last day at Hope Charities.
We love you all,
Evy and Amy
12.04.2011
painting, painting, and some henna.
Today was a fairly leisurely day. Most people slept in until 8:30 or 9 and breakfast was not even served until 10ish. Once we were all up and functional, Colin, Amy, Mrs. LePore and Ms. Laly went into town for some shopping and also visited the school that will be funded by the H2O class this spring. The rest of the group spent the day around the house and working down in the clinic.
Much of the day was spent either working on our ocean-scene mural in the room that will act as the Pre-K daycare center at the clinic, or doing homework. Shortly after lunch the girls went down to the sewing center to get the blouses for our saris fitted and later on, the boys went out with some local kids to play cricket and meandered back through the hills behind our property. Though there are ants everywhere here, none of the boys got bitten too badly while hiking through the tall grass.
Later in the evening, Sara-Suti's daughter and her friend helped Ms. Laly apply henna on all of the girls' hands in preparation for the wedding we will be attending tomorrow morning. The rest of the evening has been spent relaxing, doing homework, and wrapping gifts for the local kids who will be performing for us on Monday.
It is hard to believe that our time here is almost over, but we are looking forward to what our last few days have to offer. With a wedding and elephant rides tomorrow, and a big community shebang happening on Monday, our last few days at Hope Clinic are going to be quite the finale.
Much of the day was spent either working on our ocean-scene mural in the room that will act as the Pre-K daycare center at the clinic, or doing homework. Shortly after lunch the girls went down to the sewing center to get the blouses for our saris fitted and later on, the boys went out with some local kids to play cricket and meandered back through the hills behind our property. Though there are ants everywhere here, none of the boys got bitten too badly while hiking through the tall grass.
Later in the evening, Sara-Suti's daughter and her friend helped Ms. Laly apply henna on all of the girls' hands in preparation for the wedding we will be attending tomorrow morning. The rest of the evening has been spent relaxing, doing homework, and wrapping gifts for the local kids who will be performing for us on Monday.
It is hard to believe that our time here is almost over, but we are looking forward to what our last few days have to offer. With a wedding and elephant rides tomorrow, and a big community shebang happening on Monday, our last few days at Hope Clinic are going to be quite the finale.
12.03.2011
12.02.2011
Seeing Stars
Greetings from India! Ms. Steckel and Mr. Yablon and Mr. Takeo, here, reporting from afar.
As we got off the bus this morning at Don Bosco Secondary School, we were met with a completely different atmosphere from the school we visited yesterday. The school was quiet but as soon as the students found out the foreigners were there, it erupted. Like before, we were split up into small groups and lead into different classrooms to attend lectures and interact with the students. At first, most of the conversations were awkward and forced. By the end of the visit we were all speaking with ease and everyone was comfortable. Unlike other schools, we were able to speak candidly about topics from political corruption in the U.S. and India to arranged marriage. In addition to the discussion, many students performed various talents including swing dancing, the macarena, the hokey pokey, singing, and hand games. All students, both Indian and American, enjoyed seeing another culture's traditions.
After the school visit we walked around a rubber plantation before taking a brief tour. We saw firsthand how latex is collected. It was amazing to see how quickly the latex poured from the tree (literally within seconds).
Next we went shopping in an authentic market in Kottayam. We first stopped at a paint shop to pick out some colours to use on our mural in the pre-K room (more on this in tomorrow's blog post). We then walked through the crowded streets and we found vendors selling Kerala stars which are intricate and colourful ceiling decorations. Some people also bought scarfs and prayer beads to add to their collection of gifts (for their parents...).
Finally we were back at the house to rest before dinner and a group meeting to review our reactions from the day. Now we're off to bed before another busy day tomorrow!
Much love,
Anna, Colin and Ben
As we got off the bus this morning at Don Bosco Secondary School, we were met with a completely different atmosphere from the school we visited yesterday. The school was quiet but as soon as the students found out the foreigners were there, it erupted. Like before, we were split up into small groups and lead into different classrooms to attend lectures and interact with the students. At first, most of the conversations were awkward and forced. By the end of the visit we were all speaking with ease and everyone was comfortable. Unlike other schools, we were able to speak candidly about topics from political corruption in the U.S. and India to arranged marriage. In addition to the discussion, many students performed various talents including swing dancing, the macarena, the hokey pokey, singing, and hand games. All students, both Indian and American, enjoyed seeing another culture's traditions.
After the school visit we walked around a rubber plantation before taking a brief tour. We saw firsthand how latex is collected. It was amazing to see how quickly the latex poured from the tree (literally within seconds).
Next we went shopping in an authentic market in Kottayam. We first stopped at a paint shop to pick out some colours to use on our mural in the pre-K room (more on this in tomorrow's blog post). We then walked through the crowded streets and we found vendors selling Kerala stars which are intricate and colourful ceiling decorations. Some people also bought scarfs and prayer beads to add to their collection of gifts (for their parents...).
Finally we were back at the house to rest before dinner and a group meeting to review our reactions from the day. Now we're off to bed before another busy day tomorrow!
Much love,
Anna, Colin and Ben
Peanut Butter Jelly Time
After an intense thunder and lightning storm over the night, the Bridges to India Group was awakened by another drum lesson (Ben and Colin serenaded us with their new drumming skills). After having having breakfast, our pepto-bismol pink and white van arrived to take us to our second school visit: Placid Vidya Vihar. The school was made up of 3,000 fifth through twelfth graders, prodominantly middle to upper class students. We were greeted by many excited kids shreicking and waving at us. We were then ushered to the principal's office, which felt like an upscale resort lobby complete with two chandliers, white marble floors, and a giant stuffed animal tiger. After waiting for a few minutes, the principal, a Catholic Father, came in and gave us a brief introduction of the school.
From there, we split up into pairs and went into classrooms to observe. Most of us had a pretty good experience with the teachers and students. Some of us had some pretty interesting conversations about Indian and American cultures. It was interesting to see how the students interacted with their teachers. The students stood up everytime a teacher would come in and out of the classroom or if they were asking questions to the teacher. Their learning style is completely different then ours. There is a lot of memorizing, note taking, and lecturing involved. After observing two classes, we all went to their library and had a question and answer session. We discussed anything from pop culture to politics. On our way out, we were swarmed by dozens of younger kids who were asking for our names and autographs. We then piled into our van and headed out.
Our next adventure was trying to eat lunch on the bus. Tensions got high when we ran out of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches that Lal had made us. Our bus driver graciously pulled over in the middle of the street to buy us more bread, banna chips, and potato chips. After that, we were set for food and were on our way to the back -waters!
After some bargaining by Mrs. LePore and Daisy, we were off for a three hour tour ;). We all boarded one of the infamous back-water house boats and we were on our way. We crusied around the backwaters and stopped off at this adorable little snack shack to buy provisions. We continued our cruise and enjoyed one of the most spectacular sunsets any of us have ever seen. The colors were briliant and the surrounding area made for a serene setting. We had a great time taking pictures and hanging out but we headed back to the docks as it was getting dark. We loaded back onto the bus and were on our way to the clinic.
Much love,
Nick, Jessica, Evy and the Bridges to India clan
From there, we split up into pairs and went into classrooms to observe. Most of us had a pretty good experience with the teachers and students. Some of us had some pretty interesting conversations about Indian and American cultures. It was interesting to see how the students interacted with their teachers. The students stood up everytime a teacher would come in and out of the classroom or if they were asking questions to the teacher. Their learning style is completely different then ours. There is a lot of memorizing, note taking, and lecturing involved. After observing two classes, we all went to their library and had a question and answer session. We discussed anything from pop culture to politics. On our way out, we were swarmed by dozens of younger kids who were asking for our names and autographs. We then piled into our van and headed out.
Our next adventure was trying to eat lunch on the bus. Tensions got high when we ran out of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches that Lal had made us. Our bus driver graciously pulled over in the middle of the street to buy us more bread, banna chips, and potato chips. After that, we were set for food and were on our way to the back -waters!
After some bargaining by Mrs. LePore and Daisy, we were off for a three hour tour ;). We all boarded one of the infamous back-water house boats and we were on our way. We crusied around the backwaters and stopped off at this adorable little snack shack to buy provisions. We continued our cruise and enjoyed one of the most spectacular sunsets any of us have ever seen. The colors were briliant and the surrounding area made for a serene setting. We had a great time taking pictures and hanging out but we headed back to the docks as it was getting dark. We loaded back onto the bus and were on our way to the clinic.
Much love,
Nick, Jessica, Evy and the Bridges to India clan
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