Holi Holi..... the most colourful festival on earth! So the day after the Elephant Fair is Holi festival, its always held at the start of summer to say bye to Winter and celebrate good harvest (again so I have been told).
In the week leading up to Holi, all the local stores have a table out the front selling either little bags of coloured Holi dust or you buy it by the grams from the pyramid of coloured dust they have made. They also sell water pistols as you not only throw coloured dust, but now the thing that the kids love to do the most is mix the coloured dust with water and spray it at people on Holi day.
So we woke Holi morning - felt like the excitement of Xmas day and got into our "Holi clothes" that we bought especially to be ruined by the dust. At 9.30am we headed up to the roof of our homestay as we had agreed to play Holi with the family before we headed off to the project co-ordinators house to play Holi with her family and the rest of the volunteers. When we stepped out onto the rooftop we started to laugh as we saw the father and their guests all covered in yellow and orange dust and just casually sitting their eating special Holi sweets (that we made the night before). The visitors stood up and wished us a happy Holi and then took great joy in showing us this is how you celebrate - again the gentle approach with one thumb mark pulled up our forehead then a cheeky clapping of a handful of colour on both our cheeks - let the games begin!
From the safety of the roof we were able to observe the madness on the street below - neighbours coming outside with trays or bags of colour to "bless" each other. Just think of the neighbour you have always hated and use Holi as an excuse to seek the ultimate revenge and it would be considered a blessing! Kids were running mad with their huge water pistols spraying at everyone and everything in their path - including cars driving past with open windows!
Our driver came to pick us up and take us to the house we were to celebrate at and have lunch - we were told its not safe to use public transport on Holi Day and I have to say I am very happy we listened as it was madness on the roads. I couldn't stop laughing when I saw an old grandmother in full sari sitting on the back of a motorbike elegantly but covered in bright pink Holi dust along with her driver. This scene was repeated our entire trip - to the point where we pulled into one residential area and there all these men in their white kaftans and pants covered in the multi coloured dust and walking behind our car so they almost looked like zombies - I would have photographed it except that the windscreen was so dirty the camera couldn't focus.
Sitting in the car we all agreed that the rest of the volunteers were probably waiting for our arrival and hidden in the garden to attack us with colour. As we pulled up we had other concerns - a street full of kids came running towards the car waiting for us to get out so that they could get us. As the car was a van cheekily I told the girls to run out the right door and as they became the bait, I jumped out the left door and ran in through the main gates ha ha. Lucky for me the other volunteers were nowhere to be seen and were still in bed!
We met grandma and grandpa who own the homestay and grandpa was already covered in multi colours - I took a photo as it was very cute. They were getting visitors all day and the same routine would pan out - the oldies would arrive in their whites holding a tray of colour and would gently bless each other by wiping some on each other's face and then when the young one's would arrive they would start using the dust and move onto the water holi which we all concluded we hated as it was cold and the colours wouldn't leave your skin.
It was definitely agreed that dust Holi leave much nicer colours on your clothes than the dark purple/black that appears from mixing all the colours with water. When we finally got all the volunteers together we decided to try taking on the kids in the neighbourhood - I even had military precision strategy that two of us call them up the laneway and once they are all up our end, that the others come from around the back and lock them in - terrible I know!
Somehow we realised that some of the young boys were using car grease and wiping it on people's faces??!!! Suddenly water seemed so innocent.
The daughter of our co-ordinator had her male "friend" turn up and we watched our own Bollywood film unravel infront of us - all we could smirk is "friend sure he is" they were sickeningly romantic taking turns at attacking each other with dust and ignoring everyone else. I thought it was funny that that grandparents sat watching knowingly that another marriage is on the horizon soon!
Our driver was taking us back home when we were hit by a car from the rear - we all jolted forward but no one hurt- the crazy man who hit us, no doubt drunk on Holi day looked at us, smiled and drove off! In true Indian style our driver smiled and said "No problem" hopped out of the car and inspected the damage, laughed and off we drove. No number plates written down or exchange of details - you own a crap car so who cares!
So we enjoyed a delicious Indian lunch, ate even more sweets and got to take part in a crazy festival of colour that could only be compared to the tomato throwing festival in Spain. Incredible India!
Showing posts with label Jaipur. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jaipur. Show all posts
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Saturday, March 6, 2010
Elephant Fair 2010 Jaipur
When I was planning my trip to India using my trusty Lonely Planet, I tagged all the festivals that I wanted to try and attend during my stay. When I realised that the Elephant Fair was on just before Holi in Jaipur, I made sure that my volunteer project ended that weekend so that I could be free to join the festivities but still hopefully have interaction with the locals that I met during the program to experience a true Holi.
For years I have watched Bollywood movies with Holi scenes and read stories and I wondered what it's really like to be a part of? Surely throwing coloured dust can't be that exciting - well it's everything and more and I think anyone who visits India should be here for this festival.
Annually, Jaipur city hosts the Elephant Fair in one of it's many stadiums - usually held a day or two before Holi festival. To say that all the volunteers in our programme were excited about this weekend was an understatement. We had a old poster for last years festival on our bedroom wall, so all week we stared at it's photos getting excited wondering if it would be all that we hoped.
Everyone told us to ensure that we arrived at around 1.30pm to get a good seat for a 4pm start - not one for patience, we all agreed that this is India and nothing starts on time so let's arrive at 2.30pm - this turned out to be perfect timing on our part. After the rickshaw driver took us to the wrong stadium and we "phoned a friend" for some Hindi instructions, we knew we had arrived at the right stadium as we watched chalk coloured elephants stride past with their Mahouts proudly dressed ontop. Excitement grew within our group of 4 girls.
Everyone told us to ensure that we arrived at around 1.30pm to get a good seat for a 4pm start - not one for patience, we all agreed that this is India and nothing starts on time so let's arrive at 2.30pm - this turned out to be perfect timing on our part. After the rickshaw driver took us to the wrong stadium and we "phoned a friend" for some Hindi instructions, we knew we had arrived at the right stadium as we watched chalk coloured elephants stride past with their Mahouts proudly dressed ontop. Excitement grew within our group of 4 girls.
At the main entrance we were greeted with a lineup of approx 6-7 elaborately decorated elephants and their grandly dressed Mahouts aboard munching away on ice-cream - we all wanted one! There were at this point a couple of dozen tourists taking photos of the line-up's from across the street and us more "buddying photographers" getting in close on different angles for the perfect shot - them with their huge lens camera's and me with my trusty blue digital camera. The Mahouts invited us to go up and take our photos next to their elephant - now remember this is India - land of entrepreneurs.... 10 rupees per elephant :) but we saw some silly tourists pay the demanded 100 rupees that the Mahout's wanted.
We wondered through the gates and came to a building entrance that looked all rather official for guests of honour so we moved onto the next door which looked the same but had an entourage of Indian guards in their khaki green uniforms, moustache's and sticks along side 2 ladies in beautiful sari - one holding a basket of rose petals and the other a basket of Holi dust. "Please please come in" they beckoned us - we were certain we were in the wrong area but heck who were we to turn down a free blessing and the all important showering of rose petals (is it every girls dream to be showered by rose petals on a daily basis or is that just me and my past life dreaming again?!).
Once we have had the customary Holi dust blessing on our forehead - a thumb smudge line that goes up and those lovely rose petals we entered into the stadium to find row after row of chairs with white frilly seat covers and all foreign tourists sitting in them. We managed to grab the last 4 in the shade (as I said perfect timing) and we sat patiently as we watched the crowd grow in the lead up to start time. Now a few interesting things we noticed - as suspected no Indian's really showed up until 3.30pm but most well after the start time of 4pm. I'm seeing similarities in timeliness between the Greeks and Indians - it's a known fact of Greek timing means a minimum hour later and perhaps Alexander the Great influenced the Indians with our timeliness issues too!
Another thing that we noticed is that our area was completely white skin foreigners - any attempts from the local Indians to stand or sit in our area was met with the Indian guards moving them onto the "Indian area only". This was a little disappointing as it was clear we got the comfy seats, decorations, security and shade - whilst the Indians had to deal with the sun and concrete steps. But we were later told and experience that it was for our own safety and that the whole event is put on by the Rajasthan Tourism Board especially for foreigners - still we felt bad and considering the recent terrorist threat to Jaipur, I had to shake the thought that we were ducks in waiting.
Finally the parade began, 95 beautifully decorated elephants in total, along with horses, camels, ox and carts, folk dancers and more. There was a "Miss Elephant 2010" beauty pageant and elephants playing soccer - now I have seen everything.
The artwork down on the elephants bodies was amazing - some in chalk and some in paints. There was a tiger and lion painted along side the body so that the elephants eye was that of the tiger/lion and every time the animal blinked it looked like the tiger/lion was blinking. They also had beautifully layered coats of silver, mirrors, frills and traditional applique on the elephants. Yes I am obsessed with elephants so was in my element.
The security guards lost control of the crowd as the animals were coming out and a combination of Indians and foreigners ran across the field to have their photos beside the beasts and costumed dancers. We had no energy to join them so happily watched from our regal seats, but gave in towards the end of the afternoon when I decided I wanted photos of the folk dancers.
They were very welcoming of photos and were equally as intrigued in us as we were them - kindly no rupee payment was required for photos of them or with them, as long as I showed them my camera after I took their photo. Some of them (inc. local Indians) came up and tapped me on the shoulder pointing to my camera indicating that they wanted me to take a photo of them - then I would show them and you would think I gave them 100 rupees! I put my sunglasses on one of the folk dancers with his bright orange turban and his whole "crew" thought this was hysterical and were in fits of laughter as we took photos. To return the favour one of his friends insisted I wear his turban for the photo - we all enjoyed the comical photo session.
What no-one of our "local" friends had bothered to warn us is that we should be careful at the Fair as the local's do Holi dust throwing there also - we saw a few people covered and I clearly remember jinxing myself and saying to the girls - "thank goodness they have not touched me in my new Salwar Kameez (kaftan top and pants that I bought that day) as I said JINX! So it started not long after my photos with the folk dancers, one of the volunteers recognised an elephant and it's Mahout from his project so we were having a chat. Then a young boy comes up and says "please madam for holi" - he has a bag of yellow coloured dust and I freak out at first but then see he is waiting for my permission - so I agree to just a pooja on my forehead. This then opened the flood gates and they all started asking (we realise its the excitement of not only covering us in dust but getting to touch the foreign girls face!). So I decide it's time to disappear into the crowd to observe the rest of the dancing festivities - we got suckered in when we saw the rose petal shower in the crowd behind us, so excitedly we all agreed to run under the "flower shower". Next thing we know we are surrounded by guys and there is a surge towards us of 20-30 young and old - we realise that we are not accidentally being brushed or touched so I contemplate kung fu-ing my way out of the crowd but instead look at the near by guard for help as he comes in swinging his stick and saving us. We thanked him and agreed it's time to leave as the crowds were growing more confident and we seemed to be main attraction. Just as we were walking off I spotted an old man with bags full of purple, blue and green dust - I scream at everyone to run and the best I could come up with was running to hide behind the guard that had saved us because surely this old man wouldn't have the nerve to take on the guards stick - wrong - I was covered - in my ears, mouth, hair and on my new outfit :(
Had we known and been prepared for Holi at the Fair we too could have had a brilliant time but everyone was in their best clothes so we were spewing! We took it in good spirit though and decided lets just watch from a distance at the rest of the festival - other foreigners who were more prepared than us had a brilliant time in their white outfits that were now multi-coloured and some were lucky enough to be aboard the elephants throwing Holi at the crowds - it was madness but it was hysterical. In the end I bought two bags of dust in a bid to seek revenge on that old man (he wasn't that old so don't feel too sorry for him) anyways I couldn't find him!
Our rickshaw ride home was just as eventful with half of Jaipur burning - the night before Holi they light huge bonfires in almost every street - according to some locals this must be done the day before the dust throwing as legend has it that a mother and her child sat in the fire and because of the sons spiritual beleif they did not die. So they are saying with Holi anything is possible - again this is only what I have been told and keep in mind that an Indians translation into English may not be perfect. So we got to choke on the smoke during our ride home and then battle with our rickshaw driver who was extremly lost and too busy trying to marry one of the volunteers before we then ran out of petrol in the middle of no where and sat there deciding if we should make a run for it or trust him as he walked down the street carrying a 2Lt water bottle. He came back 10 min later, us still in the auto and me giving the local directions to our home. Thank goodness I always look at landmarks as the Ramada Hotel was our saving grace and got us home from there.
This was the start of Holi - but I loved it and want to come back again better prepared for the next Elephant Fair.
They were very welcoming of photos and were equally as intrigued in us as we were them - kindly no rupee payment was required for photos of them or with them, as long as I showed them my camera after I took their photo. Some of them (inc. local Indians) came up and tapped me on the shoulder pointing to my camera indicating that they wanted me to take a photo of them - then I would show them and you would think I gave them 100 rupees! I put my sunglasses on one of the folk dancers with his bright orange turban and his whole "crew" thought this was hysterical and were in fits of laughter as we took photos. To return the favour one of his friends insisted I wear his turban for the photo - we all enjoyed the comical photo session.
What no-one of our "local" friends had bothered to warn us is that we should be careful at the Fair as the local's do Holi dust throwing there also - we saw a few people covered and I clearly remember jinxing myself and saying to the girls - "thank goodness they have not touched me in my new Salwar Kameez (kaftan top and pants that I bought that day) as I said JINX! So it started not long after my photos with the folk dancers, one of the volunteers recognised an elephant and it's Mahout from his project so we were having a chat. Then a young boy comes up and says "please madam for holi" - he has a bag of yellow coloured dust and I freak out at first but then see he is waiting for my permission - so I agree to just a pooja on my forehead. This then opened the flood gates and they all started asking (we realise its the excitement of not only covering us in dust but getting to touch the foreign girls face!). So I decide it's time to disappear into the crowd to observe the rest of the dancing festivities - we got suckered in when we saw the rose petal shower in the crowd behind us, so excitedly we all agreed to run under the "flower shower". Next thing we know we are surrounded by guys and there is a surge towards us of 20-30 young and old - we realise that we are not accidentally being brushed or touched so I contemplate kung fu-ing my way out of the crowd but instead look at the near by guard for help as he comes in swinging his stick and saving us. We thanked him and agreed it's time to leave as the crowds were growing more confident and we seemed to be main attraction. Just as we were walking off I spotted an old man with bags full of purple, blue and green dust - I scream at everyone to run and the best I could come up with was running to hide behind the guard that had saved us because surely this old man wouldn't have the nerve to take on the guards stick - wrong - I was covered - in my ears, mouth, hair and on my new outfit :(
Had we known and been prepared for Holi at the Fair we too could have had a brilliant time but everyone was in their best clothes so we were spewing! We took it in good spirit though and decided lets just watch from a distance at the rest of the festival - other foreigners who were more prepared than us had a brilliant time in their white outfits that were now multi-coloured and some were lucky enough to be aboard the elephants throwing Holi at the crowds - it was madness but it was hysterical. In the end I bought two bags of dust in a bid to seek revenge on that old man (he wasn't that old so don't feel too sorry for him) anyways I couldn't find him!
Our rickshaw ride home was just as eventful with half of Jaipur burning - the night before Holi they light huge bonfires in almost every street - according to some locals this must be done the day before the dust throwing as legend has it that a mother and her child sat in the fire and because of the sons spiritual beleif they did not die. So they are saying with Holi anything is possible - again this is only what I have been told and keep in mind that an Indians translation into English may not be perfect. So we got to choke on the smoke during our ride home and then battle with our rickshaw driver who was extremly lost and too busy trying to marry one of the volunteers before we then ran out of petrol in the middle of no where and sat there deciding if we should make a run for it or trust him as he walked down the street carrying a 2Lt water bottle. He came back 10 min later, us still in the auto and me giving the local directions to our home. Thank goodness I always look at landmarks as the Ramada Hotel was our saving grace and got us home from there.
This was the start of Holi - but I loved it and want to come back again better prepared for the next Elephant Fair.
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Jaipur: Theatre & English projects
My last day of the projects here in Jaipur are now here - 3 weeks seemed like it may go forever initially but somehow suprised me this last week and I find myself trying to back track as there is so much that I didn't get to do in my time here. There are still so many tourist sights that I haven't gotten around to seeing, but with my last few days now I am not feeling too bad for not doing them as I was using my time in a more helpful way I hope.
I was lucky enough that I was able to experience two projects on this trip - 1. the theatre workshops at a public school and 2. teach English at a local slum school. Like India, both were on total opposite ends of the spectrum to compare. Without a doubt my favourite project was at the slum school - approx 40 children split into 3 groups across two rooms. They have no school desks, they sit on concrete flooring with dirty vinyl tiles and only a thin blue rug between their bottoms and the cold hard winter floor. Everyday their 3 teachers work with them to cover a detailed syllabus in order to prepare them for their upcoming district exams in the 2nd week of March, which determines if they will move up a level. Two classes are in the same room - 4 & 5 year olds then 5-7 year olds. It appears at this school it is more according to their ability rather than their age requiring them to be in a particular grade.
One thing that really I found hard (and they certainly don't complain) is that they sit there on the floor cross-legged from 8am until 1pm everyday - no desk, so when they are copying from the blackboard into their notepad they have only their bumpy school bags to lean on or some have this one A4 blackboard that I think they do math, to lean on. The older children in the 2nd room at least get to lean on these mini collapsable metal tables.
A few days into teaching at the slum school and I noticed the children had the tiniest lead pencils that they were writing with. At first I thought it was just that they couldn't afford new pencils and later I was told they start the day with a new pencil then keep sharpening it all day! I didnt beleive it until I saw it with my own eyes - I would be teaching then have a crowd of kids from the other class next to the blackboard sharpening their pencils at the "sharpener bay" as I called it. I started being the pencil nazi and checking the sharpness of their pencils before allowing them to sharpen, in a bid to save their parents pencils!
Alot of the children didn't even know their own birthdays - not that it's not celebrated in India - but I was suprised when most of the children didn't know their birthdays when I was teaching them months of the year. My older class was beautiful - so enthusiastic and excited about their Western teachers. One day we did a class on "greetings, manners and ordering" (ha ha me teaching manners!) so rather than death by black board, I decided to get them all up and pretend walking on the spot - it went something crazy like this.... OK so what do you say when you wake up in the morning? Good morning mummy, good morning daddy - then we grab our school bag and we start walking to school... we see our auntie and we say good morning auntie.... we are thirsty so let's go to the lassi wahla "good morning, I would like a banana lassi please - thank you" so we are walking again and oh we are hungry... "Good morning I would like one Kachori please (like a samosa but have like spicy risotto looking rice inside and you have mango or mint chutney with it - its popular for breakfast). So this little scenario continued for around 10-15min with the kids and I marching in class, them repeating everything I say like parrots and all of us giggling our heads off.
After we teach theatre at the public school from 9-11am each day we have our autorickshaw guy drive over to the slum which is in the city. Its surrounded by a huge concrete wall and a few main gates, Puran walks us in through the slum to the school which is a simple brick room divided into two, with a tin roof that heats up the place to a hot box even in winter by lunchtime. You can actually smell the rubbish from the slum as it obviously heats up but I got used to it and noticed the amount of flies and mosquitoes in our classrooms more than anything. I taught a few children's lymrics that I could remember from my day's in childcare and the kids loved them - especially the one about a frog and the catchy game called duck, duck, goose. One day we joined two of the groups together - the toddlers and class above them - we played duck, duck, goose and the kids loved it - the giggles were beautiful as we know that education in India is very strict and fun just does not come into it. So one tiny little girl gets up to chase her friend and her skirt is just too big for her, so she is holding it as she runs bare foot (they all take their shoes off outside the room) around the circle. So we were all having a giggle as she looked hilarious trying to run and hold onto her skirt - next thing she accidentally drops the skirt infront of everyone and is standing their starkers! The children and teaches broke into fits of laughter and we quickly ran to cover her and tried to get order back in the room, but they were too cute as one boy is lying down pounding the floor with his fist giggling and gasping for air!
The slum itself really is a maze of concrete boxes that are just one room on a dirt floor with corrugated iron sheet for a roof held down by old tyres and rocks. Some people have their doors open as you walk past so you can see that there is a family of 3/4 living - eating, sleeping in this room. Showers are by bucket either up on the side of the street or infront of their door - boys in their undies, women in their saari's etc. Toilets.... well when we arrived yesterday there was a little boy squating on the side of the road outside the slum fence finishing his number 2 right there - that was a little too confronting but their bathroom is anywhere outside the house.
There is one area that we walk past each day in the slum that has several men, women and children sorting through huge heshin sacks filled with rubbish - they are being paid jack all to sort through these piles - newspapers get uncrumpled and tied with string in piles, plastic bottles together (yes I always crush mine in every country so that they can refill them) I feel bad for them as I walk past, but I always make a point to say Namaste and their faces ligt up that someone from a different "caste" is recognising them and addressing them as human beings that they deserve.
I find it really hard to decide what to do to help - I know there are people in the world saying what can I do and as per my post in Bali, I truly beleive that every drop makes a huge impact. This project in the slum is breaking down a wall between slum children and the outside world. These children at a young impressionable age are able to see that they are worthy of an education or someone's time - that they can talk to Westener's - our classes are giving them the confidence and the language knowledge to be able to hopefully create job opportunities for them when they are older - not to mention the fact that we are giving them to right to dream about a job out of the slum - more of a chance than their elders perhaps had.
I was talking with our project co-ordinator about the sheer amount of homeless people I saw sleeping on the streets coming back from Agra at 1.30am on Monday morning. I have never seen anything like it - a main road in Jaipur just lined with hundreds of people sleeping on the pavement with a lone blanket pulled up other their heads - on a freezing cold morning! I asked if the government or any charity organisations run anything like a soup kitchen or St Vincent's offereing a bed and meal etc she said that the worst thing they could do in India is to give hand outs as it will just be expected - instead one group has started offering them food at approx 9 rupees a dish to encourage them to work and earn their feed. I understand this concept and why it's important, but I just really struggle to see them sleeping in the street or children not in school begging for money at the lights instead - it's just wrong that humanity got to this point and I can't see out for them. I know that education means future and in India that is one thing that they are really placing a huge emphasis on with the children and uni students at the moment - education. I guess this is their only chance and it will be really interesting to see where India is as an economy 20 - 30 years from now with this next generation that are growing in a Westernised world. I really hope things get better for India, it has such history, culture, tradition and family values that the rest of the world could really learn from.
Sorry for making this a heavy one - the kids have really touched me and I hope to see them at the end of the year if I come back again. Namaste!
I was lucky enough that I was able to experience two projects on this trip - 1. the theatre workshops at a public school and 2. teach English at a local slum school. Like India, both were on total opposite ends of the spectrum to compare. Without a doubt my favourite project was at the slum school - approx 40 children split into 3 groups across two rooms. They have no school desks, they sit on concrete flooring with dirty vinyl tiles and only a thin blue rug between their bottoms and the cold hard winter floor. Everyday their 3 teachers work with them to cover a detailed syllabus in order to prepare them for their upcoming district exams in the 2nd week of March, which determines if they will move up a level. Two classes are in the same room - 4 & 5 year olds then 5-7 year olds. It appears at this school it is more according to their ability rather than their age requiring them to be in a particular grade.
One thing that really I found hard (and they certainly don't complain) is that they sit there on the floor cross-legged from 8am until 1pm everyday - no desk, so when they are copying from the blackboard into their notepad they have only their bumpy school bags to lean on or some have this one A4 blackboard that I think they do math, to lean on. The older children in the 2nd room at least get to lean on these mini collapsable metal tables.
A few days into teaching at the slum school and I noticed the children had the tiniest lead pencils that they were writing with. At first I thought it was just that they couldn't afford new pencils and later I was told they start the day with a new pencil then keep sharpening it all day! I didnt beleive it until I saw it with my own eyes - I would be teaching then have a crowd of kids from the other class next to the blackboard sharpening their pencils at the "sharpener bay" as I called it. I started being the pencil nazi and checking the sharpness of their pencils before allowing them to sharpen, in a bid to save their parents pencils!
Alot of the children didn't even know their own birthdays - not that it's not celebrated in India - but I was suprised when most of the children didn't know their birthdays when I was teaching them months of the year. My older class was beautiful - so enthusiastic and excited about their Western teachers. One day we did a class on "greetings, manners and ordering" (ha ha me teaching manners!) so rather than death by black board, I decided to get them all up and pretend walking on the spot - it went something crazy like this.... OK so what do you say when you wake up in the morning? Good morning mummy, good morning daddy - then we grab our school bag and we start walking to school... we see our auntie and we say good morning auntie.... we are thirsty so let's go to the lassi wahla "good morning, I would like a banana lassi please - thank you" so we are walking again and oh we are hungry... "Good morning I would like one Kachori please (like a samosa but have like spicy risotto looking rice inside and you have mango or mint chutney with it - its popular for breakfast). So this little scenario continued for around 10-15min with the kids and I marching in class, them repeating everything I say like parrots and all of us giggling our heads off.
After we teach theatre at the public school from 9-11am each day we have our autorickshaw guy drive over to the slum which is in the city. Its surrounded by a huge concrete wall and a few main gates, Puran walks us in through the slum to the school which is a simple brick room divided into two, with a tin roof that heats up the place to a hot box even in winter by lunchtime. You can actually smell the rubbish from the slum as it obviously heats up but I got used to it and noticed the amount of flies and mosquitoes in our classrooms more than anything. I taught a few children's lymrics that I could remember from my day's in childcare and the kids loved them - especially the one about a frog and the catchy game called duck, duck, goose. One day we joined two of the groups together - the toddlers and class above them - we played duck, duck, goose and the kids loved it - the giggles were beautiful as we know that education in India is very strict and fun just does not come into it. So one tiny little girl gets up to chase her friend and her skirt is just too big for her, so she is holding it as she runs bare foot (they all take their shoes off outside the room) around the circle. So we were all having a giggle as she looked hilarious trying to run and hold onto her skirt - next thing she accidentally drops the skirt infront of everyone and is standing their starkers! The children and teaches broke into fits of laughter and we quickly ran to cover her and tried to get order back in the room, but they were too cute as one boy is lying down pounding the floor with his fist giggling and gasping for air!
The slum itself really is a maze of concrete boxes that are just one room on a dirt floor with corrugated iron sheet for a roof held down by old tyres and rocks. Some people have their doors open as you walk past so you can see that there is a family of 3/4 living - eating, sleeping in this room. Showers are by bucket either up on the side of the street or infront of their door - boys in their undies, women in their saari's etc. Toilets.... well when we arrived yesterday there was a little boy squating on the side of the road outside the slum fence finishing his number 2 right there - that was a little too confronting but their bathroom is anywhere outside the house.
There is one area that we walk past each day in the slum that has several men, women and children sorting through huge heshin sacks filled with rubbish - they are being paid jack all to sort through these piles - newspapers get uncrumpled and tied with string in piles, plastic bottles together (yes I always crush mine in every country so that they can refill them) I feel bad for them as I walk past, but I always make a point to say Namaste and their faces ligt up that someone from a different "caste" is recognising them and addressing them as human beings that they deserve.
I find it really hard to decide what to do to help - I know there are people in the world saying what can I do and as per my post in Bali, I truly beleive that every drop makes a huge impact. This project in the slum is breaking down a wall between slum children and the outside world. These children at a young impressionable age are able to see that they are worthy of an education or someone's time - that they can talk to Westener's - our classes are giving them the confidence and the language knowledge to be able to hopefully create job opportunities for them when they are older - not to mention the fact that we are giving them to right to dream about a job out of the slum - more of a chance than their elders perhaps had.
I was talking with our project co-ordinator about the sheer amount of homeless people I saw sleeping on the streets coming back from Agra at 1.30am on Monday morning. I have never seen anything like it - a main road in Jaipur just lined with hundreds of people sleeping on the pavement with a lone blanket pulled up other their heads - on a freezing cold morning! I asked if the government or any charity organisations run anything like a soup kitchen or St Vincent's offereing a bed and meal etc she said that the worst thing they could do in India is to give hand outs as it will just be expected - instead one group has started offering them food at approx 9 rupees a dish to encourage them to work and earn their feed. I understand this concept and why it's important, but I just really struggle to see them sleeping in the street or children not in school begging for money at the lights instead - it's just wrong that humanity got to this point and I can't see out for them. I know that education means future and in India that is one thing that they are really placing a huge emphasis on with the children and uni students at the moment - education. I guess this is their only chance and it will be really interesting to see where India is as an economy 20 - 30 years from now with this next generation that are growing in a Westernised world. I really hope things get better for India, it has such history, culture, tradition and family values that the rest of the world could really learn from.
Sorry for making this a heavy one - the kids have really touched me and I hope to see them at the end of the year if I come back again. Namaste!
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Day 4-6 Jaipur - Rajasthan school project
It's been a couple of days since our project start now and I think we are just getting into the rythymn of things. Monday morning was our orientation at the Jaipur city co-ordinators house after we dropped off one of the other volunteers at their local public school which they teach at. We were told about local customs, dress, expectations etc but nothing about essentials like where to buy water, setting up SIM cards, ATM's, transport and the fact that there is a public holiday on Friday - this is India you are supposed to live for the day ;)
So we arrived out our school later that afternoon to meet the children that we will be teaching for the next few weeks - they are in 4th and 5th standard as its called here - ranging from the ages of 7-9 years. We had the theatre co-ordinator with us so we could get an idea of what she expected of us with the kids over the next few weeks. The kids speak great English and were very sweet with their chorus of Namaste as we entered the room. We did a heap of theatre games with the children to get them moving, projecting their voices and just overall building their confidence.
We were a little suprised that we are actually at a private school for this project as our understanding is that we were to be teaching theatre to children from slum areas - so not too sure what's going on there. I have put in a request to work with the slum children also as I heard about a program where you can go in and teach English to them rather than theatre.
Now that I know I teach theatre at this one school 9-11am each day I am hoping to be able to also go across to the slums and teach English 12-2pm so am meeting this evening with the manger to see what we can do.
The two classes are both very sweet and really enthusiastic. Yesterday morning we arrived to see all the children lined up outside for their morning assembly - they were adorable! Then as they walked past us into their rooms they filed past one by one and clasped their hands to bow their heads and say namaste. Then one very sweet girl came up to my feet and in the hugest sign of respect in the Indian culture she knelt and touched my feet for blessings then her chest and said "Namaste Madam - Good morning to you" I wanted to cry and this created a repeat action from the next few girls who also wanted to do the same. I've seen enough Bollywood movies to know how special that is hence why I got really emotional about it (that or I'm just a big girl!). Class went extremly well again with numerous games and a chance to really bond with the kids.
Today I took my i pod along and we spent the morning using music and movement to "explore different ways of conveying emotion" yes in other words I got to do Bollywood dance with the kids. The teachers have spent the last few days during our class peaking their heads out of their room to see what we are exactly doing with the other children, the principal told us today that the kids have been going home raving to their parents what they have been doing and parents have been rining up very happy. I think the teachers are curious (like most Indians) as to why I am dressed as a Punjabi girl but clearly not Indian but I think they really appreciate that I am trying to speak Hindi and dressing conservatively. Today definately threw a spanner in the works when this white girl was teaching the kids Bollywood dance moves to all the latest Hindi tunes - one teacher came out and said she wanted to join us and the kids got a real kick out of hearing me name dropping their countries top actors and how to act like them. It was a brilliant morning.
On a more tourist note after class yesterday afternoon a couple of us decided to get a autorickshaw into the Pink City (CBD) to go visit the famour Hawa Mahal. On my last trip to India with the tour group we drove past and got a photo of the exterior but never got to go in an explore as with most tours it was all rush rush rush. So thanks to my trusty travel books we found our way in to the beautiful "palace of winds". It has a terracotta facade and beautiful "screens" from which the women of the royal families were able to sit and observe the day to day livings of those outside the palace. There are little wooden shutter windows built into these screens so that the women of the palace could pass or in some cases throw down gifts, notes and food to those below (that's what I read anyway).
Inside the Hawa Mahal was really beautiful architecture and as usual I found myself frustrated that when the technology and knowledge we have now days, we we just cant continue such a beautiful trade and technique in our buildings and homes. I took some amazing phots that as per my usual mission - are so far the shots of the trip (perhaps I need to break this down to shot of the city since I'm away for so long!). One shot was a beautiful old grandmother in saari with her grandchildren exploring the fort - she was a typical Rajasthani tribes woman and looked stunning as she posed for a photo in a Maharaja style temple for her grandkids. I asked if I could take a photo and they obliged willingly - I was so happy with the shot. Then up on the rooftop of this temple - very very high and no safety barriers, I sat there observing life below.. the city is surrounded by these rugged mountains that I can only compare to the images of those I have seen in Afghanistan. Then the square houses with flat rooftops meet the mountains and as you follow the skyline down to the main roads of the city you are greeted with thick Jaipur traffic. Amongst the traffic you can spot all sorts of things and it became a virtual game like "Where's Wally" except it was more like "What the hell can I find in the traffic" ......
1. couple of elephants
2. few cows
3. overcrowded sweatbox bashed up buses
4. too many auto and cycle rickshaws
5. beaten up cars (forget nice cars here)
6. scooters and cyclists competing for space with all of the above
7. humans risking their lives crossing anywhere there is space (that was me all day)
8. monkeys
9. Chai wallahs
10. markets markets markets
Panadol anyone?? Not at all it was heaven - for me anyway! At the Hawah Mahal I scored some great shots of the palace vs the city traffic - such a contrast. Not to mention the crazy monkey that decided to come up and pose whilst I thought about my lack of Rabie shots and them cutting my brain open to see if I really did die of Rabies (that's what the travel doctor told me would happen!!!).
A few of the other volunteers came to meet us at the palace and went to get a Lassi at the main MI Rd, but I decided it was time to break from the group and go it alone - as I always love to do. My mission was to find the dance school so that I could arrange some lessons in the classical Indian dance style of Kathak and possibly learn the Indian tabla. I did after a 2 hour adventure find it and will start my lessons next week hopefully.
The 2 hours that I went missing was something that I will never forget and probably never be able to convey just how amazing it was. I know if I had anyone with me it would never have eventuated that way as being solo seems to open more doors with people here in India when you are a foreigner. I found gemstone polishers on the streets displaying their wares on rags spread out on the dirty footpath, a poster seller of the various apparently 2 million + (??) Hindu gods alongside famous Bollywood stars (Yes I bought 5 posters for 100 rupee to brighten up my room). Somehow I found myself in a chai wallah area that was full of men and normally intimidating but my stubborn self shined through and I was determined to buy a samosa and chai from one of these hawkers. I know you can get pretty sick from these guys if you are unlucky but decided its time to live a little (yes coming to India was simply not hard enough clearly). So I walked up to this old Ghandi look alike in charge of selling the samosa and said "Eek samosa danyvard" 1 samosa thank you - 10 rupees later I had a hot hot samosa wrapped in newspaper in my hands - spicy is an understatement but as I sat there under a old torn blue tarp, with stray dogs around me, an old man in traditional muslim garb to my left and a curious Hindi guy on my right I was glowing. They saw me eyeing off their pot of chai that they were brewing for some waiting orders, so one customer comes over and asks if I would like a chai. I didnt even think about it but before I had a chance to think about my response with a very serious look I raised my eyebrows and flicked up my head - a typical Indian response for yes but perhaps resevered in roughness more for the guys to do. This caused such amusement to the customer that he ran over to place my order and tell the chai wallah what I had done - watching him re-enactment was hysterical and even I started to laugh. Bidding my new friends farewell and trying to make a mental note to remember where they were located I continued down the Johari Bazaar main rd and just as I spotted another elephant walking past in peak traffic, the local mosque started its call to prayer - I sat in the gutter and listened again with a huge smile on my face thinking how beautiful his voice was and envoking memories of my stay in Cairo.
As I walked past an alley way and thought to myself lets see if this is a short cut - I shook my head wondering why I was so confident that I knew where I was going and wasnt letting anyone in my way - then as I turn into this alley way my confidence is rewarded as I discover the entrance to the narrow wedding market - not actually called this but full of things needed for weddings since the season in India is just about to start. Saaris - I was peaking with excitement for the glitter, beautiful patterns, sequins, the hats for the groom, the accessories - if you know me well you know I was in heaven. I was the only none tourist in there so tried to hide as I took photos and observed as women bargained hard for the 10 or so saaris they need to survive wedding season - it was brilliant.
Jaipur is an amazing city so far - like any city you need to be prepared to walk, explore, communicate with the locals in their language and take a genuine interest for what's around you. I can't wait to head back in on Monday as I may have just been invited to my first Indian wedding for the season next Tuesday night which means I need to glam up! This Friday is a public holiday in India so I have been trying to organise transport to Udaipur or any city but its all booked up :( will keep trying my luck and have more news soon.
Namaste!
So we arrived out our school later that afternoon to meet the children that we will be teaching for the next few weeks - they are in 4th and 5th standard as its called here - ranging from the ages of 7-9 years. We had the theatre co-ordinator with us so we could get an idea of what she expected of us with the kids over the next few weeks. The kids speak great English and were very sweet with their chorus of Namaste as we entered the room. We did a heap of theatre games with the children to get them moving, projecting their voices and just overall building their confidence.
We were a little suprised that we are actually at a private school for this project as our understanding is that we were to be teaching theatre to children from slum areas - so not too sure what's going on there. I have put in a request to work with the slum children also as I heard about a program where you can go in and teach English to them rather than theatre.
Now that I know I teach theatre at this one school 9-11am each day I am hoping to be able to also go across to the slums and teach English 12-2pm so am meeting this evening with the manger to see what we can do.
The two classes are both very sweet and really enthusiastic. Yesterday morning we arrived to see all the children lined up outside for their morning assembly - they were adorable! Then as they walked past us into their rooms they filed past one by one and clasped their hands to bow their heads and say namaste. Then one very sweet girl came up to my feet and in the hugest sign of respect in the Indian culture she knelt and touched my feet for blessings then her chest and said "Namaste Madam - Good morning to you" I wanted to cry and this created a repeat action from the next few girls who also wanted to do the same. I've seen enough Bollywood movies to know how special that is hence why I got really emotional about it (that or I'm just a big girl!). Class went extremly well again with numerous games and a chance to really bond with the kids.
Today I took my i pod along and we spent the morning using music and movement to "explore different ways of conveying emotion" yes in other words I got to do Bollywood dance with the kids. The teachers have spent the last few days during our class peaking their heads out of their room to see what we are exactly doing with the other children, the principal told us today that the kids have been going home raving to their parents what they have been doing and parents have been rining up very happy. I think the teachers are curious (like most Indians) as to why I am dressed as a Punjabi girl but clearly not Indian but I think they really appreciate that I am trying to speak Hindi and dressing conservatively. Today definately threw a spanner in the works when this white girl was teaching the kids Bollywood dance moves to all the latest Hindi tunes - one teacher came out and said she wanted to join us and the kids got a real kick out of hearing me name dropping their countries top actors and how to act like them. It was a brilliant morning.
On a more tourist note after class yesterday afternoon a couple of us decided to get a autorickshaw into the Pink City (CBD) to go visit the famour Hawa Mahal. On my last trip to India with the tour group we drove past and got a photo of the exterior but never got to go in an explore as with most tours it was all rush rush rush. So thanks to my trusty travel books we found our way in to the beautiful "palace of winds". It has a terracotta facade and beautiful "screens" from which the women of the royal families were able to sit and observe the day to day livings of those outside the palace. There are little wooden shutter windows built into these screens so that the women of the palace could pass or in some cases throw down gifts, notes and food to those below (that's what I read anyway).
Inside the Hawa Mahal was really beautiful architecture and as usual I found myself frustrated that when the technology and knowledge we have now days, we we just cant continue such a beautiful trade and technique in our buildings and homes. I took some amazing phots that as per my usual mission - are so far the shots of the trip (perhaps I need to break this down to shot of the city since I'm away for so long!). One shot was a beautiful old grandmother in saari with her grandchildren exploring the fort - she was a typical Rajasthani tribes woman and looked stunning as she posed for a photo in a Maharaja style temple for her grandkids. I asked if I could take a photo and they obliged willingly - I was so happy with the shot. Then up on the rooftop of this temple - very very high and no safety barriers, I sat there observing life below.. the city is surrounded by these rugged mountains that I can only compare to the images of those I have seen in Afghanistan. Then the square houses with flat rooftops meet the mountains and as you follow the skyline down to the main roads of the city you are greeted with thick Jaipur traffic. Amongst the traffic you can spot all sorts of things and it became a virtual game like "Where's Wally" except it was more like "What the hell can I find in the traffic" ......
1. couple of elephants
2. few cows
3. overcrowded sweatbox bashed up buses
4. too many auto and cycle rickshaws
5. beaten up cars (forget nice cars here)
6. scooters and cyclists competing for space with all of the above
7. humans risking their lives crossing anywhere there is space (that was me all day)
8. monkeys
9. Chai wallahs
10. markets markets markets
Panadol anyone?? Not at all it was heaven - for me anyway! At the Hawah Mahal I scored some great shots of the palace vs the city traffic - such a contrast. Not to mention the crazy monkey that decided to come up and pose whilst I thought about my lack of Rabie shots and them cutting my brain open to see if I really did die of Rabies (that's what the travel doctor told me would happen!!!).
A few of the other volunteers came to meet us at the palace and went to get a Lassi at the main MI Rd, but I decided it was time to break from the group and go it alone - as I always love to do. My mission was to find the dance school so that I could arrange some lessons in the classical Indian dance style of Kathak and possibly learn the Indian tabla. I did after a 2 hour adventure find it and will start my lessons next week hopefully.
The 2 hours that I went missing was something that I will never forget and probably never be able to convey just how amazing it was. I know if I had anyone with me it would never have eventuated that way as being solo seems to open more doors with people here in India when you are a foreigner. I found gemstone polishers on the streets displaying their wares on rags spread out on the dirty footpath, a poster seller of the various apparently 2 million + (??) Hindu gods alongside famous Bollywood stars (Yes I bought 5 posters for 100 rupee to brighten up my room). Somehow I found myself in a chai wallah area that was full of men and normally intimidating but my stubborn self shined through and I was determined to buy a samosa and chai from one of these hawkers. I know you can get pretty sick from these guys if you are unlucky but decided its time to live a little (yes coming to India was simply not hard enough clearly). So I walked up to this old Ghandi look alike in charge of selling the samosa and said "Eek samosa danyvard" 1 samosa thank you - 10 rupees later I had a hot hot samosa wrapped in newspaper in my hands - spicy is an understatement but as I sat there under a old torn blue tarp, with stray dogs around me, an old man in traditional muslim garb to my left and a curious Hindi guy on my right I was glowing. They saw me eyeing off their pot of chai that they were brewing for some waiting orders, so one customer comes over and asks if I would like a chai. I didnt even think about it but before I had a chance to think about my response with a very serious look I raised my eyebrows and flicked up my head - a typical Indian response for yes but perhaps resevered in roughness more for the guys to do. This caused such amusement to the customer that he ran over to place my order and tell the chai wallah what I had done - watching him re-enactment was hysterical and even I started to laugh. Bidding my new friends farewell and trying to make a mental note to remember where they were located I continued down the Johari Bazaar main rd and just as I spotted another elephant walking past in peak traffic, the local mosque started its call to prayer - I sat in the gutter and listened again with a huge smile on my face thinking how beautiful his voice was and envoking memories of my stay in Cairo.
As I walked past an alley way and thought to myself lets see if this is a short cut - I shook my head wondering why I was so confident that I knew where I was going and wasnt letting anyone in my way - then as I turn into this alley way my confidence is rewarded as I discover the entrance to the narrow wedding market - not actually called this but full of things needed for weddings since the season in India is just about to start. Saaris - I was peaking with excitement for the glitter, beautiful patterns, sequins, the hats for the groom, the accessories - if you know me well you know I was in heaven. I was the only none tourist in there so tried to hide as I took photos and observed as women bargained hard for the 10 or so saaris they need to survive wedding season - it was brilliant.
Jaipur is an amazing city so far - like any city you need to be prepared to walk, explore, communicate with the locals in their language and take a genuine interest for what's around you. I can't wait to head back in on Monday as I may have just been invited to my first Indian wedding for the season next Tuesday night which means I need to glam up! This Friday is a public holiday in India so I have been trying to organise transport to Udaipur or any city but its all booked up :( will keep trying my luck and have more news soon.
Namaste!
Monday, February 8, 2010
Day 3 Jaipur - Rajasthan
Sounds like there's a few people joining me on this journey - thanks for letting me know its very sweet to hear and really nice to hear from so many long lost friends. So early yesterday I flew "Spicejet" from Chennai to Jaipur via Hyperbad. I shared my row and kindly donated my window seat (needing some good Karma in India) to a cute old man who started our flight with a Hindu chant for the first 45min. He then out of a crusty old plastic bag (at least he recycles) and wrapped in news paper was a cardboard box containing a "tapas" of Indian vegetarian cuisine. As I continued to read my "Indian Summer" book he offers me a yellow ball and I politely decline - it appears though that Indians too dont understand what no means when it comes to you not eating food. So I took it and ate this sweet crumbly yellow ball - it was ok, not bad....
The flight was around 4 hours - it seems that all of India is on the same timezone which is impressive considering the size. Whilst I remember flying in India is interesting in more ways than one - not sure if I mentioned before but it appears alot of people dont quiet get the concept of locking the toilet door on the plane, so I get my thrills watching this routine take place on flights where someone goes in and dosent lock and an unsuspecting passenger goes up to open thinking its vacant as the sign is still green and... suprise! Ha ha ha cracks me up everytime.
So anyways back to Jaipur - the airports just seem to be getting better on my trips - its so deceiving! Jaipur airport has marble everywhere and outside the chaos begins - similar to Sydney airport you are not allowed to stop to pick up passengers you must park. But here instead of security guards just issuing fines they have a HUGE towtruck with a mega phone and this Rajistani is loosing his mind screaming at cars that stop and keeping his hand on the horn.
Thing is no-one cared less so he screamed more until people did eventually move - I made a mental note to send an email to Sydney airport suggesting they employ some big Leb guy to do the same thing doing happy laps in a fully sick tow truck - ha ha (promise im not being rude I would seriously love to see it happen - it would make the taxi queue at Sydney domestic so much more interesting!)
So I had the driver from I-to-I waiting for me - he was in a beat up old white van and off we went. Straight away I started practising my Hindi that I that I have been studying on my i pod. We arrived in the suburbs around 2km from the Pink City which Jaipur is well known for. Apparently when a previous Maharaja or Govenor (I know big difference) took over they painted the whole city Pink the colour means welcome - and it was to welcome King Edward.
So I'm staying at a homestay as part of the program which means a local Indian family whom I have discovered have blood lines with the Brahaman priests so are very strict Hindu's.
Our host is a husband, wife and 7 year old daughter who live in a 3 story concrete home - its very residential and looks quiet safe and probably well off for Indian standards where we are staying. There are another 2 volunteers here at the moment both from the UK - 18 and 19 years - both first trip anywhere in the world! I feel for them but they appear to be coping ok.
I was a little taken aback at first with my accomodation though - homestay invokes images of a room within a room of the family whom you are staying with right? wrong. We are in the basement of the house which seriously is infested with mosquitos, is so dark and gloomy with no windows, a toilet that doesnt flush so you need to use a bucket and fill it with water to flush it (should I mention that some little buggers just keep reappearing? Too far? sorry!)
The place was filthy - I am a germaphobe (yes I know and I come to India for a 2nd time) so thanks mum for the Pine-o-Cleen wipes I was in there cleaning the toilets, basin and area that is supposedly called a shower but are two tap heads in the perfect position for a washing machine connection! There's now shower head or even tiny bucket to sit with the large bucket to pour water over yourself - so the routine for a shower is as follows....
step 1: turn on tiny wall mounted heater 10 min prior to shower,
step 2: thongs on as its just standing in front of the toilet,
step 3: half fill the bucket with warm water and pour it over yourself
step 4: lather up my trusty shower puffy thing with hospital scrub soap
step 5: refill bucket half way and rinse
step 6: dry yourself with a thin excuse of a travel towel as purchased at Kathmandu
step 7: curse when you drop your undies on the wet floor
step 8: remind yourself its all part of the experience, smile and exit
So the plan is to brighten the room up with some pics and i bought a toxic tin of mozzie spray which nearly killed us, plus we mummify ourselves in the mosquito nets. Dinner with the family is each night at 8pm - she cooked a yummy chaapati and curry dinner last night and I found delicious mango juice at the shop down the street for 25 rupee - after I bought them out of 2lt waters for 15 rupee each. After dinner the family like to go for a walk around the park across the street which is like a super mini Hyde Park for the neighbourhood. It's sweet though that they all value it so very much and it was fun connecting with the little girl as she attempted to teach us to count in Hindi whilst riding her bike.
Breakfast is at 8am as our auto rickshaw driver picks us up to the school at 8.30am - our host has a door bell she has placed downstairs so she presses it in the morning to wake us for breakfast - it's super annoyingly loud and the tackiest tune! Plus there's no need for an alarm here as the street sellers are hawking their phones with horns, bells and megaphones around the neighbourhood by 6am - and I was complaining about the construction workers next door back home!
Tomorrow news on our first couple of days teaching at the various schools and the adventures about the Pink City. Namaste!
The flight was around 4 hours - it seems that all of India is on the same timezone which is impressive considering the size. Whilst I remember flying in India is interesting in more ways than one - not sure if I mentioned before but it appears alot of people dont quiet get the concept of locking the toilet door on the plane, so I get my thrills watching this routine take place on flights where someone goes in and dosent lock and an unsuspecting passenger goes up to open thinking its vacant as the sign is still green and... suprise! Ha ha ha cracks me up everytime.
So anyways back to Jaipur - the airports just seem to be getting better on my trips - its so deceiving! Jaipur airport has marble everywhere and outside the chaos begins - similar to Sydney airport you are not allowed to stop to pick up passengers you must park. But here instead of security guards just issuing fines they have a HUGE towtruck with a mega phone and this Rajistani is loosing his mind screaming at cars that stop and keeping his hand on the horn.
Thing is no-one cared less so he screamed more until people did eventually move - I made a mental note to send an email to Sydney airport suggesting they employ some big Leb guy to do the same thing doing happy laps in a fully sick tow truck - ha ha (promise im not being rude I would seriously love to see it happen - it would make the taxi queue at Sydney domestic so much more interesting!)
So I had the driver from I-to-I waiting for me - he was in a beat up old white van and off we went. Straight away I started practising my Hindi that I that I have been studying on my i pod. We arrived in the suburbs around 2km from the Pink City which Jaipur is well known for. Apparently when a previous Maharaja or Govenor (I know big difference) took over they painted the whole city Pink the colour means welcome - and it was to welcome King Edward.
So I'm staying at a homestay as part of the program which means a local Indian family whom I have discovered have blood lines with the Brahaman priests so are very strict Hindu's.
Our host is a husband, wife and 7 year old daughter who live in a 3 story concrete home - its very residential and looks quiet safe and probably well off for Indian standards where we are staying. There are another 2 volunteers here at the moment both from the UK - 18 and 19 years - both first trip anywhere in the world! I feel for them but they appear to be coping ok.
I was a little taken aback at first with my accomodation though - homestay invokes images of a room within a room of the family whom you are staying with right? wrong. We are in the basement of the house which seriously is infested with mosquitos, is so dark and gloomy with no windows, a toilet that doesnt flush so you need to use a bucket and fill it with water to flush it (should I mention that some little buggers just keep reappearing? Too far? sorry!)
The place was filthy - I am a germaphobe (yes I know and I come to India for a 2nd time) so thanks mum for the Pine-o-Cleen wipes I was in there cleaning the toilets, basin and area that is supposedly called a shower but are two tap heads in the perfect position for a washing machine connection! There's now shower head or even tiny bucket to sit with the large bucket to pour water over yourself - so the routine for a shower is as follows....
step 1: turn on tiny wall mounted heater 10 min prior to shower,
step 2: thongs on as its just standing in front of the toilet,
step 3: half fill the bucket with warm water and pour it over yourself
step 4: lather up my trusty shower puffy thing with hospital scrub soap
step 5: refill bucket half way and rinse
step 6: dry yourself with a thin excuse of a travel towel as purchased at Kathmandu
step 7: curse when you drop your undies on the wet floor
step 8: remind yourself its all part of the experience, smile and exit
So the plan is to brighten the room up with some pics and i bought a toxic tin of mozzie spray which nearly killed us, plus we mummify ourselves in the mosquito nets. Dinner with the family is each night at 8pm - she cooked a yummy chaapati and curry dinner last night and I found delicious mango juice at the shop down the street for 25 rupee - after I bought them out of 2lt waters for 15 rupee each. After dinner the family like to go for a walk around the park across the street which is like a super mini Hyde Park for the neighbourhood. It's sweet though that they all value it so very much and it was fun connecting with the little girl as she attempted to teach us to count in Hindi whilst riding her bike.
Breakfast is at 8am as our auto rickshaw driver picks us up to the school at 8.30am - our host has a door bell she has placed downstairs so she presses it in the morning to wake us for breakfast - it's super annoyingly loud and the tackiest tune! Plus there's no need for an alarm here as the street sellers are hawking their phones with horns, bells and megaphones around the neighbourhood by 6am - and I was complaining about the construction workers next door back home!
Tomorrow news on our first couple of days teaching at the various schools and the adventures about the Pink City. Namaste!
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