Spicy Food, Saris, and Sewing!

Oh the cows...

These past two weeks have been wonderful!  I still cannot believe that I am here in India; it seems like a dream two years ago when I decided to make this pilgrimage and take time off after graduation.  I am finally getting into the swing of things here, despite the major culture shock.  The heat has died down a bit because we are entering monsoon season.  The staring and the pointing at the “white girl” is becoming somewhat normal, I have never felt so out of place.  Little children especially come up to me and stare, while their parents try to avoid eye contact.  And the most common asked question is, “is the food too spicy?”  Even though it is quite spicy, I smile and pretend that it is not.  My goal by the end of this trip is to acquire a new spicy palate; I don’t think it will be a problem. 

Sharon and me in our Saris

Sharon was in finals all last week so this week we have explored the city.  Last Saturday, we went to a traditional wedding reception and I got to wear a Sari!  I must say that I have a lot of respect for the women who wear sari’s every day; they are very uncomfortable and extremely hot to wear.  There were a few hundred people at the reception, and supposedly that was small.  Everyone lined up to greet the newlyweds and offered their gift as they passed by- very traditional.   On Sunday we went to see a movie at a local movie theater, which was quite an event.  The movie theaters in India are probably the nicest theaters I have ever seen.  You must buy your ticket days in advance to see any movie and to reserve your seat, buying your ticket the day of is never an option.  And you can have your own personal server to deliver gourmet food throughout the movie.  This all for the price of $3!  I could certainly get used to this.

Auto-Rickshaw (aka death trap)

Driving here in India is probably one of the scariest things I have ever done in my life.  There are cars, scooters, auto-rickshaws (taxis), ox-driven rickshaws, and bicycles driving in every direction.  You will be on a two-lane road with four cars across and another car coming toward you driving on the wrong-side of the road; the police could care less.  I have probably seen my life flash before my eyes at least 10 times.  Needless to say, I am learning how to not be a backseat driver.

Outside of Achiever Academy

For these next three months I will be working on a number of different projects.  Primarily I will be working at Achiever Academy, a nationally recognized English Christian elementary school.  After visiting the destructed villages by the tsunami in 2005, John saw the need for education among the poorest of the poor.  Achiever Academy came out of John’s passion to give equal opportunity to the poor to receive a decent education.  They began with one Pre-Kindergarten class and have added a grade every year (it is now up to fourth grade).  The children that attend come from all different backgrounds, from the richest Anglo-Indian to the poorest fisherman’s son.  Of the 130 students, 40 need sponsorships.  For the past few years my mom and I have been working alongside of the Christians to find sponsors for these children.  What I believe to be the best part of this program is that each sponsored child’s family is obligated to pay a tuition of $5 a month (which is a huge sum in India).  This makes the program so valuable because the family has a great deal of pride and investment in their child’s education.  (So if you would be interested in sponsoring a child for $25 a month, let me know!)  I work at the school every day and work on various projects from helping as a classroom aid to teaching art classes.  It is very intimidating not having any real teaching experience, but it has been so wonderful.  The classes are taught in English, but the little Pre-K and Kindergarten classes still do not understand English.  The little ones always ask me questions in Tamil (the local language spoken) and I just smile back, having no clue what they ask.  I try and communicate that I only speak English, and they stare and me and continually ask the same question.  This language barrier is a bit frustrating so I am trying to learn a little bit of Tamil.

The Widow Safe Home (in process) 

Sparrows of Splendor is another project that I will be working on.   Up until 1987, whenever a husband would die, in the Hindu tradition, they would burn the widow alive with her dead husband’s body (an act called Sati).  The widow would be considered a disgrace and would consequently be put to death.  Despite the banning of this tradition, it still happens in rural villages in India.  Today, widows are still considered shameful in the eyes of their community.  They are often forced to live on the outskirts of town and are viewed as the “untouchables”.  Sparrows of Splendor provides jobs to widows and teaches them how to provide for their family.  These jobs include tailoring and making handbags and totes.  These bags are sold in the US, and the widows will make 100% of the profit.  I will probably be working with Sparrows to help create new sewing projects for the widows (thanks to my Project Funway background!).

Until next time, thanks again for reading!!