So I’ve finally arrived at my first project. Upon arrival here I saw a cobra, yesterday there was a report of a tiger killing a cow only a few kms away, and
the kids at the school like to tease the local scorpions by lassoing their
tails with string and parading them through the school. This is a long way from Dundrum.
Welcome to my blog. We could start at my little culture shock of
being on such a remote project in Southern India but I’ve already been away for
a month and travelled via the homes of both Jane Austin and Ping Pong shows so
I’ll start from the beginning.
I spent the first week back in Sense and Sensibility County,
my birthplace, Hampshire. It was a
simple fuel stop for food, wine and catching up with family and mates plus my
mum ironing all my stuff before I packed it (vital when travelling in India).
My first stop out of Europe was Singapore, which is what I’d
describe as ‘fancy pants’. As an example,
my friend’s apartment I was staying in had a 800m running track on the outside
of the 50 storey three apartment block (Google ‘The Pinnacle’ in Singapore). I indulged in more good food and saw the
exceptional sights from bars high above in my trekking pants and Havianas (much to many a doorman’s dismay).
My friend Sidonie and I then headed to Thailand. I hadn’t been since my early 20s and knew ticked all the boxes for easy travel, sun, amazing food and the occasional ping pong. We checked in to a stunning isolated resort on Ko Phi Phi, an island which had completely destroyed by the Tsunami nearly a decade ago and despite huge loss the place is once again a buzzing resort with some hidden pockets around the rest of the island where you can find some great Pina Colada, sink into the sand and reeelax :)
After a brief stop back in Singapore and my last dose of
luxury for a while, I boarded the plane to Mumbai. My first few days were spent in an Ashram
meeting the Wateraid team to discuss my role starting in March 2013. I also managed to squeeze in day city tour
opting to go with the locals for the price of RUP200 (about €2.50,
the same price I’d paid for a Magnum in Singapore!). It was my first real India experience, I
didn’t understand a word of the tour guide and we went to big sites like ‘A
shopping centre’ (Nutgrove…….all is forgiven) and ‘A cinema’ but I spent the
whole day talking to Indians and I felt like I’d arrived. The guide is below. Please note that I didn't 'love' any children.
After 4 days in Mumbai I took the overnight sleeper to
Dharwar. Despite me having to adjust my
sleeping pattern to the seller’s constant shouts of ‘Chai, chai, chai’ and my
6”1 body sticking out into the aisle I loved it. I woke up by hanging out the side of the
train tasting my first bit of Rural India and then having a ginger coconut
curry for breakfast. That beats my usual
porridge and coffee routine ;)
So here I am on my first project, I’ll go into more detail
as to what I’m doing in another blog but this one is basically raising funds
for a rural based school. And rural
indeed it is. We are 1 hour from the
nearest town Dharwar and we've little electricity. I’m living in a mud hut, sharing with
lizards and spiders who kindly keep the mosquito quota low. I’ve also had some new roomies in with the
last rain of the monsoon, whenever it rains aswell as my little hut leaking I
am joined by a swarm of dwarf frogs. I'm the only volunteer here right now so looking forward to the new group arriving next week.
WARNING: IF EATING STOP NOW
Despite the food being simply amazing in India I have had one 24hours of my stomach ‘acclimatising’. No matter how hard you try to sanitise your hands every minute it’s difficult to avoid the generosity of the locals offering food. It was the one day I had to travel for 2 hours from the school (to use the internet!) and having spent the night hovering over a hole with my headtorch on I ended up spending the day with a fever retching out the side of the bus whenever we stopped. Lucky for me it was just 24 hours. However, I also learnt a vital lesson I’m a ciotóg and ate with my left hand the first day I arrived here. I’ve since changed.
So what are my first impressions of this nation of +1
billion people where 1/3 of the world’s poorest people live with an economy
taking the world stage by storm? I wake
up at 6am to the sound of children practicing their classical Indian music and
the noise of the older lads rallying around to start a quick cricket match
before they start work. Work practice
here is 6 days a week and the cities prove from the overpowering stench of
kerosene and sirens of horns that this nation is industrious. 'West is Best' might be gripping the country but the heritage and warmth of the people still remains strong and I love it.
To make communication easier for me here (internet is 1
hour/day – which might sound a good thing but not when you have money to
raise!) I’ve a phone and I’d love to hear from you. As we only have electricity
for a few hours/day I limit switching my phone on at night to 6-8pm (1.30-3pm GMT) –
call or sms me - I 'm on +91 97 417 22 362.
If you’d like to come visit you can come to the school, or
you could meet me in Goa for Christmas.
It’s Asia’s biggest dance festival (Sunburn - http://sunburn.in/?festival=sunburn-goa-2012) plus Goa state has the
lowest alcohol tax (Barcardi Black around €10 a
bottle) and I remember seeing prices for package holidays to Goa for around €300
from Ireland..... so what are you waiting for?
Thanks to everyone who’s been emailing, liking my photos on
facebook! Chat soon
Mister Kris
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