ojai news at The Ojai Post :: blog, newspaper, events in Ojai, California

"Monday was Orientation, which was a lot of fun, and made me feel a little more confindent in doing things like going to the market on my own ( just getting there is a sensory overload). Although as you all know, my sense of direction is so horrific that I still get lost in our apartment complex and end up wandering around a lot when going from one of CCS' flats to another (they have three flats, I'm in a really awesome one that has a balcony that overlooks this gorgeous courtyard, which are everywhere. I share a room with Mel, who is smart and nice and funny and all around awesome). We also had a Hindi lesson, and heard this awesome lecture on what is India.

Tuesday we went to our placements and were introduced to everyone and looked around a little. My placement is called Mobile Creches (creche means children). The official bit on it is:

"Mobile Creches is a non-profit organization that provides day care facilities to the underprivileged children in the slums and construction sites od Delhi, Mumbai, Pune and Gurgaon and Noida. The centre caters to the holisitic development of the child, which includes nutrtion, education and basic health care facilities and community outreach. At present they have 12 centres in Delhi and directly reach out to 1000 children in a year."

I'm supposed to be teaching kids about 2-6 nursery rhymes, the abc's, colors, shapes, animal names, fruit names, some basic math, etc.. I had my first actual day today, which I'll get to in a minute.

Wednesday was Holi (pronouced holy), which is the festival of colors, and pretty much the coolest holiday in the entire world. Google it to find out a little history as to why it's celebrated, as there are a number of different myths and such and I don't have time to write them all up. But basically the way it's celebrated is everybody runs around throwing water balloons and dye at one another. It's like one huge game of waterballoon war. We (the volunteers) celebrated it with the staff at the headlady's house (who is actually in the states right now, but kindly let us use her house anyways). People took lots of pictures, which I'll hopefully get soon and try to send to you guys, because words can't describe how awesome it was. All I have to say is, the western world's holidays are so pathetic in comparison to this, it's depressing. We have things like Thanksgiving, where to try to eat as much as you can (I know it can mean more, but it usually doesn't) and they have this country wide game of colors. India is incredibly playful.

Thursday (today) we had our first actual day at work, like I said. I go there with this girl Hannah, who's my age and really sweet and wonderful. It was a good day, but absolutely insane. These kids are adorable and sweet and attention starved and completely out of control (at least with us). They were literally climbing the walls, and flipping over tables and pushing and shoving and oh my. They didn't listen to anything we said, and even if they had, they wouldn't have understood it anyways. But everybody's said that the first day would be overwhelming; it's to be expected with something like this. And the noise level was magnificent. There are teachers there, but they're just glad we're there to take care of some of the kids, and they really leave us to do our own thing.

There are two other volunteers at Mobile Creches site nearby, so we're all able to network with activites and support each other and such, which is really nice.

I absolutely love it here. I miss people desperately, and I don't know what I'll feel like tomorrow, but time is flying ridiculously fast and right now I can't imagine being ready to go home in less than two months. But almost more than loving India, which I do, being here as very much given me the travel bug. The list of places I want to go to is getting longer and longer and longer.

It feels like everything is different here, which both makes me very happy and excited and very homesick.

The poverty is everywhere, in various shapes and forms. It's just something you deal with, although there are times it catches me off guard. It's so different to see pictures of things like this, then it is to actually see it as a reality. Little little kids running around in rubble and trash with no shoes, rows and rows of families living in little tents on the side of the road. Mothers coming up to your car when you're stopped in traffic for a moment with their child missing a limb, a bloody bandage, begging. The area that I work in feels like a entirely different world from America.

Begging is for the most part mass organized crime. There could be for instance, one man who sends out fifty people and children everyday. Sometimes their aliments are real, but more often than not they're not. So we don't give money. I know that I'm giving in a different way, by giving my time to an organziation that is sustainable and helping to set up better systems, rather than simply encouraging begging.. but it can be extremely difficult to not give to a dirty toddler who looks up at you with big eyes and cupped hands. There are options for a lot of these people, but they can make more money begging, so of course that's what they choose.

So far I've seen people riding camels down the street, monkeys, and cows everywhere (and of course dogs). I haven't yet seen any elephants, but am told I will soon. Showers are always adventures, you never know if you'll have water, and if you do if it's going to be freezing. You can't flush toilet paper, because the sewage system is so shitty. (hee. pun.) The food is delicious, the staff is fantastic, and as I said, my fellow volunteers are some of the coolest people ever."