A taste of Rajasthan: Jodhpur and Jaisalamer

A palace in Jodhpur

Jodhpur - the Blue City

Jodhpur - the Fort

Jodhpur

Cosy Guest House

The old fort in Jaisalamer - sadly it is sinking and won't be around too much longer.

Sotla: the architecture in a small village

The Organization: EduCARE

So I haven't been the best about blogging regularly because I've been so busy! However, this weekend I'm taking today to relax, catch up on yet more work, and reflect on the organization I've been working with.

Upon arriving in India I was slightly disappointed with the organization. The housing situation in one of the cities was not ideal, the organization seemed disconnected and the man who led the entire operation (and only one of two full-time employees, both of whom are the only Indians in the organization) loved to hear himself speak and seemed ineffective as a leader. Almost the entire organization and their social programs are run by young international volunteers who stay anywhere from a year at a time to 6 weeks. There are three centers in three villages, the larger Adampur, the small Dosarka, and the very small Janauri where they speak Hindi instead of the traditional Punjabi. Currently there are 25 interns and generally each intern helps with 2-3 projects. EduCARE does work with sanitation, a Girls Club that is part of their Women Empowerment initiative, a form of Micro-Finance (ask my friend Martha for more info on this!), an organic farm, an alternative fuel and recycling program, a Migrant Empowerment, and an after school program for both middle-class Punjabis and migrant children. The organization also offers English classes that primarily address increasing global awareness.

So some things that work in this organization:
-Each intern is given a lot of freedom to do what ever they want. If I wanted to start a basketball team with the migrant children, and I had the drive and materials to do so, I could. I do not really want to do this but it is awesome that I have this level of freedom.
-There are many projects to help out with and there is never a lack of things to do (I am busy allll the time!)
-As an intern, you can see the personal development in the students and children you work with over a month time-span so the work can feel quite rewarding.
-The organization strives to be self-sustainable which it mostly reaches - it is neat that the organization does not want to rely on outside funds. Mr. B (the man who runs everything) constantly repeats the mantra, manpower, materials, money! In that order of importance!
-Finally, the organization stresses the importance of leading by example. The interns and our houses use environmentally friendly cleaning supplies and we encourage the locals to reuse materials. We also have our bio-fuel plant (remember the time I spent all weekend scooping poo? it was for that plant...) and we realize how our own actions can influence the local population - both negatively and positively.

Things that do not work for the organization:
-There is too much freedom. Oftentimes interns arrive and they have no idea what they are doing or how to do it. There is often little instruction and not enough training upon arrival.
-Conflicts of interest and egos. While I respect most of the people in this organization, because so few people work here long term, I think that personal relationships and egos get in the way of being an effective organization.
-Typical organization woes: over planning, too many google documents, too many meetings and too little action taken, and an over-extension of resources and manpower.
-The main man, Mr. B, touts a goal of 40% efficiency. Wow, that is a large number to strive to attain... I could continue but let's not get too negative.

So I'm working on Girls Club and the Migrant Empowerment initiative. Mostly I do education with girls and migrant children. I also decided to help out the organization and teach English classes (something I had not intended to do nor something I feel very good about, it feels a little like linguistic imperialism).

My research through CSAS is focused on my observations of how globalization has affected education here in Punjab. More generally, the effect education has had within the empowerment of marginalized communities such as the women's empowerment and migrant empowerment programs through EduCARE.

Some quick general observations:
-Punjab is a relatively rich state of India with a high immigration rate abroad, the affects of globalization are seen in their farming techniques, school, and in the slow change of some aspects of their culture to a more Western influenced life style. Still, many of my English students maintain that they value their own traditional culture higher than Western culture. At the same time, people are extremely obsessed with trying to go abroad that they seem to try to immerse themselves in a more Western lifestyle. It goes both ways.
-Students are very interested in our organic farming techniques - which I found a little surprising - which shows how a current Western ideal has a far-reaching positive global effect
-Also surprising, I've been able to observe and research a lot from the English classes that are discussion based. The organization stresses teaching with a global focus so we discuss topics such as love marriage vs. arranged marriage, poverty, global warming, developing economies, etc. It is interesting to learn the student's perspectives as well as how they view different topics and themes based on their culture or home life.
-Some of the techniques we try to empower the girls in Girls Club do not work because of cultural differences. Sometimes it doesn't seem like we are accomplishing all that much either, but at the same time, it is a big deal just for these girls to have a space that is just for them. It is a big deal to be allowed to leave the house and hang out with other girls to learn and play games or sports.
-Finally, for the migrant children, the educational component with them is essential. We cannot establish trust within the migrant community without first reaching out to the children. This is easily done by teaching them English and math skills meanwhile playing games and singing songs with them. Once we have their trust we slowly gain their parents trust. Through this we can implement other social programs and involve the migrant communities - especially the trash picking communities - with our sanitation projects.

I'm hardly explaining these or getting into the meat of the issues but I thought I'd quick jot down my observations here to give others an idea of what I'm observing and researching.

Farming and Teaching!

Boys who are jealous of the Girls Club and just can't help joining in on the fun.

Cutting vegetables and learning about healthy cooking at Girls Club

Two wonderful girls in my Intermediate English Class

Going out to farm at our organic farm! Beautiful morning - normal 6 am. morning wake up.

I have been working with a lot of cow poo here. After originally thinking touching fresh poo in order to make a fuel efficient stove at a migrant camp was gross enough, I spent all weekend shoveling 4 day old poo into a bio gas fuel plant and my opinion quickly changed. Making stoves out of poo now seems like a tea party compared to the ridiculous labor I did this past weekend - I would prefer never to have to be that covered in cow dung ever again in my life.

Transportation in Rural India - The Buses

I initially hated riding buses in India. Because the NGO I'm working with is spread throughout three centers in Punjab, I ride a short bus ride daily and hour long bus rides several times a week. There were several (extremely valid) reasons I originally disliked (make that strongly disliked) riding the buses:

1. On one of my first long bus ride experiences, I sat at the very front of the bus where I was inline with the driver. I was privy to seeing his crazy driving antics whereas before I only felt the dangerous swerves he made in and out of traffic. I saw first hand how he dodged bicycles, pedestrians, motorbikes, trucks, other huge buses, cars, and cows on the narrow two lane Punjabi roads. His face remained unchanged as he blared that ridiculous horn all the way down the road.
2. My personal space bubble is constantly invaded by the five people pressed against me and sometimes on top of me. The buses can be so crammed people ride on the roof. If another passenger isn't pressed up against me, then it's the bus attendent who collects money. These attendants have a tendency to sit on me or run into me when the driver makes an especially daring move and must quickly brake. It usually results in some awkward contact.
3. Both the bumpy roads and the crammed buses make for a motion-sick Julia. And I'm not the only one as evidenced by the trials of vomit that can often be seen outside windows on the exterior of the bus.
4. The language barrier constantly terrifies me when I'm not totally sure where I'm going. I have had to do many transfers on local lines and I constantly repeat the name of the city where I'm headed in order to confirm and re-confirm (and usually re-confirm again) that I'm headed in the correct direction. Usually I just have to trust the bus attendant that he's not taking me to the wrong city and putting this kind of trust in one man terrifies me. Little seems more scary than being stranded in rural India at night with no idea where the heck I am and when the next bus will come.


However, I've had a recent change of heart. On a bus journey I take at least once a week, I admired the beautiful orchards, fields, and small towns that flew past outside. The window was open and a cool breeze offered me a relief from the heat. I sat surrounded by curious Indians who wanted to know more about myself and the other Westerners with me. Adorable babies with big beautiful eyes lined with kohl returned my smiles and would sometimes respond when I questioned, "tera naam hai?" It was beautiful. It was the one hour that day I had taken time to sit down and relax. I began to love the rhythm and energy of the buses here in Punjab.

I have also met some incredible people on the buses. The other day a woman about my age struck up a conversation with me. She had excellent English and she was eager to practice it. She wanted to know about my home, what I was doing in India, where I went to school, etc., etc. She was amazed that I was to travel to other countries alone and professed a desire to travel abroad some day, although she thought it was unlikely. I told her to stop by the center of the NGO I'm working with and she surprised me with a visit the other day. It turns out that she is a police officer in a large town about an hours bus from where I live. It was refreshing to meet a young person so dedicated to changing her state and country. I was also excited and relieved to get the contact information for a seemingly well-intentioned police officer - something of a rarity.

Even the garish decorations of the buses add to their charm and I find that I like these tin metal cans packed like sardines more and more. Although I prefer hitchhiking in the backs of trucks or riding motorbikes, the buses remain a favorite of mine despite their many draw backs. I guess this might have to do with the fact that the buses cannot give me a second degree burn on my calve as motorbikes have done. That and I don't have to be male in order to successfully flag down a bus as is the case with hitchhiking... Regardless, riding Indian buses is all a part of the experience and my time here would not be the same without them.

All in all, many aspects of India that I initially dislike or resist, have a way of surprising me by enriching this amazing experience for the better.

The view from outside my room!

The picture above is from Mcleod Ganj where I visited for a long weekend. It was lovely to escape the heat and noise of Punjab. Sadly I fell ill but I'll be back

]Masala Dosa!!! Yum, it's like a crepe stuffed with potatoes and masala spice with dipping sauces!

Life in Punjab

It has been such a long time since my last blog entry but I have been so busy! If I'm not working at the NGO then I'm researching or playing with children in the migrant camps or cooking food for other interns or traveling on the weekends. Or finally trying to catch up on sleep which I get little of because the temple blares the morning prayers right into my window at 4:30 am. But some days I enjoy hearing the crazy rhythms and the chanted prayers.

So, for the first week it was hard for me to decide whether or not I liked where I was in Punjab or what I was doing at the NGO or whether or not I wanted to escape north to Mcleod Ganj where I was promised a cooler climate. The heat is blazing hot and I can never escape it. I work in it, I build stoves and shelters in it, I teach in it, and then I go home and live in it. There is no air conditioning in rural Punjab (or not at my poor NGO anyways) and power cuts are frequent. However, my body has adjusted to the heat and I've grown to really love the village I'm living in, the people I work with, the constant stream of chai filling my belly, and the music, sound, and noise that surrounds me 24/7. I even like the buses here - which at first terrified me because I thought about how likely it was I would die in the crammed tin can on wheels swerving about the road. India - or Punjab more specifically - is growing on me and life seems completely normal now after some initial shocks.

My work right now is primarily teaching children at two agricultural migrant communities in Dosarka, Punjab, as well as a girls club in a village close by. I was actually roped into teaching an Intermediate English and while this was something I didn't want to do in India, I think it will aid my research. I want to look into how globalization and Western culture has or has not been influencing education in India, specifically marginalized communities. Punjab is one of the wealthiest states in India with one of the highest rates of immigration to other countries (primarily English speaking) such as the US, UK, Canada, and Australia. Meanwhile, much of the culture remains fairly conservative and the main religion - Sikhism - continues to be followed by much of the population. In my class I'm gaining valuable insight into whether or not the students feel about learning English and how they feel about their own culture.

Well it is quite late here and I still have lots to do so this blog will have to be cut off short but I promise to post again soon!

The Beginning

Hello to all from Adampur, Punjba, INDIA! First, I would like to thank everyone involved in the Summer in South Asia, Zilka, Nancy, and most especially our kind donor who made this once in a lifetime experience possible. I never would have thought that my dream of going to India would be fulfilled, let alone while I was an undergraduate!

After two seven hour flights, one seven hour layover, a twelve hour wait in the Indira Gandhi Airport for a nine hour bumpy in a van, I arrived in Adampur. I am staying with interns who work for the NGO I'm also working with, EduCARE India. After a day or two adjusting to the immense heat here, I went to the office and began learning more about the organization. I will be helping with the Women's Empowerment programs and the Marginalized/Migrant Communities programs. These programs will help me conduct research on the affects of globalizations on education in this part of India. It sounds like I will be moving to another village this coming week, one that is a little more rural. The NGO has several Centers, one in Adampur, Janauri, and another in Dosarka (where I will be moving).

Overall my adjustment to life in India has been fairly smooth although the first couple of days I was wondering what I got myself into! The heat is almost unbearable, it is so dusty, and I hate that I can only drink bottled water. However, because the people are so friendly, the food so delicious and the landscape and culture so intriguing, I stopped focusing on the intensity of the heat and tried to forget my cooler climate back home.

One of my first experiences with the friendliness of the Indian people was at customs in the airport. The men going over our visas offered Martha and I candy and although we initially refused, they insisted. I remembered that it is typically inappropriate in Indian culture to refuse gifts so we finally took some. Then while Martha and I waited in the airport for a van to take us from the airport to Jalandhar, Punjab, we started playing cards. A man who was waiting to pick someone up from their flight sat by us and starting talking with us about our card game and then we talked with him about what we were doing in India and about his own life in Delhi. Before we knew it, ten or so of his friends who were also there to pick up people from the airport, joined us and taught us an card game called Flash. It was basically a gambling game and so two American girls playing cards with ten or more older Indian men drew a lot of stares at the airport but it was a lot of fun. One of the men made me talk with a friend of his on the phone - bizarre, but funny.

Yesterday was my first official day working in EduCARES office (the only place I have an internet connection) and after a day in the office and a delicious veggie burger for lunch, a group of us went out to the migrant camps. There are two camps in Adampur, one of a snake charmer community and a “rag pickers” community. Having worked with migrant farmworker communities in the Michigan, I was excited to compare the differences and similarities between migrant camps and workers in Michigan and India. The camps here are relatively small (around 30 people but it seemed like it was less) and completely open air. There is some weird competition between the two camps of people but I'm looking forward to working further with both, hopefully. So long as the snakes that the snake charmers keep in baskets on the ground don't escape...

Speaking of which, there are rattle snakes in the fields by our house. A little more threatening than the blue racers that I'm used to back in Michigan.

Well, that's it for now. Not too much to report yet! I have limited internet access so I may not be able to consistently post - that and I can't guarantee my posts will be very good quality because it is hard for me to concentrate in this heat. A final side note: I just had the most delicious meal of masalla dosa with a 7 Up. It is like a crepe filled with potato, onion, and some form of spices that you dip in other sauces. Delicious! I am loving the food.

An Introduction...

This blog has been created so that Martha and Julia can stay in contact with family and friends back home and so that they can post pictures. The two are going to the Punjab province of India thanks to a fellowship at the University of Michigan. Stay tuned for more posts! In the meantime the girls are working on finalizing their visas and buying plane tickets in preparation for their fast approaching departure (yikes!).