Hello all!!!
Sorry I haven't written in a while- I swear time flies here! Already I have only one week left at Daya Dan. I have no idea how I am going to bring myself to leave all those wonderful children. (If any of you have facebook you can see one of the children that I spend a lot of my time with- Pompa. A girl had her camera today so one precious photo has now been posted and is conveniently my new profile picture.)
Speaking of Daya Dan some AMAZING things have been going on! Just last week a new double railing has been set up so that the girls (Pompa and Puja and hopefully soon- Goon goon) can practice walking with two support on either side so they can practice walking properly and not just side to side. Pompa has been doing amazing!!! She has to work really hard to pick up her feet (especially with her awesome but huge special shoes) so she has this great swinging strut that she is oh-so proud of. Now we can walk her around a bit. I can't imagine it will be very long before she can transition to her crutches... yay!!!! Puja is also improving by leaps and bounds--- not as much physically but definitely behaviorally- which will make her improve faster. You may not remember but Puja is very new and was found alone in the train station. As a result she's pretty "scrappy." (She bit Allison last week.) So, she's been super hard to get to excersize aka stand. (At one point I was holding her hands to the railing, supporting her butt with my knee, and putting my toes on her feet to make sure she stays aligned, all while she's screaming in her mixed language so much that the new volunteers probably thought I was abusing her. It didn't really help when you have to tell them that she's just lazy. But it's true.) But this past week I can honestly say that I have seen a total transformation in her behavior. Rather than hitting, she smiles, and she's REALLY trying during her excersizes even though it's obvious how hard she has to work. Every time she goes down the railing the babe is just pouring sweat, but she's DOING IT!!! It's sooooo exciting. The other great success of result times has been Bhaskar! As of yesterday I saw him making a small shuffle-step while holding on to only ONE hand of a volunteer. OMG!!! This is amazing for a kid who has essentially no balance! I'm so excited for all of them!
Another quick thing just for clarification on my daily tasks. Recently a large portion of my volunteer day is taken up on excersizing the girls who are working on walking. It's a hard job because they really don't like it- it's amazingly hard for them because we are essentially forcing them to develop muscles that are very tense as well as frustrating because all three of these girls have learned how to move around VERY fast on their knees. Generally there is a lot of crying and yelling. You know you really love someone when you make them do what is best for them, not the easiest for either you or them. <3 But it's still really hard to not make what's making them sad go away when they cry, even being the cause of the crying in some cases.
Outside of Daya Dan things are still going well. The past few days have been a bit disheartening though, especially yesterday. We had to say goodbye to THREE of our amazing volunteer friends in the same day and that was ROUGH. Also when trying to buy cake for one of these friends we got caught in the worst monsoon yet- got totally drenched, could not proceed because the way forward was flooded, and had to return via the metro empty handed. It was frustrating. But then today we got a package from TWO AMAZING GIRLS (Omg Sophie and Lizzy we LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE YOU!!!!!!!!) full of American candies and goodies that totally made our day! We also took a stroll through the Oberio Grand- the most amazing hotel I think I have ever seen. It's just around the corner from where we live but we haven't been in there yet. Walking in it you would have no idea you're in Kolkata- there are oil scents burning everywhere (it was delicious) and massive bouquets of flowers, and AC, and a pool..... and it was CLEAN and QUIET. Of course, one night there is about the same as our entire housing budget for six weeks. Going in it strangely lifted my spirits... it was a very surreal experience going in, and then coming out again. Located on one of the busiest streets for street vendors in the area I felt like I experienced the richest and (almost) the poorest of Kolkata within fifteen seconds of eachother. Very thought provoking...
Well, I suppose that's enough for now. More soon.
Love,
<3 Hannah
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Pictures!!!
Hello all! I finally managed to get some pictures of my life here online! If you're interested in seeing some of them follow this link to my facebook album:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=138862&id=541350335&l=b83bff0688
Peace,
Hannah
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=138862&id=541350335&l=b83bff0688
Peace,
Hannah
Saturday, July 18, 2009
But first- a Daya Dan update
I know that I have officially been at Daya Dan for a substantial period of time because Mona, the "head mashi" has given me a permanent job. Although I am actually very pleased to have been assigned something special- I take it as proof of having been noticed by the management, ha ha- I think that many who know me will be quite amused at what the job is:
Every morning, instead of making beds, I now get to go behind everyone else and check them to make sure they are, in Mona's words, "nice and tight."
Strangely enough I do feel extremely useful at this task. Some of the kids move a lot so it is important that they have nicely made beds so that the sheets can last as long as possible. However, I must admit the irony... at home I rarely make my own bed, and never very well. And now a major task of mine is to make sure that 60 beds are made VERY well.... I am reminded of my mother. She frequently reminds me that God has a sense of humor.
:)
Every morning, instead of making beds, I now get to go behind everyone else and check them to make sure they are, in Mona's words, "nice and tight."
Strangely enough I do feel extremely useful at this task. Some of the kids move a lot so it is important that they have nicely made beds so that the sheets can last as long as possible. However, I must admit the irony... at home I rarely make my own bed, and never very well. And now a major task of mine is to make sure that 60 beds are made VERY well.... I am reminded of my mother. She frequently reminds me that God has a sense of humor.
:)
Kolkata: A City of Contradictions
As I have been in Kolkata for over three weeks now I feel it is high time that I share some sort of description of the city in which I am living. I've wanted to do so for a while but two factors have held me back. One, I wanted to really "compose" this post. All of my previous ones have been spur-of-the-moment and I'm sure they reflect that in their rambling style. This one I wanted to be different: deliberate. (Honestly, I'm not sure I've succeeded.) Two, I felt it was my responsibility to wait. It being so drastically different here I knew that my early impressions could hardly be fair and certainly not comprehensive.
I take both of these considerations very seriously. For many of you I am commenting on a place that you may never visit, which makes what I say significant in your general understanding of this place and this culture and these people. Knowing this, I wished to pause before I described my reflections on this place. I hope that the added time has given me a slightly wider view of Kolkata, I know it has given me a clearer head.
And thus we have.... Kolkata through the eyes of Hannah Hostetter:
I really didn't know that much about the history of Kolkata before arriving here. In retrospect it is something that I wish I had looked into, just as a reference point, but with all the chaos of finals and preparations I must admit that researching this aspect was far from my mind. However, since coming here I have begun to scratch the surface of Kolkata's history, because I firmly believe that to understand the present one must understand the past. Through some sporatic reading and visiting various historical sites I have learned that Kolkata, or perhaps I should say "Calcutta" for that is it's historical name, began as three small villages. Tension between powers further down the Hoogly River led the East India Company to establish a trading center upstream at the present location of Kolkata's BBD Bag Sqaure in the 1700s. From that point Kolkata continually expanded in size, wealth, and importance as a major trading center for around two hundred years. People were literally attracted from all over the globe to participate in the city's prosperity which has given Kolkata a markedly diverse feeling even to this day. For example, Chinese food is a major cuisine, courtesy of the many early Chinese immigrants. When Britian established imperial rule in India, Calcutta was the capital until 1911 (if I recall correctly) when the capital was changed to Dehli in response to rising political tension in Calcutta. During the period before the change Calcutta was apparently a place of true grandeur- amazing buildings and wealth and education and commerce and arts. After this point I do not know as much--- in general I've found that most books, museums, etc. cut off their discussion after the loss of the capital status. What I have gleaned is basically that after the capital shifted Kolkata saw rough times. It was hit hard in both world wars (I think actually bombed in the second), was very violent during the period surrounding Independence (a Sister who was there said she remembers a time when anyone wearing western clothing on the street was killed), and has been the depository for thousands of poor peasant farmers looking for work when their crops go back. This shift from prosperity to hard times can be seen particularly in the city's architecture. There are absolutely amazing buildings here, even the normal, non-descript buildings have trim reminiscent of Paris, but almost all of them have fallen into disrepair- no paint, broken windows, loss of structual integrity, etc. Whether this is the result of a blatant political statement (not keeping the symbols of past imperialism) or just the result of it being extremely expensive in this tropical climate I can't say-- but what is clear is that Kolkata is both grand and squalid, simultaneously.
Directly connected to this thought, I have found that over the years Kolkata has been called many things: the City of Palaces, the City of the Dead, the cultural center of India, the City of Joy, the city of the dreadful night, and the Second City of the British Empire. After pondering these labels (ironic in their co-existence), I have come up with my own title for Kolkata: the City of Contradictions.
The contradictions I see in it's character range from simple ironic facts of life to the most essential factors of human interactions. As there are quite a few I would like to discuss in detail to give a more complete picture of my life here I will spend the next few blog posts discussing one or two of them at a time so as to make them more managable for both myself and you.
So, I suppose... stay tuned.
<3
I take both of these considerations very seriously. For many of you I am commenting on a place that you may never visit, which makes what I say significant in your general understanding of this place and this culture and these people. Knowing this, I wished to pause before I described my reflections on this place. I hope that the added time has given me a slightly wider view of Kolkata, I know it has given me a clearer head.
And thus we have.... Kolkata through the eyes of Hannah Hostetter:
I really didn't know that much about the history of Kolkata before arriving here. In retrospect it is something that I wish I had looked into, just as a reference point, but with all the chaos of finals and preparations I must admit that researching this aspect was far from my mind. However, since coming here I have begun to scratch the surface of Kolkata's history, because I firmly believe that to understand the present one must understand the past. Through some sporatic reading and visiting various historical sites I have learned that Kolkata, or perhaps I should say "Calcutta" for that is it's historical name, began as three small villages. Tension between powers further down the Hoogly River led the East India Company to establish a trading center upstream at the present location of Kolkata's BBD Bag Sqaure in the 1700s. From that point Kolkata continually expanded in size, wealth, and importance as a major trading center for around two hundred years. People were literally attracted from all over the globe to participate in the city's prosperity which has given Kolkata a markedly diverse feeling even to this day. For example, Chinese food is a major cuisine, courtesy of the many early Chinese immigrants. When Britian established imperial rule in India, Calcutta was the capital until 1911 (if I recall correctly) when the capital was changed to Dehli in response to rising political tension in Calcutta. During the period before the change Calcutta was apparently a place of true grandeur- amazing buildings and wealth and education and commerce and arts. After this point I do not know as much--- in general I've found that most books, museums, etc. cut off their discussion after the loss of the capital status. What I have gleaned is basically that after the capital shifted Kolkata saw rough times. It was hit hard in both world wars (I think actually bombed in the second), was very violent during the period surrounding Independence (a Sister who was there said she remembers a time when anyone wearing western clothing on the street was killed), and has been the depository for thousands of poor peasant farmers looking for work when their crops go back. This shift from prosperity to hard times can be seen particularly in the city's architecture. There are absolutely amazing buildings here, even the normal, non-descript buildings have trim reminiscent of Paris, but almost all of them have fallen into disrepair- no paint, broken windows, loss of structual integrity, etc. Whether this is the result of a blatant political statement (not keeping the symbols of past imperialism) or just the result of it being extremely expensive in this tropical climate I can't say-- but what is clear is that Kolkata is both grand and squalid, simultaneously.
Directly connected to this thought, I have found that over the years Kolkata has been called many things: the City of Palaces, the City of the Dead, the cultural center of India, the City of Joy, the city of the dreadful night, and the Second City of the British Empire. After pondering these labels (ironic in their co-existence), I have come up with my own title for Kolkata: the City of Contradictions.
The contradictions I see in it's character range from simple ironic facts of life to the most essential factors of human interactions. As there are quite a few I would like to discuss in detail to give a more complete picture of my life here I will spend the next few blog posts discussing one or two of them at a time so as to make them more managable for both myself and you.
So, I suppose... stay tuned.
<3
Monday, July 13, 2009
Random, yet funny, Kolkata story
They say bad things come in threes. Allison and I are hoping that this can apply to us as a unit...
1) Yesterday Hannah almost slips twice on the way to the Blue Sky (monsoon rain + old flip flops = bad idea) but manages to stay upright until, upon missing the step into the restaurant, falls over and slams the right side of her face into the open glass door.... in front of like five Indian men at the counter, the regular waiters who I have to see on a consistent basis, not to mention all the volunteers that were currently patronizing the joint. Um... yeah, need I say more?
2) Literally an hour later Allison trips over a brick that is supposed to be lining a tree but is doing more jutting into the sidewalk. Walking while talking in Kolkata => face first on the sidewalk. Gross.
3) Hannah and Allison are walking to the metro station after volunteering. It was a hard day but we're still going strong. Then out of nowhere dirt (hopefully) literally falls from the sky, hits the sidewalk right in front of us, and splatters ALL over us. We think someone was cleaning their roof?.... ha ha, not really sure.
Oh! Kolkata. <3
1) Yesterday Hannah almost slips twice on the way to the Blue Sky (monsoon rain + old flip flops = bad idea) but manages to stay upright until, upon missing the step into the restaurant, falls over and slams the right side of her face into the open glass door.... in front of like five Indian men at the counter, the regular waiters who I have to see on a consistent basis, not to mention all the volunteers that were currently patronizing the joint. Um... yeah, need I say more?
2) Literally an hour later Allison trips over a brick that is supposed to be lining a tree but is doing more jutting into the sidewalk. Walking while talking in Kolkata => face first on the sidewalk. Gross.
3) Hannah and Allison are walking to the metro station after volunteering. It was a hard day but we're still going strong. Then out of nowhere dirt (hopefully) literally falls from the sky, hits the sidewalk right in front of us, and splatters ALL over us. We think someone was cleaning their roof?.... ha ha, not really sure.
Oh! Kolkata. <3
Friday, July 10, 2009
All the Little Children...
Here is a little bit about the amazing children that get me up at 6:20 every morning. Those of you who know my sleeping preferences know that I have to have a very compelling reason to drag myself out of bed that early, and I have not overslept yet. :) Although there are probably 30 kids total at Daya Dan and at one point or another I have worked with them all, there are a few that I work with a bit more consistently. One of these is Shantu. Shantu is the first child I ever worked with at Daya Dan and he has claimed a special place in my heart ever since that Tuesday morning. Although he is really five, he looks like he could be two or three. He can sit up on his own and is now working on being able to stand on his own. Most of the time we just scoop him and then lean him against one of those play stands where he will happily balance himself for most of the morning. I think he may be the happiest resident of Daya Dan. He is never too busy to give you a smile- or maybe a yell. Even without the ability to verbally communicate, this kid has the charisma to charm an entire room.
Another one of "my boys" is Bhasker. Only three, Bhasker can also sit on his own, though he would much rather lie down if given the chance. Now, he is working on walking. He's actually getting really good at walking around when someone holds his hands and walks with him- one of my more favorite activities. The past couple of days we've been working on stairs- which he REALLY doesn't like. It takes a lot of ingenuity to keep him from grabbing onto you and if he does, well then you have to start all over again. He has an iron fist- which he likes to grab hair with- so once he grabs on you have to sit down, calm him, and reposition. I can't really blame him- stairs are terrifying if you really think about it. When he's not walking he's generally standing holding onto a railing or a window sill. This can actually get pretty funny because since he has limited neck control he has a tendency to lean way over backwards, drop his head, and grin at you upside down. This has lead me to, with an amazing amount of fondness- don't get me wrong, to nickname him "the exocist child." (Of course I don't tell the Sisters that- I don't think they'd get the joke.) When we walk and he tries to lean his head back onto my legs I will quietly tell him, "No, no, no. We don't want the exorcist child," and he smiles and lifts his head up.
Potentially the most gentle child I've ever met, Aloke is frequently likened to a cat because he sleeps ALL the time. I've always said that if I were to be an animal I'd want to be a housecat, so I actually really like this about him. You can be in the middle of an excersize and suddenly he'll just be unconscious. If that happens, good luck waking him up. He has cerebral palsy with some mental retardation, so he has trouble moving his legs and can't sit himself up- though I personally have hopes that he will get there someday. He doesn't verbally communicate- but he absolutely loves to be tickled. Tickle his stomach and he just starts rolling side to side and giggling- sometimes even snorting. It's absolutely adorable. Sometimes he'll even wake up from one of his sleeps when tickled- just long enough to giggle/snort, but then he'll go right back to sleep. <3
Although I didn't meet Pompa right away, once I met her I could never forget. Only four years old, she is bright as a whip. She has trouble walking, but she has a very sophisticated crawl and just a few days ago was equipped with crutches that hopefully soon she will be able to walk with in combination with her special shoes. I told her my name right before we left one day, and the next day when I came back and walked by her she cried "Hannah!" Ever since then I like to teach her English when I have the time and she has the will- usually we learn while coloring. (I myself have learned that the Bengali word for "repeat" is "bolo." So that comprises all I know of Bengali- not really that helpful except when working with kids but I'm still proud of it, lol.) She speaks Bengali- has absolutely no communication problems. Today we practiced the colors and counting to ten. She is actually developing really good pronunciation. I'm really proud of her- I think everyone that works at Daya Dan is. She is very loving... when we do "meditation" she likes to sit with Shantu and put his head on her lap or give him little kisses. She also refuses to wear a bib at meal times and feeds herself. She is always the last one eating, but she also eats every last bite. Sometimes she combines Allison's and I's names into one: "Alliehannah!"
Puja is like Pompa in a lot of ways but she's a little rougher. Apparently she lived on the streets for a while (unlike Pompa) so I like to think that she has "street smarts." She also can't walk, but crawls really well. She goes from very happy to extremely sad really quickly, which can be a little alarming, but I think it may be because while she has the ability to speak, everyone has trouble understangding her. She speaks something, and she speaks a lot, but because she lived on the streets the Sisters say that what she is speaking is not Bengali or Hindi or English- it a combination of all of them and some other language that no one has been able to identify. I find this quite fascinating. I can understand how frustrating it would be to be able to tell people what you want but having them be consistenlyunable to understand you. She's learning both Bengali and English now though- and very quickly too. Today she wanted me to put special shoes on her. Although she doesn't like it, she's been standing every day and so hopefully she'll be able to walk eventually. Her special standing shoes haven't come yet, but they've been ordered and should be coming soon. I am very encouraged that she actually wanted the shoes today- I can only hope that her opinion on standing is changing into a positive one. As soon as she and Pompa can walk they can go to school- which they both definitely have the mental capacity to do, so obviously I'm excited for them to be able to walk. :)
Goon goon is the newest edition to Daya Dan- she only came this week. Like both Puja and Pompa she also cannot walk, but crawls, and so has developed these amazing calluses on her knees from moving around on them so much. She is absolutely adorable- she "talks" all the time but it's only, literally, "la la la la la la la la." All while grinning, all the time.
Finally, I spend a lot of time with the girls Pinku and Aradhana. Although I couldn't tell you precisely what their diagnosis is, suffice it to say that both have severly physically deformities and development delays. They have no verbal communication and essentially no motor control. There muscles are very tight and so volunteers need to massage them and help them stretch. You must be very patient and gentle, but I personally find it very rewarding. As there is absolutely no way they could do it for themselves, being able to give them some semblence of physical comfort makes me feel very useful. Also it's very nice just to sit with them. They are very sweet, but sometimes I worry that they don't get as much attention as the children who are more responsive (understandably). I myself can be intimidated by them- I find myself terrified that I'm going to hurt them, fragile as they are, and the last thing I want to do is put a child who is already in pain in more pain. But I am overcoming this, so they've probably done me more good then I could ever have done them. Isn't that just the way of things? Bless them for it.
Oh but of course these are not them all, and all these children are so special. There's Raju and Angeli (she's been very sick and would appreciate prayers) and Pryia and Dipti and Sonia and Sneha and so many more. All are an absolute blessing in my life every single day I get to see them. But hopefully this will give you a bit more of an idea of the types of wonderful children I've been working with.
Love and more love.
Hannah
Another one of "my boys" is Bhasker. Only three, Bhasker can also sit on his own, though he would much rather lie down if given the chance. Now, he is working on walking. He's actually getting really good at walking around when someone holds his hands and walks with him- one of my more favorite activities. The past couple of days we've been working on stairs- which he REALLY doesn't like. It takes a lot of ingenuity to keep him from grabbing onto you and if he does, well then you have to start all over again. He has an iron fist- which he likes to grab hair with- so once he grabs on you have to sit down, calm him, and reposition. I can't really blame him- stairs are terrifying if you really think about it. When he's not walking he's generally standing holding onto a railing or a window sill. This can actually get pretty funny because since he has limited neck control he has a tendency to lean way over backwards, drop his head, and grin at you upside down. This has lead me to, with an amazing amount of fondness- don't get me wrong, to nickname him "the exocist child." (Of course I don't tell the Sisters that- I don't think they'd get the joke.) When we walk and he tries to lean his head back onto my legs I will quietly tell him, "No, no, no. We don't want the exorcist child," and he smiles and lifts his head up.
Potentially the most gentle child I've ever met, Aloke is frequently likened to a cat because he sleeps ALL the time. I've always said that if I were to be an animal I'd want to be a housecat, so I actually really like this about him. You can be in the middle of an excersize and suddenly he'll just be unconscious. If that happens, good luck waking him up. He has cerebral palsy with some mental retardation, so he has trouble moving his legs and can't sit himself up- though I personally have hopes that he will get there someday. He doesn't verbally communicate- but he absolutely loves to be tickled. Tickle his stomach and he just starts rolling side to side and giggling- sometimes even snorting. It's absolutely adorable. Sometimes he'll even wake up from one of his sleeps when tickled- just long enough to giggle/snort, but then he'll go right back to sleep. <3
Although I didn't meet Pompa right away, once I met her I could never forget. Only four years old, she is bright as a whip. She has trouble walking, but she has a very sophisticated crawl and just a few days ago was equipped with crutches that hopefully soon she will be able to walk with in combination with her special shoes. I told her my name right before we left one day, and the next day when I came back and walked by her she cried "Hannah!" Ever since then I like to teach her English when I have the time and she has the will- usually we learn while coloring. (I myself have learned that the Bengali word for "repeat" is "bolo." So that comprises all I know of Bengali- not really that helpful except when working with kids but I'm still proud of it, lol.) She speaks Bengali- has absolutely no communication problems. Today we practiced the colors and counting to ten. She is actually developing really good pronunciation. I'm really proud of her- I think everyone that works at Daya Dan is. She is very loving... when we do "meditation" she likes to sit with Shantu and put his head on her lap or give him little kisses. She also refuses to wear a bib at meal times and feeds herself. She is always the last one eating, but she also eats every last bite. Sometimes she combines Allison's and I's names into one: "Alliehannah!"
Puja is like Pompa in a lot of ways but she's a little rougher. Apparently she lived on the streets for a while (unlike Pompa) so I like to think that she has "street smarts." She also can't walk, but crawls really well. She goes from very happy to extremely sad really quickly, which can be a little alarming, but I think it may be because while she has the ability to speak, everyone has trouble understangding her. She speaks something, and she speaks a lot, but because she lived on the streets the Sisters say that what she is speaking is not Bengali or Hindi or English- it a combination of all of them and some other language that no one has been able to identify. I find this quite fascinating. I can understand how frustrating it would be to be able to tell people what you want but having them be consistenlyunable to understand you. She's learning both Bengali and English now though- and very quickly too. Today she wanted me to put special shoes on her. Although she doesn't like it, she's been standing every day and so hopefully she'll be able to walk eventually. Her special standing shoes haven't come yet, but they've been ordered and should be coming soon. I am very encouraged that she actually wanted the shoes today- I can only hope that her opinion on standing is changing into a positive one. As soon as she and Pompa can walk they can go to school- which they both definitely have the mental capacity to do, so obviously I'm excited for them to be able to walk. :)
Goon goon is the newest edition to Daya Dan- she only came this week. Like both Puja and Pompa she also cannot walk, but crawls, and so has developed these amazing calluses on her knees from moving around on them so much. She is absolutely adorable- she "talks" all the time but it's only, literally, "la la la la la la la la." All while grinning, all the time.
Finally, I spend a lot of time with the girls Pinku and Aradhana. Although I couldn't tell you precisely what their diagnosis is, suffice it to say that both have severly physically deformities and development delays. They have no verbal communication and essentially no motor control. There muscles are very tight and so volunteers need to massage them and help them stretch. You must be very patient and gentle, but I personally find it very rewarding. As there is absolutely no way they could do it for themselves, being able to give them some semblence of physical comfort makes me feel very useful. Also it's very nice just to sit with them. They are very sweet, but sometimes I worry that they don't get as much attention as the children who are more responsive (understandably). I myself can be intimidated by them- I find myself terrified that I'm going to hurt them, fragile as they are, and the last thing I want to do is put a child who is already in pain in more pain. But I am overcoming this, so they've probably done me more good then I could ever have done them. Isn't that just the way of things? Bless them for it.
Oh but of course these are not them all, and all these children are so special. There's Raju and Angeli (she's been very sick and would appreciate prayers) and Pryia and Dipti and Sonia and Sneha and so many more. All are an absolute blessing in my life every single day I get to see them. But hopefully this will give you a bit more of an idea of the types of wonderful children I've been working with.
Love and more love.
Hannah
Sunday, July 5, 2009
Fourth of July... fiasco.
Ha ha ha- so maybe "fiasco" is a little too strong of a word. More like... not quite as we planned.
To compensate for the fact that Allison and I are out of the country (yet again) for what we both consider to be one of the most entertaining of all American holidays, we decided quite a while ago that we would have an "American Adventure" after volunteering on the fourth (yesterday). We had a plan: American movie in the afternoon and Domino's pizza and breadsticks for dinner. We looked up movie times and locations- which was complicated by the fact that a new, highly anticipated Bollywood film just opened on the 3rd (Which we do plan to attend- probably tomorrow. :) ) and is showing just about everywhere. But we figured it out... or at least we thought we did.
That's one of the things about Kolkata- nothing seems to go quite as you plan it.
First off, the movie theater that we planned to go to apparently doesn't exist- or at least doesn't exist where Google map claims. We got pretty epically lost and so decided to retreat to the Blue Sky for veggie burgers- in lieu of the typical BBQ.
But still we did not give up hope- there was another theater that was showing the movie we wanted- the Hangover- in the evening. So we re-planned for pizza and then movie.
We went to Domino's- suffice it to say that I will NOT be doing that again any time soon. I was actually quite shocked by how we reacted after only eating relatively small amounts of (comparatively healthy) Indian food to the just-a-little-too-big pizza and breadsticks. I did not feel that great afternwards... but we still went along with the movie plan.
After picking up an acquaintance Australian and then getting lost, we actually found this movie theater (improvement!)... only to find that our movie was sold out. After we grudgingly changed plans and decided to go to the new Bollywood film instead, we figured out that prices more than double on saturday nights- which would have meant that EACH of us would have paid only 10 rupees less than the cost of our hostel every night- for BOTH of us. Needless to say- we gave up.
But we did end up talking American politics with the Australian on the roof... so not a totally un-patriotic day after all. <3
Still, the true irony of the situation came this morning when I woke up not feeling that great. Although I'm almost positive that other factors were involved--- the fact that the first time I got ill in India was after eating American food..... is ironic, to say the least.
My lesson: When in India, do as the Indians do. Lol. (As Allison says, "eat nan." )
I've actually been wondering about how to balance the fact that I have a culture, and the fact that I'm being immersed IN a culture. Obviously I can't just shun a major part of who I am. But how much should I put on hold for the next few months- or perhaps eternally. (Allison and I just had a conversation today about how truly ridiculous it is that neither of us have to do laundry for approximately a month when at home, well if we really don't want to.) Obviously, as we are experiencing first hand, we can survive on MUCH less.... Maybe I'll have to have a garage sale when I get home, lol.
Well, as Sophie so wisely said... "aste aste." Or, "slowly slowly."
Let's see where it takes us. :D
Love and miss you all,
Hannah
To compensate for the fact that Allison and I are out of the country (yet again) for what we both consider to be one of the most entertaining of all American holidays, we decided quite a while ago that we would have an "American Adventure" after volunteering on the fourth (yesterday). We had a plan: American movie in the afternoon and Domino's pizza and breadsticks for dinner. We looked up movie times and locations- which was complicated by the fact that a new, highly anticipated Bollywood film just opened on the 3rd (Which we do plan to attend- probably tomorrow. :) ) and is showing just about everywhere. But we figured it out... or at least we thought we did.
That's one of the things about Kolkata- nothing seems to go quite as you plan it.
First off, the movie theater that we planned to go to apparently doesn't exist- or at least doesn't exist where Google map claims. We got pretty epically lost and so decided to retreat to the Blue Sky for veggie burgers- in lieu of the typical BBQ.
But still we did not give up hope- there was another theater that was showing the movie we wanted- the Hangover- in the evening. So we re-planned for pizza and then movie.
We went to Domino's- suffice it to say that I will NOT be doing that again any time soon. I was actually quite shocked by how we reacted after only eating relatively small amounts of (comparatively healthy) Indian food to the just-a-little-too-big pizza and breadsticks. I did not feel that great afternwards... but we still went along with the movie plan.
After picking up an acquaintance Australian and then getting lost, we actually found this movie theater (improvement!)... only to find that our movie was sold out. After we grudgingly changed plans and decided to go to the new Bollywood film instead, we figured out that prices more than double on saturday nights- which would have meant that EACH of us would have paid only 10 rupees less than the cost of our hostel every night- for BOTH of us. Needless to say- we gave up.
But we did end up talking American politics with the Australian on the roof... so not a totally un-patriotic day after all. <3
Still, the true irony of the situation came this morning when I woke up not feeling that great. Although I'm almost positive that other factors were involved--- the fact that the first time I got ill in India was after eating American food..... is ironic, to say the least.
My lesson: When in India, do as the Indians do. Lol. (As Allison says, "eat nan." )
I've actually been wondering about how to balance the fact that I have a culture, and the fact that I'm being immersed IN a culture. Obviously I can't just shun a major part of who I am. But how much should I put on hold for the next few months- or perhaps eternally. (Allison and I just had a conversation today about how truly ridiculous it is that neither of us have to do laundry for approximately a month when at home, well if we really don't want to.) Obviously, as we are experiencing first hand, we can survive on MUCH less.... Maybe I'll have to have a garage sale when I get home, lol.
Well, as Sophie so wisely said... "aste aste." Or, "slowly slowly."
Let's see where it takes us. :D
Love and miss you all,
Hannah
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Sing to me muses of the hot, humid land that is Kolkata....
Considering that I have had more new experiences in two weeks than I have in two months at home, I find it ironic that I am conisistantly at a loss over what to write to the blogging void. It's all interesting, but all is too much, and deciding what is the most important is absolutely daunting- it's all important. So, I'm going to start without a plan, but with a starting point (much like this trip actually) and see where that takes me.
A quote from the book I'm currently reading:
"The resting place of the mind is the heart. The only thing the mind hears all day is clanging bells and noise and argument, and all it wants is quietude. The only place the mind will ever find peace is inside the silence of the heart. That's where you need to go."
-Eat Pray Love
When I read this quote while sitting under the dim florescent light and fan of my hostel while monsoon rains drenched the world outside last night, I paused, read it aloud to Allison (as we have a tendency of doing- life is pretty slow in the afternoons after volunteering), and was tortured as to whether or not I should underline it in the book. (I only have pens here and under principle I don't like permanently marking a novel- I like letting both myself and others read it with fresh eyes, every time.) I wanted to remember it because I feel that it perfectly articulates the emotional and mental dilemma that has embodied the last several months of my life: to feel or not to feel, that is the question.
As a rule, although I love it, I find my field of study to be particularly depressing. If you're not careful I am entirely convinced that if you pay attention to the immensity of the problems in this world, and allow yourself to care, the guilt and the fear and the helplessness can easily overwhelm you. On the one hand I want to be practical and efficient, in other words, deliberate in my actions and passions so that a difference can actually be made that will actually be lasting. On the other hand, I don't want to sacrifice my heart.... I don't want to become so "efficient" that I become caustic and lose my compassion and potential for hope.
I came to Kolkata so overwhelmed with petty worries about the less-than-inspiring nitty-gritties of life (rent and documents , etc. etc. etc.-or- blah blah blah) that I was allowed, or a brief few weeks, to put this question on hold and just focus on getting what I need to get done when it needed to be done. It was a blessing in disguise. It was in disguise because I hate what all those things do to people in general, so I really didn't like to see it in myself. But, I've come to see it was a blessing, because it didn't allow me to question what I was about to do, and therefore there was no potential for me to fail at following through.
Despite it's many many challenges, I'm coming to see Kolkata as the heart from that quote- my resting place. Not literally because Kolkata is literally the opposite of quiet- horns honk constantly, it's a miracle if I walk down the street without being approached for one thing or another (often just existing), and I am never alone. It's more that what I'm doing here provides a resting place for my heart. For two years now I've been learning and learning and agonizing and agonizing and trying to justify existence and not being able to- it's been all clanging bells and noise and argument. Here I am just doing... I'm just being there for the children. It's not rational- I realize that. There are children I could serve in Seattle or Montana without flying over the world and complicating everyone's life. Rather, it's the embodiment of emotion... I let my heart guide my actions, completely disregarding what would have been more rational.
And I couldn't be happier.
It was last night, when trapped in my room by the first monsoon torrent since we arrived, that it finally hit me just how entirely happy I am that I am here. I still can't totally articulate why, but I know that's it's just where I'm supposed to be right now. Here, working with these children.
The more I work at Daya Dan, the more I love the children. And the more I love the children, the more the idea of seeing them or their situation through a detached, "rational" lens turns my stomach.
Ok, so enough of my random, distracted, and incomplete philosophizing. Hopefully next time I can offer some real antecdotes....
<3
Considering that I have had more new experiences in two weeks than I have in two months at home, I find it ironic that I am conisistantly at a loss over what to write to the blogging void. It's all interesting, but all is too much, and deciding what is the most important is absolutely daunting- it's all important. So, I'm going to start without a plan, but with a starting point (much like this trip actually) and see where that takes me.
A quote from the book I'm currently reading:
"The resting place of the mind is the heart. The only thing the mind hears all day is clanging bells and noise and argument, and all it wants is quietude. The only place the mind will ever find peace is inside the silence of the heart. That's where you need to go."
-Eat Pray Love
When I read this quote while sitting under the dim florescent light and fan of my hostel while monsoon rains drenched the world outside last night, I paused, read it aloud to Allison (as we have a tendency of doing- life is pretty slow in the afternoons after volunteering), and was tortured as to whether or not I should underline it in the book. (I only have pens here and under principle I don't like permanently marking a novel- I like letting both myself and others read it with fresh eyes, every time.) I wanted to remember it because I feel that it perfectly articulates the emotional and mental dilemma that has embodied the last several months of my life: to feel or not to feel, that is the question.
As a rule, although I love it, I find my field of study to be particularly depressing. If you're not careful I am entirely convinced that if you pay attention to the immensity of the problems in this world, and allow yourself to care, the guilt and the fear and the helplessness can easily overwhelm you. On the one hand I want to be practical and efficient, in other words, deliberate in my actions and passions so that a difference can actually be made that will actually be lasting. On the other hand, I don't want to sacrifice my heart.... I don't want to become so "efficient" that I become caustic and lose my compassion and potential for hope.
I came to Kolkata so overwhelmed with petty worries about the less-than-inspiring nitty-gritties of life (rent and documents , etc. etc. etc.-or- blah blah blah) that I was allowed, or a brief few weeks, to put this question on hold and just focus on getting what I need to get done when it needed to be done. It was a blessing in disguise. It was in disguise because I hate what all those things do to people in general, so I really didn't like to see it in myself. But, I've come to see it was a blessing, because it didn't allow me to question what I was about to do, and therefore there was no potential for me to fail at following through.
Despite it's many many challenges, I'm coming to see Kolkata as the heart from that quote- my resting place. Not literally because Kolkata is literally the opposite of quiet- horns honk constantly, it's a miracle if I walk down the street without being approached for one thing or another (often just existing), and I am never alone. It's more that what I'm doing here provides a resting place for my heart. For two years now I've been learning and learning and agonizing and agonizing and trying to justify existence and not being able to- it's been all clanging bells and noise and argument. Here I am just doing... I'm just being there for the children. It's not rational- I realize that. There are children I could serve in Seattle or Montana without flying over the world and complicating everyone's life. Rather, it's the embodiment of emotion... I let my heart guide my actions, completely disregarding what would have been more rational.
And I couldn't be happier.
It was last night, when trapped in my room by the first monsoon torrent since we arrived, that it finally hit me just how entirely happy I am that I am here. I still can't totally articulate why, but I know that's it's just where I'm supposed to be right now. Here, working with these children.
The more I work at Daya Dan, the more I love the children. And the more I love the children, the more the idea of seeing them or their situation through a detached, "rational" lens turns my stomach.
Ok, so enough of my random, distracted, and incomplete philosophizing. Hopefully next time I can offer some real antecdotes....
<3
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Birthdays in Kolkata.
So, Allison turned twenty last week- while we were in Bangkok. To be honest, it was a total bust. We were both ridiculously jet-lagged and cranky and ended up eating Italian, lol. We decided early on that we needed a re-do, but we just kept putting it off. But tonight we finally succeeded- epically. We decided to go to Flury's- it's a famous tea and sweet shop on Park Street. After browsing for a while in the Oxford Bookshop yesterday I had found a whole book on the store, so we decided that we must go. We invited our friends from the hostel who volunteer with us, Sol and Joy, and we set out. Originally the plan was to eat there, but one look at the menuy told us that it was alittle out of our price range, ha ha. So, we decided to venture down the road and get curry. That was an interesting experience because we were the only people in the restaurant and had like 6 waiters to ourselves, but it was good food. Then we went back to Flury's and got cake. Because we had waited and it was later now we were relegated to sitting at a counter (me ON a counter because there was no room) --- but the cake was really good and it was a really nice, clean looking place , with bright lighting. Ironically, it is right across the street from the McDonalds- yuck. After we had been there for about 20 minutes the power went out. It was an interesting experience to be in one of the more historical and fancy spots in Kolkata during a black out.
After cake (but before the power came back) we headed back for Sudder St. There was another birthday party that we wanted to attend. The juice boy at Juice World turned 16 today and was having a little party while he was working this evening. We'd never actually met him before, but once we did he was instantaneously recognized as a real charmer. He walked right up to me, party hat and all, and shook my hand. Quite impressive for any teenaged boy. :)
(Of course- I can say that now at the ripe old age of 20, ha ha)
All in all, I think we made up for the Bangkok failure.
After cake (but before the power came back) we headed back for Sudder St. There was another birthday party that we wanted to attend. The juice boy at Juice World turned 16 today and was having a little party while he was working this evening. We'd never actually met him before, but once we did he was instantaneously recognized as a real charmer. He walked right up to me, party hat and all, and shook my hand. Quite impressive for any teenaged boy. :)
(Of course- I can say that now at the ripe old age of 20, ha ha)
All in all, I think we made up for the Bangkok failure.
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Kolkata- the first true installment
So, to my five devoted followers I must first apologize for my shocking neglect of this blog. This past week has been an absolute whirlwind. Thank you for your patience. :)
So- Kolkata! Kolkata is beyond anything I ever imagined. The first few days here have been trying, but every day has been better than the last so I see that as a positive omen.
We started volunteering today. We are working at the home called Daya Dan. This home is for children with physical and/or mental disabilities. The children there are absolutely amazing. Some of them can speak, and a few even a little English, but even with a language barrier they are able to amazingly express their affection and enthusiasm. Our work is pretty basic, but in the broad scheme of things, such work is necessary before anything else can be done.
When we first arrived at the home (after a breakfast of chai, bread, and tiny yet amazingly sweet bananas with the other volunteers at the Mother House), we helped change the sheets and re-make the beds of the children. After that was completed we went into the room where the kids were and helped each of them with some physical excersize. Many of them do not have complete mobility on their own and so to fix or prevent shortening of their muscles from disuse we have the job of helping them stretch and stand, etc. Of course their is quite a bit of playing involved too. After a while we had a short time for singing songs with them. Finally before they went for their naps we helped feed them their lunch.
Our shifts are from 8am-12pm every day unless we decide to take on an afternoon shift which would be from 3-5:30. We may end up doing a few of those - but for the first week at least we decided to start slowly.--- Also, it's been necessary to have some extra time each day just to run our errands. There are not really street signs here, so finding even some seemingly apparent things has been a challenge. Today our accomplishments include finding a place to buy shampoo, soap, detergent bars, and some bug spray. Yesterday we were thrilled to obtain a mosquito net and mosquito repellent creme. It's amazing how challenging it can be to simply obtain the basics of life when you are disoriented and out of your element...
We've found what I think is going to be a long-term residence at a hostel called The Paragon Hotel. We have a room on the rooftop and the hostel has several spaces (two on the roof) in which residents can meet or simply sit outside of the small room. Our room is much nicer than the one we were in the first night here- this one actually has two windows while the first had none at all.
If you are afraid of TMI do not read on... Lol.
Today I am proud to say that I used a squat toilet for the first time! The Western-style toilet wasn't flushing so there really wasn't much of a choice. Turns out it really wasn't that traumatic of an experience, but now that I have discovered a Western-style toilet on the first floor that DOES work- I doubt it will be a feat that will be repeated very often, lol.
The heat, I am happy to say, is not SUCH a problem as it was initially. Either we are getting bettr, or it's getting slightly cooler, or maybe a combination of both, but somehow it doesn't seem as overwhelming anymore. Don't get me wrong- it's certainly not great. But I'm not constanty afraid that I'm about to fall over dead anymore. Ha ha.
Well, that's about it for today. Allison and I are racking up quite the internet bill. I actually have a challenge for you all: Take the time to calculate how much time you spend online or on your phone/texting in one day. Then tell me how you would do if you only had an hour a day, or two hours (at tops three) every other day. Then maybe you can share in the absolute trauma of this current internet situation/ be as shocked as I am over how addicted we are as a culture to the interet. Ha ha.
Love you all and will hopefully have another update by Thursday... so your Wednesday, or whatever. :)
So- Kolkata! Kolkata is beyond anything I ever imagined. The first few days here have been trying, but every day has been better than the last so I see that as a positive omen.
We started volunteering today. We are working at the home called Daya Dan. This home is for children with physical and/or mental disabilities. The children there are absolutely amazing. Some of them can speak, and a few even a little English, but even with a language barrier they are able to amazingly express their affection and enthusiasm. Our work is pretty basic, but in the broad scheme of things, such work is necessary before anything else can be done.
When we first arrived at the home (after a breakfast of chai, bread, and tiny yet amazingly sweet bananas with the other volunteers at the Mother House), we helped change the sheets and re-make the beds of the children. After that was completed we went into the room where the kids were and helped each of them with some physical excersize. Many of them do not have complete mobility on their own and so to fix or prevent shortening of their muscles from disuse we have the job of helping them stretch and stand, etc. Of course their is quite a bit of playing involved too. After a while we had a short time for singing songs with them. Finally before they went for their naps we helped feed them their lunch.
Our shifts are from 8am-12pm every day unless we decide to take on an afternoon shift which would be from 3-5:30. We may end up doing a few of those - but for the first week at least we decided to start slowly.--- Also, it's been necessary to have some extra time each day just to run our errands. There are not really street signs here, so finding even some seemingly apparent things has been a challenge. Today our accomplishments include finding a place to buy shampoo, soap, detergent bars, and some bug spray. Yesterday we were thrilled to obtain a mosquito net and mosquito repellent creme. It's amazing how challenging it can be to simply obtain the basics of life when you are disoriented and out of your element...
We've found what I think is going to be a long-term residence at a hostel called The Paragon Hotel. We have a room on the rooftop and the hostel has several spaces (two on the roof) in which residents can meet or simply sit outside of the small room. Our room is much nicer than the one we were in the first night here- this one actually has two windows while the first had none at all.
If you are afraid of TMI do not read on... Lol.
Today I am proud to say that I used a squat toilet for the first time! The Western-style toilet wasn't flushing so there really wasn't much of a choice. Turns out it really wasn't that traumatic of an experience, but now that I have discovered a Western-style toilet on the first floor that DOES work- I doubt it will be a feat that will be repeated very often, lol.
The heat, I am happy to say, is not SUCH a problem as it was initially. Either we are getting bettr, or it's getting slightly cooler, or maybe a combination of both, but somehow it doesn't seem as overwhelming anymore. Don't get me wrong- it's certainly not great. But I'm not constanty afraid that I'm about to fall over dead anymore. Ha ha.
Well, that's about it for today. Allison and I are racking up quite the internet bill. I actually have a challenge for you all: Take the time to calculate how much time you spend online or on your phone/texting in one day. Then tell me how you would do if you only had an hour a day, or two hours (at tops three) every other day. Then maybe you can share in the absolute trauma of this current internet situation/ be as shocked as I am over how addicted we are as a culture to the interet. Ha ha.
Love you all and will hopefully have another update by Thursday... so your Wednesday, or whatever. :)
Sunday, June 21, 2009
And we made it to Kolkata.
So here we are!!! It's ridiculously hot and humid and sensory overload but we're here!!! We are hoping to do our volunteer orientation tomorrow and should start volunteering on Tuesday. Alittle jetlagged so will update more later!
Love,
Hannah
Love,
Hannah
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Greetings from the Kingdom of Thailand!!!
So I only have 13 minutes left on this internet meter but I just wanted to let everybody know that we are safe and sound in Bangkok. Found a nice hostel and am looking forward to exploring some of the sites close to our short term residence here on Khoasan Road for the rest of the day. Will be in Calcutta come Sunday morning-- Calcutta time, Saturday night for you in the states. Will update you then!!!
Love you all,
Hannah
Love you all,
Hannah
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Packing
So, I've been packing today. The big question was which shoes to take... specifically to bring the hiking boots or no. I think I have chosen to bring them. They have really good ankle support.
I can't believe that we are leaving in three and a half days!!!! It's crazy- I'm convinced that there is no real way to prepare. Anyone have any suggestions/words of wisdom? I doubt it considering no one knows about this blog yet, lol.
Friday, June 12, 2009
India Adventure: Leave in 5 days!!!
So it's official. Allison and I are leaving for Kolkata in 5 days. Wow.
<3
Will keep you updated.
P.S. My grandma rocks. :)
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