It's been 2 and a half weeks in country now and I think I speak for the Team when I say it is not what we expected. In many ways, it is so much more and in many ways we are surprised at how far the emerging India still has to come to be where the US was even 10 years ago technologically. Everyone has several cell phones in their homes and autos and on their persons and most have digital cameras in them so we are constantly stopped in crowds to pose with people who we have no connection to other than a few feet of road or walkway. Children unabashedly run up to us to feel our skin or hair as it is so different from what they usually
see. Megan, being blonde gets that more than the rest of us and children seem to flock to her.
When this trip was initially described to all of us and we were chosen to go, it was on an exchange with the Silicon Valley of India...the information superhighway between Bangalore and Hyderabad. We will not even be near Bangalore which is where some of the team had researched sites they wished to see for vocational enhancement. Until this stop, we have not consistently even had access to the Internet. Occasionally a host will have a computer in their home but wireless, which we expected everywhere, has been no where so far, Cell phones which we were assurred would work here do not so I have a phone for the month as a gift from the District so they can reach me to check on the progress of the team each day. However, it was purchased and loaded with time in a State other than where we are now residing or will be at any point for the rest of this trip so there is a charge on those calls that is using some minutes.
Yesterday, we went out to t
he farm of one of the Rotarians who was my counterpart as a GSE team leader a few years ago. He has a dairy of she buffalo and had a two day old calf that freely mingled with visitors and two three month old brown and white spotted puppies that loved all over us. His farm was an organic work of art, That work starts with compost troughs near the stable, Organic material,such as leaves and sticks and fruit peels are laid in the base of the trough and cow manure piled atop it and it is thoroughly watered. After 3-4 days the whole mixture is turned over and stirred. The process is repeated every three days until the mixture is full of earthworms. At that point the dry top layers are skimmed off and piled to be used as organic fertilizer around the plants, He has rice paddies, hay fields and fruit trees galore. In the 5 acres we walked were a mango grove, coconuts, bananas, custard apples (they look like small artichokes but are juicy and sweet) , grapefruit, and many other furits I have never seen or heard of before. Sandalwood and teak are also being cultivated there. Oh and curry! You crush the leaves and can actually taste the curry with the scent!
Today we spent 6 hours in the car driving out to a very rual area a hundred Km from here to see the world's largest Banyan tree. It is over 600 years old and covers more than 6 acres with another survey scheduled this year expected to show it closer to 7 acres. Now, a novice looking at this would never suspect it is one tree as Banyan send
out limbs and drop taproots which travel under the ground and come up as a new generation, It would appear that there are hundreds of them there but we are assurred it is in actuality, only one. Geographically we could be traveling through central Arizona with the red soil and rock formations.
Wherever we go, we are asked for monies for projects much needed in the towns from desks and chairs for the schools to wells and water purifiers to a CT scanner for a hospital to computers for schools (at three times each what we can get them for in the States). I have asked all of those requesting monies to forward proposals so they can be considered by our District's Foundation for potential inclusion in programs but somehow I wonder if I will see many materialize. They find it almost impossible to conceptualize that we have poverty and homelessness in the US and Rotary must meet needs locally there as well as helping on a global basis. Tomorrow we go to a town 40 Km from here called Dharmavaram. The Rotary Club of north Providence RI has donated monies to send several girl children to school providing uniforms, books and supplies. The Team will be presenting them at a ceremony tomorrow afternoon. Here girl children are sent out to work and earn monies to pay tuition for brothers and male cousins before they are allowed an education. This program is designed to improve the economy over time by educating more females than would otherwise have access to education.
We are getting more south east coastal in the Indian Peninsula and losing altitude and it is getting hotter and there are more mosquitoes. The heat is very dry and cooling collars soaked are almost dry in an an hour or two where at home they might take a couple of days to dry. My current "home" is a rooftop terraced apartment with open air gardens (now set for dinner for about 30 people by the looks of it) over an orthopedic hospital. About 70 patients are seen daily except Sunday by my host, a former GSE team member to the USA. He has a staff of 20 paraprofessionals assisting him to treat, operate and care for patients downstairs. 20 inpatient beds and an average of 4-6 surgeries done at the end of each day(most of these are pateients seen earlier in the day). He tells me a hip replacement total cost here is equivalent to $500 US and he does at least 5 a week as the only physician on site.
The computer connection is so slow here I am hoping this makes it to all of you. Namaste and blessings to all. I will see some of you in a couple of weeks!
we were talking today about how the newness of this trip has worn off and we are all beginning to really miss home.
Cherie
see. Megan, being blonde gets that more than the rest of us and children seem to flock to her.When this trip was initially described to all of us and we were chosen to go, it was on an exchange with the Silicon Valley of India...the information superhighway between Bangalore and Hyderabad. We will not even be near Bangalore which is where some of the team had researched sites they wished to see for vocational enhancement. Until this stop, we have not consistently even had access to the Internet. Occasionally a host will have a computer in their home but wireless, which we expected everywhere, has been no where so far, Cell phones which we were assurred would work here do not so I have a phone for the month as a gift from the District so they can reach me to check on the progress of the team each day. However, it was purchased and loaded with time in a State other than where we are now residing or will be at any point for the rest of this trip so there is a charge on those calls that is using some minutes.
Yesterday, we went out to t
he farm of one of the Rotarians who was my counterpart as a GSE team leader a few years ago. He has a dairy of she buffalo and had a two day old calf that freely mingled with visitors and two three month old brown and white spotted puppies that loved all over us. His farm was an organic work of art, That work starts with compost troughs near the stable, Organic material,such as leaves and sticks and fruit peels are laid in the base of the trough and cow manure piled atop it and it is thoroughly watered. After 3-4 days the whole mixture is turned over and stirred. The process is repeated every three days until the mixture is full of earthworms. At that point the dry top layers are skimmed off and piled to be used as organic fertilizer around the plants, He has rice paddies, hay fields and fruit trees galore. In the 5 acres we walked were a mango grove, coconuts, bananas, custard apples (they look like small artichokes but are juicy and sweet) , grapefruit, and many other furits I have never seen or heard of before. Sandalwood and teak are also being cultivated there. Oh and curry! You crush the leaves and can actually taste the curry with the scent!Today we spent 6 hours in the car driving out to a very rual area a hundred Km from here to see the world's largest Banyan tree. It is over 600 years old and covers more than 6 acres with another survey scheduled this year expected to show it closer to 7 acres. Now, a novice looking at this would never suspect it is one tree as Banyan send
out limbs and drop taproots which travel under the ground and come up as a new generation, It would appear that there are hundreds of them there but we are assurred it is in actuality, only one. Geographically we could be traveling through central Arizona with the red soil and rock formations.Wherever we go, we are asked for monies for projects much needed in the towns from desks and chairs for the schools to wells and water purifiers to a CT scanner for a hospital to computers for schools (at three times each what we can get them for in the States). I have asked all of those requesting monies to forward proposals so they can be considered by our District's Foundation for potential inclusion in programs but somehow I wonder if I will see many materialize. They find it almost impossible to conceptualize that we have poverty and homelessness in the US and Rotary must meet needs locally there as well as helping on a global basis. Tomorrow we go to a town 40 Km from here called Dharmavaram. The Rotary Club of north Providence RI has donated monies to send several girl children to school providing uniforms, books and supplies. The Team will be presenting them at a ceremony tomorrow afternoon. Here girl children are sent out to work and earn monies to pay tuition for brothers and male cousins before they are allowed an education. This program is designed to improve the economy over time by educating more females than would otherwise have access to education.
We are getting more south east coastal in the Indian Peninsula and losing altitude and it is getting hotter and there are more mosquitoes. The heat is very dry and cooling collars soaked are almost dry in an an hour or two where at home they might take a couple of days to dry. My current "home" is a rooftop terraced apartment with open air gardens (now set for dinner for about 30 people by the looks of it) over an orthopedic hospital. About 70 patients are seen daily except Sunday by my host, a former GSE team member to the USA. He has a staff of 20 paraprofessionals assisting him to treat, operate and care for patients downstairs. 20 inpatient beds and an average of 4-6 surgeries done at the end of each day(most of these are pateients seen earlier in the day). He tells me a hip replacement total cost here is equivalent to $500 US and he does at least 5 a week as the only physician on site.
The computer connection is so slow here I am hoping this makes it to all of you. Namaste and blessings to all. I will see some of you in a couple of weeks!
we were talking today about how the newness of this trip has worn off and we are all beginning to really miss home.
Cherie
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