Moonbeams

This is NOT Okay

2011-12-14T17:42:00.000+05:30

Something is seriously wrong with PA's Liquor Control Board. Great job on an advertisement that:

(a) Blames victims/survivors of rape for their assaults
(b) Teaches people (boys/men) that sex is something you must say no to rather than consent to

An excellent contribution to institutionalizing America's rape culture society. Thank you for that.

Visitors

2011-11-27T02:19:00.002+05:30

Recently I was lucky to have my first batch of visitors to India in over two years (my third batch of visitors overall) – Mom, Aunt Nancy and Uncle Tom. I feel blessed to have family willing to travel halfway across the world to visit me and experience a totally different country.

We hit Delhi, Agra, and Udaipur. I had seen everything before except for Udaipur, and I don’t think I’ll ever get sick of seeing the Taj. It’s magnificent. Here are some lovely photos from our trip!

with my Mummy dearest at Humayun's Tomb

with Aunt Nancy after our lovely massages

all of us at the Taj

sisters jump alike :-)

The Boston Ballet doesn't know what it's missing

the happy couple

The Imperial Hotel, Delhi - fancy lunch

Lodi Garden, Delhi

Parcel!!!

2011-11-15T15:14:00.000+05:30

Yesterday I received the first of three packages that my family sent me. My colleague and friend, Arpita, was so excited about my excitement that she recorded the experience with her camera phone!

NASSCOM Interviews HMRI

2011-11-15T12:22:00.001+05:30

A few years ago HMRI won NASSCOM's Social Innovation Honours. Recently they published an update on our work via an interview with our CEO. I thought it might give you a general idea of one facet of the work that we're doing.

p.s. You might need to try the link a few times.

It's the Little Things

2011-11-11T15:50:00.000+05:30

Today is a sleepy Friday, and I could not be happier that I have a day off tomorrow. My colleague and friend, Arpita, breaks up her days with little pick-me-up photo sessions of the beautiful flowers that have just started blooming outside our office.

Science, Ink.

2011-11-10T18:52:00.000+05:30

Sometimes the New York Times’ slideshows are really bad or boring or overly dramatized, but earlier this week the Times ran a pretty impressive 16 slide show of science tattoos called Science, Skin and Ink . It’s amazing what people have done to their bodies and even more amazing how talented tattoo artists are (under different circumstances I might switch those two clauses). A few favorites:

Edison’s Phonograph

The first device that would record and play back sounds, voices, and music!

Einstein and Newton Equations

Enough said.

The Golden Ratio

Look at how pretty its geometric expression can be!

I’m thinking next time they should do “Science”, Skin and Ink… a 16 slide show of science fiction tattoos. With all the loony Trekkies out there, I’m sure it would be even more impressive. I know the perfect Star Wars contender.

R2D2

Reboot

2011-11-07T17:08:00.002+05:30

After a few ego boosts and newly found free time, I am trying to get back into the world of blogging. I think it has been about 1 ½ years since my last post, so there’s quite a bit to write about. I’ll keep this post short and sweet.

Deshpande Foundation (DF) is in my past. After my first year of the fellowship I signed on to become a senior fellow and help run the fellowship for a second year. Soon after I returned to India DF decided to hire me as their Program Officer for health. I thought this would be an amazing opportunity, but instead provided me with unwanted experiences in organizational politics, hierarchy, and ethics.

So what did I do? Much to the chagrin of the CEO, I resigned and planned a two month trip in India, Sri Lanka, Portugal, Venice, and Croatia. I was all set and ready to go when Health Management and Research Institute (HMRI) decided to hire me. I had to cut my trip short by 1 month, disappoint Joost, and miss my dad’s 60^th birthday party (three huge losses).

Now you will find me in Hyderabad working as the Head of Pre-sales and Proposals for HMRI. More on that (and my family’s recent visit) later…

Holi

2010-03-20T11:24:00.001+05:30

Holi has officially become my favorite Indian holiday. Although it’s much bigger up North than it is in the South, we had a fantastic time celebrating with our friends Adam and Vidya at their place in Bangalore.

Holi is supposed to celebrate the coming summer and the spirit of forgiveness. What better way to forgive people than to pelt them with colored powder and douse them in water? And that’s precisely what we did!

We showed up in the morning, sparkling clean (I chose all white so that the colors would look really cool), and didn’t even make it up to Vidya’s family’s apartment before we were colored. We took a minute to put our stuff down and immediately ran downstairs to commence the festivities.

We had a few ringleaders, mainly Xanthine, who couldn’t keep herself away from the water, Vidya, who couldn’t keep herself from sabotaging people with pans of colored water, and Chetan, who couldn’t keep himself from grabbing people and holding them down for a good team sneak attack!

Throughout the festival we managed to stop for a few photos, so you can get the full effect of our color. Afterwards we rinsed off in water, enjoyed some watermelon juice and samosas, and then used detergent to scrub off the color (ouch!).

A few of us remained colored for days- I had some nice pink in my hair plus speckled feet, Mari had some green in her hair, and Giselle had a fantastically pink ear! We finished the day off with an INR 1500 (USD 30) all you can eat and drink sushi fest.

The weekend was filled with some other luxuries too—Genny and I stayed with Giselle’s cousin, Pascal, who has a beautiful apartment and hired a car for us for the weekend, bowling, seafood risotto, awesomely bizarre music, and a tour of the famed Infosys campus.

All in all a fantabulous weekend!

Weather: how it affects you

2010-03-17T12:56:00.002+05:30

This is my most recent monthly blog post for Deshpande Foundation. To read what others have to say, visit the globl exhange blog

I LOVE hot weather. LOVE IT!

And I would say that after living in an Indian village for a summer season that occasionally reached 49C (a whopping 120F) that I can deal with it pretty well. Dharwad is currently 25-30F shy of that, and I know that it won’t reach the temperatures of last summer (it’s a bit cooler here).

I’m easing my way into the heat- avoiding turning the fan on when possible and keeping it on low when necessary, making sure my skin is constantly protected (otherwise I’d be a walking lobster), and slowly increasing my coconut water intake (I jumped from 1 to 2 to my current 3 per day—I think my maximum will be 4). I think I’ve already made some significant improvements- I’m not dripping sweat like last year and I don’t have heat rash that the doctor mistook for mosquito bites. I’m adapting to the Indian climate!

After a hot day, there’s nothing like spending time outside on a cool night (the nights are simply splendid) or walking to the bus stop on a cool morning (the mornings are also simply splendid). Genny and I have plans for hanging a hammock and getting a few chairs outside, and sipping some cool coconut water while reading or chatting the night away on our blissful patio. To me, that sounds pretty idyllic.

Inappropriate Times in Haveri

2010-03-15T12:53:00.001+05:30

I recently went to Haveri, a local town, to meet with an NGO called Samraksha (perhaps I will get a chance to tell you more about the organization later). The plan when I arrived was to call the Director and have her send a car to pick me up. As life in India often goes, my phone or the network or something wasn't working, and immediately a man approached me, unable to hide his enthusiasm for meeting a foreigner.

He was kind enough to let me use his mobile phone and waited with me for fifteen minutes, talking my ear off about how he's a reporter with the Indian Express, that since he has an MBA he should be able to go to the US or the UK, and asking me which one was better. Finally the car arrived and when he shook my hand goodbye, he decided it would be a good idea to lean in to kiss me on both cheeks.

Now to most westerners a kiss on both cheeks is a fine way of greeting someone you know, but in India (much less small town Haveri) it is ENTIRELY INAPPROPRIATE. I could see the wide eyes and gaping mouths. Married couples don't even hold hands, so you can imagine how taboo kissing (even only on the cheek) in public is. It was so inappropriate and so shocking to me that all I could do was laugh.

I hopped into the car, happy to be done with him, when in the middle of the meeting he called the woman I was meeting with just to make sure I arrived safely. All I could do was shake my head and apologize profusely. She thinks he was either unbelievably cautious or looking for a newspaper story, but I appreciated her graciousness and understanding. She actually thought it was nice of him to check in on me!

I still have no clue what that man was thinking, but all in all, it was a hugely entertaining experience.

Home Sweet Home

2010-03-07T09:47:00.003+05:30

After 1 ½ years I finally got the chance to go home thanks to India’s new visa regulations. Here are some of the highlights!

7. Going to the Dentist

Yes, it had been 1 ½ years, and yes, there are good dentists in India, but there’s nothing like getting your teeth cleaned in an environment that feels familiar.

6. Driving the Car While Listening to Really Bad Pop Music

There’s just something liberating about it!

5. Watching the Olympics

I wouldn’t have had the opportunity in India!

4. Wearing my Red Bathrobe

For years my family has made fun of this household staple to my wardrobe. I made sure it got plenty of Suzanne-love when I was home.

3. Winter

It’s been 2 years since I’ve experienced real winter. Lucky for me, there was snow on the ground and a bite in the air when I first arrived. We even had a nice snowstorm during my second week home- there’s nothing like waking up in the morning, looking out my back window, and seeing a wintery palace of snow in our woods. I even got to wear winter clothes!

2. The Food

I arrived armed with a list of goodies I had been missing for 1 ½ years. Some of my favorites: lobster, strawberry rhubarb pie, lemon meringue pie, chocolate chip cookies, broccoli, salads, brussel sprouts, and halibut. My family was awesome enough to make sure I checked everything off my list and then some!

1. Seeing my Family, Friends, and Eugene!

My trip home included a lot of quality time with my family, a trip down to DC to visit my friends and Aunt Nancy and Uncle Tom, spending a few days with my grandma, dinner with two college professors, and helping adjust Julia’s new dog, Eugene, to the family. He’s a 9 year old beagle who has never really had a home his whole life; I wish I could have packed him in a suitcase and brought him back with me!

My New Friend

2010-01-31T22:23:00.001+05:30

Genny and I have tried taking this new puppy under our wing. Her name is Gringa- how cute!

Reflections on Mann Deshi

2010-01-26T11:17:00.002+05:30

Ever since I left Mann Deshi, I've thought about how I should convey my experience to others. Instead of venting for pages and pages, and discussing what I've learned from all the negativity, I leave you my friend Rama's words. He captures a majority of the experience very succinctly, and I request that you take the time to read it: http://rsivalog.blogspot.com.

The Best Things about Christmas this Year

2010-01-12T10:37:00.008+05:30

6. Our holiday Christmas cookie ornament-decorating party
In mid-December, before the fellows parted ways for the holidays, Genny and I hosted a small party. We had Christmas cookies (gingerbread cookies that our local baker was kind enough to bake for us, stroopwafels that my parents were kind enough to send, and apple crisp), and we forced our friends to make ornaments for our tree. Lots o’ fun!

5. The movies
One of our main Christmas activities was watching Christmas movies. We watched Little Women, A Christmas Story, Love Actually, and Miracle on 34^th Street!

4. Our decorations
Genny and I labored for hours on our Christmas decorations, most of which were made out of paper. We made a wreath, snowman, fire, snowflakes, green & red and blue & white paper chains, and garland. We were lucky enough to find a Christmas tree and Santa hats in Hubli. And my parents were nice enough to send stockings, a Christmas flag, a snow globe, and a cute little penguin in a box. Our house looks amazingly tacky, but we LOVE it!

3. The food
Genny, Giselle, and I thought long and hard about what we wanted and what was practical for our three Christmas feasts (Christmas Eve dinner, Christmas brunch, and Christmas dinner). My favorite selections were apple crisp, strata, stuffing, and spinach patties (an adaptation of spinach balls).

2. The people
Genny and Giselle are just awesome people. And if I had to be away from my family and friends, I can’t imagine two better people with whom to celebrate.

1. The Christmas Eve dance party
While we were in the middle of cooking our delicious feast, the girls from down the street stopped by our house. I was really touched that girls so young (early teens) would be thoughtful enough to wish us a Merry Christmas and make us cards.

We offered them some butter cookies, and our collective excitement transformed into a Christmas dance party! We exchanged Indian and American moves, and upon the suggestion of one of the girls, had a catwalk-off. She definitely won.

For a few minutes things settled down. The girls asked to see pictures of Santa, so we obliged using the internet. When Genny asked, “Who do you want to see next?” they shouted in unison, “Jesus Christ!” followed by the most outspoken girl, Sushmita, stating, “He’s such a great guy.”

Unable to contain our laughter, we loaded a picture of Jesus. Unfortunately the first one to load was of Jesus drinking wine and smoking a cigarette. Genny’s quick save: “Oh, Jesus is having some juice!”

Eventually we moved on from the photo sharing, and Giselle, menorah in hand, taught the girls about Hanukkah. We then returned to dancing to our Christmas music before the girls had to head back to their hostel.

We were all smiles when they left. Christmas in India really couldn’t have gotten any better. It’s moments like dancing with those girls that I wish I could share with people back home-those are the moments that define my experience, make life here extra special, and make me never want to leave.

And the most endearing part of all? The cards were addressed: “Dear Johnny and Swizzy.” How can you beat that?

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-26T00:08:00.003+05:30

MERRY

CHRISTMAS!

My Grand Goan Adventure!

2009-12-20T12:16:00.005+05:30

I never got a chance to post about my fabulous trip to Goa (late Nov). Goa is a state on India’s West Coast, and is known for its beautiful beaches and delicious seafood. Our excuse for going was to celebrate my birthday and another fellow’s birthday, but we all definitely needed some time away from Hubli-Dharwad.

We spent the weekend in cute little beachside huts, swimming in the unbelievably warm salty water, eating as much fish as possible, and dancing the night away at a ‘silent noise’ party (everyone gets their own headphones, there are three different DJs playing, and everyone dances their heart out to their DJ of choice).

Some photos to capture the trip:

Travel

2009-12-18T10:45:00.002+05:30

This post was written for Deshpande Foundation. To check out what other fellows have written, visit the Global Exchange-Innovative Impact blog.

When traveling in Hubli-Dharwad, I swear by local buses and the heel-toe express. Together, these marvelous forms of transportation get me to and from work, my friends’ houses, the market, and almost anywhere else I want to go with very little hassle.

Sure you’re standing, sandwiched between too many people (three little kids you’re trying not to step on, a woman carrying a baby [why will nobody let her sit?], and the conductor who weaves through the bus doling out tickets with remarkable efficiency), holding on to the handles for dear life, and trying to avoid hitting everyone in the head with your elbows…

But all of this is worth it, because the bus has everything I’m looking for in local transportation. Buses are:

· Cheap and haggle-free (although sometimes you have to make sure the conductors aren’t pocketing your money);

· Frequent;

· Relatively safe (the drivers are experienced, and if you get in an accident you’re in the biggest vehicle on the road, except for maybe the trucks);

· Relatively eco-friendly;

· And occasionally a great adventure!

While the bus can occasionally be an adventure, the heel-toe express almost always provides some form of external amusement—cute little puppies, kids screaming your name, pigs chasing each other and squealing bloody murder, vehicles honking at you to get out of their way, the occasional neighbor (or random stranger) that invites you into her home, and local shop-owners with whom you’ve developed some sort of unidentifiable yet super-fantastic relationship.

Given my year and a half in India, and several experiences serving as a tour guide for friends and family, I’ve come up with the following essential travel rules:

1. The largest structures/bodies have the right of way; the pedestrian NEVER does.

2. ALWAYS look both ways—several times—before crossing the street, even if it’s one way. People always drive on the wrong side of the road.

3. Don’t let rickshaw drivers rip you off; if you don’t like the price, walk away.

4. If you’re getting on a bus, ask at least three different people, plus the driver or conductor, if the bus is going where you want to go.

5. Always get a receipt from bus conductors.

And last but not least: always be on your toes, expect delays, and plan accordingly. You have to be relaxed and flexible when handling transportation in India.

Auntie Sussy's Salsa... IN INDIA!!!

2009-12-13T11:50:00.006+05:30

Was it as good as Auntie Sussy's?
Nope.

Was is as fantastic as it would have been if Auntie Sussy was there to share it with?
Nope.

Was it still pretty darn tasty?
You bet!!!

I Am on a Marathi Billboard

2009-12-09T11:46:00.005+05:30

Way back when I first arrived in India many of you will remember that I was (un)lucky enough to star as the "other woman" in the music video for a Marathi film. I regaled my experiences in my post, "I am a Marathi Film Star." Now, over a year later I am (un)lucky enough to have my face plastered all over a billboard for the film. Credit to this find goes to Sumedh, a Mann Deshi volunteer in Mhaswad.

I'm thinking I should start demanding royalties :-)

Common Ground

2009-12-08T15:04:00.001+05:30

Those of you who have been keeping up with my blog might remember my post, “Day One,” which touched a bit on organizing and demonstrating in India. The latest struggle in Bangalore is to make public parks available to the public rather than just an elite few.

Recent demonstrations are in response to Karnataka Horticulture Minster Umesh Katti’s proposal to restrict access to public parks to only those with ID cards, excluding huge pockets of the population (mainly marginalized groups).

What really impresses me is that this rights violation and terrible exclusionary tactic has brought together so many diverse groups to protest in solidarity—street and working children, Dalits (a re-appropriated political term for those formerly known as ‘untouchables’), GLBT activists, civic societies, sex workers and those who support their rights, environmental groups, law firms, migrant workers, etc.

If these groups—many of whom have never before worked together—can find common ground on this issue, who knows what else they are capable of ?!?

In this dark cloud of an issue, they give me hope :-)

Small Wins

2009-12-04T18:31:00.003+05:30

Every other Wednesday us fellows get together to discuss a reading we’ve all done on development, interact with some sort of development expert, or talk about our work in a solution-oriented manner, and then have a delicious DF-funded dinner. Although this is a compulsory activity, it’s something I always look forward to.

A while ago, my friend Mari led a discussion on Community Led Total Sanitation (CLTS) and introduced the idea of ‘small wins’ as a way of achieving much larger goals. In the context of CLTS, a small win is a community recognizing the danger of poor sanitation; designing, building, and funding their own latrines; and eliminating open defecation. In the process, the community forges strong relationships and develops a sense of empowerment that helps the community solve other problems that it faces.

Earlier this week at Bhageerath I experienced my own small win, and it felt amazing! One of my colleagues, Jabshetti, is particularly energetic and opinionated. He’s a blast to work with, but often we have very different opinions. Jabshetti just launched the first part of his project, School, Domestic, and Community Sanitation (the title is something we don’t agree on), and we decided that it will be one of the projects I monitor and evaluate (M&E).

To effectively M&E the project, I need to fully understand it. The basis of this is understanding the project goals and project plan. Unfortunately, Jabshetti hadn’t thought about either of these things until I asked him about them. As a result, the goals he came up with were both all over the place (there was no clear focus) and way too ambitious (getting 100% of Karnataka to do a zillion different things).

As he was listing out the project goals, I continually asked him questions about them: Do you think this is realistic? How is this goal related to that goal? How do these goals fit into your vision for the project (the vision is something else we have to tackle)? What do you plan to do to help you achieve this goal? I told him I would look through the goals that night and see what I could synthesize; I asked him to do the same.

My overall approach while working at NGOs is not to tell them what to do, but to make suggestions and help them realize what to do themselves. Apparently it worked, because the next morning Jabshetti came in, dropped a book on my desk, and told me that the two of us needed to look through it, sit down, and seriously think about the future of his project.

Now, I know that thinking about the future of his project will involve some disagreements, a few crazy ideas, and delusions of grandeur, but knowing that I helped him to think more critically about his work made me really REALLY happy! Wahoo!

"Uganda proposes death penalty for hiv positive gays"

2009-12-01T13:27:00.006+05:30

This is seriously NOT COOL, Uganda.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/africa/article6935558.ece

Britain and Canada protested yesterday over a proposed law that would result in gays in Uganda being imprisoned for life or even executed.

Gordon Brown followed Stephen Harper, the Canadian Prime Minister, in telling Uganda that the legislation was unacceptable.

Mr Brown made his views plain in a breakfast conversation with President Museveni of Uganda on the margins of the Commonwealth summit.

Homosexuality remains criminalised in many Commonwealth countries, but the more liberal countries have been horrified by the new legislation.

The Anti-Homosexuality Bill 2009 is going through Uganda’s Parliament after receiving its first reading last month.

According to Clause 2 of the Bill, a person who is convicted of gay sex is liable to life imprisonment. But if that person is also HIV positive the penalty — under the heading “aggravated homosexuality” — is death.

The Bill has not been endorsed by the Ugandan government but it has allowed it to proceed, and some top officials are said to have praised it.

A Canadian government spokesman said: “If adopted, a Bill further criminalising homosexuality would constitute a significant step backwards for the protection of human rights in Uganda.”

The Bill proposes a three-year prison sentence for anyone who is aware of evidence of homosexuality and fails to report it to the police within 24 hours. And it would impose a sentence of up to seven years for anyone who defends the rights of gays and lesbians.

Addressing the Commonwealth People’s Forum, Stephen Lewis, the former UN envoy on Aids in Africa, said that the Bill made a mockery of Commonwealth principles. “Nothing is as stark, punitive and redolent of hate as the Bill in Uganda.”

Happy Thanksgiving!

2009-11-26T22:36:00.004+05:30

My roommate and I just hosted a wonderful Thanksgiving at our house for 7 of our friends, complete with mashed potatoes, green beans, stuffing, turkey, gravy, apple crisp, and much more!

A few photos of our celebration:

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Is Star Wars a Walking Contradiction, Even in a Galaxy Far Far Away?

2009-11-15T14:31:00.002+05:30

I’ve been sick with a nasty sinus infection the past few days, and have therefore had the opportunity to catch up on my Star Wars. By catch up, I mean watch them for the zillionth time. I watched them in order of release: IV, V, VI, I, II, III, and while watching The Empire Strikes Back (my favorite) it suddenly dawned on me.

Anakin’s transformation into Darth Vader starts when he can’t forego his love of Padme. He’s terrified of losing her. According to Yoda, this kind of love is a path to the dark side. When Darth Vader throws the emperor down the huge shaft in Return of the Jedi, is he doing it because his son is being killed or because it’s the right thing to do? To me, all evidence points to the fact that he’s trying to save his son because of the same kind of familial love that got him into trouble in the first place.

Now, obviously Star Wars’ good-evil binary doesn’t reflect the real world where everything is in colors and shades of gray; it just reflects the political situation of the time when it was made.

Okay, I’ll stop babbling. I just thought I’d offer you my loopy ponderings.

Thoughts (Nads)?

Work Culture

2009-11-15T13:34:00.003+05:30

This post is another written for Deshpande Foundation's blog. To read what others have written on the same topic, click here.

I arrive at the office every day at anytime between 9:30 and 11 am. Sometimes my coworkers are already at their desks and other times they stroll in an hour behind me. As much as I like to try to convince myself that I’m a morning person and that I can get much more done early in the day, the truth is that India’s work schedule is much better suited to my body’s time clock.

After I enter the office I am offered a hot cup of sugary milky chai (what I have affectionately come to call a hot cup of diabetes- it really has that much sugar in it!), a staple in the Indian workday. I’ve never needed a caffeine jolt and never liked coffee, but that cup of chai seems to pick me up, calm me down, and keep me going all at once.

At present, my work day largely consists of research—sitting at my desk meticulously planning with occasional meetings and trips to the field. After spending a year and a half in India, though, I have come to learn several things key to surviving in a local non-profit work environment:

1. Meticulous planning may be a great exercise, excellent in theory, and is certainly a worthwhile skill to pass on to your colleagues, but most people don’t plan, and even when they do, the plan is often ignored.

2. Meetings never start on time, most participants don’t actually participate, and meetings often run late because people’s mobiles repeatedly interrupt meetings.

3. Your superiors are “sir” and “madam” or “ma’am”, unless otherwise instructed. Those thought of as your inferiors will call you “madam” no matter how many times you tell them not to.

4. Your personal life and professional life will not be separate.

I think Giselle and Mari have described a great deal about the importance of personal life in a professional environment. I’d like to hit a little bit more on point 2, more specifically the idea that a meeting will have 8 attendees but only two of them will be making any sort of verbal contribution. Aside from the lack of personal-professional divide, this is the most important difference between my work life here and in the US.

Most people don’t participate in meetings because aside from senior officers, staff are not encouraged to voice their ideas, inside or outside of meetings. Even when they are, they often don’t speak up. At the risk of making broad generalizations and not offering much complexity where complexity is due, I see this as a broader product of India’s educational system and hierarchical society, where creativity, critical thinking, and confidence are not inculcated in the system and encouraged as much as they should be.

I see this as one of my greatest upcoming challenges as I pursue my work at Bhageerath. My top priority is evaluating Bhageerath’s programs, but I also want to leave knowing that the staff can work together to carry out evaluations in the future. This means forming a committee to oversee the evaluation, and training them in evaluation by doing evaluation. I will be using new and unfamiliar training techniques and require constant feedback and ideas.

What makes me confident that we can succeed at this is the personal relationship that I have built, and will continue to build, with my colleagues. Their acceptance of me as a person has made them more open to my professional ideas, and vice versa. Now we just have to wait and see how it works!

Flooding

2009-11-07T19:06:00.003+05:30

I'm sure many of you heard about the somewhat recent terrible flooding in India. One of the most affected areas was the villages surrounding Hubli and Dharwad. Today I had the opportunity to go out into the field to see some of Bhageerath's work and the village that we visited was affected by the flood. Throughout the ride I saw fields and fields of crops (maize, millet, cotton, onions, etc.) that had been flattened by the flooding, and areas where the water still had not dried up. What's worse is that the soil is completely cracked and ruined.

Unfortunately, the Indian government is doing very little in the way of assistance (i.e. providing farmers INR 2,000 for ruined crops that would normally produce INR 60,000). Much of this has led to the aforementioned onion farmer strike (see post "Day One"). Still, there are many non-profits attempting to alleviate the impact. What I wonder is what happens a few years from now when farmers are producing low quality crops because their soil is so poor.

But there's nothing else for them to do besides move on. Many of them were clearing out their ruined crops, removing waste from the fields, and re-plowing the soil with their bullocks. It's sowing season now and all the farmers are picking up the pieces and looking towards the future. I wish I had brought a camera so that you see what they're up against.

"a tale of two indias"

2009-11-06T10:39:00.003+05:30

Sometimes other people say it best. I found this article on BBC and although my opinions on India are constantly changing, feel that it very succinctly explains a lot of what has been going through my mind. To see the piece with photos: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/8342664.stm

India is often described as the land of extremes, rich and poor, hot and cold, forward and backward. Chris Morris reflects on what it is like to live in a country which has 'two faces'.

In the fading light of a Himalayan sunset, men strip down to their underwear and plunge headlong into the icy waters of Mother Ganga.

It is late October, winter is coming, and this is Gangotri - the place where millions of devout Hindus believe the River Ganges descends to earth from heaven. It is a place of pilgrimage high in the mountains, just a few miles from the source of the river.

The Gangotri temple is dedicated to the goddess of the Ganges.

People believe that by washing in this freezing holy water, they are purifying their sins. But this is extreme devotion.

The last afterglow of the sun is reflecting off the snow-capped peak of Sudarshan - a perfect cone-shaped mountain.

Bells are ringing in the temple, incense drifts through the chilly air, and prayers to the goddess are being chanted.

A visitor takes a photograph of a temple shrine from the wrong place and is sworn at enthusiastically in earthy Hindi. Offence is taken and curses mingle with the incense.

India is always an interesting mix of the sacred and the profane.

Cheap souvenirs
Just outside the temple gates groups of men are crouched around small fires, trying to keep warm.

And from a long line of makeshift shacks, locals are selling plastic bottles in which to collect holy water, along with cheap souvenirs and other bits of plastic tat.

I am offered a postcard with a photograph of a mountain which is so out of focus that it is hard to tell whether it really is a mountain or just a white blob.
"Very nice picture," the man says. "No it is not," I think to myself, "it is rubbish."

So what sticks more firmly in my mind? The devotion of the devout, or the tattiness of the tat? It is honestly hard to tell because India's always a bit like that - as an outsider it does not give you much middle ground, on anything.

There is so much here that is wrong, that is cruel, and that is unjust. Poverty, caste violence… and for many millions a chronic lack of opportunity.

There is shocking treatment of women, who are killed for providing insufficient dowry, or for making the fatal mistake of falling in love with the wrong man.

There is shocking treatment of children, who are trafficked, abused or forced to work 16 hours a day in sweatshop factories.

Optimism
But for many millions of other Indians, there is also something else - a sense of looking upwards, a sense that things are getting better, that the horizon is widening, that in this young society, with the oldest of cultures, this is their time.

Wherever I travel in the world, I tend to keep a mental barometer in my head - an optimism index if you will.

In India, certainly in urban India, it just feels like the mercury is rising. Compare that to parts of Europe, my previous posting, where many people have plenty of everything. They are not pre-occupied with the hope of moving up, but with the fear of losing what they already have.

India, of course, could get it all wrong. The have-nots could remain stuck in their rut, increasingly angry and marginalised.

Hundreds of millions of people still survive on very little in this country and as they watch the new buoyant India flourish around them, there is bound to be a reaction.

A peasant-based rebellion, taking inspiration from the revolutionary teachings of Chairman Mao, is fermenting dangerously across a vast swathe of Indian territory. Unchecked, it could well spread fast. "That," a senior security official once told me, "is what really keeps me awake at night."

Commonwealth Games
But middle class urban India will party on - Mumbai obsessed with Bollywood, Delhi increasingly obsessed with traffic jams, flyovers and next year's Commonwealth Games.

The Games are supposed to showcase the new India, and announce Delhi as a 'world city'. But there has been mounting concern that it will not be ready in time.

I suspect the event will end up being a triumph. A combination of last minute panic, natural charm, and maybe a few prayers to whichever god or goddess is most appropriate to a major sporting event will see the city through.

The runners will run, and the drummers will drum. And the slums will be screened off behind bamboo fencing. People will see what they want to see.

So back down in Delhi, I wonder whether I too should not have broken the ice by the bank and plunged into the freezing currents of the River Ganges. It might have given me a sense of perspective, which India's assault on the senses often does not allow.
Love it or hate it? I feel like I am being battered from both sides.

Day One

2009-11-04T11:43:00.002+05:30

I have officially left Mann Deshi—for reasons I will discuss later—and joined a new NGO. During my interim 2 ½ weeks I worked at the Deshpande Foundation revising web content for one of their programs. Yesterday, I began working at my new NGO, Bhageerath, which works in public health, livelihoods, and agriculture, on issues of sanitation, water, and irrigation in rural villages.

On my way to work I was reminded of something I love about India. I was stuck on a bus in two hours of traffic that didn’t move more than 10 feet during that time period. At first we all assumed there must have been an accident, but later came to learn that farmers were on a strike because the price of onions had fallen so low. Everyone on the bus was patient and nobody showed any visible sign of irritation.

People in India organize unlike anywhere else I’ve seen. On any given day you’ll find dozens of demonstrations or strikes throughout the country. People organize around political issues, lack of infrastructure, something they don’t like about their job (usually pay), and whatever else you can think of. Strikes and demonstrations are sometimes not very effective, and half the time I have no idea what they’re about, but the mere fact that people feel like their organizing will make a difference is inspiring.

(This is, of course, in stark contrast to the complacency that most people exhibit towards government corruption).

So how was the rest of my day? Excellent! I’m working with a very small team of people on TONS of work that they requested and therefore wholeheartedly support. The staff treated me like it was my first day in India (something I found very endearing) and the project support started right away! I’m not getting my hopes up yet, but so far I feel very positive about this change!

Two New Friends

2009-10-31T11:53:00.003+05:30

Friend One
Last night there was a very loud pooja. Our landlord and her large family set up shop on our porch, set off crazy firecrackers, fireworks, and noisemakers, and then invited us outside for celebration. This, sadly, was our first interaction with our landlord as we had miraculously never seen her and nobody introduced us. Now we have an open invitation for lunch or dinner, or to learn Kannada (the local language). I love how you can go from not knowing someone to fast friends in an instant. It's great!

Friend Two
This one's for Dad. I walked out of a store the other day to a beautiful beagle tied up to a railing. He was clean, adorable, extremely friendly, and made me unbelievably happy. My plan for the evening was to go straight home and get to bed (I was exhausted), but as soon as I saw those soft perky ears and eager eyes, I had to stop and play with him for 1/2 hour (until his owner came out and took him home). People were walking by and looking at me like I was totally nuts, but that sweet little beagle made my week.

Next time I'm going to follow the owner home and ask for some QT with the playful pup :)

Diwali II

2009-10-22T11:20:00.008+05:30

For some reason, blogger isn't working properly so my post winds up looking like this:

This year Diwali was amazing. Lena (my roommate) and I spent about a month mentally preparing and a few days navigating the streets of Hubli to buy presents. Durgamba, the wonderful woman who cleans our house, told us we had to buy her presents. When I said, "Yes, and your family too," she very frankly responded, "No! Just me." It is customary for people to buy gifts for those they employ, but last year's fellows set a very high precedent.

Lena and I decided to uphold that precedent, plus we both enjoy gift-giving, so we went all out. Our gifts included a camera phone, three saris, a purse, bangles, shoes, and money. We also bought chocolate and some local sweets for the kids. On the night we were supposed to join her at her house, Lena and I ran around like crazy. We had about fifteen minutes to assemble all of our gifts and I had to dress Lena in her first sari (always a complicated process).

We arrived at Durgamba's on India time (45 minutes late) and everyone was very excited to greet us. Lena had already been there, but it was my first time meeting her family. We gave her the gifts we purchased, participated in their pooja (prayer/prayer offering), ate her delicious dinner, looked through her photos, and somehow chatted away despite our intense language barrier. Nothing about it was unique or out of the ordinary, but I left her house that night completely giddy. I was so happy! To me, the night was very special, and was probably the most fun I've had in Hubli so far.

What consistently amazes me about India is the extent of its hospitality regardless of the family's wealth. I know that much of what I experience of Indian hospitality stems from my race an nationality, but it also stems from the simple fact that I'm a guest and people are unbelievably kind. This is one of my favorite aspects of Indian culture. When it comes time for me and Lena to prepare a meal for Durgamba and her family at Christmas, I can only hope that we are able to reciprocate.

HAPPY DEEPAVALI!

2009-10-19T11:13:00.002+05:30

Cultural Adaptation

2009-10-15T12:09:00.003+05:30

This post started as something written for the DF Sandbox Fellow's blog as a monthly requirement. I have edited it for my personal blog so that I can be more honest. To see the original: http://globalexchangeprogram.wordpress.com/. It might not be up until tomorrow or the day after.

One of the most challenging aspects of adapting to Hubli's culture (a word that often oversimplifies the complexities of what I experience) is the fact that locals will never let me forget that I look different. When I first arrived in India (for my second time) over a year ago, I thought I would never get used to the constant staring. Yet here I am, a year later, and not only am I used to the staring, but I also realize that I have license to stare back. I don't blame anyone and it's not always bad; sometimes it's advantageous. It's just the way it is.

There are many aspects of local culture that I have adopted into my daily life: I usually address my superiors as sir or madam, take the local bus to work every day, dress in salwar suits or saris, bathe with a bucket instead of a shower, cook Indian food and then eat it with my right hand, haggle over just a few rupees with a fruit vendor or rickshaw driver, use water instead of toilet paper when I use the bathroom, take my shoes off when I enter the house, don't say hello to people I pass on my street, use Kannada or Hindi when I actually know the appropriate words, bobble my head as an affirmative, and sometimes segregate myself from men whenever I see local women doing the same.

It's not always easy. There are certain things about my culture that I am willing to give up and certain things about Indian/Hubli culture that I am unwilling to adopt: I almost always eat a western breakfast (except when idli-sambar is available); I try to befriend street dogs; I refuse not to talk to certain people because of their caste, class, or professional designations; I find Indian corruption, whether at the national, local, or NGO level, abhorrent (yet complicated); and I won't drink water out of the tap.

There's a certain freedom about my foreignness that allows me to reject certain aspects of local culture and maintain certain aspects of my own. Yet the one thing I struggle with the most is how to maintain my independence, how to slip into anonymity when that's what I want and how to go wherever I want whenever I want to go there. I've learned over the past 13 months that many locals consider this kind of thinking "un-Indian," especially for a woman. But in my mind, it's still a constant battle.

To give you an idea of what I'm talking about, I recently walked along the coastline and beach in Mumbai fairly late at night (11 pm). To contextualize this, walking along the coastline is a popular activity, women are rarely (if ever) alone, and India has the largest concentration of young guys in groups (according to my good friend Rama- I swear he's right).

Now, I am very aware that walking along as a white woman is a rare sight, but I refuse to prevent myself from enjoying my late night walk. Of course there was the "bad" kind of starting, sexual harassment, propositioning, and numerous men who walked up to me to talk to me... one even dared to touch me. Here's a snippet from a conversation I had with Danish, one of the men who tried to approach me:

Danish: Why are you out so late? You should be walking in the morning.

Me: Why are you out so late?

Danish: I like coming here at night, but you should only walk here in the morning.

Me: I should be able to walk here whenever I want to.

He laughed, and then the conversation turned to him getting my phone number (he didn't) and ofering me a ride home (which would defeat the purpose of my walk, plus I'm not getting on some stranger's bike). I'm very aware that the sight of me out that late by myself really disturbs the gender dynamic, but I've gotten to the point where knocking down every man's BS sense of entitlement is worth it (I'm also doing much more than that when I think about it--good and bad--but I won't get into that here.

(No worries. I didn't compromise my safety.)

Sick

2009-08-13T13:10:00.005+05:30

I know it has been far too long since I last posted here. I’ve been very busy over the past few months and will certainly update you in the coming weeks on my work and travels. For now I’ll focus on where I am and my most recent newsworthy experience (which people have asked me to post about).

My fellowship with AIF has ended but I’m still in India. I have relocated to Hubli, a city in the southern state of Karnataka, to be a Deshpande Foundation Sandbox Fellow for the next year. I will be working with Mann Deshi’s Hubli location on a few different projects (to be discussed in a future post).

Deshpande Foundation (www.deshpandefoundation.org) is based on Boston and does development work mainly in the Hubli area. DF’s claim to fame is its “sandbox approach” to development. This means that the organization focuses very intensively on developing a very small region, “the sandbox.” They’re hoping that if they are successful then the approach can be replicated throughout India and possibly the rest of the world.

To stay in India and work for another year, though, I needed to obtain a new visa. DF decided to send me to Nepal, and thus my story begins…

I woke up on a Sunday morning with a puffy face, dizziness, joint pain, diarrhea (not terribly unusual), and a horrible headache. Joost was there and very sweetly took care of me- went out to buy food to cook me breakfast and make me a rehydration drink. A few hours later I started having the chills and decided I had a fever. MY FIRST FEVER IN OVER 15 YEARS!

Since I was due to leave that evening for Nepal I thought I should go to the doctor. Joost and I set out for the hospital where they took a wrist x-ray (joint pain) and sent me home with some anti-inflammatory medication. They didn’t think I was sick, they didn’t listen to any of my other symptoms, and they didn’t take me seriously.

I figured I would get better so I took a paracetamol and Joost and I hopped on the overnight bus to Bombay. I arrived in Mumbai and still had the same symptoms but wasn’t feeling too terrible. Joost and I had some food and spent the day wandering around. In the late afternoon we boarded an overnight train to Delhi. By then I was feeling terrible again and developing new symptoms- my fever was 102 and I had a nice rash all over my body. I woke up in the middle of the night and started vomiting. At that point my fever was just over 104 and I couldn’t hold down any water.

Joost set out to find a doctor on the train. I couldn’t even open my eyes or talk to her and she didn’t take me seriously either. When Joost and I got to the train station we hopped in a taxi to a hospital that my good friend Rama recommended. At the hospital, the doctor in the ER refused to see me (apparently he didn’t think I was sick enough), shooed me away with his hand, and then I was wheeled off to a different doctor on the other side of the hospital.

Finally… someone who took me seriously! He immediately hospitalized me but unfortunately there were no beds available in that hospital, and there was only one bed left in their partner hospital. So they took me in an ambulance (lights and sirens- the whole shenanigans) and brought me to a private suite, the nicest hospital room I’ve ever seen in my life.

I stayed there for four days getting tons of tests done, receiving unbelievably painful antibiotic injections, and ultimately being diagnosed with nothing. I have diagnosed myself with chikungunya, even though my test results came back negative. While I was in Nepal I had a few relapses and I currently can’t really walk because of my joint pain, but I am feeling infinitely better!

Joost is sadly home in the Netherlands. It was amazing to have him with me the entire time. I don’t know what I would have done without him- he poured sips of water into my mouth on the train, carried all of my stuff for me, helped me walk from point A to point B, registered me, pushed my wheelchair, ran around Delhi changing my travel plans, brought me juice and mints, woke up early to talk to the nurses so they wouldn’t have to wake me, made sure he was with me for all of my painful antibiotic injections, offered to change his travel plans so that he could continue to care for me in Hubli, and I could go on and on and on.

The bottom line is that he was absolutely wonderful and, although a serious damper on his holiday plans, I’m really happy he was there with me (even if he insisted on taking photos like this).

Scorpion Season...

2009-05-21T09:27:00.003+05:30

... is here!

After about a month of anticipation we spotted the first of the season last night. It was HUGE (a little less than a foot long), and trying to walk into our house. Luckily Soni the dog was playing curious defender. Ultimately Vijay had to wack it a few times with his shoe--can't take any risks with venomous arachnids!

The Longest Eyelashes in India!

2009-05-11T13:58:00.003+05:30

Today I met the person with the longest eyelashes in India.

He is one of Vijay's friends and part of the police force in Mumbai. He was our friendly helper while purchasing Mann Deshi's gun in Bombay.

I've met him on several different occasions and have always been in awe of his long lashes. Today Vijay informed all of us of his amazing feat. If you go here you can get a look up close and personal: http://www.4to40.com/recordbook/index.asp?id=1848

Cool!

Bombay Revisited

2009-05-08T14:18:00.001+05:30

I have again been pretty MIA from blogging recently. I am facing so many frustrations at work that there really isn’t anything fun or exciting to blog about. I’m also worried that if I start writing then I won’t be able to stop venting. But I’ve been away from the office for 1 ½ weeks, and although I was travelling for work I’m feeling a bit refreshed and in the blogging mood. I thought I’d share some of my 2-day Mumbai extravaganza with you.

The journey started with a car trip to Mumbai with Akha (Chetna’s mother-in-law) and a coworker. Akha is one of the most interesting characters to color my daily life, but to get into that would be an entirely new post. When we stopped at a rest stop near Mumbai Akha and I sat at a table waiting for our food. All of a sudden she starts screaming at me and gives me a huge whack! I ask her what the hell she’s doing and realize that she’s pointing behind me. When I turn around I realize that she’s excitedly pointing at a white family and babbling on in Marathi: “Look, it’s other people just like you!” I shook my head and burst out laughing. We white folk may be a rare breed in Mhaswad but it certainly doesn’t excite me when I spot other white people in Mumbai, or anywhere else for that matter.

The following day some colleagues and I went with Chetna’s sister to Dharavi (a slum in Mumbai) to look at some businesses to get ideas for new business school courses in Mhaswad. The day was a total and complete disaster, but getting into that would mean getting into my work frustrations. The highlight of the day was eating crab at one of Mumbai’s best seafood restaurants… a welcome break from the monotony of chapatti, dhal, and vegetables.

On my second day in Mumbai I paid a visit to the US consulate to get more pages put into my passport. That’s right- I have filled it up! My friend Leena and I followed this up with a croissant for breakfast. It wasn’t the best croissant in the world, but it was a CROISSANT. Given the past 8 months, Mumbai is a culinary heaven for me! The rest of the day was filled with walking in and out of bookshops, ducking into AC stores, and treating myself to a delectable lunch and dinner!

The following morning wasn’t as pleasant. I returned to the embassy to pick up my passport only to have the guard tell me that I need a photo ID to get in. We spent 10 minutes arguing about the fact that the embassy has my passport (the ultimate photo ID), the fact that they never told me I would need another photo ID to get in, the fact that they wouldn’t go inside and get my passport to compare me to my photo, and the fact that my passport is the only photo ID that I have in India. They finally let me in, I collected my new and improved passport, and then hopped on a plane to Hubli.

But before I end this post, I need to talk about the two times that the cars I was in were pulled over. The first time was because the car was from out of town and the man driving me was from a lower class which apparently they can tell because of his haircut. The second time was because police officers assume that taxi drivers will overcharge foreigners. They take the driver’s license, and in order to get it back, the driver must pay the police the extra money that he makes off of the foreigner. In what universe is this kind of police corruption okay???? Actually, that’s not even the tip of the police corruption iceberg, but still!!! Not good.

Regardless, I finally got to see why people love Mumbai so much. During my previous trips I had spent hours in traffic going from meeting to meeting in one of the most post polluted cities in the world. This time I finally got to see the city (even if only for two days) on my own terms. It’s busy, exciting, lively, chaotic, polluted, humorous, filled with people to chat with and people to rip you off, unimaginably wealthy, unjustifiably poor, beautiful, ugly, polluted, and overcrowded. It’s like any other city you can think of but more diverse and on an extremely powerful stimulant. It’s almost more of an addiction than India is. Coming from a woodsy lady of the country, that’s saying a lot.

Eeeee!!!! 4: a puppy update

2009-04-14T16:00:00.003+05:30

With all sorts of excitement at the beginning of March I wasn't able to give you a Moni update. She's as cute as ever: short and skinny with perky ears, but with the personality, appetite, and feistiness of an adult rottweiler. This is probably because Moni has magically befriended one of the Sinha's other dogs, Dyna, an 8-month-old rottweiler. When they are outside they run around playing with each other, rolling in mud, and jumping on top of me and unsuspecting guests. When dinner time rolls around it's impossible to control either of them, yet somehow tiny Moni keeps Dyna away from her food and manages a bite or two of Dyna's.

Some photos of me and the little mutt:

World Challenge 2009

2009-04-01T15:38:00.002+05:30

One of Mann Deshi’s partners wants to nominate them for the BBC/Newsweek World Challenge Award 2009. While I was looking on the website to see what the competition was all about, I began to think that Mann Deshi may not be the strongest competitor since its mission and services aren’t focused on environmental sustainability. However, reading through some previous finalists was inspiring. There were three projects/organizations in particular that caught my attention. Of course the issues surrounding these organizations are more complex than the following blurbs (from BBC's website listed below), but sometimes it’s amazing how simple an idea is and how much change it can create.

Organization: Maka
Country: Uganda

The price of imported sanitary pads - around US$1.50 for a pack of ten - puts them beyond the reach of Uganda's poorest families. Accordingly, many disadvantaged girls skip school during their periods, creating a vicious cycle in which the poorest fall furthest behind in their education.

Noticing this trend in Kampala, Dr Musaazi Moses set himself the goal of producing sanitary pads that could be sold for no more than US$0.27 per pack. He was able to keep costs down by using locally sourced materials - papyrus and paper - and manufacturing the pads on a cottage industry basis.

The current rate of production stands at around 1,500 pads per day - and Dr Moses expects this to increase over time. Since its foundation in 2004, MakaPads have benefited hundreds of girls in Kampala and beyond.

Organization: Arghand
Country: Afghanistan

Despite the efforts of American and British forces to put the squeeze on Afghan opium production, the country remains by far the world's largest source of heroin. Arghand Inc is approaching the problem from a different angle. By creating a market for crops such as almonds, apricots, pistachios and liquorice root, the company reduces opium production without depriving farmers of an income.

The exotic crops are used in the manufacture of high-end soaps and skin-care products for the export market. These products might not have quite the same street-value as heroin, but because Arghand operates on a fair trade basis, its farmers end up with more cash than they'd get from growing opium.

Arghand was set up in 2005 by journalist Sarah Chayes, whose first-hand experience of Southern Afghanistan inspired her to strike at the chains of poverty and violence that bind the region to the opium poppy.

Organization: Irula Tribal Venom Center
Country: India (I think I like this one because it involves snakes!)

Most Indians hate snakes. On the one hand, snakes such as the cobra and the saw-scaled viper play a vital ecological role, helping to keep down the country’s vast rodent population which eat some 20 per cent of all India’s crops. Without snakes, that percentage would be much higher. Yet snakes kill up to 20,000 people every year – the highest snakebite fatality rate in the world. Small wonder many Indians favour the extermination of these useful reptiles. There is one group of people, however, who actively seek them out. For hundreds of years the Irula tribe has specialised in catching snakes, mainly for their skins. In 1976 this practice was outlawed by the government, forcing many of the Irula into abject poverty. Salvation came in 1978 when wildlife expert Romulus Whitaker saw a way to help them out – by encouraging them to catch snakes again. Not for skins this time, but for their venom, using an extraction process that leaves the snakes unharmed. The venom is used to create anti-venom serum for the treatment of snakebites. Having donated their venom over a four-week period, the snakes are released back into the wild to resume their valuable rodent-culling function. It took a while for Whitaker and the Irula people to convince the government of the benefits of their venom-collecting enterprise. But convince them they did, and the Irula Venom Centre now supplies up to 80 per cent of the venom for India’s medical needs.

To read more about former contenders: http://www.theworldchallenge.co.uk/index.php

Visiting Archana's Family

2009-03-29T15:26:00.002+05:30

Archana is a bank client and my closest local friend in Mhaswad. I teach her English at her home daily and visit her shop at least a few times a week. She’s an unbelievable human being and for reasons I won’t disclose here, she is also one of the bravest people I’ve ever met. Her sister and brother-in-law have been trying to get me to visit their house since December. Earlier this week, Archana and I agreed to make the trip!

We boarded a government bus early in the morning for the five hour journey to Ichalkarenji. We were greeted by her brother-in-law, a wealthy factory owner, and his daughter and nephew. Our visit began in true Indian fashion. When we arrived at their home we were greeted by more family: Archana’s sister, Archana’s sister’s sister-in-law, Archana’s sister’s mother- and father-in-law, and a bunch of kids. The greetings were followed by a massively delicious lunch with all sorts of special dishes.

After lunch we set out to the nearest big city, Kholapur, to visit a 2000 year old Hindu temple—quite impressive. We followed this with some delicious sugarcane juice, a trip to the park, and a short boat ride on a lake. Afterwards, we journeyed to the family flour factory (I find factories fascinating) and, of course, to McDonalds (one of the family’s favorite eating establishments). At McDonalds I was again forced to eat more food than my stomach could hold, and was then told that I what I was eating was a snack, not dinner. Once we returned home I had to refuse to eat any dinner. They had already fed me so much that I was feeling sick, and although I know it was rude, I simply couldn’t eat anymore.

The following morning I woke up, and after going through every single family photo album, we watched Archana’s sister’s marriage video. For me the video was interesting in that it emphasized how different Archana’s life is from her sister’s. Most people would consider her sister far more fortunate. For breakfast we went to the other family house which was ridiculously nice. Again, I was stuffed silly with food and had to (rudely, although I tried to be as polite as possible) refuse third, fourth, and fifth helpings. What I find so funny is that even though they kept telling me not to eat oily food because my skin is so broken out, they kept forcing me to eat super oily food! But I digress…

We again visited a local temple, not as impressive this time, but nice and quiet and surrounded by some greenery. Archana’s sister’s family then decided that since it was my first time visiting their home, and only Archana’s second visit, that they needed to buy us gifts. So we went to pick out saris and they picked out purses for us. Seriously, when you’re a guest in someone’s home, you’re treated like a queen and you just kind of have to go with the flow and accept it.

Our last stop of the day was at home for a quick lunch and dozens of family + me photos on the lawn. After refusing their numerous pleas for us to stay at least one more day, we boarded the bus back to Mhaswad. They have already called me several times to tell me that they miss me and to invite me to their home again. The whole visit really makes me smile; it was really nice to see Archana so happy.

Research Bloopers

2009-03-18T16:27:00.002+05:30

So last week I continued (after a long hiatus) interviewing women for a client story booklet that I’m working on. Because I don’t speak Kannada I needed to use a translator for the interview. The translator that I used was a wonderful woman from the Mann Deshi staff in Hubli, Karnataka. However, this interview is an example of exactly how research should NOT be conducted:

Me: Are there any ways that Mann Deshi can be more helpful to women?
Interviewer: How can Mann Deshi help women more? What services would you like Mann Deshi to provide? How about health insurance?
Client: Um… health insurance.
Interviewer (to me): She says that she really needs health insurance.
My Friend (to interviewer, knowing what was going on): But she just said earlier that she doesn’t need to spend very much money on healthcare.

Bank clients know that Mann Deshi is eager to offer health insurance. However, my friend who is researching health insurance in the Hubli office thinks that health insurance may not benefit women, may not be a good idea, that there may be better alternatives, and that promoting certain health insurance schemes could be unethical. The interviewer was totally leading the client and misrepresenting what the client said.

The interview was not going as I had wanted it to. The translation was awful, my questions seriously needed to be restructured, we kept getting interrupted by random people, there were 5-6 people in the room, and the woman got up in the middle and asked if she was done. It was simultaneously amusing and angering! The bottom line is that I didn’t do a very good job.

Feminist Activism in India

2009-03-12T13:07:00.001+05:30

I’m not sure how many of you follow Indian news, or if the attack in Mangalore drew international attention, but I’ve been thinking quite a bit about it during the last month and a half. To give you a bit of background, women have been harassed in India for years for walking together with men before marriage, wearing jeans and t-shirts and other “revealing” clothing, going to pubs, etc. It’s not only civilians who have been harassing these women, but police as well. There is also a sizable portion of the population who feels that the police have a duty to monitor such women.

My friends and I have had personal experience with this. I can’t count the number of times I’ve been sexually harassed on the streets in India. Friends of mine have been grabbed, and others have been accused of being “whores” for walking with men after dark. Hotels and restaurants sometimes won’t serve a white woman with an Indian (or Indian-American) man because she must be a prostitute. The plight that commercial sex workers face at the hands of the police is much worse.

Okay, so what happened in Mangalore, Karnataka? In late January about 40 men from Sri Ram Sena (a right-wing Hindu group) attacked mainly women in a pub in Mangalore. Their claim was that such women are destroying Indian culture and that it was their duty to save them. Since then, there have been numerous attacks on women reported throughout Karnataka. I’m not sure if this is because the number of attacks has increased or because there is increased media attention focused on this issue. Several men have been arrested but none have been prosecuted because many of the women who were attacked are too ashamed or afraid to step forward.

The attack in Mangalore has sparked quite a debate in India. What I find so interesting (and upsetting) is that the debate isn’t only about whether or not women should drink and/or go to pubs in India, but also whether inciting physical violence against them is an appropriate response. About a month ago there was a television program that somewhat sensationalized the issue by using the term “CULTURE WAR”. Regardless, the show was fascinating with people from numerous different perspectives discussing the issue: the BJP (a right-wing Hindu political party), alcoholics, women and men from many different backgrounds, and middle to upper middle class feminists (it should be noted that while street harassment happens to all women in India, it is mainly middle to upper middle class young Indian women who attend pubs).

Each perspective used its own language: the BJP party condemned the violence but supported the cause of “saving women” from western culture (and since women are the gatekeepers of Indian culture, saving Indian culture as well); alcoholics skirting the gender issue by condemning alcohol because of its addictive capacity; a few women and men who discussed the immorality of alcohol; and feminists claiming that the attacks were a violation of human rights, that it’s not the responsibility of women to preserve “Indian culture,” and that India is such a diverse country that there is no such thing as a singular frozen Indian culture in the first place.

There’s no doubt that in India pubs and bars are historically a male-oriented space, and that women have a profound effect on the organization of that space upon entering it. During the one time that I entered a bar in Mhaswad (very different from any city bar), the crowd went silent, the bartender was reluctant to serve me, and once he did serve me he shoved me into a room and closed the door. While I know that part of the reason he didn’t want people to see me was that he wanted to make sure I was safe (as an aside, I’m not a fan of protectionism), I also think that my presence was seriously disrupting the people in the bar. They had absolutely no idea what was going on and why I was there. I just wanted a drink!

The feminist response to these recent attacks has been pretty amazing. “Pub-going, Loose, and Forward Women” from all over the country are organizing under the Pink Chaddi Campaign. These amazing women organized over 1,500 pairs of pink underwear (some as smelly as possible) to be sent to Muthalik (one of Sri Ram Sena’s leaders). They also all went to a pub on Valentine’s Day and had a drink (both alcoholic and non) for Indian women. What a hilariously poignant and playful way to say fuck you to Sri Ram Sena, the BJP, and the Indian government. Since then, the Pink Chaddi Campaign has organized events all over Karnataka, from Take Back the Night events to peaceful protests and silent demonstrations.

The response to this movement has been somewhat mixed, as can be expected. Muthalik (who obviously has no sense of humor) is threatening to sue each of the pink panty senders for defamation. Other people are blaming these women for blowing the issue out of proportion and not focusing on more “serious” issues such as dowries, illiteracy, and poverty. One person even went so far as to say that it’s immoral for wealthy people to waste their money on alcohol. Other people had issues regarding the public perception of the campaign, that people would write it off as an organization led by Christian women in a predominantly Hindu country (some of the organizers are Christian but there are also Hindus, Muslims, Jains, etc. involved).

Feminist activism has a strong history in India, and I’m really happy that women have taken a strong stance against violations of their rights. For those of you interested in following or participating in the campaign (it’s become a worldwide effort): http://thepinkchaddicampaign.blogspot.com.

My Parents Came to Visit!

2009-03-11T14:56:00.002+05:30

So now to report the fun and exciting news… my parents came to India and we had a delightful time! I joined them on the third day of their journey after they had explored some of the things that I had already seen in and around Delhi.

Stop Number One
On our first day we drove to Corbett National Park. While the drive was slow and arduous, Corbett was well worth the hassle. The park was stunningly beautiful and peaceful, a much needed respite from the rest of India’s hustle and bustle. We spent just under two days there searching for a tiger with the accompaniment of our knowledgeable and friendly guide. Although we weren’t lucky enough to see any tigers, we did see a range of other wildlife: deer, boars, crocodiles, and numerous beautiful birds.

Since my dad wanted the train experience, we boarded an “express train” back to Delhi. While it was shorter than the drive up, there wasn’t anything express about it. Being used to crammed spaces and the different interpersonal courtesies in India, I enjoyed the train ride. I think my parents were a bit surprised when they realized they’d have to put their football skills to use while disembarking the train.

Stop Number Two
We spent the following day exploring Old Delhi, which included the Red Fort, Jama Masjid (the largest mosque in India), and Chandni Chowk (a busy shopping street). I think my parents and I agree that Jama Masjid was the highlight although I had a jolly old time dealing with the various vendors on Chandni Chowk. We also had the best jalebis ever on Chandni Chowk (spiral deep fried dough soaked in sugary goodness).

After Old Delhi we made our way to Connaught Place so that my mom could buy a salwar suit at FabIndia. We followed our little shopping adventure with some South Indian food which my parents weren’t terribly fond of but which I love!

Stop Number Three
The following morning we boarded a delayed flight to Amritsar where we saw a border closing ceremony and the Golden Temple. The border closing ceremony was a bizarre event in which exactly the same thing happens on both the Indian and Pakistani sides, but where each side tries to outdo the other. It’s purely for show and involves screaming, silly walking, and nationalistic chants among the crowds on each side of the border. It was equally interesting and ridiculous, and given that there’s not much else to do in Amritsar, well worth the time.

The following morning we went to the Golden Temple, the holiest place for Sikhs. It was breathtaking! We watched the sun rise over the temple while listening to the chanting and prayers coming from inside. Architecturally it was beautiful with very intricate carving and molding decorating the walls and ceilings. The Golden Temple has almost 800 kilos of gold painted on the outside and inside of the temple. Stunning!

Stop Number Four
And then we returned back to Mhaswad which, after a day of delayed flights and a bumpy car ride, was a bit of a relief for all of us. Mhaswad is pretty calm, peaceful, and clean compared to larger Indian cities. Mann Deshi had already arranged for some stuff for my parents to do- see the bank’s operations, meet some clients, and see the community radio station. I took them to my friend Archana’s house and shop (she is also a bank client), showed them around the farm, and introduced them to the puppies (the highlight of the trip for my dad- HA).
The following day we took a walk behind the house (to the middle of nowhere) and then they packed their things for the trip home. We said our goodbyes and off they went on yet another long and arduous car ride to the international airport in Mumbai.

It was really nice to have my parents here after not seeing them for so long. It was also interesting to talk to them and to get their thoughts on what we saw and experienced together. Although I can’t speak for them, the impression that I got is that they had a great time and enjoyed all of the sights that they saw, but that dealing with everything in between (the driving, the hassling, the haggling, the noise, the pollution, the poverty, etc.) was very taxing and exhausting.

Anyone else want to visit??!

Health and Cultural Sensitivity: a personal anecdote

2009-03-06T14:27:00.002+05:30

I’ve been MIA for the past month due to work and personal travel (my parents came to India!). I’ll update you on my parents’ visit later, but for now I thought I’d tell you a bit about one of my afternoons in Hubli, a semi-urban area in NW Karnataka.

Since I’ve been in India I’ve been thinking about getting my ears and nose pierced. I finally decided to go for it in Hubli. I journeyed with my friend Amy to a jewelry shop that was recommended for piercing. The afternoon turned out to be regrettably controversial, and I am deeply sorry to say that Amy and I unintentionally offended the man piercing my nose and ears.

After picking out my gold earrings and nose stud, the man showed up. He carried with him a short fat little copper stick (the copper weapon of death) to do the piercing as well as pliers and metal cutters to bend and trim the gold once in my nose.

Amy, ever the proactive public health advocate, asked them to clean the jewelry. Their resistance raised a bit of a red flag, and we grew very insistent that they clean everything involved (including my nose and ears and his hands). Knowing that we were treading a very fine line between protecting everyone’s health and seriously offending him, we maintained a firm but self-deprecating attitude. Being from a different country, my immune system has developed differently (and possibly not as well).

The piercer initially cleaned everything by using a stagnant bucket of water and a towel that employees used to clean the store. Discovering that they had no soap or alcohol, Amy went to a pharmacy for alcohol and surgical gloves. The piercer refused to wear the surgical gloves (which were for both his health and mine), and then placed the clean jewelry and tools in his mouth, which we then re-cleaned while explaining to him that it’s because people’s mouths carry tons of bacteria and not related specifically to him.

By this point we had inadvertently caused quite a scene. The entire store was staring and laughing at us while the piercer was pretty pissed at the whole situation. After about 20 minutes he managed to pierce everything and get the jewelry through the appropriate holes. It wasn’t the piercing part that was painful, but rather securing the earrings and nose stud. It hurt so much I felt as if I was about to faint.

At the end I tried thanking him, knowing that he was angry and grateful that he still did the piercings, but he was so mad that he stormed out of the store.

I know and understand why he was so mad, and I feel terrible and upset that I made him feel that way. While we knew we were treading a very fine line throughout the whole process, we did a really bad job of actively and practically considering his feelings. Should we have left? Would that have made him feel worse? Where do you draw the line between protecting your health and seriously offending someone else? What could we have done to protect my health (and his, if that’s what he wanted) and make sure that he left feeling satisfied, valued, and dignified?

The Common Krait

2009-02-09T13:01:00.003+05:30

You’ve all heard a great deal about rats, puppies, and the various other critters that, for better or for worse, greatly contribute to my daily life in Mhaswad. Last night I had a unique and rather enthralling experience with a legless creature.

I walked through my bedroom in the dark, turned my light on, and turned around to a little baby snake in my path (I was lucky I didn’t step on it). Unsure as to whether it was dead or alive, I stomped on the ground and it began to coil: an alive little baby snake!

I observed it for a few minutes, but of course had to jump over it to tell Chetna and Vijay. About five seconds later I returned with an army (10 people) to try to figure out what to do. The poor little thing was cornered, absolutely terrified and began to coil and strike carelessly and at random (not coming close to any of us- maybe it just wanted to scare us or maybe it had not idea what it was doing). The only thing Vijay and Chetna could think to do was kill it, understandable but undeniably upsetting.

At work this morning I searched the web to try to find out what kind of snake it was. It’s the spitting image of a snake I’ve never heard of before: The Common Krait, one of the most venomous snakes in India!

According to “reliable” internet sources, its venom is 15 times more potent than that of a cobra and has been reported to kill an ox (not a small animal) in 20 minutes. There is no specific anti-venom for a common krait bite.

And it’s pretty to boot!:

Its cousing, the Malayan Krait, kills half the people it bites, even with the use of anti-vemon. The question then, of course, is how aggressive it is.

Pretty cool, huh?

News

2009-02-06T12:31:00.002+05:30

The Indian Express is my main news source in Mhaswad. It’s interesting to read about Indian politics, although difficult because to me it all seems so foreign and complicated. The international section is dominated by American news, either Obama’s new policies or something random and seemingly un-newsworthy. What’s so great about random newspapers, however, is that every once in a while they’ll publish a gem of a story introducing you to something you may not have otherwise known about. Maybe this proves my ignorance, but that’s precisely what I found in this article (republished from the LA Times) yesterday:

In California prison, play answers some difficult questions
For 23 years, Cornerstone Theater Company has aimed for dramatic immediacy by enlisting communities caught up in contemporary issues and making plays out of the stories they tell. It has performed in an Oregon cattle barn, on the roof of the deconsecrated St Vibiana’s cathedral in downtown Los Angeles and on the National Mall in Washington. But until last week, Cornerstone never had done a play behind bars.

The result, during two-plus hours at the California Institution for Women, a state prison in Corona, 45 miles southeast of Los Angeles, said something about just how immediate theatre can be.

The play — For All Time — is populated by perpetrators and victims, by a support group for ex-cons and by one for mothers of murdered children. Playwright KJ Sanchez shaped their words into rapidly shifting scenes and episodic, jump-cut stories, all aimed at getting a handle on some of the hardest questions haunting the dispensation of justice. When should those who’ve been wronged embraced mercy and forgiveness?

The playing space was a long, narrow strip, flanked on either side by the audience. About 120 inmates, a racially mixed group, sat in metal folding chairs. What, one of the ex-cons asks, is the difference between a public defender and a lawyer? “A public defender is going to get you the best deal. A lawyer is going to get you off.”

Applause greeted parts that lampooned the system for its race disparities. “Lady Liberty is blind when it comes to my kind,” actor Ramona Gonzales intoned in a poem that had been woven into the script. Its author, April Adkins, watched from a few feet away.

By intermission, Andrea Cutchon had decided to skip another obligation — a rehearsal of the prison’s Polynesian dance group — to catch the second act. “It makes you think about the things you’ve done in your life, the effect you have on people,” she said. Asked about the classic masks of comedy and tragedy tattooed on her arm, the pony-tailed young woman said that, no, they didn’t mean she was a theater buff. She’d gotten them when she was dealing drugs, and with the accompanying script, “play at your own risk,” the masks were a warning to the world: no tricks, no games, keep me smiling — or else the tragedy will be yours.

While others milled about during the break, inmate Romarilyn Baker sat quietly alone. Catharsis — that inner touching that the ancient Greeks considered the payoff of effective drama — took hold during the second act. It brought a hush to the hall, where a sign posted by the door read, “Thinking about suicide? With help comes hope! Honor your life. Talk to any staff member now.”
In a monologue delivered through tears, Marcenus “M C” Earl, himself an ex-convict who served time for a 1995 bank robbery, told of two long-separated brothers who were able to meet in a prison cell, thanks to a guard’s act of mercy.

There may have been more to the story, but that’s all that’s written online. Pretty cool, huh? Anyways, I found it really interesting. What would be wonderful, I think, is if the theater company had an opportunity to do a workshop with current prisoners to create some kind of theatrical piece. Maybe they already do that somewhere; it would certainly be worth seeing…

Eeeee!!!! 3: a puppy update

2009-02-03T16:36:00.003+05:30

The puppies are officially two months old. Only the runt of the bunch is left; the others have been given away. The runt, still nameless, is cuter than ever. He seems happiest hiding under the couch. The list of things he is scared of is endless: small birds, sticks, his own shadow, any noise slightly out of the ordinary. It’s amazing and rewarding for me to watch him grow, develop, and explore the world. Seriously, I could spend hours watching him discover new things and navigate his way around with his extremely awkward little body.

This must be how new parents feel, and why people want babies so much!

Taking care of this little puppy reconfirms my desire to have a farm with lots of animals when I grow up :)

Look how adorable he is!!

Ghost

2009-02-02T11:04:00.002+05:30

I have the propensity to scare children.

For a few months I was walking around Mhaswad wondering why so many kids were crying. Then, after unknowingly scaring my colleague’s niece, she explained that many children are frightened of me. Yesterday I played with one of the kids that lives on the compound; today she was screaming and crying just because I looked at her. The adults all think it’s hilarious—forcing their kids to shake my hand, telling them to look at me, pointing me out if I happen to stroll by.

I have to admit, I think it’s pretty funny too.
I guess I just look too damn different.

Some Reflections on Development

2009-01-31T12:18:00.004+05:30

I just returned from a three day conference in the neighboring state of Karnataka. The conference was organized by the Boston-based Deshpande Foundation which works in developing a very concentrated region in NW Karnataka. As with any conference I found it very thought-provoking, not with regards to the issues or areas discussed, but with regards to the role of NGOs in “development”, a word and a concept I often grapple with.

To share some thoughts and observations with you:

One thing I really love about these conferences is being surrounded by people who have the same intense interest in certain issues as I do. Even if we disagree on many points, the idea-exchange is motivational. I felt that this conference, in particular, emphasized the importance of dialogue and listening (something I also learned a few years ago at the UN). Everyone is passionate and can get carried away, but it’s disconcerting to see people more interested in being right and in making accusations rather than engaging others in thoughtful, respectful debate.
My favorite session of the conference was the Ashoka panel (www.ashoka.org) with fellows from all over the world (I’ll get into social entrepreneurship below). The fellows were from Kenya, Spain, Colombia, and Peru, and have done some fantastic work in education, agriculture, health, and the environment. You should check out their organizations: www.kacekenya.com, www.escuelanueva.org, www.ciudadsaludable.org, and www.comunidadescaf.org. What I enjoyed so much aobut their talk was not only learning about their fascinating projects but also their failures. Listening to successful NGO leaders candidly talk about their setbacks made them that much more inspirational.
I felt there was something obviously missing from the conference. I’m sure many people would argue with me about it not being the right space or unrealistic. However, it seems strange to me that at a development conference located in a very confined region that there were no people who NGOs provide services for. In an area where it is feasible for those people to be present, are we doing them a disservice by not having them there? How are the NGOs representing them? One thing I admire about Mann Deshi is that it often fights to bring clients with them.
Sexy words. I am of course guilty of this in my own work. Sexy words are undefined words used repeatedly in the NGO and development sectors. This is not to say that there aren’t people who critically examine these words, but that I have yet to find an NGO in my immediate surroundings that uses these words in its core vocabulary while also explaining what they mean.

· Holistic and comprehensive: These words are often used interchangeably, but are they really interchangeable? Mann Deshi is very guilty of using the word “holistic” when (I think) it is inappropriate and misrepresentative.
· Empower: This word is thrown around left and right, especially within microfinance and institutions who work primarily with women. But what the heck does it mean? Is it something measurable? How would you measure it? Is it something people feel? Who gets to say when someone is empowered? I’m beginning to consider throwing this word out of my vocabulary.
· Community: This is the big one, the queen mother of undefined and overused words, and I am just as guilty as anyone else of (mis)using it. What makes a community? Can it only be defined by the community itself? Who in the community gets to define it? Who gets left out of the definition, and who is included who does not want to be included?
Sexy ideas. The latest popular trends in development.

· Microfinance: Since this is what I do, I’ll have to get into this one at a later post.
· Social entrepreneurship and sustainability: Firstly, I don’t mean “save the environment” when I use the word sustainable. I mean ensuring that an NGO’s projects, organizational functioning, and model are sustainable. I am doing a bit of disservice by tossing these words together, but choose to do so because social entrepreneurship functions around the concept of sustainability.

Maybe it’s because I come from a rights-based background and am (overly) idealistic, but I’m not going to lie; social entrepreneurship really irks me. That’s not to say that social entrepreneurs haven’t done good things; the above Ashoka fellows certainly have. I’ll bore you all if I get too into my concerns so I’ll keep my already underdeveloped thoughts and argument on the topic brief.

I find the idea of social entrepreneurship too business focused. I feel that instead of maintaining particular ideals and concepts that if those particular principles aren’t sustainable or don’t fit into some innovative variation of a traditional business model then they are often dropped. I know that all non-profits must exist in the real world, and that they often have to play around and do a great deal of accommodating and adjustment to get the funding they need.

What social entrepreneurship really fails to do is critically analyze the historical, political, economic, and social context of certain issues. In this way, it fails to hold accountable actors that have historically exploited marginalized groups of people. While many of these actors contribute to improving the lives of those people through social entrepreneurship, it’s the marginalized individuals and communities that must make adjustments rather than those actors that must make adjustments to accommodate those individuals.

At the same time, I realize that perhaps fighting that kind of fight could do a greater disservice and injustice to those people by failing to facilitate the improvement of their lives. Being too focused on certain ideals might not get people what they actually need. *Sigh* it gets too complicated for me to wrap my little brain around…
Representation. I don’t know how much of my women’s studies career focused on this word, but it’s finally coming into play in my “real world” experience. I’ll give two examples to illustrate my conundrum:

· Many of the villages that Mann Deshi’s clients live in face power problems that severely limit their productivity. Some clients can afford UPS batteries or environmentally unfriendly generators. Others cannot and simply go without light. At the conference we made a connection with a man who makes solar power lights that cost about half the price and do not really need to be maintained or replaced. Plus they’re better for the environment.
We’ve been thinking about how to get money for these solar lights to give to some clients (others might be able to afford them). Chetna had the idea of using our global giving website and having a “give a family (or a woman) a light” sort of campaign. Now, of course this is appealing to westerners; we’re totally exploiting their perceptions of poor families in rural India. At the same time, we’re also perpetuating those perceptions. So, what should we do: tell the boring story and get less money, or appeal to their emotions and get more money?
I attended a case study on using self-help groups to help people manage their diabetes. For the most part it seems like the organization is doing pretty good work. However, they repeatedly referred to patients’ apathy and noncompliance as a major setback for the organization. These two words strike a chord with me, and often I feel that what some people may understand as apathy and noncompliance may mean any number of things. Maybe they have trouble travelling, or can’t find the time or money to invest in their care. Perhaps they need more assistance caring for themselves. Perhaps the disease and people’s perceived attitudes need to be further explored and viewed in the broader context of their lives. When I hear the words apathetic and noncompliant, my immediate response is, “why?” Why are we seeing them this way? Why are they this way? Are they feeling this way? What can we do to not make them feel this way?

I could go on and on with other thoughts, and will perhaps pick up on this at a later point. For now, though, my fingers are tired from typing, and I’m sure you’re bored to tears from reading this obscenely long post!

what whaaat???

2009-01-31T10:41:00.003+05:30

There’s something unsettling about an 8 year old boy leaving school when I walk by in the morning to try to offer me weed. Even if I was actually interested, what makes him think...

a. that I would buy it from him (although I guess he's gotta try)
b. in broad daylight
c. while dozens of people are watching me?

Mini-tour of Maharashtra: Part II

2009-01-21T17:22:00.002+05:30

Joost and I said our sad goodbyes at Pune’s main train station. He headed to Mumbai to catch his flight while I hopped on an overnight train to head to Nagpur, the center of India, in eastern Maharashtra.

What’s in Nagpur?

Well, not much really, but AIF decided to hold its midpoint conference at a place called Anandwan. After a handful of us arrived from our various destinations, we excitedly jumped into a taxi and giddily shared our unique experiences during our 2 ½ hour drive.

On our first morning together, we took a tour of Anandwan, and I must say that I’m at a loss for words. I really don’t know what to call it or how to describe it. But it’s a beautiful place physically and in its mission and spirit.

Baba Amte started Anandwan over 50 years ago as a haven for people with leprosy and disabilities. These people have been among the most feared and marginalized in India for generations. Learning about Baba Amte’s story, and the story of Anandwan, is amazing and inspiring. Another fellow (Clara) sent us his obituary in The Economist. You should check it out.

Today Anandwan is a community for anyone disabilities or leprosy who want to live there. From the beginning the community was built by the people it aimed to serve. Regardless of people’s physical limitations, there is some kind of work available. Almost entirely self-sustaining (except for sugar, salt, and kerosene), people’s jobs vary from farming to construction to making handicrafts to cooking. Everyone contributes, and everyone lives off of the fruits of everyone else’s labor.

For me, midpoint was a bizarre experience. While I really enjoyed meeting up with all of the fellows and learning about their experiences, I also found midpoint upsetting. What was so strange about this feeling was that as soon as I hopped into my rickshaw to leave midpoint I felt a tremendous sense of relief. Maybe it was a bit of reverse culture shock—you know, finding it hard to re-adjust to being around people from the US. I’ve never experienced that before!

Midpoint also forced me to really think about the challenges that I’m facing in Mhaswad and at Mann Deshi. Being busy with work and life in Mhaswad grants me the freedom to ignore such challenges; focusing on them so much throughout midpoint made me feel really negative towards Mann Deshi, Mhaswad, and the people that I’m constantly around. Returning to Mhaswad and to work allowed me to unburden myself.

And then, of course, there was the post-fellowship talk. What the heck am I going to do after my fellowship? For some reason I find this question more daunting than ‘what are you doing after college?’ I have the high hope of staying in India (possibly continuing my fellowship), or at least not returning to the US, but my practical side tells me:

1. I need to make a solid dent in loan repayment
2. I’m not going to find a job in India that pays me enough to repay my loans
3. I’m not going to find anyone to fund my adventures
4. I need to start critically thinking about my career. Although I enjoy work and I’m gaining valuable skills, I’m not doing what I want to be doing and I need to start thinking along those lines.

Scary!

So, if anyone knows of any openings outside of the US (in India) related to human rights, gender, sexuality, health, and/or migration that will pay me good money, I’m all ears. Or if anyone knows anyone/foundation/group with a lot of money who wants to fund me/a project I could be working on, you know how to contact me :)

Haha.
I’m kidding… (sort of).

Mini-tour of Maharashtra: Part I

2009-01-17T20:56:00.005+05:30

I’m back to the world of blogging with much to tell you folks about and a light background so that you complainers can read dark font in your e-mail/google reader! These past few weeks have been quite interesting for me: adventure, self-reflection, meeting up with other fellows, and most exciting of all- Joost! Since there’s so much to tell, I have to divide everything up into a few blog posts. So here’s the lowdown on Joost’s three week visit.

Weeks one and two were fairly uneventful. They consisted of lazing about, playing with the puppies, eating copious amounts of pomegranate, Christmas, a very uneventful NYE, and work. Although Chetna assigned Joost the position of temporary Mann Deshi photographer, he was still sweet enough to spend every day in the office with me whether or not he had anything to do. I think he really enjoyed getting to know and photographing the bank’s clients; it gave him a different perspective on and experience of India. If I get the permission of some of the women, I’ll post their photos at a later date. Until then, you’ll have to be satisfied with some mouthwatering pomegranate!

Our adventures began at the beginning of Joost’s third and last week when we set out to explore a bit of Maharashtra.

Stop 1: Ganpatipule is a small village with a beautiful long beach on the Konkan coast. With nobody else on the beach, we spent our days swimming in the warm, deep blue (yet painfully salty) water and flying Joost’s ridiculously powerful kite. Our first two nights we spent in a hotel with a beach view until we found little huts right on the beach for the same price. There’s something really soothing about falling asleep to the ocean’s waves.

Stop 2: Mahabaleshwar is a small town in the Western Ghats, the same mountain range I hiked while I was in Kerala. The town itself was very touristy but cute. We managed to escape the hordes of people by walking through the woods and enjoying the views. On our first night we were befriended by a Muslim family who was preparing for the following day’s festival. By “befriended” I mean that we took dozens of photos with them and the shrine-ish thing they were building, and then separated by gender. Joost spent some time with the men (they invited him to drink) and I with the women and children. Separately we were asked if we were married, for how long, whether it was by love or arrangement, if we had children, etc. (I hope we got our story straight!). The women then shoved a crying baby boy into my arms and told me that I wanted to have many baby boys just like him. Hahaha :) Nothing scares me more than crying children!

Stop 3: Pune is the second biggest city in Maharashtra so we decided to dig into our wallets and spend some money on a little luxury. We sprung for a pretty luxurious hotel, Italian food, Thai food, a massage and some wine. Although I love Mhaswad, a little culinary variation is necessary once in a while. Oh how relaxing it was!

Eeeee!!!! 2: a puppy update

2008-12-29T19:13:00.006+05:30

The puppies are almost a month old and changing every day. They just started getting teeth so they like to bite and chew on my fingers and toes. They also started to stand/walk about a week ago. I've been watching them wobble and sway around, and play with each other since then. Mama Soni, however, isn't doing very well. I think she's sick of the puppies, and is dying to get out more. Once they start eating solid food I think she'll feel a bit better. Let's hope that's sooner rather than later :)

Some photos of the runt of the bunch:

My First Marathi Lesson

2008-12-27T21:18:00.005+05:30

Today I learned that I am really bad at Marathi. Although I'm not learning how to write Marathi, I thought it would be nice if I learned the alphabet. For an example of my horribleness, see my attempt at the script (about 1/2 the alphabet) below!

My handwriting looks like that of a 3 year old. Oh well. At least my teacher's kids and Joost (the "supportive boyfriend") got a kick out of it.

Christmas in India?

2008-12-24T16:59:00.003+05:30

I really can’t believe it.

Where are all of the Christmas carols? The lights? The fragrant pine trees? The snow? The cookies? The decorations? The crazed consumerism? The peaceful feeling? The cold dry air? The stockings hung over the chimney? My family?

When I was driving to Mumbai last weekend to pick up Joost (my boyfriend) from the airport, it suddenly dawned on me that Christmas is coming! What sparked this realization?

1. The Santa hats being sold in the streets of Pune. For those of you who have never been to India, “in the streets” literally means that people walk through traffic and knock on your window to sell you stuff. Much to my horror, I looked over and saw someone wearing a terrifying plastic Santa mask (much more appropriate for Halloween) with his face plastered against my window. He scared the crap out of me!

2. The two Christmas stores I saw near the airport in Mumbai! Two! I was shocked. Although I didn’t get to go in, I saw the usual Christmas lights, garland, and fake Christmas trees made out of green garland.

3. The crucified Jesus sold as a decoration at one of the Christmas stores. Although more accurate than the crucified Santa that one of my friends saw in Japan, I thought to myself, “not quite the right holiday.” Still, I do appreciate the effort, perhaps because I’m not Christian and don’t expect people here to know the difference between Christmas and Easter.

Sadly, there are no signs of Christmas in Mhaswad. Muslims, Hindus, and Jains celebrate each other’s holidays (that’s not to say that there isn’t tension too), and I’d like to add a little Christmas to the festive mix this year. Unfortunately, however, I’m a little late in my intentions and will have to plan a bit better for next time :) Until then...

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

xoxo

Suzanne

How I spend my nights in Mhaswad...

2008-12-24T16:46:00.005+05:30

Joost (my boyfriend) and I spent an hour last night watching a spider wrap a live ant in its web and then begin to eat it. Interesting that, although ants and spiders are pretty much all over the world, neither of us has witnessed the below. Pretty cool!

Goodbye

2008-12-18T16:10:00.004+05:30

For the past month we've had three volunteers from Deutsche Bank at Mann Deshi. Today is their last day at work so earlier this afternoon we had a little farewell gathering complete with speeches, small gifts, and some snacks. It was strange for me to not be the person leaving, but to be sending them off. Even the way we were standing around the room emphasized this- Deutsche Bank volunteers on one side and me standing with Mann Deshi on the other. The whole experience made me realize how connected I feel to Mhaswad, Mann Deshi, and Mann Deshi's staff (my friends).

During everyone's speeches I couldn't help but think of my own departure from Mhaswad (as far away as it may be). The thought of leaving made me very sad. Mhaswad has become a very special place to me. I feel content, comfortable, and relaxed without at all feeling restless or bored. Work may at times be frustrating, but it keeps me on my toes; home life may be difficult for me to understand, but it can be equally reassuring; I may not be able to speak the language, but I can communicate.

I'm so far away from home, and in a place that is so different from everything I'm used to. Yet somehow I've managed to create a fulfilling, challenging, and comfortable life here. And because of that, I feel happy.

Intense Frustration

2008-12-11T16:41:00.002+05:30

…that’s putting it lightly.

Everyone in Mhaswad has been amazingly welcoming to me. For that, I’m incredibly grateful to my coworkers, friends, and Indian family. However, as I’m sure many of you can imagine, working and living in a foreign country comes with its fair share of frustrations. Since I am particularly frustrated by work today, I thought I would dedicate a series of blog posts to the workplace practices that I am having a difficult time adjusting to.

Topic #1: Bureaucracy

India is infamous for its miles and miles of red tape, and while dealing with government officials on several different occasions I’ve certainly been exposed to it (and to small-scale corruption). Throughout my time working in Mhaswad, however, I’ve found some of that infamous Indian bureaucracy in the place I least expected it: Mann Vikas Samajik Sanstha. Every single tiny thing that I do, no matter how insignificant, has to pass through the scrutiny of what I have (both with affection and irritation) come to call “the review board.” Because everyone else also must pass their work through the review board and because the review board is frequently traveling, I must wait days or even weeks for my turn. Not only does this severely limit my productivity, but sometimes I find it very infantilizing and on occasion even insulting. It’s the way it works, though, and for now I have to just suck it up and deal with it.

Eeeee!!!!

2008-12-02T11:31:00.008+05:30

Soni had FIVE puppies last night, and they could not be more adorable… they haven’t opened their eyes and they can’t stand up! I’m so excited for five cute little soft snuggle-able puppies for me to play with :)

This is like the happiest day ever!!!

Strength in Numbers

2008-11-30T23:07:00.005+05:30

At the end of my most bizarre week in India, I’m finding it difficult to express my jumbled emotions. The week has been nothing but constant contradictions, the most significant of those being my village’s most festive yearly celebration set against the tragic, solemn backdrop of the recent attacks in Mumbai. As I witnessed nearly a million people flood my rural town (pop. 15,000), I was simultaneously giddily happy, confused, and anxiously anticipating the festival’s events.

Watching thousands of people passionately dancing amidst a rainbow array of powders and waiting in line at the temple, I found myself surprised at how exciting and wildly colorful the festival could be in light of the recent news. I wondered if the exaggerated (yet normal) festival chaos was a way to cope, a symbol of defeated desensitization, or a courageous display of extraordinary resilience… or perhaps a mix of all three.

The chariot carrying the local deity through Mhaswad

If I’ve learned nothing else from working at an Indian NGO, living with a family in the middle-of-nowhere Maharashtra, and being the only foreigner wandering around Mhaswad, the one thing I have learned is how to really adapt and integrate. From finding the connection between human rights and microfinance to eating with my hands to understanding people who speak only Marathi, I feel I’ve made a comfortable work, home, and social life for myself.

It was in this spirit that I wholeheartedly flung myself into the festival. Wrapped in a brand new cream colored sari, I lost myself in song and dance, and from a distance threw pink powder-filled coconuts to a chariot as an offering to the local deity. I emerged from the throngs of people with a renewed sense of exhilaration, and my sari, hair, and skin stained pink.

pre-pink-powder-coconut-throwing

post-pink-powder-coconut-throwing

It was then that it dawned on me that the festival’s spiritually energetic atmosphere was not a contradiction to the somber news. In fact, after talking to numerous people, it became apparent to me that the overall attitude, music, chanting, clouds of pink powder, and sense of unity gave people the strength, hope, and courage to cope and eventually move on. As I immersed myself in Mumbai’s updates later that day, I found that the festival had the same effect on me too.

"Wildlife" in Mhaswad

2008-11-19T15:41:00.004+05:30

I love animals. Ants, spiders, sheep, birds, whales, horses, bees, lizards, bears, leopards, penguins, seals, ladybugs, jellyfish… the list could go on and on. There are only two animals that I really dislike: mosquitoes (which can actually cause me harm in India) and cockroaches (which I feel bad disliking); yet despite disliking them, they still fascinate me. In the spirit of my love for animals, I thought I would dedicate at least one blog entry to my frequent encounters with some of the local animals. Most of you will find this post incredibly boring, and for that I apologize. Some of you, however, have been waiting for a ridiculous post like this :-)

Goats: Goats are among the animals that, for no reason, I feel particularly passionate about. Whenever I take the long road to work I encounter dozens of goats at the local farms. They are either being herded, in their pens, or tied to a stake where they can graze. There is also a woman I pass by who always offers me food, and after I refuse she sometimes picks up a baby goat for me to pet. The goats always make their lovely “mehhh”ing noise, which I have on occasion confused with a human infant. There seem to always be at least a few baby goats who make me giggle; their legs are too long for their bodies, they aren’t used to walking, and they trip all over themselves. A few times a week people walk through the village carrying goats, and once I even saw four goats helplessly piled on a motorcycle!

Gulls: I’ve been told that the birds perched on the office ledge outside are gulls. They show up during lunch every day to pick at our food waste and occasionally fly right up to our tiffins (food container), snag something, and take off… swift and brave! One day, a bird ate my curd.
Oxen: There are ox-pulled wooden carts (with wooden wheels) to transport goods throughout Mhaswad. They are faster than you would expect. I was once even offered a ride in an ox-cart that passed me by on my way home!

Snakes: To reiterate sentiments expressed in my Kerala post, I LOVE snakes. I don’t think any other animal fascinates me quite as much. Chetna’s farm gets a few cobras and vipers each month, but unfortunately I’ve only seen the head of some kind of snake poking out of a pipe. Still, I’m hopeful that the number of snakes will increase, without injuring anyone of course (the nearest anti-venom is several hours away).

Frogs: There are tons of frogs at Chetna’s house which is great for two reasons: 1) They are cute, and 2) They attract snakes. Each night one particular frog (or maybe different frogs each night) wanders into my room to sleep; I have affectionately named the frog Herbert. I also spend a fair amount of time each evening rescuing the frogs from the mouths of the 3 dogs that live at the house.

Dogs: The Sinha’s have three dogs—two adult mutts (Soni and Raja, Soni’s son) and one purebred Rottweiler (Dyna, a 2 month old puppy). They are all very sweet, loyal puppies with unique personalities. They keep me lighthearted, laughing, and sane, and take up a great deal of my free time which greatly adds to my happiness.

Soni looks cute and innocent but is an incredibly intelligent, jealous, and protective dog. She killed the Sinha’s cat, 16 of their chickens, and numerous other small animals that wander around the farm. If she spots a snake, she forces it to stay in its place (for hours if needed) until someone comes to remove it. She is having major problems with Dyna; the Sinha’s fear that if they allow Soni near Dyna that she will kill her. She is also pregnant (for the fourth or fifth time), so I’m anxiously anticipating the arrival of new puppies and wondering if she’ll let me come anywhere near them!

Raja is large and muscular and looks incredibly intimidating, but is a big dumb baby. He will come up to me and whine until I pet him, and once I start petting him he can sit there for hours. When I sleep outside, sometimes he joins me at the foot of the bed, and when I leave the house he’ll see that I safely reach my destination. However, if he’s with me and any strangers come within 50 meters, he can get unbelievably vicious, and although the Sinhas get many visitors during the day, people refuse to come at night because they are afraid of Raja. Still, he’s one of the sweetest dogs I’ve ever encountered.

Dyna is a beautiful hyperactive mischievous puppy. She’s learning to play fetch, likes to chew on people’s bodies, and recently has demonstrated a preference for shoes. She tends to follow me around, and for a while I had to feed her from my hands (she couldn’t be bothered with a bowl). Since I spend more time with her than anyone else, she listens to me the most. This is something I would like to discourage since I will be leaving in June and multiple words for the same command (it’s a multilingual household) are confusing for her. Vijay wants to send her to obedience school (Dad and Julia, care to join?). I don’t think that’s necessary, but she does need some clear cut consistent boundaries and simple one word commands to keep her out of trouble.

Rats: Many of you read about my rat experiences. I’ve been sleeping outside most nights in Mhaswad, because although I haven’t seen any more rats, I know they’re still there. They go through the trash and drag it all throughout my bedroom. I can also hear them scampering about. They’re cute from afar, but not while crawling on me.

Bats: Sleeping outside replaces rats with bats, another rabid animal. They fly very close to my head and make annoying chirping noises, but because they don’t crawl on me, I much prefer them to rats.

Water buffaloes: The Sinhas have 6 water buffaloes that provide them, the bank, and some local restaurants with fresh milk. The milk by itself isn’t amazing, but it makes the freshest, most delicious curd (yogurt) I’ve ever had. Seriously… it’s amazing! Buffalo milk also makes fantastic sweets and can even be enjoyed with just a little sugar to mask the smokiness. I have asked one of the workers to teach me how to milk the water buffaloes; more on that to come later!

Hogs: There are lots of hogs (pigs?) wandering around Mhaswad. Aside from the little babies, they’re pretty ugly and dirty since they spend a fair amount of time in waste and sewage on the sides of the road. Still, they’re cute and it’s fun to watch them waddling around.

Lizards: There are lizards all over the Sinha’s house. They are the smoothest, creamiest lizards I have ever seen. Unfortunately I haven’t been able to catch one to see they are actually as smooth as they look, but I’ll keep trying and report back.

Local Village Computer Launch

2008-11-13T14:21:00.003+05:30

Although being the only foreigner in Mhaswad has its fair share of pitfalls, it has been a predominantly positive experience with an overwhelming amount of privileges. Yesterday night I was invited to a small local village to launch a computer that Mann Deshi donated to its library. When I arrived, I was greeted with many curious stares and invited into their one room library. I was very surprised with the turnout for the inauguration—about 150-200 people, young and old, men and women, predominantly hardworking farmers, everyone extremely excited and celebratory. It was wonderful and inspiring for me to see so many people passionate about and organizing around reading, learning, and education.

As one of the guests of honor I had the privilege of blessing the computer (I’m finally starting to get the hang of blessing things) and was then presented with a coconut and flower necklace. Everyone here seems to love to have meetings and listen to speeches so Chetna graced everyone with some eloquent words. Even in a foreign language it’s easy to tell that she’s a fantastic speaker.

After Chetna finished speaking, and much to my dismay, they invited me to offer some thoughts. As I walked to the microphone, unbelievably nervous, someone in the audience started yelling, “Yes, you can!” which I found incredibly amusing. I hate public speaking and I’m terrible at it, especially when I’m unprepared. Somehow I stumbled my way through a poorly organized and fairly incoherent speech, finding comfort in the fact that most people were listening to Chetna’s articulate translation rather than my unintelligible ramblings.

After the ceremony we were invited into the village leader’s house where we were served dinner. It’s still a little strange for me to attend dinner outside of Chetna’s home. For less formal occasions, men sit and eat while women serve them and eat afterwards. I’m usually treated as something in between, served after the men and with less attention, but still eating kind of before the women. For more formal occasions like last night, all of the guests sit to eat while the women cook for and serve them.

I find it very odd (and hard to admit) that, despite the other eating adjustments I’ve made—different foods, missing some foods from home, vastly different meal times, eating with my hands—it’s the actual way that mealtime is organized and “hierarchized”(?) around groups of people that still makes me uncomfortable. As an aside, it’s really interesting for me to really think about what makes me uncomfortable, and why those things are hard for me to adjust to.

Regardless, dinner was absolutely delicious, and the company (older village women who are also Mann Deshi clients) was wonderful- friendly, lively, and full of stories and questions! Experiences such as last night’s are some of my favorite moments in Mhaswad. I really love participating in celebrations, learning about what makes people tick, understanding which issues seem to be important, and getting to know the locals. I feel very lucky to be invited not only to watch, but also to participate in such events :-)

Kerala

2008-11-10T17:03:00.005+05:30

I just returned from a rejuvenating trip to beautiful Kerala! Kerala is a state on the southwestern coast of India. It is well known for its beautiful hill stations, serene backwaters, fragrant spice gardens, and numerous tea plantations. It was colonized by the Portuguese, Dutch, and British, and therefore has one of the largest Christian populations in India. Interestingly, Kerala has the first freely elected communist government in the world (1957), and consequently has the highest literacy rate and best health statistics in India.
Upon arriving in Kerala, we (Chetna, her sister, Vijay, and the boys) all packed into a car with our driver and set off on the potholed road to the hill station Munnar. I never knew tea could be so beautiful! Up and down mountains and along roads, rivers, and waterfalls were lush evergreen tea plants. I’m constantly amazed that so many different kinds of tea can come from just one plant.
For my first full day in Munnar I desperately wanted to go trekking. The family went on a tour of Munnar so I hired a (much needed) guide (named Joy George) and set out for a glorious 15 km. hike. The mountains certainly weren’t the highest I’ve hiked, but the trek was outstanding.
We started winding our way through deliciously fragrant herb and spice fields, and stopped at a small house where a generous and kind elderly couple showed me how they process cardamom. A ways up the (nonexistent) trail I was engrossed in my conversation with the guide when he abruptly stopped me…
I look down and, shocked, immediately blurt out, “HOLY JESUS!!!” (in front of Joy, the devout Catholic).
On the side of the trail, about a foot away from my feet, was a lovely cobra basking in the hot morning sun. After getting over the initial shock, I was giddily happy. I LOVE snakes. For the past fifteen years I’ve been dying to see a deadly poisonous snake in the wild, so for me this was a highlight of all of my wilderness experiences and my stay in India.We slowly backed away from the snake, took photos, and watched it for a good 15-20 minutes. It was angry enough to constantly make a low humming (almost machine-like) noise but not angry enough to rise up and extend its hood. I’m not going to lie; I contemplated pulling an “Uncle Bo” (reference for the Rizzo family) just to see its hood, immediately decided that was a stupid idea (duh!), and instead wished that Uncle Bo was there to be stupid for me :-)
Eventually we had to move on since there were three more mountains to climb. And when I say climb, I’m not joking… instead of hiking up and around the mountains, or on switchbacks, we literally hiked straight up trail-less mountains, which made for a tiring yet exhilarating experience. At one point the ground was so wet and the greenery so thick that we had to run up the mountain to avoid leeches latching onto us. I escaped unharmed, but unfortunately cannot say the same for Joy.
Other highlights of the day included hiking into Tamil Nadu, walking through beautiful tea plantations, talking to the workers, and getting a full tour of a real working tea factory! Although I forgot my hiking boots in Mhaswad (creating a somewhat painful experience), the trek was absolutely stunning... exactly what the doctor ordered.
The following day we piled back into the car to go to the backwaters. It was Election Day in the US, and for the first time in as long as I can remember, I wanted to be around Americans for the sake of our shared national identity and supposedly common interest in the elections. When we stopped at a small stand on the side of the road in the middle of nowhere, however, I got a nice slap back into reality.
When the stall owner learned that I was from the US, he got very excited as he knew the elections were taking place. Through the little English he knew (a few dozen words maximum) and with tears in his eyes, he conveyed to me his disdain for George Bush and how much he had been praying for Obama to win. He reminded me just how much everyday people around the world care about and depend on the political situation in America when America so easily forgets about them. This conversation made watching an already emotional election even more intense; I was happy that the following morning, in the backwaters of Kerala, I could celebrate not only for my own sake but also for his.
Chetna and her family were also excited about the election results. We celebrated at our hotel in Kumarokam, and then on our houseboat in the beautiful backwaters. Our trip ended two days after the elections with some sightseeing in Kochi. I got to experience some of the city’s religious diversity… beautiful churches (Christianity in Kerala is really interesting, and it was nice for me to talk to Joy about his practices in Munnar), a unique synagogue (for the three Jewish families left in Kochi), and a very strict Hindu temple.
The entire trip was a much needed getaway, providing me with the opportunity to get to know my family better, learn about a different area in India, and refresh my body and mind. Plus I saw a cobra!!!

Something Happy

2008-10-31T14:35:00.005+05:30

I love Diwali!

I’ve had such an amazing time this past week celebrating the holiday.

The streets were more chaotic than usual, women sported beautiful new salwar kameezes and saris, various sand colors were smeared all over the roads, little lamps adorned houses, and fireworks went off at random during the day and throughout the night.

It was fun, it was festive, and it was really really happy.

Aside from dragging myself out of bed before sunrise (sleep has taken on a newfound importance in my life), I enjoyed all of the celebrations…

Breakfasting on homemade Gujarati snacks and sweets
Visiting friends and eating their super unhealthy snacks and sweets
Receiving (lengthy) prayers on the street from people I do not know
Setting off fireworks and firecrackers late at night
Being invited into people’s homes to do all of the above with their families
Figuring out how to wear my new sari (and avoiding people taking photos of me)
Blessing Mann Deshi Bank

Wednesday marked the New Year for the bank. Oddly, it was my privilege to bless the bank among an audience and fellow “blessers”. Blessing the bank involved spreading various colored powders, flowers, and sugar on the vault, safe, and the bank’s founding photograph, and then cracking a coconut on the ground. This was followed by eating the coconut and enjoying sweets with my coworkers.

Unfortunately my first Diwali has ended, but tomorrow I’m off to Kerala with Chetna and her family for a few days of trekking, consuming delicious food, and lazing about the backwaters!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!

Something(s) Not Happy

2008-10-31T14:31:00.004+05:30

Voting
Massachusetts allows you to register for an absentee ballot and vote via absentee ballot through 3 November. I registered for an absentee ballot back in September and my ballot has yet to arrive. This is possibly the most important election of my lifetime (I know, I’m young…), and unless I receive my ballot by tomorrow (I’ll be away through the elections) I won’t be able to vote. It’s not like my chosen candidate would actually win, but still… NOT COOL!

Vermin
A few weeks after I arrived in Mhaswad I noticed that something was crawling on me during the night. I assumed that it was one of the numerous lizards that crawl around all over the house. Lizards are cute. I’m totally fine with lizards. They woke me up, but I easily drifted back to sleep.

A few weeks ago, however, I actually SAW what was crawling on me, and it was NOT a lizard. It was a rat. For a month I had rats crawling on me (several times each night) during my sleep. I don’t mind seeing rats, but having rats run over my body while I’m sleeping is not only unpleasant, but also dangerous!

The solution was for me to switch rooms while my room was being sprayed. The room that I switched to also had a rat running around so then I switched to a third room without incident... until last night.

I was almost asleep in the third room when I felt something moving, opened my eyes, and saw a rat right next to my head staring directly at me. I had a mini flip-out session and then moved to the second room where I saw a plate of old food that one of the boys left on the desk (I was furious). About half an hour later I woke up to a rat running all over me. So I switched to a different bed in the third room (since my first room was still getting the most rats) and slept with the lights on, waking up every fifteen minutes at the slightest sound or the smallest hint of movement.

Tonight I will sleep outside.

HAPPY DIWALI!!!

2008-10-27T13:13:00.004+05:30

Yesterday was the first day of Diwali, the Festival of Lights. It's the biggest festival in India, and is celebrated by Hindus, Jains, and Sikhs. Everyone is wearing new clothes, setting off fireworks, creating rangoli (sandpainting on the ground) and consuming overwhelming amounts of delicious homemade (and super unhealthy) snacks and sweets... India at its best (and most chaotic)!

Wishing you all a very happy Diwali :)

Mann Deshi

2008-10-22T13:45:00.004+05:30

Since I’m in India to work, I thought I should tell you a bit about the organization I’m working for and a bit about the projects I will be working on.

The Mann Deshi Mahila Group
The Mann Deshi Mahila Group includes three organizations. They are Mann Deshi Mahila Sahakari Bank Ltd., Mann Vikas Samajik Sanstha, and Mann Deshi Mahila Bachat Gat Federation.

Mann Deshi Mahila Sahakari Bank Ltd. (Mann Deshi Bank)
Mann Deshi Bank is a microfinance bank that provides various savings and loan services as well as pension and insurance schemes to poor rural women in certain areas of Maharashtra. All of the bank’s business is conducted through field agents since women have neither the time nor the money to travel to a bank to save money or repay loans. These field agents travel to client doorsteps usually daily, but also weekly or monthly (depending on the savings or loan service), to collect/disperse funds. Daily collection is preferred for most women since they get paid at the end of the work day and cannot trust their families with their money. Mann Deshi currently has five branches in Maharashtra, and four additional loan offices through Mann Vikas.

Mann Vikas Samajik Sanstha (MVSS)
MVSS is a non-profit organization delivering non-financial services to poor rural women in Maharashtra. Initially MVSS focused on a variety of areas, ranging from health to property rights to education. In the past few years, however, it has decided to limit its scope to programs that will directly promote financial self-sufficiency and support women in utilizing the bank’s services. Some current programs include providing umbrellas as interest-free loans to protect the health of street vendors, providing bicycles to girls as interest-free loans so that they can go to school, and Mann Deshi Udyogini.

Mann Deshi Udyogini is a business school for poor rural women with the goal of turning daily wage laborers into successful businesswomen. Classes range from tailoring to technological and financial literacy to veterinary camps. Mann Deshi covers the cost of the financial literacy course since it is compulsory for all loan clients; the other courses are offered for minimal fees since the school is funded by several corporate banks. Since many women cannot travel to the business schools (there are three currently) due to financial, time, and cultural constraints, Mann Deshi has started operating a mobile business school on wheels which travels to remote locations.

Mann Deshi Mahila Bachat Gat Federation
This NGO is Mann Deshi’s Self-help group (SHG) federation. Initially women met to discuss the various issues they and their families faced, but with the implementation of the bank the focus has shifted to financial concerns and supporting female entrepreneurs. Under Mann Deshi there are about 2,500 SHGs.

My Projects (technically I work for MVSS)
NBFC
The Mann Deshi Group is looking to rapidly expand its operations. This is fairly simple for the two non-profits, yet due to RBI (Reserve Bank of India) regulations impossible for the bank. Mann Deshi Bank can only open two new branches each year. To bypass this regulation, Mann Deshi is opening a non-banking finance company (NBFC) which will allow the services of the bank to rapidly expand in Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Gujarat, and then throughout India. I am working closely with other staff members to make this happen. We’ve been working with international investors, lawyers, and a non-profit based in Mumbai to get all the legal details taken care of. My role will be to write a business plan, design a MIS system, develop a roll-out plan, and then implement and monitor everything. Mann Deshi is hoping to have the first four NBFCs launched by March/April (great for me since I’ll get to see them open). This is something I thought I would NEVER EVER in a million years be doing.

Mobile Business School
Mann Deshi currently has a mobile business school up and running in northern Karnataka (a neighboring state). Mann Deshi would like to open its first mobile business school in Maharashtra. We have recently procured the funds for a bus. Now we need to buy the bus, renovate it, purchase equipment, pick locations and courses, select teachers, and advertise it. I will also be working on this over the next few months as Mann Deshi plans to have the school launched in April.

I’ll admit that a lot of the time I’d like to be doing work that relates to my background as my passions can truly be found there (gender, sexuality, health, human rights, migration). I also find myself torn over what the organization does. But my work and my wonderful colleagues are keeping me busy, thinking, and focused, and I very much look forward to going to work every day :)

So there’s a brief summary of what Mann Deshi is and what I will be doing. It took me a little while to understand the basics so feel free to ask questions!

Much Love <3

'tis a sad, sad day in mhaswad

2008-10-18T16:55:00.006+05:30

Mhaswad has no power for 14 hours each day. Both the house and my office are hooked up to generators, but these generators are not entirely reliable. Each day the power and the backup generators repeatedly shut off, and since a working battery for my laptop is currently in the mail, my computer also randomly shuts off.

Today, Mhaswad’s power fluctuations have finally (and tragically) caught up with me.

My laptop wasn’t working this morning.
The computer guy took one look at it, determined what was wrong, and fixed it :)

But... my hard drive- GONE!

This is a farewell to the college work, photos, and music that I had not yet backed up... it will be sorely missed :(

Gun Shopping in Bombay

2008-10-15T16:38:00.007+05:30

My first experience in Mumbai was last summer when I landed late at night in the chaotic international airport. I was a lone white young female traveler coming from South Africa and trying to connect to my Delhi flight. I collected my baggage, made it through customs, and ventured outside. Not only was I greeted by sweaty heat, but also by hundreds of people who went dead silent when they saw me. The silence lasted about 5 or 10 seconds before men started bombarding me with their offers of help (for a ridiculous fee of course). I finally decided to pay someone to help me find the airport’s tiny secret elevator and get through the very involved flight check-in process. It was an overwhelming experience, yet a bizarrely appropriate introduction to India…

I would characterize my recent trip to Mumbai the same way: bizarrely appropriate.

Most of it was normal run of the mill off-kilter India: meetings, the worst traffic and horn situation I’ve ever experienced (15 hours total to travel several km. to our meetings within Mumbai + 12 hours to get to/from Mumbai), playing people-frogger to get across the street alive, haggling, staring, and blatantly obvious disparities- street food (or no food) & five star restaurants, beggars and corporate banks, new high rises and slums, etc.

My adventure on Monday afternoon, however, was probably my most memorable experience. Our day started off fairly normally (aside from the 2 hour drive to our first meeting). We had some tasty street chai and were treated to breakfast at a 5-star hotel by American businessmen. This was followed by salwar kameeze shopping.

When I asked Chetna how we would be spending our afternoon she replied (very frankly), “We need to buy a gun.”

Under normal circumstances the prospect of shopping for a gun would terrify me. I hate guns. I hate looking at them. I hate the sound they make. I especially hate that police officers carry them, and in India, police officers don’t just carry handguns; they carry rifles (which may not be as fast or easy to use, but they are big and therefore look much more intimidating).

… But I’m in India and in order to stay mentally healthy here I have to have a very lax, go with the flow kind of attitude. So my only response to the suggestion of gun shopping was to laugh.

And laugh I did.

We went in and out of several arms shops. It’s pretty rare for a woman to shop for a gun, and completely unheard of for a white woman to shop for a gun so we attracted quite a crowd of curious bystanders. Finally one of Chetna’s friends (a police officer I believe) joined us to assist in the search. Over chai, everyone debated which gun to purchase and haggled over how much it should cost, but not before testing the gun by shooting blanks right outside the shop (scary!).

When everyone was satisfied we finalized the purchase and Mann Deshi’s security guard (the arm-bearer) picked up the gun, and a permit to transport the gun, the following day.

And so we journeyed home with our new gun and its cleaning kit on top of the clothes that Chetna madam and Rekha madam bought for Mann Deshi employees, on top of our luggage, and in plain view of every single car, every single toll worker, and every single police officer on the road.

An unexpected experience- yes. But the previous weekend I unknowingly spent an afternoon in Mhaswad sitting with a sharpshooter for a gang in Bombay, so I can’t say I was entirely unprepared…

I can say, however, that I have given up on even the simplest expectations.

my perfect walk home

2008-10-11T15:09:00.005+05:30

my walk home last night was truly amazing.

while i was at work an incredible storm rolled over mhaswad… booming thunder, crazy lightning, heavy winds and rain. i waited for it to settle down and then set out on my walk home.

nothing makes me feel more peaceful than walking in the rain.

it was somewhere between a drizzle and steady rain- hard enough for people to rush home wearing raincoats or using umbrellas, yet light enough for me to walk without scrunching my head and shoulders like a turtle. because everyone was ducking for cover i didn’t have to awkwardly refuse anyone’s generous offer to drive me home.

the temperature was just comfortable enough and the wind was just powerful enough to slightly cool me off. i could lift my head towards the sky and let the rain wash away the dirt and dust that inevitably sticks to you during the sweaty sunny heat of the day.

and just as i turned onto the dirt road and began walking through the fields, a very subtle rainbow appeared. the rain reduced to a drizzle and in the distance beyond the rainbow i could see fierce purplish blue horizontal bolts of lightning electrified by shimmering gold clouds. it was the most beautiful sky i’ve ever seen.

the pointing and laughing made it obvious to me that the locals thought i was crazy, but i was beyond the threshold of caring.

the only thing i felt was pure… simple… bliss

settling down, gearing up

2008-10-08T13:45:00.003+05:30

I’ve been in India a little over a month and in Mhaswad just over 3 weeks. I’m starting to settle down a bit and am finding my own rhythm and routine.

Things are certainly a bit slower and more relaxed here, a nice break from my high stress personality and lifestyle, yet also difficult to adjust to. Walking to the town from the farm, however, does provide me with a much needed mini-jolt of Indian chaos.

I’m finding that I enjoy long sunset walks to the middle of nowhere (the middle of nowhere isn’t very far) and staring up at the gajillions of stars that fill the super dark (fairly) pollution-free midnight sky.

I’m also turning into quite the sleeper! I’ve never slept this much in my entire life, but I think it’s a lovely remedy after years of sleep deprivation. To facilitate the sleeping process, I’m catching up on eight years of leisure reading that I missed out on due to high school and college. Those of you who have been to India will appreciate my current read, the tome Shantaram by Gregory Roberts. It certainly isn’t a great literary work, but it’s quite captivating and his portrayal of Prabakar will hilariously resonate with many of you.

Aside from sleeping and reading I’ve been spending a lot of time getting to know my family. They’ve been very open and welcoming without at all invading my personal space. The twin 13 year old boys are very sweet, offering advice on Bollywood music and films, translating the stories that their dad tells me, and sharing bits and pieces of their daily lives. But living with a family has its downsides too… the other night I witnessed my first family feud (awkward!).

And of course there’s the whole reason that I’m here: WORK. Some days are quite busy and others are tediously slow. We’re developing the projects I’ll be working on throughout the year- more on that to come later. So far I’ve written an application for an international competition, submitted a business proposal to a potential Swiss investor, and been coordinating the visits of four Deutsche Bank volunteers with a lot of additional smaller tasks mixed in. I’ve kind of been thrown into the mix and I think it’s helped me get to know the organization. Still, it seems as if there are an infinite number of questions I would like to ask, and an endless abyss of information for me to understand…

:( No pics... I'm still hoping for an internet card!
On Road India

4. I saw a dog get hit by a car yesterday. This is not at all an unusual occurrence in India, and although I’ve seen it happen numerous times to different animals, I find it equally traumatizing each time. I also grow incredibly angry that drivers only slow down enough for a person or an animal or a car to get out of their way. There are a lot of assumptions and expectations in driving here; cars rarely slow down with the intention of stopping.

5. I fell off a motorcycle. Because I was wearing a skirt I was riding on the back of it the “ladylike” way, with both legs on the same side (I wouldn’t mind riding with one leg on either side in a skirt, but I discovered how taboo it was at the Marathi film shooting when they wanted me to ride a bicycle. When they realized I was wearing an ankle length skirt, which would have fully covered me, it was adamantly out of the question). Anyways, the driver slammed on the brakes, rounded a sharp corner, and off I went! I wasn’t hurt… just surprised and amused.

I am a Marathi Film Star

2008-09-22T17:19:00.004+05:30

I have absolutely no idea what happened on Sunday. No clue. I had initially planned to take a long walk, photograph my beautiful surroundings, do some laundry, and read. That all changed when Vijay (my “Indian father”) invited me to a Marathi film with his sons and their friends.

When they asked if I wanted to see a Marathi film I thought we would be going to a theater to actually see a full length production. I was quite surprised when we stopped in the middle of a field and realized that we were on a set watching the shooting of a low budget Marathi movie.

As soon as I stepped out of the car I was subject [object?] to the gaze of dozens of Indian men. It’s amazing how powerful a look can be, especially when the same one is replicated on so many different faces. They immediately offered me a chair in the shade and a photographer hurried over, shoved a camera in my face, and took literally hundreds of photos of me. Everyone else whipped out their camera phones.

The director, using Vijay’s sons as translators, asked me to be in the film. I firmly resisted but apparently have no backbone because, after 5 minutes of coaxing, telling me it would only take an hour, and assuring me I would only have to walk in front of the camera, I reluctantly agreed. Then everyone wanted the photographer to take pictures of me with them. Interestingly, Vijay started yelling at one of the men when he tried to put his arm around me in the photo (apparently the rest of it didn’t seem to bother him).

I was fairly mortified and uncomfortable the entire day.

As it turns out, I was the “other woman” in a music video (most Indian films randomly break into song and dance; if you haven’t seen any Bollywood, you really should). Although I haven’t seen any Marathi films before, I have gathered that white women generally aren’t portrayed favorably from the few Bollywood movies and Hindi music videos I actually have seen.

I walked in front of the camera. I also had to do some dancing and “acting.” Luckily two other girls showed up and we did almost everything together. I was so unbelievably happy that they were there. However, a man carried around a chair for me to sit in all day and everyone kept telling me how beautiful I am. They even went as far as to tell me that I look like Ashwarya Rai (if you don’t know who she is, you should google her and then laugh at the comparison). And on top of that, a man followed me around all day holding an umbrella above my head to protect me from the sun (a lot of good that did because I have a terribly painful burn on my back, shoulders, and upper chest).

Then something happened and everyone rushed away from the set. I, of course, followed. Vijay rushed me and his sons into his minivan and we drove away. A little ways up the road he stopped, got out of the car, and loudly exchanged some unpleasant words with one of the crewmembers. It got a little physical with some shoving but the director prevented it from going further. Vijay came back to the van with two other men, dropped me and his sons off a little up the road from their house, and sped off after the car that the crewmember was in. When he returned later the only thing he said to me was “personal problems.” I still have no clue what happened.

I assumed that we were done shooting for the day so I went on a walk into town and called Joost (my boyfriend) to tell him how horrible (yet also amusing) my day had been. Throughout my walk lots of people took pictures of me with their phones, and the big group of boys/men that I always have to walk through were especially awful with their harassment (just because I don’t understand Marathi doesn’t mean I can’t understand the gist of what they’re saying). As I was walking back to the house one of my family’s “helpers” was out looking for me. He scooped me up onto his motorbike and drove me back to the shoot.

We still had to finish the rest of the song. Ugh! By this time the crowd of people watching had grown into the hundreds (as if I wasn’t embarrassed enough). We had to dance more, and when the director realized that I could actually dance he offered to send everyone away so I would actually dance in front of the camera (I am not a performer so I told him not to bother). The director had us do a bunch of random stupid stuff and we ended the video with all of us “free styling” (if you can call it that). I was all set to leave when the producer (also the star) wanted to do a scene holding my hand, singing to me, with me laughing at him.

We finished filming at 7.30 pm. It was a long day of doing something I wasn’t too thrilled with. The only positive aspect of the day was getting to know the two other girls and the makeup artist (even though he didn’t put any makeup on me because I “have a natural beauty”). Flattery really doesn’t work on me.

The director asked me if I would be in his films in the future.

The next time I spend the entire day being humiliated I plan on getting paid big money for it :)

I ATE RAW FISH IN DELHI

2008-09-16T12:33:00.004+05:30

No, I’m not joking.

Orientation was quite the broad mix of events. It included attending extravagant dinners hosted by AIF’s wealthy board members, meeting famous politicians, and touring India’s most famous art museum with the director after hours.

I also went on tours of Delhi led by street children, learned about the plight of waste-pickers in Delhi, and was bombarded by beggars on the street.

AIF arranged for us to learn about issues in India from activists working to change them. My favorites included Ashok Row Kavi, the first out gay man in India; a feminist activist, and a woman working to improve the lives of waste-pickers in Delhi. They were all quite inspiring.

On my free day I journeyed to Agra with five friends (my husbands for the day). Agra Fort and especially the Taj Mahal far surpassed my expectations. Both were stunningly beautiful. Unfortunately we only had an hour at the Taj and a portion of my time was spent avoiding people taking pictures of me. I could’ve spent all day sitting there staring at it.

Although I had some problems with orientation, I learned a lot. Interestingly, the sessions on microfinance and livelihoods added to my previous reservations about microfinance as a tool to end poverty. (As an aside, I was also reading Mohammed Yunus’ Banker to the Poor which really made me critique microfinance). I’m trying to withhold judgment until I dig into my work and get a very thorough perspective of the way it plays out on the ground.

And now I’m in Mhaswad.

To get here I flew from Delhi to Pune and then drove 3 ½ gorgeous hours out to the middle of nowhere. I was immediately dropped off at work and began reading a bunch of Mann Deshi’s literature. Everyone at work has been very kind and helpful.

I’m living with my mentor, Chetna Sinha. She’s the founder of the organization and has a really nice house. There are separate accommodations for guests which is great since I get my own space but also spend time with her family. To top it off, she lives on a beautiful farm and they get cobras and vipers a few times a month!! How awesome is that?? There are lots of animals and people wandering around, and we get fresh fruits (papaya and pomegranate right now) and vegetables from their farm.

Life is lovely :)

On Road India

Traffic here is a mystery to me. The road can be absolutely terrifying. Here (and throughout my stay) I will post scary things that I experience/witness on the road.

1. On the way back from Agra we had to hire a driver because all of the trains were booked. Halfway through the drive home we noticed that our driver was falling asleep. Turns out he hadn’t slept in three days. For the last half-hour of the trip he had to frequently stop to splash his face with cold water.

2. On our way back from an NGO visit in rural Rajasthan our bus driver decided that our side of the highway (2-3 lanes) had too much traffic. Solution? Drive over the median onto the other side of the road. We were driving on the wrong side of the road on a highway with trucks and cars coming directly at us!

3. Vehicles do not slow down for children. This morning I saw a little girl get hit by a motorcycle. She was completely fine (she didn’t even cry), but the driver’s response was to stop and yell at her.

No photos until I get a better internet connection :(

Nostalgia

2008-09-03T16:14:00.004+05:30

India has its own unique scent. It certainly isn't bad, and although I wouldn't call it pleasant either I somehow find myself drawn to it.

People say that smell is the sense most strongly tied to memory. The fact that I was going to be living in India for 10 months didn't really set in until I stepped out of the airport, took a deep breath of the Delhi air, and was flooded with wonderful memories from last summer. To most people the thought of Delhi air probably sounds repulsive but to me it's strangely comforting.

I'm here, I'm safe, and I feel invigorated!

Much love <3

My Very First Post :)

2008-08-18T19:51:00.014+05:30

Hi Friends and Family!

I have decided to replace my long email updates with this blog. It looks prettier and I can post pictures with my text. Plus it's nice to have a single place I can go to find a kind of journal-ish summary of my travels (rather than digging through my email). You can also post comments to my blog and see what others have said (or you can always email me personally). Some of you will receive an automatic email from the blog whenever I update; all of you will receive an email from me personally.

Now, to give you an idea of what's going on with me and India...

I leave the US on Saturday, 30 August, and arrive in Delhi the following evening. I'll be attending jam-packed training sessions in Delhi for the first two weeks before heading to the rural village, Mhaswad, located in Maharashtra. What's in Mhaswad? What's the point of me going to India?

Mannvikas Samajik Sanstha (MVSS) is located there. MVSS is the non-profit sector of Mann Deshi, a microfinance bank that works to improve the lives of rural women in India. My duties will include setting up entire programs and designing entire studies. Do I have a Ph.D., or even a Master's? Do I know anything about microfinance? Am I qualified for that kind of work?

NO! However, I feel blessed to have an opportunity like this and am beyond excited to give it all a try :)

Welcome to my blog!