Thursday, October 28, 2010
India!
Six Days in Southern India.
This was my third visit to India and every time it never ceases to overwhelm. The first day we were in port I was recovering from being really sick so I didn't leave the ship. The second day we went on a trip called Child Labor in Rural India. We first visited a school for children who used to worked in the quarry near by. The kids were really really cute and loving. When we got there they were all lined up to give us flowers and welcome us. We played with the kids for a while and even though there was a language barrier we taught them duck duck goose, and played jump rope. Afterward the kids sang us a song and performed a little dance. Leaving was difficult knowing what the children would go home to. Some of them were orphans, some still probably worked in some capacity and others probably walked for miles to return home.
The next day we rode out to a rural village. The drive there was difficult because we were in a big bus and the road was washed out or didn't hardly exist at all. When we reached the village some people we out to greet us and we were taken around the village to see the hospital, silk weaving huts, homes, ect. We interacted with the people in the village who were all open and friendly having us there. The trip was really educational and we learned a lot about human rights issues in rural India. The organization we went through was called RIDE-Rural Institute for Development. RIDE's goal is to help people to help themselves to improve the quality of their lives. Since RIDE began its work in 1984 the organizations approach has received around a central concept of self-help - that people can not be developed but that they can develop themselves. RIDE's activities include programs for children, women and for the general rural poor population. rideindia.org
We returned to the ship tired and dirty but inspired. The next morning we left again for a Dalit overnight trip. This was my second going on this trip. I went as a student in the spring of 2006. The trip really impacted me and I went home and ran a fundraiser for a Dalit village. While I was on the trip one of the people from the village were the funds went came and thanked me. He said the women in the villa
ge had started a micro-lending program and had saved money from the investments and had made the small amount of money grow and were soon buying dairy cows with the money. It was wonderful to hear and it was really nice to see my friend Dr. Henry who runs the Oneworld Education Trust and the Delta School of Nursing for Dalit girls.
The day started with a visit with nursing students that came from Dalit communities to study nursing after grade school. They were between 17-22 years old studying nursing for three years. The girls were all shy and giggly and did several performances for us to welcome us. It was nice to see women that have struggle because of their background succeed and show pride in their achievements. The nice thing about both the organizations we visited on the two trips was that they were NGO's for and by local peoples that know the issues in their communities and sacrificed to stand up for what they believed in.
In the evening we drove to the village we were to stay for the night and walked around the area. They was a very long and in depth performanc
e organized for the villagers and us. I was asked to go to the front and be welcomed to the village and receive another gift from the leader of the village and Henry. The night closed with a little reflection session and mediation. We spent the night on the floor of the community hall. The night sky was lite up that night by a huge storm with thunder and lighting. It was peaceful to try and fall asleep to even though we were lying on a concrete floor. The night passed and we woke up early the ne
xt morning to walk around the village and meet some of the families and visit their homes. We were shown around and the people were so proud to show off their homes. Even though they had very little they had such pride in what they had and were happy to share it with us. It was a wonderful trip.
The afternoon we got back from the village we went to Spencers Plaza to pick up some things. We went to a craft market where they sold fair trade items. That night we ate a an amazing Indian restaurant called Bowls. It was the best Indian food I have ever had a it cost only about two dollars a person. The final day Tommy and I walked around a found a local area street market where we bought some fabric and shirts. We also got Tommy's haircut at a local barber we found on the side of the road. We had a intense, profound and meaningful trip to India.
India.
This was my third visit to India and every time it never ceases to overwhelm. The first day we were in port I was recovering from being really sick so I didn't leave the ship. The second day we went on a trip called Child Labor in Rural India. We first visited a school for children who used to worked in the quarry near by. The kids were really really cute and loving. When we got there they were all lined up to give us flowers and welcome us. We played with the kids for a while and even though there was a language barrier we taught them duck duck goose, and played jump rope. Afterward the kids sang us a song and performed a little dance. Leaving was difficult knowing what the children would go home to. Some of them were orphans, some still probably worked in some capacity and others probably walked for miles to return home.
The next day we rode out to a rural village. The drive there was difficult because we were in a big bus and the road was washed out or didn't hardly exist at all. When we reached the village some people we out to greet us and we were taken around the village to see the hospital, silk weaving huts, homes, ect. We interacted with the people in the village who were all open and friendly having us there. The trip was really educational and we learned a lot about human rights issues in rural India. The organization we went through was called RIDE-Rural Institute for Development. RIDE's goal is to help people to help themselves to improve the quality of their lives. Since RIDE began its work in 1984 the organizations approach has received around a central concept of self-help - that people can not be developed but that they can develop themselves. RIDE's activities include programs for children, women and for the general rural poor population. rideindia.org
We returned to the ship tired and dirty but inspired. The next morning we left again for a Dalit overnight trip. This was my second going on this trip. I went as a student in the spring of 2006. The trip really impacted me and I went home and ran a fundraiser for a Dalit village. While I was on the trip one of the people from the village were the funds went came and thanked me. He said the women in the villa
ge had started a micro-lending program and had saved money from the investments and had made the small amount of money grow and were soon buying dairy cows with the money. It was wonderful to hear and it was really nice to see my friend Dr. Henry who runs the Oneworld Education Trust and the Delta School of Nursing for Dalit girls.The day started with a visit with nursing students that came from Dalit communities to study nursing after grade school. They were between 17-22 years old studying nursing for three years. The girls were all shy and giggly and did several performances for us to welcome us. It was nice to see women that have struggle because of their background succeed and show pride in their achievements. The nice thing about both the organizations we visited on the two trips was that they were NGO's for and by local peoples that know the issues in their communities and sacrificed to stand up for what they believed in.
In the evening we drove to the village we were to stay for the night and walked around the area. They was a very long and in depth performanc
e organized for the villagers and us. I was asked to go to the front and be welcomed to the village and receive another gift from the leader of the village and Henry. The night closed with a little reflection session and mediation. We spent the night on the floor of the community hall. The night sky was lite up that night by a huge storm with thunder and lighting. It was peaceful to try and fall asleep to even though we were lying on a concrete floor. The night passed and we woke up early the ne
xt morning to walk around the village and meet some of the families and visit their homes. We were shown around and the people were so proud to show off their homes. Even though they had very little they had such pride in what they had and were happy to share it with us. It was a wonderful trip.The afternoon we got back from the village we went to Spencers Plaza to pick up some things. We went to a craft market where they sold fair trade items. That night we ate a an amazing Indian restaurant called Bowls. It was the best Indian food I have ever had a it cost only about two dollars a person. The final day Tommy and I walked around a found a local area street market where we bought some fabric and shirts. We also got Tommy's haircut at a local barber we found on the side of the road. We had a intense, profound and meaningful trip to India.
India.
Saturday, October 16, 2010
Mauritius
Short and Sweet.
Mauritius is an island nation off the southeast coast of the African continent in the southwest Indian Ocean. Uninhabited by humans until the 17th century and known for its diversity and prides itself on the Dodo Bird because it was the only known habitat of the extinct bird.
We were only in Mauritius for one night but got to see a bit of the beautiful island. The first day we took a cab to the Grand Baie area with Katie and Dan. We relaxed on the beach and then met up with a group of friends that rented a condo for the
night. We had a nice time barbecuing and chatting for the evening.
The next day we went to the Natural History Museum where we saw the bones of the Dodo bird. The museum was quirky and really interesting. We went up and meet with some other friends to go snorkeling and have dinner before we returned to the ship. Mauritius is a really interesting island filled with a variety of cultures and religions. Hindus make up 48%, Roman Catholic 23.6%, other Christians 8.6%, Muslim 16.6% and non-religious 0.4% The people were warm and welcoming and wonderful to get to meet in the short time we were there.
Mauritius is an island nation off the southeast coast of the African continent in the southwest Indian Ocean. Uninhabited by humans until the 17th century and known for its diversity and prides itself on the Dodo Bird because it was the only known habitat of the extinct bird.
We were only in Mauritius for one night but got to see a bit of the beautiful island. The first day we took a cab to the Grand Baie area with Katie and Dan. We relaxed on the beach and then met up with a group of friends that rented a condo for the
night. We had a nice time barbecuing and chatting for the evening.The next day we went to the Natural History Museum where we saw the bones of the Dodo bird. The museum was quirky and really interesting. We went up and meet with some other friends to go snorkeling and have dinner before we returned to the ship. Mauritius is a really interesting island filled with a variety of cultures and religions. Hindus make up 48%, Roman Catholic 23.6%, other Christians 8.6%, Muslim 16.6% and non-religious 0.4% The people were warm and welcoming and wonderful to get to meet in the short time we were there.
Peninsula School Feeding Video South Africa
A video made by Keri the photographer, about a trip in South Africa.
http://www.semesteratsea.org/voyage-blog/fall-2010/slideshow-feeding-a-south-african-school.php
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
South Africa
South Africa.
"What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us."
Ralph Waldo Emerson
We had an amazing trip to South Africa. The first day we arrived we walked around the V&A wa
terfront and explored the area around the ship. The V&A waterfront is unlike the rest of Capetown with its expensive car dealers and shopping mall and fine dining. The thing that shocks you the most about Cape Town is the inequality of wealth. The rich are extremely rich and the poor are extremely poor. Middle class barely seems in existence. Being my second time in South Africa I already felt I knew what to expect but over the last five years since I have been there last it seems to have gotten worse. The segregation of class and race is hard to ignore.
The world cup still had a strong influence on the country and we walked around the new stadium that had brand new Mcdonalds at the gate which was packed with people even though the stadium was baren.
That evening we went to a thearte performance in district six. Best known for the forced removal of over 60,000 of its inhabitants during the 1970s by the apartheid regime. On 11 February 1966, the government declared District Six a whites-only area under the Group Areas Act, with removals starting in 1968. By 1982, more than 60,000 people had been relocated to the sandy, bleak Cape Flats township complex some 25 kilometers away. The old houses were bulldozed. The only buildings left standing were places of worship. Which is exactly where the theater house was. An old church turned into a theater to help tell the story of the people and culture of Cape Town. The show WOZA! Cape Town was a wonderful low budget performance about the experience of three Capetoianian boys. It was a great night filled with song and dance in the heart of Cape Town.
The next day we hiked Table Mountain. One of my favorite hikes ever. We took the cable car up the mountain and walked all around the table then began the hike down. It took about two hours to get down. The weather was perfect and you could see forever. We topped the day off with a cold one at Mitchell's Irish Pub. The following day we rented a car with another couple and went down the coast to Cape Point. Words can't describe the beauty we
saw. The ride down to the cape we drove along the coast and saw whales right off shore. We pulled over walked down the rocky shore to see right whales 20 feet away from us. There were about 4 of them playing in the water right in front of us. It was the most amazing day I can remember. Once we finally able to pull ourselves away and continue down the coast we headed towards Cape Point. Along the way we stopped off at an ostrich farm and a little coffee shop. When we reached the national park we stopped off at the Cape of Good Hope and where at the Southwest most tip of Africa. The view was unreal. We spent the rest of the day driving along the coast to Simon's Town and Boulder Beach. We saw Africa Penguins in the wild on the se
ashore sunning themselves on the warm sandy beaches. Our final stop was along the coast to the colorful Victorian beach houses. There were surfers in the Giant White waters where the shark warning for the day was too rough to tell if there were sharks and a shark had been seen the day before.
The next day we spent the morning on a trip to a primary school. For the Pensisula school Feeding program that helps feed school children. We learned about the primary school and some of the politics of the school system and then helped serve lunch. We walked around the school and spent time in a fourth grade class. It was wonderful to spend time with the children and understand how the learn.
The final day we hiked table mountain again and walked around the waterfront. It was hard to leave such an amazing city. On to Mauritius!
"What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us."
Ralph Waldo Emerson
We had an amazing trip to South Africa. The first day we arrived we walked around the V&A wa
terfront and explored the area around the ship. The V&A waterfront is unlike the rest of Capetown with its expensive car dealers and shopping mall and fine dining. The thing that shocks you the most about Cape Town is the inequality of wealth. The rich are extremely rich and the poor are extremely poor. Middle class barely seems in existence. Being my second time in South Africa I already felt I knew what to expect but over the last five years since I have been there last it seems to have gotten worse. The segregation of class and race is hard to ignore.The world cup still had a strong influence on the country and we walked around the new stadium that had brand new Mcdonalds at the gate which was packed with people even though the stadium was baren.
That evening we went to a thearte performance in district six. Best known for the forced removal of over 60,000 of its inhabitants during the 1970s by the apartheid regime. On 11 February 1966, the government declared District Six a whites-only area under the Group Areas Act, with removals starting in 1968. By 1982, more than 60,000 people had been relocated to the sandy, bleak Cape Flats township complex some 25 kilometers away. The old houses were bulldozed. The only buildings left standing were places of worship. Which is exactly where the theater house was. An old church turned into a theater to help tell the story of the people and culture of Cape Town. The show WOZA! Cape Town was a wonderful low budget performance about the experience of three Capetoianian boys. It was a great night filled with song and dance in the heart of Cape Town.
The next day we hiked Table Mountain. One of my favorite hikes ever. We took the cable car up the mountain and walked all around the table then began the hike down. It took about two hours to get down. The weather was perfect and you could see forever. We topped the day off with a cold one at Mitchell's Irish Pub. The following day we rented a car with another couple and went down the coast to Cape Point. Words can't describe the beauty we
saw. The ride down to the cape we drove along the coast and saw whales right off shore. We pulled over walked down the rocky shore to see right whales 20 feet away from us. There were about 4 of them playing in the water right in front of us. It was the most amazing day I can remember. Once we finally able to pull ourselves away and continue down the coast we headed towards Cape Point. Along the way we stopped off at an ostrich farm and a little coffee shop. When we reached the national park we stopped off at the Cape of Good Hope and where at the Southwest most tip of Africa. The view was unreal. We spent the rest of the day driving along the coast to Simon's Town and Boulder Beach. We saw Africa Penguins in the wild on the se
ashore sunning themselves on the warm sandy beaches. Our final stop was along the coast to the colorful Victorian beach houses. There were surfers in the Giant White waters where the shark warning for the day was too rough to tell if there were sharks and a shark had been seen the day before.The next day we spent the morning on a trip to a primary school. For the Pensisula school Feeding program that helps feed school children. We learned about the primary school and some of the politics of the school system and then helped serve lunch. We walked around the school and spent time in a fourth grade class. It was wonderful to spend time with the children and understand how the learn.
The final day we hiked table mountain again and walked around the waterfront. It was hard to leave such an amazing city. On to Mauritius!
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