Planes, Trains and Automobiles

Well, today is the day we say good bye to India. After a whirlwind week of volunteering, sight-seeing, eating, and visiting schools we depart today by train from Chandigarh to Delhi. We'll then be met by a mini van and transported to the airport where we'll take an 8 hr flight to Amsterdam and then another 8 hr flight to Detroit! From Detroit we fly into Knoxville and arrive late afternoon EST. We'll probably still be on India time for a while. We have many happy memories of our trip here and look forward to sharing more stories and photos with our families and friends.

Namaste India. We'll be back soon.

Impressions of Chandigarh

Above are just some images of Chandigarh over the past 5 days. There are so many good memories already to share and I'm sure the girls will have plenty of additional photos and video footage of our trip. What a great combination of community service, volunteering, and education outside of the classroom.

Visit to the BVB School on Tuesday

Last April, Webb hosted two girls from the BVB School; Tamanna and Varnika. The two students bravely flew half way around the world by themselves to spend two weeks attending classes at Webb and living with Helen and Ceci's families. We thoroughly enjoyed getting to know them and they helped us throw the Holi Festival of Color while in Knoxville which was a big success.

Today, the students and I spent the morning at their school experiencing a typical day for them. As I entered the school courtyard/playground the students were practicing a big production dance number that they are performing on January 26th to celebrate India Republic Day. I enjoyed watching the students perform their dance to the Jai Ho song (Bollywood song made famous in the Slumdog Millionaire movie) while the boys skated around on roller skates and the girls danced and created a pattern with the Indian flag. What a reception! I then had a brief tour of the school and met the Headmistress who is keen to continue the exchange with Webb in the future. I was given a demonstration of their technology in the math lab and then headed to the art room where the girls had assembled and were having their hands painted intricately with henna patterns... a process called Mehndi and usually given to brides just before they marry. Don't worry parents, no student on this trip is about to be married off!!

After exchanging gifts and information on both schools we departed school...the adults headed for lunch at the local golf club. The students headed to a brand new mall that opened about 6 months ago and looks just like an American mall on the inside and carries many of the same stores as the US and UK. The world continues to become homogenized although I am glad to see that Starbuck's has not yet arrived in Chandigarh..it won't be long though as you can find it in Delhi already.

Helen and Lizzie's food blog

Indian food is unlike anything in the United States. It's a culinary palette of extreme spice, sweetness, and saltiness with many other flavors we find impossible to name. Curry and other spices are present in foods for breakfast, lunch, and dinner-- usually with potatoes, peas, onions, chickpeas, lentils, paneer (Indian cheese), chutney, and either fried or cooked dough. "Pickles" are added to a lot of dishes as a topping. These pickles are not what we typically think of as pickles-- they are pickled vegetables with lots of various spices that are usually really spicy!  Some of our favorite dishes include: paranthas (tortilla-like rounds with an herb or vegetable filling), mansala dosa (a South Indian dish), and butter chicken tikka (a chicken dish covered in delicious curry sauce). Also, the chai tea is delish. This trip has been amazing because we've gotten to try so many new dishes.

"I'm lovin' it" by Liz G

I must admit after eating curry for breakfast, lunch and dinner,  when my host family asked if I'd like to try eating at an Indian McDonald's, I jumped at the chance! Earlier in the evening we'd attended the Rotary meeting and I wore a beautiful traditional Indian dress. As we didn't have time to go home and change, I ended up eating in Mickey D's feeling a little over dressed! The menu was similar to that in the USA but many items had an additional "spicy" added to their name...spicy wraps, spicy chicken burger. No beef on the menu, of course, so no Big Macs to be found. It was a fun evening and I have to say the bathrooms were very clean and up to US standard!

Written by Ceci and Rachel

Though at first difficult to find, the slum school, Baal Baharr, held many children who brightened our day their smiling faces and joyful personalities. Our group brought a variety of gifts for the children such as finger puppets, candy, and school supplies. The kids were also thrilled to see their very own faces in the backs of our camera screens as many of them had previously not had this opportunity. After the school visit, our group ventured to the house of B.M. Singh who runs the Baal Baharr school. He was very insightful, wise, and generous. Later, we traveled to the Rock Garden of Chandigarh which is famous for its towering walls and sculptures that are constructed out of unwanted materials. Afterwards, everyone enjoyed a camel ride while passing natives asked to "snap a picture" with the Americans. Again, we were a novelty at the Lake in Chandigarh where many people pedaled around in self-engined boats. For dinner, we joined the rotary members for a meeting at the rotary house. There, we presented money for the Baal Baharr school. In addition, each visiting American from our team received a banner from the Rotary Club in Chandigarh. We finished the day by visiting the famous rose gardens of Chandigarh. Unfortunately, it was pitch-black, so we couldn't see anything. All we could hear was a screeching monkey in a tree above our heads. Our host sister, Sophia, warned us to run away quickly because she didn't want to take any risks with her guests. Concluding our night, we visited the Peace Monument of Chandigarh which is a large statue of the Buddha. We were asked to keep silent to respect the Buddha whose soul was at peace. He believed that speech polluted the air, so we respected his ideals while visiting his memorial. Each day seems to be busier than the next, but it is just one more experience for us to be infused with the Indian culture.  

Rotary Club of Chandigarh Meeting

This evening Team TN attended the weekly RCC meeting held at Rotary House. Rob Johnson led us all in singing the national anthem. Liz Gregor then introduced the Interact students and the RCK folks before giving a short presentation on the connection/relationship we've developed over the past years with Chandigarh. Thanks to Madhukar Malhotra we were able to start an exchange program with the BVB School and hosted Tamanna and Varnika last spring. They were at the meeting in addition to Sophia Doon who is hosting two of our girls. We thanked all of the Rotarians who have helped make our stay so enjoyable and appreciate the kind hospitality that we've received every day.

Lizzie presented the donated Interact money to Vice President Kapur and then Frank Rothermel gave thanks and presented the rest of the donation in honor of the Bal Bahar. Flags were exchanged and photographs were taken.  President Saboo gave an excellent closing speech and talked about the close relationship RCC and RCK have had over the years, especially through Bill Sergeant. He thanked our Interact students for traveling half way around the globe and for all their help with polio eradication.

Bal Bahar School Visit

Photo #1: The School Bus picks up kids to take them to the Bal Bahar School!

Smile please!

 A warm welcome to our students

After Elisa King first visited the Bal Bahar School in 2009, she and her daughters (Nicole and Sarah) developed a close relationship with the headmaster, Mr. B.M. Singh and his wife, Kiran. A year later, Jenny Banner and Isabel traveled along with the Kings back to Chandigarh and spent the day visiting the Bal Bahar School. Since then Webb Interact Club and RCK have helped raise funds annually to help support the school and have brought clothes, books, and toys for the children. We've also helped create a functioning kitchen that provides a healthy, warm meal to each child daily.

Today, our group of 9 visited the school and spent a couple of hours playing with the children, handing out finger puppets, and singing songs together. The children at this school are from very poor families in the slum area of the city and have very little opportunity to break the cycle of poverty. However, through a good education at Bal Bahar, the children can continue with their education after the age of 11 years. Along with a good education and some training through Rotary these students have the chance to improve their lives and living conditions by getting better paid jobs.

We were impressed how well behaved the students were and how quietly they sat. We presented Kiran Singh with donated school supplies by A&W Office Supply, socks donated by Interact Club, and gave the finger puppets to the kids. We also visited the Creche where the younger children are placed while their mothers go to work. The girls handed out pencils to each child and the kids sang us their favorite songs! It is good to know that there is hope for these children, all thanks to the hard work of the Singh family.

The highlight of the day was visiting Mr. B.M. Singh and Kirin at their beautiful house for lunch. We sat in their garden under warm sunshine and enjoyed a couple of hours of much needed rest and relaxation. After talking with B.M. you get the impression you've just been fortunate enough to have an audience with the Dalai Lama...he his full of wise sayings and is such an engaging, warm human being. He and his family have contributed so much to the welfare of the young students at their school who only have to pay $1 per month  to attend...and the opportunity for a better life.

Choki Dhani Lunch

After a busy morning we left the slums and headed north on the Himalayan Expressway to visit Choki Dhani for a Rotary lunch provided by Rotarian Vivek Gupta. Mr. Gupta's brother-in-law owns a cultural center/theme park (think a smaller version of Dollywood without rides) which celebrates the local cultures of Rajistan. We entered through a gate and were greeted by a drummer. We then proceeded to see magicians, camels, tight-rope walkers, puppeteers, and musicians perform for us. Mr Gupta had also laid out a wonderful lunch for us outside in the glorious sunshine and we were treated to a variety of curry dishes and given turbans to wear as their honored guests. The hospitality is amazing here and we are all humbled by the kindness of our hosts. What an interesting experience!

National Immunization Day (NID)

Today we awoke to warm sunshine and the sounds of migrating birds from Siberia. After breakfasting on the patio with our host Vivek Gupta we headed to the Rotary House to meet up with the group for our big NID day. Team TN has been looking forward to this day for a long time as we'd heard so much about the huge impact these 2 drops of the polio vaccine per child can have on a community, a city and a country. After being briefed and given a brightly colored Rotary jacket and cap we piled into cars and were driven to the outskirts of town into the poorer area of the city.

Chandigarh demolished most of the slum areas and erected concrete housing blocks for those that were displaced from the slums. Each apartment has one room, 7-9 people per family, electricity and running water, including indoor plumbing. The residents pay $7 per month to live here and after 15 years the apartment belongs to them. Forty thousand folks live in this area.

The children and families had been notified that Rotary tents were being set up for the polio drop immunizations and so we were greeted by a long line of curious kids and babies under the age of 5 years (some accompanied by their mothers, others came with siblings). Our team took it in turns to give 2 drops per child and then paint the left pinkie finger purple denoting immunization. Some babies cried but most kids were happy to come and meet us, especially as we handed out candies, toys and paper sun visors!

Most of the kids stayed around to watch us and even the local teenagers came over to stare at the Americans! They'd probably never seen an American so were quite the novelty. Rob broke the ice by teaching them how to play a hand game and suddenly the kids were laughing and playing with us and smiling. After a couple of hours it was time to depart and they waved goodbye to us as we headed out of the district. We felt we'd accomplished a lot in a short amount of time. We probably saw 100+ kids and hopefully we left a good impression and a sense of goodwill in the neighborhood.

Blog from Ceci and Rachel

First Impressions of India:

From the constant sense of hurrying throughout the sea of Indian rickshaws, cars, and motorcycles to the near misses between each vehicle, travel cannot be compared to any other place. As said by one of our native tour guides, "If you can drive in India, then you can drive anywhere." Since India was once occupied by the British, the English ways of driving have stuck such as driving on the opposite side of the street and having the driver's seat on the righthand side. Not only do street performers weave in and out of the bumper to bumper traffic, but elephants and monkeys also roam the streets of Delhi and Chandigarh. For instance, a small girl around the age of six wandered up to our window to perform a variety of acrobatic skills in an attempt to earn money. On the other hand, a young mother also approached our vehicle with a crying baby begging for money. Even with the insane traffic and constant honking, we have managed to arrive safe and sound to each destination.

Rotary House Visit

Saturday morning was cool and rainy so our plans changed slightly. We all met up at the Rotary House of Chandigarh feeling well rested after a good night's sleep and a shower. Rachel and Ceci visited the BVB School for an hour before joining us as Tamanna had Saturday school. Upon our arrival we were warmly welcomed by our Rotary hosts including Past District Governor Mr. Madhukar Malhotra who has very kindly arranged the schedule and itinerary for our trip.

We visited a blood bank that the Rotary Club of Chandigarh helps support and were impressed by the high standards and efficiency of the program. We joined the staff in a cup of tea and learned more about the blood screening and collection/distribution process.

Chandigarh Museum of History was next on our agenda and we learned much about the region of Punjab (of which Chandigarh is the capital). We were somewhat surprised to learn that the mountain range we can clearly see from the streets is actually part of the Himalayas! We're only a 45 minute drive away from the mountains and approximately 100 KM from the Pakistani border. The city itself dates to 1950 and is a well planned city by famous planner Le Corbusier with a grid and district system. Streets and boulevards are tree-lined and the houses are beautifully aligned in districts with lots of parks and green space. It was voted the cleanest city in India and we can see why.

A member of the RC Chandigarh owns a restaurant and invited us for a buffet lunch of traditional Indian dishes. Everyone eagerly sampled a variety of spicy and non-spicy dishes and desserts. At that point the girls headed off with their host sisters and the rest of us spent time with our Rotary host families shopping and relaxing. Tomorrow is NID day and is predicted to be sunnier and slightly warmer. Keep checking back!

Photo 1: Rotary House
Photo 2: The girls with their host sisters
Photo 3: At Polio HQ in Delhi

Last train to Chandigarh

After our 8 hour tour of Delhi and visit to the polio headquarters our driver took us to the train station to catch the train to Chandigarh, our ultimate destination. Unfortunately, Delhi traffic on a Friday afternoon rush hour was a force to be reckoned with. After almost 2 hours of almost being hit by motorcycles, cars, rickshaws, elephants, stray dogs and bikes we made it to the station with literally 2 minutes to spare. The students sprinted to the train while the rest of us ran as fast as we could, jumping onto the train with our luggage with only a minute to spare. Fortunately, we made it and enjoyed a 3 hour journey north, eating dinner and doing homework (I'm going to share this photo with the girls' teachers as they have been so conscientious about homework at every opportunity).

It started to rain as we approached Chandigarh but our host families and Rotarians were on the platform to give us a warm welcome to their city. The girls met up with Tamanna and Varnika who'd visited Webb in April and also met Sophia,one of their host sisters. The Rotarians are staying with Madhukar Malhotra and Vivek Gupta, our kind and gracious hosts.

Hard to believe it's been 24 hours since we arrived!We seem to have been here much longer and have had a good welcome to this interesting country of contrasts.

New Delhi, Old Delhi

 Transport in Delhi!

After a good night's sleep and a breakfast where east meets west (curry meets cereal) Team TN met up with Team NJ. They'd arranged an excellent tour of Delhi for us which included a mini van, a guide who spoke English and a driver who must have learned how to drive on the streets of New Delhi as he managed to dodge and weave through 8 million cars on the road! Delhi is a city of 18 million inhabitants and the contrast between rich and poor was evident as we went from the more affluent, tree lined boulevards of Embassy row to the poorer suburbs where children begged for money outside our van. The air is highly polluted and the smell of burning wood gave an acrid aroma to the air.

We enjoyed our visit to the oldest mosque area in the city (Qudab) and our visit to the largest Hindu temple in the world that was completed in 2006. It was a breathtaking temple with a large statue in gold surrounded by gemstones and precious jewels. Such a contrast to the poverty we'd seen on the side of the road getting to the temple. India, the land of contrasts.

We're all getting used to spicy food and curries. Our guide took us to a delicious place for lunch where we enjoyed trying a variety of dishes..tandoori, tikka masala, saag, and vindaloo curries!

The headquarter of the End Polio Now program in India is located in New Delhi so we spent an hour talking with Ashok who heads up the country's program. He is delighted that India was declared polio free on January 13th, 2014 but stressed that the fight is not over until polio has been eradicated from the entire earth. We are grateful to be helping with one of the last National Immunization Days in Chandigarh.

Even though we've only been in the country for 24 hours we feel like we've been here a month!

India here we come!

Team TN at the airport before boarding the plane for ATL. We flew from Atlanta onto  Paris (8 hours) and then had a 2 hour wait before flying another 8 hours onto New Delhi. We departed Knoxville at 3pm on Wednesday and arrived in Delhi at 11pm on Thursday after a 21 hour journey. Although tired, we were excited to be in India for the first time. We were greeted by our driver and taken to the beautiful Royal Plaza hotel where we headed for bed to try to sleep. Here's to our adventure in Incredible India!

Preparing for India!

Four Webb Upper School Interact Club members and Webb multicultural coordinator Liz Gregor (pictured below), along with local Rotarians, will travel to Chandigarh, India, January 15, to assist with Rotary International’s final National Immunization Days to eradicate polio in India. To read more, select the link below.

https://www.webbschool.org/podium/default.aspx?t=204&nid=695198

Three Years without a case of Polio in India

India Declared Polio Free, Jan 13th, 2014.

 According to sources, India will be declared polio free from today January 13th. What an exciting and historic time for Team TN to be visiting India and participating in one of the last NID days!
 
http://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/close-to-victory-india-will-officially-be-declared-polio-free-from-today/article1-1171899.aspx

Rotary International will hold one of the final National Immunization Days (NID's) in India in Chandigarh, India on Sunday, January 19th, 2014. Team TN will help administer drops to children and paint their pinkies purple to indicate they've been immunized.