December 31. 2010

It's New Years Eve!!!!! I feel like my blogs are getting longer and longer and I can't promise this will be any shorter, =)  Today a lot was planned as we were to go to lecture, tour, go to a bazar and then end with a New Years Celebration.  With all that, it just can't be a short one!

After breakfast we headed to Mithraneketan, a place being preserved by COSTFORD and was once home to a royal family.  The main objective was to see the architecture of the building as it was all made from wood, and the detail was impecable.  See for yourself:

 Here we are touring the inside....note how important natural sunlight is as there are openings in most rooms for such.

The hand carved borders along all the walls.....

 Even the meticulously designed rods for roofing.

 As we toured we all noticed the children that were around the complex and their evident handicap.  Later in lecture, we learned there were dormitorys on the campus, and a place for children with disabilities and autism....they were there because it was believed traditional practices were not enough, and they were sent there so that tribal medicines could be practiced.  From the moment I saw each of them, my focus was taken elsewhere.  One in particular I felt connected to, and I wanted to play with him.  I found it hard to concentrate on the lecture.  As most know, individuals with Autism have not only a place but a piece of my heart.  I felt compelled to work with them, and I began to question my purpose...if just the sight would envoke such emotion within me....I did capture a very few photos from a distance as I wanted to be very mindful of respect and privacy:

The second lecture of the day was presented by Sajan's wife Shailaja Nair.  The topic was very informative and intersting, providing background on the issues of informal settlements (slums) in India and more specifically Kerala.  Although slums in Kerala are such a small percentage of the total amount in India and present much less of a threat for crime, there are still many people living below poverty and something must be done.  As instrucuted by Ghandi, Laurie Baker returned to India to build for the rural poor, and now that is what COSTFORD does.  The slum we visited is called Karimadom, and COSTFORD is working there and several other areas to not only transform living conditions but social conditions.  Take a look at the before and after pictures of these slums.  (These pictures were not taken inside the slums as I did not feel comfortable photographing people's lives as an outsider so out of respect, they were also taken from a distance)

This is the actual slum and above are the built new infrasturctures.  I also snapped photos of the current strucutres being built, which will one day be the housing in the slums.  The goal of COSTFORD is to also contribute to the social transformation of the built environment by also facilitating empowerment of the poor and weaker sections of society.  The new design of the slum has been to reorganize and provide services as well as room expansion.  They also wanted to integrate these populations with the rest of society.

I should also note seeing the slums made me realize how much we praise industrialization in the States and although it was a good thing, to me it happened too quickly.  The slower pace of less developed countries is allowing traditional, sustainable and resourceful practices to be retained.  Instead of being ingulfed in modernity and the latest technologies, while important, I think the most important thing is to live simply.  In India they use so much less and do just that.  And that's how I wish to live: simply.

When we arrived at the slums, the children welcomed us with open arms!  They surrounded us, asking our names and speaking English so well (the older ones).  One boy in particular spoke and you could tell he was advanced.  When asked if he was at the top of the class, he responded yes, and I only had one feeling: one of embarassment.  Here is a 12 year old boy engaged and learning English our of respect for our "culture" and to enhance himself, and here I am, a 23 year old who can only speak English.  Although the desire to learn another languge has been present, I haven't acted on it.  I am largely ashamed because the want hasn't been great enough to spark action.

After leaving the slums, we went to a bazar where we all shopped and had a lot of fun.  However, I found my best experience at the bazar to be not shopping but the long conversation I had with a man who owned a a welding shop.  He was very intriguing and initially I just sat in front of his shop to kill time as we waited for a lost soldier =)  He welded and created artwork from brass, copper and silver.  He told me all about his family, and most specifically his work being a family tradition.  We discussed the meaning of the eyes he made, and those were intended for use at Temple.  They are purchased as a symbolic representation that they belive in god and and god is good; the eyes were to be given as a part of them, similiar to what we consider offering.  He then showed me the entire process of making a set, and allowed me to photograph each step.  Here are a few from the bazar and his process:

Because today was New Years Eve, of course we had to end the day with a celebration.  We went to a COSTFORD designed hotel to experience an Indian cultural performance/show, partake in a splendid feast of cuisine to hang on the beach, and ring in the new year with new friends who taught us a lot of Indian dances.  It was the best New Years I've had in a while.....as we danced and celebrated there were fireworks from the distance that were absolutely beautiful....and they even fired plenty from the roof top of the hotel we were at!  It was so fantastic.  I don't have many pictures because my camera died but here are the few I grabbed!

Drummers!

December 30. 2010

Today (which seems so long ago because it's really January 1st) we had our first day of lectures.  I'll start by saying we were on time! I even made it to breakfast!  I must say breakfast here is heavier than at home but every bit of delicious...there is so much variety.  Lunch and dinner however are served much later in the day, so that could be why. 

Class was to be held at CDS, Center for Development Studies.  We left the hotel around 9am to spend the day there, learning and touring.  We hopped out of the van and all began snapping pictures immediately-the landscape and infrastructure were like none I'd ever seen.  I had no idea, until class for the next few days all the thought behind creating such work.  Below you can finally see a few of the wonderful, wonderful people I'm abroad with, and the architecture of the buildings (which a little I'll describe) and the the landscape.

  Words cannot describe how honored I felt to be in the presence of P.B. Sajan in particular. 

 Since the death of Architect Laurie Baker, he now runds COSTFORD, which stands for Center of Science and Technology For Rural Development.  They have built 25,000 cost and environmental effective buildings throughout India, with a majority of them being for the poor population.  COSTFORD sponsors our trip, lectures and tours, and I am vey, very greatful for each piece of knowledge transferred and the experience they have put so much time into preparing for us.  COSTFORD is a non profit and most of their housing programs are funded by the government.  I have so much respect for the organization because their philosophies and practices extend well beyond the infrastrucutres they build.  Their goals are to teach self sufficiency, promote low cost housing while removing negative connotations associated with them and promote education through their work, as they believe that is the only means to improvement.  (And I agree!)

During lecture I felt so overwhelmed with information!  I didn't want to write things down because I didn't want to miss the next thing being said...but at the same time I was afraid (for lack of being able to multi-task well) as I wrote, it'd be hard to listen and pick back up in the lecture.  (This due to the slight language barrier)  I felt as though my pen wouldn't move fast enough! Below are a few pictures of us in class =)

Class today consisted of learning of the three organizations we would be involved with, (CDS, COSTFORD and The Laurie Baker Center for Habitat Studies)  A quote from my journal:  "I need to reflect on all the information passed along so that I can retain it.  I feel like I need to debrief =)"  Today we also met Dr. K.P. Kannan, a social economist who is very prestigious in India, and he spoke with us about the history of Kerala.  I enjoyed the portion of his lecture where he discussed Human Development Indicators as well as the growth and development of the country. 

Lunch today consisted of cabbage (my favorite!) and a fish curry (my favorite)!  I write this only to say we ate our first meal with our hands!!!!  Too bad I didn't take pictures, sorry!  By the end of the meal, and since I've got it down, but initially I felt as though each bite missed my mouth! 

After lunch, we went on a tour of CDS and I'll let the pictures that proceed speak for me.  You should know however, the thought, time and effort behind the design....and so you can understand the pictures.  The walls are layered for ventilation and heating/cooling purposes.  All rooms function inside with natural sunlight and the buildings have been positions in a manner to maximize sunlight while reducing heat.  Each brick is layered strategically, demonstrating a circular shape v one that is upright to handle pressures from all sides, and of course, they are cost efficent, made with brick and cement (or lime cement).  The bricks are not manufactured but made locally, placing money back into the hands of the local economy!

 The story behind the picture below is simple....Laurie Baker loved mangos...and the story behind them in relation to India...and so they were in all of his designs...and everywhere....and now below:

The Library at CDS is below...a very important part of campus, as it is the largest library in Kerala containing 7 floors.  A special addition to the library is the top floor in which there is a view of all of Kerala, and a few pictures follow, showing that as well.

We ended the day with shopping at Fabindia where I bought two shirts I am very excited to wear back in the states.  I will end this blog with wonderful pictures I took of the market outside of CDS, as we prepared to leave....and I prepare to write my next blog!

December 29. 2010

I've officially decided with time constraints each days post will be a day late.  My routine will be to write in my journal for the current day and then post online for the previous day afterwards.  That way everything from the current day is fresh.

So today I had to be paged by Dr. Anthony again because my roomate and I overslept.  We were to meet in the lobby at 12:00 and we arrived at 12:30.  As bad as it sounds, many of us straggled in late as we were all suffering from jet lag and there was understanding (no worries, I was on time today and will be for the duration of the trip).  From the lobby we walked to find lunch and I am going to do my best to describe all that I saw.  However, I have pictures for you all today!

It began just footsteps away from the hotel.  From the inside stepping out, I felt as though we entered another world.  We were surrounded by a much more impoverished area where shoes were optional.  However, as we reached downtown, I didn't notice such.  Below are images taken from my hotel window...and some along the street as we passed.

The men to the right of the hotel had been there all morning, digging and removing dirt, trying to reach something I could not tell.  Mud covered them from toe to knee, and they used baskets to efficiently move the dirt.  Baskets seemed to be a common tool as it was also used by the men removing trash.  When I initially saw the mounds of trash I was a bit shocked by all of the pollution before realizing it was "trash day" and men were collecting the heaps. 

As we walked, it was clear we were travellers and all the children came to the curb to wave hello.  Their smiling faces were warming.  As we continued on, we all noticed a protest ahead.  Still unsure what caused the protest, it did consist of everyone; men, women and children. 

As we walked in search for a place for lunch, we found a hotel with a vegetarian restaurant to eat.  With no reason to walk any further, we stopped.  Before crossing the street, Dr. Anthony pointed out the name of the street, MG to be exact, which stood for Mahatma Ghandi Street.  As explained by him, Ghandi as we all know is highly respected in India and therefore has a street in every major city named after him.

Lunch was good, and I will post a picture just to display my first meal.  However, dinner was better.  Dr. Anthony said our meal for dinner was more representative of a North Indian meal versus a Keralan dish.

Before finding a restaurant for dinner, we did more walking around the outskirts of our hotel.  We walked to their rail station but could not enter because we didn't have tickets.  I captured this picture of the buses and two women walking by which is not relevant to anything I've said thus far, but a picture I like:

  I will end this post with 9, not 10 things I learned on my walk to meals and throughout Trivandrum.

1. It seems women generally sit to the front of the bus, men in the back. (I learned today Kerala is one of few countries that allow women to travel on the buses and be out after sunset.  They are also allowed to work but are still expected to be the housewife when they return home.)
2. Dinner begins around 8:30 or 9:00 so when we arrived to the restaurant at 7:30 for dinner, we were quite early, and the only ones there.  As we finished, families began to arrive.
3. Mixed income housing or housing co-cops are plentiful and not rare.
4. Street markets/vendors/shops are within every 2 feet you step.
5. We are automatically (or have been thus far) served bottled water in restaurants.
6. Cash conversion is cheapest at an ATM (too bad I have a lot of cash) and the hotel is the next best.
7. Most animals, especially dogs appear to be very malnourished.
8. The federal government has more control over states than in the United States (This I did not learn by observation, but from conversation with Dr. Anthony =)
9. Zoning does in fact exist here, although it may not appear to be.  However, money heavily determines land use.

That's all for today!

December 28. 2010

This will be a long blog as it's two days worth (and I will post for today later tonight, as it is really the 29th here).

Before I describe the flight, I must describe how I met the group; they had been looking for me since they arrived in Chicago.  Miscommunication led them to believe I would be meeting them in Chicago, and therefore they paged me in the airport and on the plane.  Once I was situated at the gate in D.C. I checked my email to find one from my professor saying call immediately as we think we left you!  So I called with no answer, and proceeded to get a call from our trip coordinator....I finally found them in D.C. and from there, the journey of continuing to page me began =)

So it was a rough start, with lots of turblence because of the wind.  Once things calmed outside, it was an enjoyable flight...or as much as it could be, sitting upright for 13 hours.  I must say business class was fabulous-it was very spacious and fancy with large TVs.  However I can't complain, because we had it pretty nice in the back.  We still had entertainment right in front of us with a TV with games, movies, shows and music.  As my peer stated "check out the travel bag...they even give you socks, a toothbrush and an eye mask."  Our flight was nice, but I heard from my roommate (who flew from Canada) that they came on a double decker...I didn't know such planes existed! 

On the first plane I played around with the TV for a bit and Salt captivated my attention until sleep took over.  From there I missed breakfast and BEN AND JERRYS...yes in caps, because I missed the Icecream!  I woke up for a bit...and struggled with whether I should ask both passengers to my left to wake up and then move for me to use the restroom, or just hold it.  I decided to go once someone else in the row moved.  When I got to the back I realized it was no longer night, but the sun was brightly shining.  However, we could not see that throughout the cabin as all the windows were closed, respecting everyone sleeping. 

I should mention, on the first plane, they came around with moist towels which I didn't accept because I didn't know what to do with it, haha.  But after watching, on the second flight I enjoyed!  It was just warm steam in my face, it kind of woke me up!  It was very refreshing.  The crew on Qatar Airways is fantastic!!!  They definetly make sure you enjoy your flight and it is as comfortable as it can be.

This is an excerpt from my journal: So I'm in the next airport Doha.  I'm not sure where I am but I know I woke up to the most beautiful sunset I've ever seen and looked down to water.  We flew over beautiful areas that were lit and surrounded by water!  We flew from night to morning to night in the course of 13 hours.

 When we landed, we had to get on a bus transfer to the airport and I saw McDonald's in the distance!  Why is he here?!?  Why is it such a monopoly?  I'm never eating there again!  Welllll maybe I can resist the french fries...but the iced coffee...I'll try very hard...because I am displeased! =(

Above I mentioned being paged because once again, leaving Doha, Dr. Anthony had to page my peer and I as we went on a hunt for water and missed the initial boarding of the flight!  Go me! I'm just giving him the best impression, I know...and it only gets better! 

ARRIVAL: We were picked up by a really nice driver who I think will drive us for the duration of the trip.  The last flight was much smaller, but we were still served a meal.  I managed to stay awake for half of this flight and really enjoyed the fish curry.  I sat next to two really nice men!  Despite our language barrier we communicated with each other to fill out the customs form together.  It was funny...after I finished I offered my pen because they continued to stare...and they took my pen, passport and custom form! =)  Once we landed in Trivandrum, we waited in the customs line for what seemed like forever, but in all actuality was about 30 minutes.  We began to have random people join our group and it was exciting.  Everyone is so diverse and from all over...ranging from Canada to New Orleans to Colorado..and I love it! 

I exchanged 40 USD for 1520 Rupees and I'm rich....well not really!  On the drive to the hotel, there were vendors, cyclists, people, taxis everywhere...and it was 5:00am....crazy!  Our hotel was in the middle of the slums, and what my friend called the poorest area of Trivandrum....the people living around are considered the untouchables....However, Dr. Anthony said there is no heiarchy for living...the rich and poor live together..and that was evident walking the streets....but upsetting at the same time. 

That's all for now.

December 24. 2010

Before Departure:  I leave for India in just a few days and I must say, I'm quite excited.  It'll be my first trip out of the country (which I didn't think would happen before the Peace Corps in July) so it's quite a treat =)  It all came together quickly, getting a passport and visa and funds (along with everything else) within less than a month...the hard work has paid off.  I am so happy this opportunity was passed along to the department!

I'm still quite nervous as I don't physically have my passport/visa in hand.  It has been ready since Tuesday and I pick it up in D.C. on Monday at 4:30...fingers crossed it's ready to go!  Other than that, I am nervous about nothing else.  I'm excited to fly with all the other wonderful people travelling such a distance....hopefully I have enough things to entertain myself during this flight! 

As far as participation, I cannot wait to complete this course!! I have strong interests in International Development in Developing Countries so learning about eco-sensitive low cost housing is going to be amazing.  I cannot wait to travel throughout India and work on the service learning projects.  We are to work on a project plan or grant for a local housing agency. 

I watched Ghandi and it was a great refresher as I read the book over 6 years ago, during my freshman year.  I did not have a chance to watch the Story of India but plan to do so as soon as we arrive....

I'll be sure to post daily so stay tuned!