Return to Kenchanahalli

On Friday, we returned to Kenchanahalli for a visit and I didn't realize before how anticipatory I was for that moment until it was happening.  As we drove away from Mysore, I was surprised how much I recognized.  The spectacular rolling hills covered with lush greenery, rice paddies, cotton fields, rows of sugar cane and several herds of cows passed slowly by my window as we wound our way through the red dirt roads towards Kenchanahalli.  My favourite landmark is a tiny roadside temple that is surrounded by a pond bursting with white and yellow lotus flowers.  That lotus flowers, one of the most beautiful blooms, grow and flourish only in dirty water always strikes me as a powerful metaphor - of looking for the silver lining, the positive, in each occasion.  The lotus perfectly represents everything that SVYM and my time in India has taught me.  As we drove past that temple, I felt my heart beating faster.  We were getting close.  We had just entered my little corner of India.

When we arrived at the campus, I paused for a moment before jumping out of the bus and onto the hospital campus that I have dreamed and talked about returning to for two years.  I suddenly felt panicked - what if I had idealized it in my memories so greatly that reality didn't match with my memories?  I took a deep breath, stepped out of the bus and was immediately greeted by my former coworkers.  We hugged, shook hands, laughed and talked about all that has happened in our lives since we last spoke in person (thanks to the wonders of Facebook, I've been able to remain in contact with my coworkers since my first visit).  It was seamless.  Perfect.  Even better than I imagined.  Kenchanahalli - the people, the surroundings, and the organization - owns a special place in my heart.  And it feels wonderful to be welcomed back to my Indian home away from home.

We stopped for lunch at Hosahalli, where SVYM's semi-residential school for tribal children is located. These were some of the schoolgirls who wanted their picture taken.  They had such big, beautiful smiles - but they quickly disappeared when the picture was being taken!

At the Kabini River backwater.  In non-Monsoon months, herds of elephants live in the forest surrounding the backwater.  Too bad we weren't here 2 months earlier!

Carnatic Classical Music

Tonight SVYM arranged for a private, classical Indian music concert for all of the students from Cornell, the University of Iowa and Mt. Allison University currently studying at their Vivekananda Institute of Indian Studies. We had the privilege of having world-renowned classical violinists and percussionists first explain the history and art of Indian classical music, followed by a breathtaking concert. Outside of church (and once last summer in a Sikh gurdwara), I have never listened to music that was so spiritual, moving and emotive. Words can't ever convey the energy, passion and talent that these musicians shared with us this evening. We all left completely energized and unable to enunciate what we had just experienced.

There are two main streams of Indian classical music, Hindu classical music (more prevalent in North India) and Carnatic classical music (more prevalent in South India), both of which have been performed for the past 1500 years. Traditionally, Carnatic classical music does not involve violins, as they were only introduced approximately 200 years ago when the British governed India. However, the violin has been adapted for use in Indian music - violinists sit cross-legged with the violin perched between their shoulder and right ankle, providing sufficient stability for the constant vibrato and slides used in their music. Watching the Mysore Brothers (the name of the violinist duet) perform was so amazing - I felt myself smiling throughout the entire concert.

The percussionists - one on a drum, the other on a traditional clay pot instrument - were the most entertaining. They were so expressive - their faces scrunched with their eyes bulged and unblinking as their bodies seized when they pounded their instruments. It was phenomenal.

Deja Vu

It is so wonderful to be back with SVYM in Mysore!

The past few days have been filled with deja vu moments - while two years have passed since I last visited, everything still feels so familiar. It's a strange mix of similarities and differences... the physical is almost the same, with the exception of a number of beautiful renovations at SVYM's Vivekananda Institute of Indian Studies (VIIS), but the intangibles are so different. When I visited last, I had never traveled this far away from home on my own, and never to a resource-poor environment for an extended period of time. I was unsure of myself, my goals and abilities, and how I would both navigate and handle being immersed in a culture so different from my own.

And yet, despite all of these initial concerns, I found a way to thrive in ambiguity, to communicate across language barriers and came to both respect and admire the deeply spiritual, sense-filling world that is this little part of India. It was here, at SVYM, that I began to discover myself for the first time. And in turn, these discoveries shaped my last two years at Cornell and continues to contribute to the opportunities and experiences that come my way. It feels incredibly fitting to return to the place that catalyzed my personal growth and transformation immediately after graduation. I've come full-circle, and I can't wait to see what the next chapter has in store for me. Bring it on, world... I'm ready!

We were all smiles after some successful sari shopping at the same store from 2 years ago!

A Return Voyage

Today marks the day I have been longing for for two years now... Today is the day that I begin my return journey to Karnataka state, in southern India.  Two summers ago, I had the incredible opportunity to travel to Karnataka with the Cornell Global Health Program and participate in a global service learning program in collaboration with the Swami Vivekananda Youth Movement (SVYM) for eight weeks.  With a team of my fellow students, we toured the sights of Mysore district, took classes on Indian culture and civilization, attended coworkers' weddings and ate delicious street food.  But most importantly, we worked alongside a team of inspiringly dedicated and passionate individuals at SVYM.  And through this work, I was exposed to the most awe-inspiring, spiritual and culturally-rich country I have ever visited.  India completely captivates me.  And I am so fortunate to be returning!  Naanu hogi baruthini, Ontario... Namascara, Karnataka!

Communication Blackout!

Sorry for the lengthy period of time since my last blog post!  Wow - a month goes by so quickly!  The internet here has been pretty patchy, but as they say here, "it works when it works." It's hard to believe that I've been here for over 5 weeks already, and in about 3 more weeks I'll be back home. It's been another great summer so far!

This is a teaser for my upcoming post about my trip to see Victoria Falls (or Mosi-Oa-Tunia, "the smoke that thunders") a couple of weekends ago... it was the absolute highlight of my trip so far!

Adventures in the Zambian Marketplace

In an attempt to get out of our very preserved Western-lifestyle-bubble within Zambia, this weekend we decided to venture out more into the Lusaka community… and what better way to experience Zambian culture and lifestyle than through the marketplace?

One of the many side streets of the Kamwala shopping district.  This particular street was lined with shops selling fabrics for clothing, upholstery and drapes.

On Saturday morning, we met our friend Rhodha in Kamwala, the main shopping district in Lusaka, to shop for African fabrics.  Here, many women wear beautifully printed fabrics as skirts, or chitenges, on a daily basis, so each of us was hoping to purchase some such fabric to bring home.  When Rhodha described the shop to us, I pictured this cute little specialty shop located on some street, just like all the clothing shops at home… but that was definitely not the case with this shop!  Kamwala is a huge, sprawling market district with potholed-red-dirt roads (some of them were more like craters than holes) and a sea of people, cars and merchandise.  According to our driver, Immanuel, the shopping district is divided into many different parts, each with a particular focus (fabrics, groceries or housewares), and even has country-specific sections – such as Indian, Chinese and Tanzanian shops.  Immanuel is quite the character though, so I’m not sure if he was just making it up or not!  We wandered through numerous fabric shops looking at all of the different chitenge fabrics – there was such a huge variety that it was difficult to choose!  In each shop, the selection was slightly different, but ranged from religious to geometric to floral to animal prints and even to soccer teams and Bob Marley or Pokemon-themed.  Each of us (or at least each of the girls) left Kamwala with at least a few meters of beautiful chitenge fabric… now I just need to figure out what to make with mine!  It was so exciting to be able to see how Zambians live in Lusaka on a regular basis – to see the hair shops, the dried fish stands and the displays of Zambian Chipolopolo (the national soccer team) merchandise… I absolutely loved it!

My favourite chitenge shop that we visited!  All four walls were lined with coded pieces of cloth that were grouped according to price.  In order to find the ones that we liked, we stood in the middle of the floor and turned in circles until we found the ones we were interested in while people pushed their way to the counter and shouted their orders from the back of the room... it was so much fun!

And So the Work Begins!

Over the past few days, Mohit and I have begun our assignments at UNZA (the University of Zambia).  For the summer, we have been assigned a few main tasks to be completed before we finish at the end of July… and this week we have begun the assignment that we both feel the most excited and intimidated by.  UNZA offers a Short Course (3 weeks long) in Planning, Monitoring & Evaluation for professionals, so our main task for the summer is to conduct an evaluation of the Short Course from the perspective of employers of former graduates of the program.  Along with our two Zambian co-workers, Rhodha and Edgar, we are trying to contact as many employers as possible and then meet with them to conduct individual interviews.  We hope to ascertain from each interview whether the Short Course provides enough knowledge and applicable skills in the areas of Monitoring and Evaluation (for project and program implementation in both the non-profit and for-profit sectors).

Mohit and I outside of the Intercontinental Hotel, the nicest hotel in Lusaka.  The hotel is also the location of the Zambia branch of the Centre for Disease Control (CDC) - and this picture was taken after our first meeting at the CDC, where we were discussing another continuing education course called Epidemiology for Data Users that is currently offered at both the Zambian provincial and the district level.

By the end of the next two weeks, we hope to have completed all of the data collection – and each of us are going to visit as many employers as possible in order to assist UNZA in making any modifications to the Short Course itself.  So far, the organizations we are going to be interviewing are highly varied and are really interesting!  This week, Mohit and I are going to visit the Anti-Corruption Commission, the Foundation for Democratic Processes, the Ministry of Health, the Justice for Widows and Orphans Project and the Society for Family Health – so each of those visits are going to be experiences in and of themselves!

In our little global health family, we have developed a routine of eating dinner, then sitting at the table for hours, just talking and playing cards.  So we have been on the lookout for a different activity to fill our evenings - and when Mo saw a man selling Monopoly on the side of the road, he threw open the bus window and bought the game... turns out that it's completely counterfeit - and actually looks nothing like Monopoly.  The box depicts money in Franks, but the board depicts money in USD, while the money itself is in Zambian Kwacha.  hahahaha but at least we tried!