Saturday 27 December 2008
Christmas!!
All the ingredients were there for the least Christmas-like Christmas. In India people barely have a clue about how Christmas is celebrated, as only a very small fraction of the population is Christian. The fake tree we had put up in the corner of the living room looked pathetic and the 20 degrees weather outside, something that everyone is very happy with by the way, did not generate any cozy snowy December feelings. The guy who was supposed to cook for us backed out the day before the 25th and I figured we were left over with ordering food as usual.
How well it all worked out in the end! With the whole living room decorated with Christmas attributes, the fake snow spread out all over (sent by my mom, thanks! : )), the Christmas tree lit up, covered by fake snow and with all the presents around it.. A long dining table where twenty-five people were sitting at, and a great lot of native dishes prepared by all of us that made the whole thing complete. The sky-radio Christmas top hundred playing in the background was the cherry on the cake. We had a great dinner and an equally great gift sharing. I think the picture says it all.. : )
Tuesday 23 December 2008
Magician Hamid
Friday 19 December 2008
One day, three religions
Tuesday 16 December 2008
Jaipur Baby!
Jaipur is the capital of the biggest Indian state of Rajastan and is nicknamed ‘the Pink city’. Origin of this is the pink / red colour of the buildings in the old centre, painted in this shade to honour some British monarch upon his visit a couple of centuries ago. The city is perfect for a weekend trip, as the close proximity to Delhi makes it easy to reach and the sightseeing can easily be done within two days.
The journey back and forth by local bus is something I have gotten used to by now, a token of my integration in this subcontinent. Overcrowded streets were, in contrast to Delhi, mainly used by non-motorised vehicles and the classic bicycle rickshaw still flourishes in Jaipur, whereas in Delhi they are almost completely extinguished. Also representatives of the Animal Kingdom are more present in this city compared to the capital. :D
Most impressive during the weekend was the trip to Amber Fort; the journey uphill by elephant and the great view from the fortressed foothills surrounding the castle. Apart from the standardized version of the city palace that can be found in every town this fort was worth visiting and represents somewhat what one would expect of the ancient India. Of course the elephants only added to this image. ;)
On one of the platforms our version of the ‘Benny Lava’ dance was shot, though we had to add the music afterwards. Please enjoy this high quality dancing. :)
Thursday 11 December 2008
POORVA
Poorva is the counselor at Kalakar Trust, which implies that she is responsible for problem solving regarding the students of the school as well as for community issues, like clashes between relatives or groups in the slum. Often counseling sessions are held in her office, the room is then crowded with locals from the slum who tell her their version of the occurred trouble.
Monday 8 December 2008
Kalakar Performance
All students were beautifully dressed up, as you can see in the picture on the left. The spectator seats were overcrowded with students, family, teachers and random people who wanted to watch the show. The result was a big blend of the brightest colours, something you don’t run into every day in Europe. In the picture below you see me among my students and one flat mate of mine here from Turkey.
As of now it is Tuesday and afternoon has just reached. Since it’s a national holiday today (Eid is a Muslim festival) most people don’t have to work, except for the few unlucky ones who work for big companies. I plan to go for some running soon, the massive lack of sports to practice here is not all too beneficial for my health. ;) Let’s see how this will work out!
Friday 5 December 2008
Auto-rickshaws
Personally I cannot afford daily drives by auto towards my job and back due to the large distance I have to cover, but for whatever other purpose of transportation within Delhi the auto is actually the only option. It requires quite some skills to negotiate a decent price with the driver as they often refuse to ‘go by meter’. However, my baggy Indian clothing as well as the few words of Hindi that I have learned for this very purpose guarantee me rather good prices in general. And as you can see, quite some people fit in one auto with a bit of an effort ;)
Tuesday 2 December 2008
My school
As the main reason for coming to India was the voluntary work I do at the slum school I’d like to tell something about that as well. The school is located in the middle of a slum area in the very centre of Delhi. Every day I travel by public bus and metro for about two hours back and forth from my house in Kalkaji to the slum school. The journey is an experience in Indian culture all on itself, as I often find myself in overcrowded buses on the congested roads in New Delhi!
At the school I teach six classes a day varying in age, level of education and gender. In between the classes I help out people from the community and socialize with my colleagues and students. I feel fully accepted and appreciated by everyone and it will not be easy to leave the school in January, as it really feels like a place I have come to belong to. In the pictures you can see the construction of new classrooms as well as some of my students.
As of now I write this story from my house in Kalkaji, my unconcerned eating behaviour has finally resulted in me in getting ill and thus I am not able to work today. But that is all worth it, as I really get to experience the true India! :)
Monday 1 December 2008
Aiesec conference
On Saturday night we went by cab from the venue of the conference to a setting in East Delhi, where some guru from ‘the art of living foundation’ was giving a lecture. More interesting than the Hindi speech that the guy gave was the plus 1100 people sitar (Indian guitar) concert that was held, a new world record and to be registered in the Guiness book of records! Among the hundreds of Indian sitar players sat proudly my roommate Paulo from Brazil, what made the whole experience even more special. As you can see on the picture we were supporting him with all our might!
Tuesday 18 November 2008
Pushkar!
The stay in Pushkar was great, as a camel fair was being organized during that very period (actually our reason for going there in the first place) and we got to see 25.000 camels crowded together on a few patches of desert. The town itself is worth visiting as well, as it is considered as sacred by the Hindu religion there are about five hundred temples in and around the place. A lake is located at the very hearth of the city and one would almost feel like being in the India of one thousand years ago whilst overlooking the sunset at the roof of a temple.
Saturday 15 November 2008
Polish party
As for now I will go to the house of a colleague of mine, as she lost a bet that costs her a dinner!
Thursday 13 November 2008
Introduction
Hello!
Welcome to my blog! I am Tony, graduate in the bachelor program of International Economics and Finance and currently residing in New Delhi, India.
Via the international exchange program Aiesec I work for a NGO called Kalakar Trust (http://www.kalakartrust.org/). The organization seeks to protect the culture of Indian folk musicians, and part of that is the elementary school set up by the trustee of the organization. My role is to teach the children of the school English (mostly teenagers), which will enhance their chances of success in their later profession. The work is grateful and entertaining, and I truly enjoy working with the children.
Outside school hours there is plenty of time to enjoy the trainee life in Delhi and beyond, with regular parties and journeys that keep life varied. In later posts I will tell more about these undertakings by bus and train, great adventures where I truly get to know the real India! I live in an area of New Delhi called Kalkaji, in a nice apartment (picture) with about nine other trainees with roots from all over the world. The daily journey to the school takes about two hours and goes by the means of local bus, auto rickshaw and metro. Truly an insight in the Indian habits and customs as well!
I will post stories here at least twice a week, covering various issues of what I have experienced here, what is going on right now and what is planned for the future!