First, a friend told me that my blogs make it sound like I am entirely miserable and unhappy here. This is not true. If it has sounded this way it is only because I tend to write the most frustrating things first and then I go on to the good. The days surrounding my time in the hospital were definitely miserable, but since then I have been having a great time. I am really enjoying my time in India! It is difficult for me in the sense that I am constantly reminded here of the poverty and need. Its present everywhere and that is hard for me to see. I care very much about people; therefore, there is always this reminder at the back of my mind. Despite this, I think India is amazing. It is so interesting. The people are kind and very interested in me and in the U.S.. There is culture here that goes far beyond the creation of our constitution. I also really like most of the volunteers I work with. The three I hung out with today are 3 of the most positive people I’ve ever met. It’s encouraging and inspiring to be around these people. I love exploring India and talking to the people.
Also, I wanted to clarify why I am here. For me, there are several reasons. First, as this blog suggests, I am here to do research on NGOs and how they work in India. I am curious about whether the services they provide truly would not be provided without their presence here. So far I think this is so. I am especially interested in the topic of NGOs because I am considering working with some type of NGO(s) after Wofford. I also have been very interested in India and Indian culture for some time now, especially as I’ve learned of the rising importance of the country in world affairs. Additionally, I like to volunteer. I want to do as much volunteer work as possible throughout my life. People are the most important part of life and it’s amazing how much a person a can do to impact others. I am here for more than one reason and I am gaining insight in each area. I have lots of meetings next week for my project. Of course I am doing volunteer work here as well. The research and work also show me whether or not I want to do this type of work in the future. Of course through this all I am learning about Indian people and culture.
PERFECT DAY
With this cleared up, I’d like to tell you about my perfect day. Today I slept in, which was much needed! I woke up and took my time getting ready and organizing my life. After a relaxing but productive morning I had lunch then went out with 4 other volunteers to Dilli Haat, a market I went to earlier in the week. I got several things for great prices. I actually kind of enjoy haggling for items. It makes me feel like I am getting a good deal. I think I’m pretty good at it. This market is government regulated so it is super clean and very organized. Its beautiful! There are bright colors all over from the fabrics, purses, knick knacks, and various other goods. There are these incredible shoes there and tons and tons of cashmire and pashmir scarves in tons of patterns, with colored elephants, frames, bangles, saras, purses and bags, etc. Foreigners often come through it and the shop owners spot them immediately and beg them to come see their items. They try so hard to sell you as much as possible and set really high prices. They ask questions about where we are from and why we are here. People stare.
After this we went to a neat shop called for Soma with lots of clothing, blankets and other things made of cloth. Then, nearby were the Lodhi Gardens. It was really neat because it was cleaner and nicer than the rest of the city, plus there were ruins from old buildings of Mughal architecture. It was great. My friends thought I was a dork because I took a lot of pictures. I love architecture, especially stuff like this which was built in the 1600s! I think the Mughal architecture is incredible…it is where Humayun’s Tomb (which I saw last week) and the Taj Mahal came from. It was nice to take a walk in a green park. When I got back, after fitting 5 people in one auto-rickshaw (those things barely fit 3 people comfortably they are tiny!) we ate dinner. While we sat around the table Danika said “Oh! This is what a perfect day feels like!” and we all agreed. We had a great time chatting and exploring.
After dinner I began to do research for my project. I received an email about an appointment tomorrow with a man named Prashant who owns a store which sells the goods created by women from NGOs. I will meet with him tomorrow at 6 pm at his shop which is nearby. I have researched each of the NGOs I will be interviewing staff members from and working on my questions. I am also trying to get an appointment with someone from the YMCA in New Delhi. Just today one of my roommates who has been ehre for almost 3 months gave me a new contact. This person works with Nirantar which is an NGO that researches how effective other NGOS are. It primarily focuses on analyzing NGOs that give microloans to women from what I understand. My last week here is going to be a race to the finish, but I will also have all day Saturday of next weekend so I think its possible to get stuff done!
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