It's been over a month since I've been here- weird! I can't describe the feeling of waking up every morning and walking down the street to breakfast or my classes. Firstly, it's great that I blend in and no one really ever looks at me as if I'm out of the ordinary. But beyond that, walking by the man who sells chai and samosas on the corner of my road, as well as the same shoe polisher a little ways down and realizing that they recognize me and acknowledge me with a smile or a nod-- it's an awesome feeling. I've never really stopped and talked to them but we seem to have some type of odd friendship and I can't help but smile each time I walk past.
India's really starting to become incredible and it's been a great feeling to finally have a routine here. But October is a couple days away and that's when things start to become super hectic. The first weekend of October, I'm going to a national park and 'roughing it' (according to my professor) with my environmental perspectives class (I feel like there'll be stories to tell after this). Then the entire group is going to Mumbai about a week and a half later. And just a week later after that, I'm off to Hyderabad for travel week! By the time I come back, it'll be November.
In other news, this past week on Tuesday, my environmental class went to the Bhaja caves about 1.5 hours outside of Pune. These were Buddhist caves from 2nd century B.C. Back in the day, these caves were a major stopping point for Greeks who came to get their wives pretty jewelry and silk! The caves were also along a very important trade route that started from the Arabian sea, which is why they were of such great importance.
On Thursday, we had the opportunity to meet with the head of the Corporate Social Responsibility sector from the 5th largest wind energy company in the world- Suzlon. I have to admit it was pretty bizarre seeing a GORGEOUS building smack dab in the middle of an area that had slums and shacks off to the side. And so a lot of people thought that it was ridiculously wasteful. However, I also have to say that for a company that has set their standards high and wants to make an international footprint, making a good impression for the outside world is a must. Also, as another student pointed out, if any of us had seen this type of building in the U.S. or in Europe, we wouldn't have thought twice about it. I completely agree with this point. The woman we met with told us a lot about various projects that Suzlon has started all over India in hopes of 'giving back' to the community. Hearing about all of them and seeing what type of work they have been doing impressed me a lot. I haven't seen this type of thinking very much in India thus far and from what I have heard- the idea of 'giving back' doesn't really exist for a lot of corporations here. However, Suzlon has taken several steps to ensure that the communities they are erecting wind turbines in aren't completely devastated as a result of their actions. For example, in Rajasthan (which is essentially a very windy and desert land), Suzlon has helped local villagers start the process of tree plantation. Through this process, there are now 85,000 surviving trees in Rajasthan & the growth of these trees are monitored daily. In Madhya Pradesh, Suzlon started a self help group of all women, in which the women are taught how to be strong and independent. They are given a voice and ultimately, they too, learn that they can do things on their own and not have to rely on others. In various states across India, Suzlon has also started a total of 446 schools in which young students are taught about the environment around them- what it is, why it's important, how to preserve it, etc. After hearing all of this and making sure that it's actually all true, I have to say I really enjoyed the opportunity of visiting the headquarters and learning things I had no clue about before.
Other than that, I did a ton of essay writing this past week, as well as errand-running. I finally set up a regular yoga time with an instructor. And today, after a long week, I went to a silk exhibition with a few friends and I am SO happy I went! The types of things that were being sold were absolutely gorgeous- from silk scarves, tops, kurtas, bags, jewelry, cooking utensils, decorations and soooo much more. The colors and beauty of it all was honestly overwhelming but I have to say I came out with some pretty awesome stuff-- all things I bargained for too! I also had a great time bonding with some of the vendors over the most random things. I realized that they are not all out to get the most money from you-- some of them are actually super friendly and love to talk about the things they do in their lives. For example, I met an awesome guy who, although is India, lived in Jamacia for 6 years. He told me about the amazing jerk chicken and how he was sadly, not able to find anything like it here (no surprise there). A few vendors, such as this man, really made me smile today and if it wasn't for them, I don't think today would have been such a great day.
The hot chai that I'm currently having as I type this is also helping, I must say. Tomorrow, all of us are headed to a tribal village about 8 hours away from Pune. There, we will be talking to the villagers, visiting their public health center as well as doing some other things we haven't really been told about yet (I've stopped asking questions and am just kind of rolling with it). But I'm sure that after my 3 days there, I will have lots of stories to tell.
Til next time! Love to whoever actually continues to read this thing :)
<3 Sai
India's really starting to become incredible and it's been a great feeling to finally have a routine here. But October is a couple days away and that's when things start to become super hectic. The first weekend of October, I'm going to a national park and 'roughing it' (according to my professor) with my environmental perspectives class (I feel like there'll be stories to tell after this). Then the entire group is going to Mumbai about a week and a half later. And just a week later after that, I'm off to Hyderabad for travel week! By the time I come back, it'll be November.
In other news, this past week on Tuesday, my environmental class went to the Bhaja caves about 1.5 hours outside of Pune. These were Buddhist caves from 2nd century B.C. Back in the day, these caves were a major stopping point for Greeks who came to get their wives pretty jewelry and silk! The caves were also along a very important trade route that started from the Arabian sea, which is why they were of such great importance.
The caves up close!
My environmental professor- being himself
On Thursday, we had the opportunity to meet with the head of the Corporate Social Responsibility sector from the 5th largest wind energy company in the world- Suzlon. I have to admit it was pretty bizarre seeing a GORGEOUS building smack dab in the middle of an area that had slums and shacks off to the side. And so a lot of people thought that it was ridiculously wasteful. However, I also have to say that for a company that has set their standards high and wants to make an international footprint, making a good impression for the outside world is a must. Also, as another student pointed out, if any of us had seen this type of building in the U.S. or in Europe, we wouldn't have thought twice about it. I completely agree with this point. The woman we met with told us a lot about various projects that Suzlon has started all over India in hopes of 'giving back' to the community. Hearing about all of them and seeing what type of work they have been doing impressed me a lot. I haven't seen this type of thinking very much in India thus far and from what I have heard- the idea of 'giving back' doesn't really exist for a lot of corporations here. However, Suzlon has taken several steps to ensure that the communities they are erecting wind turbines in aren't completely devastated as a result of their actions. For example, in Rajasthan (which is essentially a very windy and desert land), Suzlon has helped local villagers start the process of tree plantation. Through this process, there are now 85,000 surviving trees in Rajasthan & the growth of these trees are monitored daily. In Madhya Pradesh, Suzlon started a self help group of all women, in which the women are taught how to be strong and independent. They are given a voice and ultimately, they too, learn that they can do things on their own and not have to rely on others. In various states across India, Suzlon has also started a total of 446 schools in which young students are taught about the environment around them- what it is, why it's important, how to preserve it, etc. After hearing all of this and making sure that it's actually all true, I have to say I really enjoyed the opportunity of visiting the headquarters and learning things I had no clue about before.
Other than that, I did a ton of essay writing this past week, as well as errand-running. I finally set up a regular yoga time with an instructor. And today, after a long week, I went to a silk exhibition with a few friends and I am SO happy I went! The types of things that were being sold were absolutely gorgeous- from silk scarves, tops, kurtas, bags, jewelry, cooking utensils, decorations and soooo much more. The colors and beauty of it all was honestly overwhelming but I have to say I came out with some pretty awesome stuff-- all things I bargained for too! I also had a great time bonding with some of the vendors over the most random things. I realized that they are not all out to get the most money from you-- some of them are actually super friendly and love to talk about the things they do in their lives. For example, I met an awesome guy who, although is India, lived in Jamacia for 6 years. He told me about the amazing jerk chicken and how he was sadly, not able to find anything like it here (no surprise there). A few vendors, such as this man, really made me smile today and if it wasn't for them, I don't think today would have been such a great day.
The hot chai that I'm currently having as I type this is also helping, I must say. Tomorrow, all of us are headed to a tribal village about 8 hours away from Pune. There, we will be talking to the villagers, visiting their public health center as well as doing some other things we haven't really been told about yet (I've stopped asking questions and am just kind of rolling with it). But I'm sure that after my 3 days there, I will have lots of stories to tell.
Til next time! Love to whoever actually continues to read this thing :)
<3 Sai
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