Welcome to Delhi!

Delhi and Molar Bund

After a night of much needed sleep, we began our day with a passionate information presentation on India’s history and culture led by our trip facilitators, Tera and Anita. Following the presentation and lunch, we drove over to Molar Bund, a slum school in Delhi, where we toured and worked with the 12^th grade girls in setting up for the school wide carnival this Friday.

Our Global Ed. group is reading the novel Behind the Beautiful Forevers: Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity by Katherine Boo. The book notes how with increasing wealth, the Anawandi squatters’ sheet walls turn to brick ones, but, sadly, this transition rarely occurs. On our ride home from Molar Bund, I looked out the bus window to the curbside dwellings and noticed the crowded conditions. Some of the homes’ walls were sheets – others bricks. Seeing these homes brought Boo’s novel to life. At home, I could imagine the lack of privacy, the roaming livestock, and the stench caused by the lack of sanitation described in Boo's book. My imagination, however, could not fathom reality.

-Morgan McNair  

Photo Collages by Alison Cohen

Oneness

 

 

After our second breakfast in India, we started our day by piling into the bus and touring around New and Old Delhi. We visited many historic and religious sites, including the Jama Masjid mosque and the Baha’i temple. India, not being the only country to house a Baha’i temple, has one of the most fascinating ones. As the Lotus flower is an important symbol in many religions in India, the Indian Baha’i temple was built into the shape of the flower. In India, the outside of the Baha’i temple is pure white, while the inside, although simple, has beautiful tan and white patterns. While we walked around the information center with a volunteer from the temple, he informed us about the belief of oneness among different religions. As we sat inside the temple listening to prayers from different religions, I pondered this concept about oneness. Before we arrived in India, the nine girls on the trip were not all best friends, but as we started our Indian adventures, we have been able to discover oneness. Bonding through the heat of India, the difference of a new culture, and the struggles of Bollywood dancing, we have been able to find the oneness of friendship, similar to the concept of the oneness believed in the Baha’i temple.

 

Sarah Lasky

Modern School

Today we traveled between two vastly different worlds. We started our day by waking up at 5:45 in order to eat breakfast and travel to the Modern School. As we drove towards the Modern School, the scenery outside of the bus window changed right before our eyes. Tarps used as roofs for homes transformed into gated houses with beautiful balconies. Our jaws dropped as we walked into this school that felt out of place compared to the other parts of New Delhi we had seen the last two days. A welcoming party greeted us as well as a group of boys from Japan. While jasmine flowers were draped around our neck, and a symbolic candle was lit, we could not believe our eyes. We then walked into a theater and were in shock by how much what we were seeing reminded us of Holton. After watching an amazing assembly put on by 7th graders, we traveled upstairs where we began to bond with the Modern School students. Many of the students reminded us of ourselves, and none of us wanted to leave at the end of our visit. After exchanging names for Facebook, we boarded the bus and drove to Molarbund. It was breath-taking to witness the life in the slums after visiting the Modern School. While we prepared for the carnival we were setting up by sorting candy and toys into different groups based on what size prize they would be, we talked about how the Modern School students would never travel into the slums in order to do community service work. It was heart wrenching to watch the young girls at Molarbund play games that we set up for the carnival and lit up with joy when they won a small toy that normally would be a common household good in almost any of our or the Modern School students houses. Even though we wanted to stay and hang out with the Modern School students, I know we all felt good about the work we were doing at Molarbund. Even though the two schools were very different, we really enjoyed both of them and can’t wait to see what tomorrow at the Taj brings!
-Maggie Bosch

The Taj

After an early 4:15 AM wake up call, we boarded the train to Agra. In Agra, we had the privilege of seeing the magnificent Taj Mahal. To say that we were all awestruck at the beauty of the Taj Mahal was an understatement. All of the marble and stone work was so intricately done, and I was amazed how people built the Taj Mahal so long ago. We also visited many other places such as the Agra Fort. Our guide was able to give us insight into why each place was constructed, which I also found interesting. For example, the Taj Mahal was built as a memorial to the Mogul Emperor, Shah Jahan’s, wife. The Taj Mahal continues to symbolize the love they shared. It was interesting to see how each of the different places we visited memorialized the past. At the Taj Mahal and other tourist attractions in Agra, many beggars approached us. The look of desperation on the faces boys and girls from the ages of 5 to 60 was shocking and sad. I felt guilty when I would say no to “vendors” trying to sell me items for 100 Rupees (under $2), but at the same time, one of our facilitators, Tara, explained how much of the money given to beggars is actually given to a “mafia.” Although most of us did not purchase items from the beggars, we did contribute. On the early morning train, the hotel packed us a large breakfast that some of us did not eat, so we gave our leftover food to people outside of the train station. Our day was extremely busy and hard at some points, but it was an experience that none of us will ever forget.

Throughout our time in Delhi, we took three Bollywood dance classes. At first, Bollywood dancing seemed incredibly challenging and it seemed like some of us would never get it. Despite my lack of dancing ability and coordination, by the end, we were all able to dance all of the three dances that our instructor taught us. Our instructor, Sahej, was extremely personable and an amazing teacher. He contributed to making the dance classes something to look forward to, and we all had an amazing time. Although the classes were tiring (my back and my legs still hurt!), our group was able to bond over funny moments in Bollywood dance class. At the end of our last Bollywood dance class, we performed the three dances we learned to our trip coordinator, Anita, and Ms. Buko. Anita and Ms. Buko were so impressed by how quickly we picked up the Bollywood movements, and performing all of our new dance moves was a blast. I will never forget the experiences shared in Bollywood dance class, and for me at least, learning how to do Bollywood dances was one of the highlights of my trip. We all loved it so much that we are thinking about taking a Bollywood dance class back home! So far each day has been better than the next, and this trip has truly made me grateful for all I have. In addition, it has made me want to give back to less fortunate people to make a difference in the world.

 -Caroline Menkes

The Taj

After an early 4:15 AM wake up call, we boarded the train to Agra. In Agra, we had the privilege of seeing the magnificent Taj Mahal. To say that we were all awestruck at the beauty of the Taj Mahal was an understatement. All of the marble and stone work was so intricately done, and I was amazed how people built the Taj Mahal so long ago. We also visited many other places such as the Agra Fort. Our guide was able to give us insight into why each place was constructed, which I also found interesting. For example, the Taj Mahal was built as a memorial to the Mogul Emperor, Shah Jahan’s, wife. The Taj Mahal continues to symbolize the love they shared. It was interesting to see how each of the different places we visited memorialized the past. At the Taj Mahal and other tourist attractions in Agra, many beggars approached us. The look of desperation on the faces boys and girls from the ages of 5 to 60 was shocking and sad. I felt guilty when I would say no to “vendors” trying to sell me items for 100 Rupees (under $2), but at the same time, one of our facilitators, Tara, explained how much of the money given to beggars is actually given to a “mafia.” Although most of us did not purchase items from the beggars, we did contribute. On the early morning train, the hotel packed us a large breakfast that some of us did not eat, so we gave our leftover food to people outside of the train station. Our day was extremely busy and hard at some points, but it was an experience that none of us will ever forget.

Throughout our time in Delhi, we took three Bollywood dance classes. At first, Bollywood dancing seemed incredibly challenging and it seemed like some of us would never get it. Despite my lack of dancing ability and coordination, by the end, we were all able to dance all of the three dances that our instructor taught us. Our instructor, Sahej, was extremely personable and an amazing teacher. He contributed to making the dance classes something to look forward to, and we all had an amazing time. Although the classes were tiring (my back and my legs still hurt!), our group was able to bond over funny moments in Bollywood dance class. At the end of our last Bollywood dance class, we performed the three dances we learned to our trip coordinator, Anita, and Ms. Buko. Anita and Ms. Buko were so impressed by how quickly we picked up the Bollywood movements, and performing all of our new dance moves was a blast. I will never forget the experiences shared in Bollywood dance class, and for me at least, learning how to do Bollywood dances was one of the highlights of my trip. We all loved it so much that we are thinking about taking a Bollywood dance class back home! So far each day has been better than the next, and this trip has truly made me grateful for all I have. In addition, it has made me want to give back to less fortunate people to make a difference in the world.

 -Caroline Menkes

"My life is my message" -Mahatma Gandhi

Hi everyone!
It's Alison. We're having a spectacular time here in INDIA.

Today was a very fun day. Breakfast at the hotel consisted of puffed naan, chole, porridge, and tea. Then we headed off to meet an Indian textile and clothing designer. We all tried on saris. The designer talked about how her designs were a fusion of tradition and modernity (a main theme we are focusing on this trip!). Some call America the melting pot of cultures - India too is a melting pot. However, India is a melting pot of maintaining traditions and exploring new ideas, the lifestyles of the old blending with the new generation, and the struggle to maintain one's faith and culture while assimilating to the modern era.

After meeting with the designer we headed off to see the Mahatma Gandhi Museum, located at the site where he was shot and killed. One of the quotes from Gandhi that really resonated with me is "my life is my message." Similar to his "be the change you want to see in the world," Gandhi's quote inspires me to take charge of my own life to help people in need on a mass scale. We were amused and slightly embarrassed by the irony in the day - here we were appreciating Gandhi's message of simplicity and asceticism, yet we had our big shopping day today. On our way back to the hotel from the museum, our guide, Thomas, showed us pictures of his family. We love Thomas.

After lunch, we went shopping at an outdoor market. We tried our hand at bargaining, although Thomas was much better than all of us. Although bargaining was fun and expected by the vendors, I thought about how haggling for what might be a few cents to us could really make a huge difference for the people selling the items. 100 rupees may be 2 dollars to us, but it could buy a child a few more meals. At many of the stands, children sitting with their parents pressured us to buy another item. However, the pressure was nothing compared to the begging we experienced at the Taj yesterday. There, each one of us had multiple children following us, begging us to look at their face and buy the items they were selling.Tara told us that these children often be long to mafias where they may get to keep 1 rupee of the 10 they collect.

After the outdoor market, we had a long talk with Tara debriefing our past few days. We discussed poverty and the begging we experienced at the Taj. Everyone who visits India says the intense poverty situated next to all the wealth is unbelievable and overwhelming, but you really can't understand it until you're here. Going into the trip, Morgan and I knew the statistics about the huge income gap in India as we had done an APES and history project on it - 836 million people live below the poverty line whereas India has the fourth most amount of billionaires in the world totaling 55, 52 rupees approximately converts to one dollar, etc, etc. However, seeing the hundreds of people begging for a few cents at one of the most grandiose buildings in the world really made it come to life. We discussed how we wish we could support all of them, but the numbers just seem so overwhelming.

Finding a way to provide education to the masses and providing clean water will be what leads India to further development and brings solutions to these struggles. On the education front, I wonder which path in life would be best: directly educating the kids at Molar Bund, who wouldn't have a chance otherwise, or educating the girls at The Modern School, who could be the future leaders of the country and could bring change to many more people. That is not to say one is more important than the other - both are necessary for a thriving society. I believe that our generation has the potential to solve many of these problems and the Millennium Goals. Just one person can accomplish so much, and Holton provides us with the tools necessary to successfully contemplate viable solutions to many of these problems. The Modern School is also so similar to Holton that we could establish some type of collaboration while in school to make a big difference here. I just wish we were in India longer so we could make more of a direct difference while here. It may sound naive and idealistic to believe that we can completely eradicate poverty, hunger, or war, but, drawing inspiration from one of my favorite quotes, those who think they can change the world are the ones that do. The Holton Global Ed program is a wonderful introduction for Holton girls to find compassion for others in our globalized world and to remove ourselves from the DC bubble.

After our discussion with Tara, we went for our final session of Bollywood dancing with our choreographer and best friend, Sehaj. After dancing we had dinner and packed our bags. Tomorrow we head off to Amritsar!

- Alison
PS - He in Many other mysticalities Makes insightful sayings - said Your own understandings