On 'Indian Time'

We volunteers like to joke with each other a lot about what time a meeting will start, or we will get home, or something important will get done. There's normal time- the time that we have said that a meeting needs to start, or a project has to be finished by. And then there's India time.

India runs on a very different time from what I am used to- the 'when I feel up to it' time. Often I go to a meeting or a class at the time it is supposed to start... and find no one there. Three hours later someone might saunter in and say "Yes, yes. Meeting in 15 minutes!". Of course, by "Meeting in 15 minutes!" they actually mean "3 hours from now... and oh, by the way, it's also changed locations. The meeting is across town and you're going to have a hard time finding a rickshaw."

At first I would get a little irritated. A deadline is a deadline! But people here seem so much more relaxed, so much more happy, running on Indian time. Stress-free for them. Very stressful for me! Now I've learnt to relax (slightly), enjoy a cup of chai, and work on my next project.

Obviously, in order to relax properly, I had to go to Goa

The only thing that does run on time here are the monsoons. 


I came to India in the middle of monsoon season, expecting to get showered with rain. Instead it's been extremely pleasant... until now.  The monsoon clouds are slowly retreating, leaving flooded streets and rivers of water behind. Every night, like clockwork, they start at 6:00pm. Once it came a little early and I was caught outside unaware- in less than a second I was completely drenched. You couldn't even breathe, there was so much water in the air!

Diwali Lamps on sale! You can find them everywhere... the monsoon rains don't seem to deter anyone from celebrating

When I talk to people back home, I'm invariably always asked what I do at Deep Griha.

 The simplest answer is "I have no idea!". Indian Time also means that every day is different at Deep Griha- there is no concrete schedule that anyone sticks to. One day I might be helping to run HIV bootcamps at various drug rehab centres, women's empowerment programs, or schools. The next day I could be in rural India teaching drama, or visiting HIV positive clients with DISHA ladies, or in the office filling out grant application forms.

A few things are certain in my schedule: I always spend at least two days (now usually my entire week) at Deep Griha's school, the City of Knowledge. I initially was supposed to be the drama teacher at City of Knowledge but instead I appointed myself to help out two of the children who need a lot of individual attention.

The older kids at City of Knowledge starting off the day with the National Anthem

One of the girls, N., has been diagnosed with ADHD. But I’m convinced that the problem is less nature and more nurture. She has a lot of difficulty paying attention is class- I suspect she might be dyslexic or autistic- and consequently spends a lot of her time misbehaving. As soon as she gets positive individual attention, she has no problem in settling down and can focus for hours quite happily. Unfortunately, many of the children and teachers are afraid of her. Some of them have told me in private that they believe she is possessed by the devil, and should be exorcised. A few times she has come in to school extremely ill because ‘doctors’ have made her drink chicken’s blood or dance under the full moon.

The other boy, A., has movement difficulties. His feet are deformed, he has a lot of problems with his eyesight, and his back is hunched. He can’t stand straight, and walking is a huge struggle for him. He has problems going to the bathroom so the children avoid being near him because he smells of pee. He has little hand dexterity so no one has given him books or pencils. A lot of the time when I get to the school I find that he has spent the entire day starting at the wall, alone, with little to do. He is 12 years old, but in First Grade. I think a lot of people associate his physical disabilities with some sort of mental problem, but he's a very bright child.

My goal is to increase the level of positive interaction between the teachers and the two children. The teachers are completely overwhelmed trying to help two children who need constant one-on-one help: they tell me they don't get trained to deal with children who have disabilities at all. 

My second goal is to help create a program for N. and A. so that they can learn in their classes. The problem is that whatever I do needs to be sustainable- working directly with the children is tricky because I don’t want them to be attached. Instead of traveling, I’m going to spend the rest of my time in India making sure that what I do will be lasting so that the teachers will be prepared for the future.

Whenever I go to the City of Knowledge I always have two options ahead of me at the end of the day: take the long, hot, crowded bus ride back to Pune, or stay at the City of Child with some of Deep Griha's sponsored children.

The City of Child is close to the school. You hitch a very bouncy ride back with the Deep Griha children who are getting driven back to City of Child. On the ride there is hardly any signs of human life- an occasional brick factory (always accompanied with the heart-wrenching sight of children playing with the brick dirt), or a sugar cane factory. There are just rows and rows of rice paddies and sugar canes.

We squeeze a lot of people in one tiny bus!

Eventually, after a particularly bumpy part, you reach the City of Child. Enshrined in trees, and constantly filled with the laughter of children, it's a small paradise on earth.

It also has really, really good food. City of Child grows most of the food that gets eaten- the rest is sold, to help the program be more sustainable.

Fields of sugar canes: you can see the factor in the background which makes white sugar for Western countries

Since I'm not planning on doing a huge amount of travelling, I've recently entrusted one of my close local friends, Shirish, with being in charge of my 'India experience'.


True to his word, he has taken me to many local restaurants, street vendors, and local spots- places that I would never, ever go to otherwise. 


He recently took me to a local hospital, and I have vowed to never, ever get sick in India again (more on being sick later). Cats wandered freely around the rooms, and I arrived when 'live surgical demonstrations' were being preformed. We passed by several wards- each one was packed with well over two hundred beds placed inches apart, with at least four wards on each floor.  The surgery room that we saw was separated from the hall- and many people dozing on the ground- by a curtain.  Shirish told me later that it was a government-run hospital. It was nighttime when we went, and most of the hospital was badly-lit or dark (but surgeries were still ongoing... I gather that power cuts are frequent, and sometimes doctors perform surgery with flashlights and lamps!).  I saw very few nurses and doctors while we were there- I can't imagine how they manage to see all of the patients. 


Shirish has also been very insistent that I see places outside of Pune. A few weekends ago we went up to Panchgani, a tiny paradise nestled at the top of one of Maharashtra's many hills. Getting there was a challenge for me (involving going to the wrong public bus station and wander around, lost, for hours), but it was well worth it:

The tablelands in Panchgani- my new favourite picture!

The view was worth the sweaty hike! My hotel room view was very similar

Tablelands at Panchgani

Monkeys!

The next stop on the 'India Experience' is a very quick trip to Kashmir and the 'Golden Triangle': Jaipur, Agra, and Delhi. I'm off on Thursday night... and my next blog post will update you on Goa, Kashmir, Jaipur, Agra, and Delhi!