At 4am Indian time on Tuesday 12th September, 20 tired and sticky
Project Trust volunteers arrived to Hyderabad airport to be welcomed by
our Assistant representative, who introduced himself as "This is
Abilash, Bhavari's son". After another hour in a van with our overloaded
bags strapped to the top we arrived in Secunderabad exhausted. The next
couple of days were spent resting and recovering (lots of sleeping!) as
well as trying out the local cuisine - as well as a couple of (very
spicy) pizzas. A tiring day of orientation was followed by a meal at
Bhavari and Sugathi's house (our rep and his wife) which really made me
feel like part of a family and it was strange to think that we would all
be going our separate ways.
The next evening Abi and I, along with two other volunteers, boarded a sleeper train to Ongole which was a bit of an adventure; with luggage bigger than us even getting on the train was a struggle! We braved the toilets (which was a hole onto the tracks), noticed a rat nibbling at our bananas, and finally attempted sleep in our tiny bunks surrounded by lots of loud snoring men. But we made it to Tangutur, and so far I am loving it! Our host, Ramana, is so friendly and helpful, even if he does do everything in Indian time. The village is bigger than we imagined and the bus stand area is full of shops which all seem to sell a mix of everything! But we know where to buy Sprite (14 rupees!) so at the moment we are happy!
The school is tiny with very limited resources, but I am really excited to start teaching some of the children who are always so smiley and bubbly - constantly waving and shaking our hands. The children use slates and chalk and there is very little paper. So far we have been 'observing' the younger classes, which has swiftly turned into teaching - saying nursery rhymes, spelling out words and teaching the alphabet. I was surprised and slightly shocked at the teaching style - the teachers seem to prefer to sit in the corner helping individual children rather than addressing the class. Their English is quite limited and they speak with thick Indian accents, so hopefully I can help them a bit too! The methods of discipline are also shocking; the slightest step out of line or mistake in an answer and the children are beaten on the head or back with a cane. It is hard to deal with because the teachers find it funny, and I am one of the teachers now. Disciplining the children in my classroom (they are so loud and excitable!) will be difficult, because they are so used to being slapped or caned. But I can't wait for a challenge and hope that the power comes back on soon so that I can get my timetable.
Ganesh's birthday tomorrow so we have a holiday - can't wait to experience my first festival!
P.S. Know lots of you have been pestering me for a blog update - the power here is on and off all the time so I never seem to be able to get access to the computer. Have found the internet cafe now though, so hopefully will update more regularly from now! Will add photos soon.
The next evening Abi and I, along with two other volunteers, boarded a sleeper train to Ongole which was a bit of an adventure; with luggage bigger than us even getting on the train was a struggle! We braved the toilets (which was a hole onto the tracks), noticed a rat nibbling at our bananas, and finally attempted sleep in our tiny bunks surrounded by lots of loud snoring men. But we made it to Tangutur, and so far I am loving it! Our host, Ramana, is so friendly and helpful, even if he does do everything in Indian time. The village is bigger than we imagined and the bus stand area is full of shops which all seem to sell a mix of everything! But we know where to buy Sprite (14 rupees!) so at the moment we are happy!
The school is tiny with very limited resources, but I am really excited to start teaching some of the children who are always so smiley and bubbly - constantly waving and shaking our hands. The children use slates and chalk and there is very little paper. So far we have been 'observing' the younger classes, which has swiftly turned into teaching - saying nursery rhymes, spelling out words and teaching the alphabet. I was surprised and slightly shocked at the teaching style - the teachers seem to prefer to sit in the corner helping individual children rather than addressing the class. Their English is quite limited and they speak with thick Indian accents, so hopefully I can help them a bit too! The methods of discipline are also shocking; the slightest step out of line or mistake in an answer and the children are beaten on the head or back with a cane. It is hard to deal with because the teachers find it funny, and I am one of the teachers now. Disciplining the children in my classroom (they are so loud and excitable!) will be difficult, because they are so used to being slapped or caned. But I can't wait for a challenge and hope that the power comes back on soon so that I can get my timetable.
Ganesh's birthday tomorrow so we have a holiday - can't wait to experience my first festival!
P.S. Know lots of you have been pestering me for a blog update - the power here is on and off all the time so I never seem to be able to get access to the computer. Have found the internet cafe now though, so hopefully will update more regularly from now! Will add photos soon.
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