After several months of intense waiting, I recently received
a much anticipated letter from Project Trust telling me where I will be heading
next year!
I will be based close to Ongole, a town that sits 20km north
of my project on the coast of Andhra Pradesh. Ongole has a population of
400000, yet my lifestyle will be rural as the main roads quickly disappear into
backstreets frequented more by chickens and cow than lane of traffic.
My school, Sri Chaittanya (Geetanjali) School, in Tangutur has
both primary and secondary pupils, but I will be working in the primary and
nursery sections. The school does ask fees of many of the families, but it’s nothing
like you would imagine as it still lacks adequate facilities and is in quite an
old building. The school also has two buses which go out each morning and again
in the evening to collect and drop off students from the local area. Most of
the teaching is in ‘English Medium’ and I will have a very busy timetable teaching
English, Spoken English, Handwriting and General Knowledge. A lot of the
subjects will have textbooks which I can follow, but I definitely need to get
some practice back home in the UK first!
As I previously mentioned, there will also be opportunities
to set up extra-curricular activities. As with most school timetables in India,
P.E. is not included, so perhaps I will be able to do exercise with the children,
as well as activities in dance, drama, art and public speaking.
In terms of accommodation, I will share a basic room with my
partner (who I won’t meet until training!) upstairs from the Principal’s
office. Project Trust has warned me that the facilities are very basic and the
washroom facilities are not within the confines of my room. I will however be
fed at the schools and can look forward to traditional rice and curry!
My life will be mainly focussed on the state of
Andhra Pradesh, where most of Project Trust’s projects are based. Hyderabad,
its capital, is a massive urban centre, the fifth biggest city in India;
Vijayawada is its provincial cousin, and in between is a massive expanse of
overwhelmingly rural land. There I will have the chance to see flat fertile
plains and villages which have remained unchanged for years. There is a huge variety
of crops being grown, which help to support a very traditional lifestyle,
characterised by the Hindu religion that predominates, well defined gender
roles, and a warmth and regard for all others which will hopefully make me feel
at home.
Telegu is the language widely spoken by the state’s 75 million
inhabitants, and although English is widely spoken in the towns, learning
Telegu will be an important part of my year, as I am serious about creating new
social and professional opportunities for myself.
Unfortunately, I need to suppress all my excitement and
focus on my A Level Exams which is proving quite a challenge! I am looking
forward to two weeks’ time, when I can bury myself in literature about India in
general, the local religions and ways of life, and have a go at learning some
Telegu. Perhaps it will be also time to practise my cooking and cleaning skills,
as I won’t be able to use the ‘Revision’ excuse – the James family can expect
lots of Southern India inspired curries, I’ve heard the pooris, dosas and dhals
out there are to die for!
In the meantime, I am still raising some funds. I still have
over £1000 to go, but I would like to thank the Chichester Lions Club, the Chichester
Soroptimists and the Chichester Rotary Club for their generous donations. If
anyone has any fundraising ideas, please do let me know !
