Six months in twelve pictures - Sarah Pole

After I finished my six months as the India Volunteer coordinator for DiA everybody I met asked me to describe the experience and it’s always been impossible to do so. It was one of the most fascinating, heartbreaking and rewarding things I have done but short of mumbling this sentence I have never been able to encapsulate it. So here are twelve photos I took of some of the people and places that were part of the experience.

1.) Dinner at 1st orientation.

This was taken on the last night of the volunteer orientation week in Pondicherry. Everyone really enjoyed visiting placements, and by the last night the volunteers were itching to get away and start working.

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2.) Joni, Sarah and Katie.

This was taken at the end of the epic 3 day train journey from Pondicherry to Udaipur, a little grubby and looking forward to a real bed! I did a lot of train travel as the co-ordinator and it is something I never stopped loving. On the major routes it is usually chaos in motion, families of four squeezed onto a sleeping space for one, children with monkeys asking for food, transvestite beggars, people walking up and down selling chai, coffee, pakoras, curry... plus the open doors and the interesting Indian style toilets!

3. This picture was taken in a village just outside Udaipur, near to the DiA placement. Despite or because of the economic 'miracle' that is happening in the cities in India, the standard of living in rural areas is staying the same or declining dramatically.

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4.This picture was taken in the same place. The girl shown, Jayana, was one of a family of 8 of which 2 or 3 had died before the age of 5.None of the children here go to school, there is a big problem of malnutrition and the well that the children are playing in provides the drinking and washing water for all the surrounding villages.

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5. This picture was taken on India day at Seva Mandir school for deaf and blind children in Indore.

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6. I took this picture when visiting DiA volunteer Tom at Seva Mandir in October. The school is a great success story. The children are well adjusted and cared for, and the school has ambitious plans to promote computer-aided learning and develop the life skills of all the children.

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7.) The Ganesh festival in Pondicherry.

During the orientation-week for the five month volunteers there was a festival for Ganesh, the Hindu god connected to success, wisdom and wealth. The festival is a merry affair with groups of people riding floats with Ganesh statues on them, throwing coloured flour ('gulal') and dancing while processing down the streets. At the end of the day the Ganesh statues are immersed in the sea to bring good luck.

8.) Mr. Murugan.

The DiA Tamil teacher in Pondicherry, he was a dedicated proponent of the Tamil culture and enthusiastic teacher of Tamil as well as working for children in the impoverished areas.

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9.) Chai-walla

This is one of the most typical sites in India. Although the coffee-chains are taking over in the cities, in most places you can get a hot, sweet cup of tea from a chai-wallah which they will pour from one glass to another to cool it down before serving it to you.

This chai-wallah, was in Mudumali National Park. Tom and I stayed there for two days and went on a six hour trek up one of the mountains. At the top there was a tea plantation and a shack where we were served chai with samosas and idly. It made all the walking worth it!

10.) Hampi

This picture was taken in the religious town of Hampi which I visited while travelling up to Mumbai. It is a beautiful, serene area with amazing temples and huge rock structures. The poet Rumi said "If heaven was made of rocks it would be Hampi"

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11.) A classic picture of one aspect of Indian culture.

A friend of mine, Jeetu, getting married in Udaipur. An Indian wedding is something not to be missed. But don’t worry, if there’s one happening within a five mile radius of you, you’d have to try pretty hard to miss it!

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12) I took this picture at an orphanage with over two hundred children and only five staff. It is a placement we are hoping to have DiA volunteers at next year. Despite the limited English of the staff, there is a great, positive energy to the place, and they have really grasped the DiA concept. It is also in a beautiful area, near a fishing community and one hour from Mumbai.