Manalar papparazzi

We took a refreshing Sunday break during our first weekend at ASSA, by hiring a driver and heading up into the hills of the Western Ghat Mountains, where Tamil Nadu meets Kerala. We wound through tiny villages with thatch-roofed huts, and oxes pulling carts. Sometimes, the car had to drive through the river to continue (a good spot for a carwash!)

We crossed into Kerala, and were greeted by a giant waterfall, and a lot of Indians taking their own vacation days who were thrilled to see tourists so far into the countryside. There were long lineups to climb into the waterfalls, and along the way, we had many people ask to take our photos with them and shake their hands. In fact, it became so hectic that at one point we felt like celebrities being chased by papparazzi, and we had to make a physical escape.  People seemed to be in great spirits because they were beating the heat.

Randy climbed the hill to the male section, and a couple of nice Indians showed him the best place to stand in the waterfall, where the water thunders down on your head and shoulders. The crowd was jubilant. Indian boys would stack themselves into standing human pyramids 3 stories high before they crashed into the water. A group of guys lifted Randy over their heads and carried hiim into the waterfall. dy was picked up by a bunch of young guys and carried into the waterfall.

The girls had to fight through a frenzy of pushing women to gain access to a smaller pool below, where, they noted, they were bathing, fully-clothed, in the runoff from the mens section! Female Keralan police officers were blowing whistles and trying to direct people out of the waterfall to keep the flow of people moving.

We followed the waterfall by driving up another hill, winding past palm and fruit trees and emerging at a temple with a stunning view of the countryside in all directions. We saw rolling green farms, windmills and jagged mountains. Altogether, the drive into the mountains was exhilarating and worth the journey from town.

ASSA - The First 5 Days

On Monday, June 25, we officially arrived at ASSA.  We packed a lot into the first 5 days, including, for most of us, our first bouts of Indian food poisoning.  They call it 'Delhi belly', although Delhi is now a world away from us.  Tamil Nadu was literally a blast of fresh air from the second we stepped off the plane at Madurai.  The breezes were a cool relief from the heat of Delhi, and palm trees in the distance hinted that we had arrived in the tropical south.  

Ram, a physiotherapist at ASSA, was nice enough to pick us up at the airport in Madurai, a 3-hour drive each way.  This was my first sight of rural India and it was a different experience from the city, although still busy and with equally aggressive traffic.   On

Tuesday, we were given our welcoming tour of the ASSA grounds, and were very impressed with the diversity of facilities offered to the disabled here.  There is a medical treatment unit for spinal cord patients, a home for children with developmental issues, an integrated school at which these children participate with other kids from the community, a vocational training centre, and early intervention program.  We were also impressed by the workshop in which calipers are fashioned for residents.  Clearly ASSA, which thrives entirely on donor money, has built something special out of the resources they have.

We met some kids from the school and were swarmed immediately.  I literally had a boy on each arm and one crawling up my torso.  These kids want little more than to trade a few words in English and maybe a photo, and they are ecstatic.  We are also lucky to have Brooke and Andrea here, a couple of physiotherapy students from UBC who are showing us the ropes so that we can learn a lot of things the easy way.  We're all very excited to be spending the next few weeks here.

Delhi Meet

How many official government tourist offices are there in Delhi?  We now know there are about 15 fake official government tourist offices, at least that is how many we saw, and one real one.  Often they are tucked beside shops with signs proclaiming "Money changers - Full fledged!" and offering alternatives to the tours we request.  Sometimes you have to step over piles of scaffold pipe and street dogs to enter them.  How do we know this?  On Saturday night, after two 8-hour flights, the IHI team of 2013 landed in Delhi!

We immediately embarked on what was the most alarming car ride of my life.  Courtney, Sonika, and Jenn, having travelled through big, developing-world cities, were less phased by the honking deluge of vehicles cramming into some of the world's most competitive streets, careening through markets within inches of pedestrians, sometimes cows, and motorcyclists carrying entire families complete with sari'd women and newborn babies.  The quirks of driving in Delhi could easily fill an entire blog post, but that wouldn't leave room for 36-degree night-time temperatures, ancient temples, or market haggling.

Nor would it leave room for scam artists.  On Sunday morning, there were very few tourists in Connaught Place, the commercial heart of Delhi.  That made us conspicuous targets of smooth-talking scammers who attempted to appear helpful as they tried to direct us to various tourist scams that they were connected to.  Eventually, we got our bearings (after our first Indian pit-stop….Starbucks) and found the Hop On Hop Off tour bus, which took us to some of Delhi's historic forts and temples.  Having survived the 40 degree heat, adjusted to the hyper-pace of India, and even practiced a little bit of market haggling for jewelry and souvenirs, we boarded a plane for the cooler, breezier airs of Tamil Nadu…

More than $7000!

That is how much money was raised for the India Health Initiative through Evening in India on Friday!  We’d like to thank everyone who came out for our event.  The performers and the audience both brought enormous energy to the show.  Some of us still have the music echoing in our heads, and the joy that the dancers ignited for us.

The money we raised will go towards the 3 NGO’s we visit, and covering the vital expenses that make this trip possible for us.  Thank you again to everyone for their support. 

A special thanks is due to those people who volunteered the time to make the show possible, including our decorators, ticket sellers, food vendors, and stagehands.  Also, to everyone who put in countless hours of preparation to make this event possible, including Dr. Bhooma Bhayana, Dr. Chitra Prasad, and Dr. Bo Venkatesan.

This year's Evening in India is scheduled for Friday, April 5, 2013!  Email indiahealth@gmail.com or call Jenn at 226-980-8806 to reserve tickets.