Wednesday May 9 Panighata

Natalie and Jane with marigold and rice tilak

Jan, Sarah, Nicki and Jackie

We are entertained!

Jackie, Michelle and Nicki

Panigata students

Panigata students

Panigata students

This was our last full day in Panighata. Things started of with a bang; a terrific thunderstorm took out the power. It wasn't restored until early afternoon. We continue to teach our classes: sometimes we come back elated after really connecting with the students, other times we feel deflated because the lesson didn't work as well as we had hoped.

In the afternoon, the school held a farewell concert for us. We were escorted in with dancing from the tribal lands. The Nepalese students presented us with a scarf and placed a rice tilak on our foreheads. After the school sang us a welcome song, a series of musical, dance and comedy acts followed. We were invited up to the stage where we regaled our enthusiastic audience with "There was a Bear" and "The Banana Song". The show concluded with Natalie and the school rock group belting out "Summer of '69". We continue to be moved by the warmth of the students and staff of the school.

Les, Jan and Michelle walked to the Loreto Sisters house to use the internet. On leaving, we met up with Natalie, Nicki, Jackie and Sarah accompanied by Manoush and company who were taking us on the long promised walk to the "Jungle". On the way to the forest, we saw quite a few monkeys. The main feature of the walk was a steep climb. There was a spectacular view over the forest to Panighata and the Balasom River.  A few mosquito bites later were back into the village, reaching the school as the sun set. Jane continues to fight a nasty cough but Les is just about recovered from his. We are looking forward to cool, mosquito free Darjeeling tomorrow.

Monday, May 7 & Tuesday May 8 Panighatta

Marching

Praying

Making cards and bags at the income generating project

Jan talking to Wasim who oversees the project here

We are settling into the routine of teaching. When teachers are present, classes are going well. When we are on our own without the host teacher, class control gets challenging, particularly later in the day in the larger classes. Level 5 has 58 students...they can be quite a handful! The temperature and humidity doesn't help. Sleeping is difficult and a few of us have mosquito bites.

After school, some of us visited an income generating project for youth. There are a few of them scattered around the Siliguri, Bagdogra area. They are making gift cards and bags for sale. Some of us helped by showing the the youth some new designs.

It is the final week before a month-long summer break. It is very hot (39 degrees) and students are restless. Sarah and Jan entertained Level 5's in the afternoon with circle games and cricket.

In the evening, Sr. Jane arranged to take Sr. Sarina, Sr. Loyola, Sr. Banisha and Lily to a restaurant in Bagdogra. We experience air conditioning for the first time in a week. A lovely dinner was rudely interrupted by a pair of fighting lizards dropping on Michelle.

Saturday May 5 & Sunday May 6, 2012 Loreto Panighatta

Nicki, Sarah & Natalie

Michelle, Sr. Banisha & Natalie

This weekend was a welcome break from the intense time in Kolkata and the quick start up to teaching here on Friday. Saturday morning meant laundry time. There is no hot water in the school, nor are there washing machines. Instructions for washing clothes Panighata style:

• 1 Put the water into the bucket to about 2/3 cpacity.
• 2 Put in soap powder,
• 3 Put the clothes in the water to soak for ½ hour
• 4 Hand wash the clothes, one by one, using a scrub brush if you have one or knuckle power if you don’t.
• 5 Rinse each item thoroughly.
• 6  Peg them on the laundry line.
• 7 Wait 2-3 hours
• 8  Take clothes off laundry line and fold neatly.

In the afternoon, we crowded into a jeep and went for a 3 hour drive through Bagdogra, then driving towards the Nepal border, along the border and then east back to Panighatta. It was an interesting drive through varied landscapes, bustling towns and villages, and a forested area where the plain meets the foothills. We concluded with a stroll through the village. Michelle bought a new outfit and Nicki and Sarah had theirs altered. On the way home, we were invited to spend a couple of minutes in one of the student’s homes. We were warmly received by the family.

On Sunday, Les and Sr. Jane went to 6am Mass at St. Joseph the Worker church. There was an elaborate welcoming ceremony at the end of Mass that included a welcoming song. Les and Sr. Jane were invited to make speeches. It was moving to hear that they were praying for us. We spent much of the day at the Loreto house in the village having a relaxing morning. Some read, some used the internet, and some walked through town.

In the afternoon, we drove out of Panighata towards a park. First we had to drive on a very rough road to cross a wide floodplain strewn with boulders and pebbles. It must be quite a sight when in full spate. We arrived at the park and sat on the grass and munched away on popcorn and other treats that the Sisters had prepared. Lily, Sr. Loyola, Sr. Banisha, and Sr. Sarina joined us. We enjoyed the sisters playing on the swings and teeter-totter.

 

May 4, 2012 - Panighatta

Panighatta Tea Factory Entrance

Tea spread out to dry

At the sorting machine

Returning to school

Power was still off when woke and remained of most of the day. Sarah and Nikki went for a 2 hour walk early in the morning. After breakfast many of us went to Mass at the local church.  It was First Friday, so the Catholic students attended along with many of the staff. Although the Mass was the same and we knew exactly where we were in the liturgy there were a few different elements.

·         The worshippers removed their shoes at the door.

·         Most of the students sat on mats on the floor.

·         A few sat on benches at the back of the Church.

·         The priest was barefoot.

·         The singing was accompanied  by various drums

·         The children willingly and loudly sang

·         Except for one incident where some boys were talking, they were exceptionally well behaved. (At the end of the school day they were kept behind where they were reprimanded.)

·         Background noise to the mass included cows lowing, hens squawking, and  goats bleating

On return to the school, we were introduced to the staff. In smaller groups, we talked about different teaching strategies. For example Les held an impromptu in-service that talked about the three part lesson, mind mapping, learning styles, and concept attainment. They dealt with a specific problem that had to do with difficulties students had with correct sentence order. Les suggested that each student in a group be given a word of a sentence. They would make a page size poster with the word. Students would then be asked to put themselves in correct sentence order.

From there we each dispersed to our assigned classes. In theory we were to observe, in practice we started teaching the classes almost immediately. Jan was dragooned into a moral science class. Les taught about rainfall types.  Jackie attempted to play cricket with the class 10. When students answered a question, they stood. They would remain standing until they were told to sit down.

After school we went for a walk into the local tea factory. Tea is taken in from the fields, chopped into finer particles, dried, processed, and sorted. The tea is then packaged for transportation. According to Jan she was out for a duck, but Michelle gave her an A for effort. Sarah taught a class 8 English Vocabulary class vowels by playing hangman. Michelle also taught a moral science class. She taught on the exceedingly ethical subject of toads. Natalie taught two periods of Physical Education and taught the students how to play tag. Nicky taught Math, life science, and a conversation class. After returning to the school, we had a nice chat with Sister Loyola who told us how she joined the Loreto sisters.

May 3, 2012 Kolkata, Bagdogra, Pannighatta

Walking into Pannighatta to register as foreign visitors

Natalie on the way into the village of Panighatta

Today was moving day. We had planned to leave Baptist mission at 9:30, but the bus came ahead of schedule so we left in a hurry hoping we hadn’t left anything behind. Going through security at Kolkata Airport was an experience. There were separate lines for “Gents” and “Ladies” and  every single person was lead behind a curtain and padded down. To everyone’s delights, especially there was a Cafe Coffee Day at the airport and we indulged in cappuccinos, tea,  and samosa.

After a short and comfortable plane ride, we were met at Bagdogra by Sister Sabrina. We stopped at a store in Bagdogra to stock up on snacks and then drove north towards Panighatta. We passed through an army base; teak forests with felled trees ready to be taken away for milling; and jungle where elephants, tigers and leopards live. We arrived at the school that was to be our home for the next week. The Principal, Sr. Salina greeted us and showed us to our rooms. The girls and Jane had their room on the first floor, while Jan and Les were on the third floor. Les’ room was an unused classroom, complete with a few desks on the side, chalkboard and a camp bed. The room overlooks part of a small cluster of homes. There are pigs and goats roaming the yard beneath the window. Looking to north from the building are the foothills of the Himalayas. They rise quite suddenly from the plain. With tea plantations in the foreground and mountains in the background, the setting is idyllic.

After a late lunch, Sr. Salina gave us our teaching assignments for the next week. We were confused and apprehensive. We knew what grade we were teaching, but not the subjects. We were also told that some students have up to 54 students in each class. After the meeting some children walked with us into the village. We were to register with an official who had to keep track of names of foreign locals who were living in this border area (we are close to borders with Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan and China). The village has a few small shops. There were both Hindu and Buddhist shrines and symbols in places.

When we returned, Sr. Sabrina led us in a traditional welcoming ceremony that included elements of Buddhism and Hinduism. Sr. Loyola first placed a tiki sign on our foreheads. Sr. Sabrina presented us with a yellow scarf called a kadah. She led us in a guided meditation. From there Sr. Jane led a debrief of our Kolkata experiences. We named our experiences, our feelings and our learnings. Dinner followed. Sr. Sabrina oriented us to the region, telling us about the tea plantation and the work of the school. We were also told that elephants and leopards often come into the school yard at night. As the meeting was ending, the power went out and stayed off all night. We were reduced to groping through our luggage by flashlight to set ourselves up for sleep. We later learned that the thunderstorm had caused a tree to fall down taking a power line with it.

May 2, 2012 Kolkata, Brickfields

Brickyards students line up

Distracted student making pretend bricks

Students displkaying their hand designs in their Hindi class

Sr. Jane explaining as we leave the Brickyards

This morning’s trip to the school at the Brickyard did not start smoothly, a communication mixup led us to a late start. As we crawled out of Calcutta we had more views of people living in squalid conditions, yet making do the best they could. Gradually city gave way to countryside. After a few missed turns, we finally arrived at the brickfields.

A few of us were desperate for bathrooms, Sarah in her hurry lost her flip camera but gained a story. The girls need an explanation on how to use the room reserved for the sole purpose of number 1. There was no hole, just a flat cement floor. The girls were relieved when the room for “number 2” had a drain of sorts.  

We walked into the Brickfields where migrant workers from Bihar came mostly as family units to work there for six months until the monsoon came in early June. Every family member was expected fulfill a quota. Children as young as nine were expected to work. We watched as a woman repeatedly filled a mold with laterite, a red soil, and created brick after brick. The owner did, however, allow a “school” to open up to teach the children. We saw two classes taking place under a poplar tree. The children sat on tarpaulins on the ground. The teacher had a trunk and a few teaching aids. Some children had slates. One class was learning Hindi and traditional crafts. They had made patterns on paper outlines of hands, similar to the henna that Nicki had on her hand yesterday. The younger ones were counting numbers. One child was filling a plastic toy brick with sand, mimicking the brickfield work.

As the younger class left, they lined up to shake Les’ hand. Some of their eyes were yellow with jaundice. One of the big health problems faced by these children is water-borne infection such as dysentery or, as is probably the case here, hepatitis. We saw a second part of the school and talked to some of the parents. They were happy that their children were in school. The heat and lack of food took its toll on us Nicki, in particular, felt faint. She was lead into a villager’s home. It seemed as though the entire town had their eyes upon her. We arrived back in Loreto Sealdeah near 3pm, and said goodbye to Sr Igora. We ate a late lunch of samosas and Madeira cake back at the Baptist Misssion.

No rest for us this afternoon, we were off with Sr. Flora to New Market. The van was crowded and hot. We were relieved when Sr. Flora led us into an air conditioned complex. Nicki, Michelle, Natalie, Jackie and Sarah bought Salvare Chemis. This was a bit of an adventure. The shop keepers took our measurements and tailored the outfits. We were required to pick them up 30 minutes after purchase. Ironically the tops were fitted well, while trousers were one size fits all. A useful draw string allows for these trousers to be fitted to everybody type. That is off course only when the drawstring is actually there. When Nikki looked over her newly purchased Slavare Chemis, she noticed that they had not given her a sting even though in her negotiations at the time of purchase she had explicitly asked for one. When she asked the shop keeper about this he said that it would cost extra. Natalie indignantly stepped in and told the shop keeper that if he did not give her a string, Nicky would return the outfit and  get her money back. The shop keeper taken aback obliged.

 From there we were driven to the Loreto Mother House for a concert by the Kolkata Police Band. There was a curious selection of music that featured the theme from the Godfather. Someone had a sense of humour!

After the concert we said our goodbyes to Sister Flora, giving her Jackie’s gift of a bowl full of cookies, some hand creams, Sr. Jane’s Body Creams, and Les’ set of 25 Questions books. After a long and exhausting day Jackie, Jan, Jane, and Michelle went directly back to Baptist Mission, while the rest of us had dinner at Punjaab Five Rivers again. By time we were finished supper, the heat broke and it was raining hard. Rather than walking home, the concierge summoned a taxi for us. Nicki, Natalie, and Sarah got in the back with little problem. Les was invited into the small cabs front seat even though it was already occupied by a rather sizeable gentleman. Les squeezed in beside the driver and his companion-- it was so tight that he had to take two or three pulls to get their door closed. We weren’t sure why the extra man was there he was there until we started our drive. Because it was so hot, the windows were completely covered in condensation. It was the man in the middle’s job to wipe the condensation from the window with his sleeve. All the windows were open to prevent further fog.  The girls in the back were drenched by the rain coming in through the windows. We arrived back at the Baptist Mission, with a short and sodden sprint to the doors.

May 1, 2012 - Kolkata

Rainbow Kids at Loreto Bowbazar

May Day is a holiday in India, the streets were somewhat quieter and schools were not in session. The exception is the Rainbow kids. These students stay at Loreto schools all the time because they have few other options. When we arrived at Loreto School - Bowbazar, Sr. Flora greeted us and led us upstairs to be introduced to the kids. As we passed into their school room/home/playground we were greeted with a roar of welcome. We felt like rock stars. After a futile attempt to calm them down, we were invited (more like dragged) into groups to be with them.

Communicating was challenging because English was their second language and we knew little Bengali and Hindi. Nevertheless, we introduced ourselves to them played various hand games, sang, told stories, danced, played cards, took photographs and generally laughed with them for well over an hour. The energy level and the heat were exhausting.   

After a brief break, we were taken on a tour of some of the places where the rainbow kids come from. We saw people living in makeshift huts, about ten square metres. Families would live in these shacks made from various scrap materials found in the area.  Many of the people come here from farms in Bihar looking for a better life in the city. Many find destitution. There is chronic underemployment. We saw men and women digging ditches in the midday heat.

The sisters prepared an excellent meal for Lunch of Naan, Chipati, and Tandoori Chicken.

In the afternoon we returned to the Baptist Mission via Eden Garden Cricket ground and the Victoria Monument. After a rest, we were taken by Sr. Flora on another driving tour of Kolkata. We stopped at the Victoria Monument for a few minutes, and then went over the Hooghly River (offshoot of the Ganges) on the New Bridge. We saw lines of trucks parked by the side of the road. They aren’t allowed on the streets between 8am and 8pm to minimize congestion (and I suspect pollution). The Howrah Railway station looked vast and impressive. We drove back across the Howrah Bridge and then through the administrative centre to a riverfront park. We walked along the river and back, had an ice-cream and returned to the Baptist Mission. Some of us went to Pun-Jaab Five Rivers for a small but excellent meal.