We have been in Calcutta for 2 weeks now. We have had the opportunity to visit lots of ministry sites and get an overview of the work that's going on here.
We have visited patients in the pediatrics and cleft palate wards and built some really neat relationships.
We have gone to clinics in the rural areas to give out medicine to the locals there.
We have gone to a school in the slums.
We've gone to a school and home for the blind.
We've gone to a play put on by a local school.
We've visited an orphanage in the outskirts of Calcutta that was started by the same man as the orphanage that we've been at in Delhi.
We've spoken at a nursing school.
We've volunteered at Mother Teresa's. (I don't have pictures of this b/c you're not allowed to take any)
We've gone to Pizza Hut and McDonald's.
We've explored the city of Calcutta!
We have one more week here, then we head to Darjeeling for a few days to rest and spend some quality time as a team. Then we go from there back to Delhi to spend our last days with the precious kids we've come to love at Asha Mission.
Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Sorry I haven't updated in awhile. It's been busy here lately. Not only that, but I just can't seem to find the words to describe how things are here. Unless you've been to India, it's hard to explain what it's like. There really isn't anything to compare it to that would give you a true picture of life here. Hopefully one day soon I will be able to sit down and put my thoughts together. But I did want to let everyone that I am alive and well and loving it here. We had a wonderful Thanksgiving. We got together with several Americans here and put together the best Thanksgiving meal that we could with our resources :) We had turkey and potatoes and green beans. It was wonderful. I am so thankful for this time to be here in India and to travel and just have my eyes opened to all that God is doing around the world. I hope everyone is well and enjoying this holiday season. I miss you all. Thanks for the prayers. I can't believe that I only have 3 more weeks here! I will try to write a better update over the next week or so, thanks for being patient with me! Love, Liz
We were able to plan a short day and a half trip to Varanasi on the way to Calcutta. I was sooo excited! I've always wanted to go to Varanasi. It is considered an extremely holy city, not just for Hindu's, but for almost all religions. We took a night train to get there. It was a very nice train, but I was sick the whole night and day that we left, so I spent most of it sleeping. Once we arrived in Varanasi we crammed all 5 of us and our luggage into 1 taxi and headed for our hostel. The hostel that we stayed at was run by a hippie couple from Australia. Their outreach is to the hippie travelers that come through the city seeking truth and answers. What an incredible ministry! The harvest is plentiful there! So many foreigners and even indians come through the city desperately searching for answers and peace and spiritual awakening. Because of this, the city is much more 'westernized'. The locals are used to seeing foreigners and we don't get stared at quite as much and many more people know English are are friendly towards us. The couple, Brenden, Leaf, and their 5 year old son Tarren, are amazing. Their hearts are so beautiful and sincere and we were so encouraged by them. The hostel is beautiful! It's like a green oasis in the middle of a bustling city. They have a huge yard and a garden and have decorated everything so nicely. From their roof you can look out over the Ganges river and see the whole city skyline. It's breathtaking! We spent some time getting to know them and helping do some yard work. Then Leaf took us out for a girls night. We went to a Japanese restaraunt and then took rickshaws to a market where we got bangles to match our outfits. I've never seen so many bangles and sparkles in my life! It was a lot of fun. Then next morning we took a sunrise boat tour of the Ganges. Our boatman was supposedly one of the most famous. He sings to you as he rows you down the river. As the sun rose, people came down to the river. Some were there doing the ceremonial washing, hoping for some kind of miracle from the river, which is considered a goddess. Others were simply bathing or doing laundry. The air is filled with sounds of bells, monks chanting, and the eerie call to prayer. There is such a spiritual heaviness there. This so called holy river is filled with rotting bodies and sewage and all kinds of things, yet everyone is so blind to it. They even say that the river is clean! It was an interesting experience. My heart is heavy for those people. We spent the rest of the afternoon getting lost in the gullies of Varanasi, exploring the ins and outs of the city. Our time went by so quickly. I wish I could have spent a month there! There is so much to see and do, and so many people to build relationships with. But we had to leave. We crammed in another taxi that afternoon and headed to the train station to go to Calcutta. It was quite a ride. We rode the sleeper class, which is basically the one that the everyday indians ride. You can get on or off at your convenience. Beggars get on and off as well as street venders. We spent 17 hours on the train before arriving in Calcutta! Definitely an experience I won't soon forget. We are here now in Calcutta volunteering at Mercy Hospital, a hospital run by Calcutta Mercy Ministries. Please check out their website, it is an incredible ministry! So far we have been able to take some time volunteer with Mother Teresa's organization, the Sisters of Charity. We have also toured the hospital, learned a lot about the organization, and visited children in the pediatrics ward. We have a full schedule, and I can't wait to see all there is to do here in Calcutta. Thanks for all the prayers and comments! I miss you all, but I am loving my time here. Dec. 19 is going to be a very sad day! I'll try and post pictures soon.
It's been an amazing few days here at Asha Mission. We've gone to Pizza Hut, had the AIM team over for church, and had a fun birthday celebration today with cake, pop corn, balloons, and games. We are all having so much fun!! It is difficult to think about leaving in 2 days, yet exciting at the same time. I've always wanted to travel around India. We leave Thursday on a night train bound for Varanasi. In Varanasi we are staying with an Austrailian missionary couple who run a hostel for the spirtual seekers that come through India's most holy city. We hope to encourage them and help out in whatever way we can, while also seeing the sights of the 'city of lights'. On Saturday night we get on another night train and arrive Sunday in Calcutta. In Calcutta we are working with Calcutta Mercy Ministries (there is a link to their website on my first post). The 4 girls I am with are nurses and will be working in the hopsital. I am not sure what I will be doing, but I know there are plenty of opportunities to serve, especially since we will be the only volunteers there at this time. After 3 weeks in Calcutta we will get on another night train headed to Darjeeling in the great Himilayan mountains! We will spend 4 days there sight-seeing and debriefing out time. Then we will return to what we now consider home, and spend the remainder of our time with these beautiful children. We are going to have a huge Christmas party and there are more birthdays coming up that will be celebrated as well. Sorry this is so brief and lacking detail. I have so many stories I would like to share but am currently lacking the time and energy. I will post more as soon as the traveling days are over. In the meantime, enjoy some pictures from the last few days :)
Yes, believe it or not, there are actually Pizza Huts in India (and McDonalds and KFC and even Subway!). One of my favorite things to do is to take the kids on a special outing to Pizza Hut and then a park to run around and play. The first time this wondrous event occurred was in 2006 with the kids at Emmanuel. At that time there were about 280 kids, so we spread it out over 2 trips every day for 4 days. You would be amazed at how many kids can cram into a car!!
Last summer while I was here we decided that we would take the kids of Asha Mission. This was a much easier task due to the fact that there were only 19 children. This was the first time most of them had ever been to Pizza Hut. One little boy, who happened to be 5, at 10 pieces of pizza! Of course none of them were used to this type of food, and practically all of them got sick. Needless to say Gracie and Saji, the couple who run the orphanage, gave us good warning this time to limit the number of pieces they could have.
We told the kids about the trip on Friday afternoon when they got home from school. They were so excited, especially the ones that had never been before. The air was full of so much anticipation that night and into the next day as everyone got ready for school (yes, they go to school on Saturdays... bummer). 3 didi's went to Pizza Hut early to decorate and set up while me and another didi stayed back to pick up the kids from the bus and hurry the process of getting ready and getting in the car. We got to the bus stop and the kids rushed off the bus to head home to change into their nicest outfits. I carried cute little Chinny, a precious 3 year old girl who had never been to Pizza Hut before, home from the bus stop, and she kept saying Pizza a jao" which means "Pizza come". We stuffed all the little kids into 2 cars and headed off to Pizza Hut. The drive took about 30 minutes and they were quite crowded, but it was well worth it. We were greeted by the other 3 didi's on the sidewalk and walked all the kids up to Pizza Hut and our little area decorated with balloons and nametags. They all found their seats and were served glasses of pepsi while the drivers went back to pick up the rest of the kids and adults still waiting at the house. The kids at Pizza Hut were now introduced to so many new things! Each glass had a bendy straw, and I noticed that some of the boys weren't drinking their drinks. The more I thought about it, the sooner I realized, they didn't know how to use a straw! I had to demonstrate how you suck on the end to make the liquid come up. Soon enough they had it down, and were delighted to realize you could blow the other way and make bubbles in your drink. Another new thing for them was cold soda... they are used to drinking things that were cold... that mixed with the air conditioning and the kids got really cold! I think my favorite thing to introduce them to is the bathroom. In India, most people use squatties. It's basically like a hole in the ground. Pizza Hut, being a more modern Western restaraunt, had Western toilets. These kids have never seen anything like that and are quite perplexed when they get into the bathroom. They aren't really sure what to do. Most of them will just climb up onto the seat and try to use it like a squatty! We had to have a didi stationed in the bathroom to show all the kids how to use it. One girl was so enamored with it, she just didn't even know what to do with herself. She kept looking at it exclaiming, "what is this? What is this? Oooooh, so beautiful". We got a video of her reaction I will try to post soon. They were also introduced to automatic hand dryers, which actually scared a lot of them. After our fabulous time at Pizza Hut we all paraded through town to a park a little ways down the road. We played red rover and soccer and freeze tag and all sorts of fun games. It's so wonderful to let them get out and run around. We finally loaded up the adults and the little ones in the car to head home while the didi's and the older kids stayed in the park to wait for them to take that load home and head back to get us. Once it started to get dark, we walked back towards the market. We got all the kids their first ice cream cones while we waited, and they were asking if it was okay to eat the cone. We assured them that it was. Soon enough our ride came and we went home full and happy and tired! When we got back one of the boys who had never had pizza before came up to me and said "pizza nahi acha" which means "pizza no good". I asked him why, and he proceeded to demonstrate how he threw up when he got home! It upset another little girls stomach as well. But the next day they both exclaimed how much they loved it and were even asking for more! Here are some pictures from the spectacular event. Love you all! More to come soon :)
On Friday we took the day to go to a popular tourist market. I have been several times and find it somewhat stressful. You walk through row after row of little shops, and people shout at you as you walk, saying "come into my store" "I give you good price" "You are my first customer of the day!". Then once you get in and find something you like, you have to barter to get it at a good price. I wouldn't say that's something I'm good at, but I'm getting better. I actually ended up making some friends this time. I went into a shop and started talking to the men that ran it. I asked them their names in Hindi and they got really excited, assuming that I knew how to speak Hindi, which I don't. I know a few phrases here and there and I shared with them what I knew. We chatted about all sorts of things, including the price I would pay for some pants. I walked away a few times before they "gave me good price". I was there for about 30 minutes and really enjoyed the time spent getting to know them. In India it is very rare that we have contact with men outside the ones we know through the orphanage. It isn't appropriate for us to talk at them or really even look at them. Their perception of american women isn't the greatest, largely based on what they see in the movies. But at this market they are very used to foreigners and it was nice to be able to just hang out and have some fun chats. While getting on the metro that morning to go to the market, I couldn't help but remember a boy my friend Reecie and I met there last time. He was so young, and was walking around selling necklaces. We weren't really interested in the necklaces, but these people are persistent! He followed us around and he even taught us some Hindi. We eventually ended up sitting outside a shop waiting for our friends and he sat across the road from us. We talked back and forth and learned that his name was Sam. There was a cop who came and tried to run him off and hassled him and tried to hit him with a stick. We eventually parted ways, but not before buying a few of his necklaces. I'm not sure why but I never did forget him. What a life for a teenage boy to lead. No schooling, on the streets every day trying to make money by selling necklaces and hassling tourists, trying to avoid being beaten by the cops who tell him he's not supposed to be there. It's been a year and a half since that trip. I was hoping that I would run into him again, but the odds of that happeneing are SO small I knew it was probably impossible. The last thing we did Friday was go into a shop to look for shoes. It was the same shop I went to last year, so I took the girls there and waited outside so that the shop wouldn't be so crowded. A young boy approached me with necklaces and tried to get me to buy them. I wasn't really interested, but he was just so cute and I wanted to help him out. I tried to get him to sell me necklaces for 5 rupies each. He wasn't sure what to do, and then an older boy came up and he asked if that was ok. I talked them into it and they both agreed, and I bought some necklaces. I still had sime time before the girls were ready and figured I would chat with these boys until they came out. I asked them what their name was, and the older boy replied SAM! I couldn't believe it! He was so grown up, but it was the very same boy I met last year!! I asked him if he remembered me and we talked about how me and Reecie talked with him last year and hung out. He said he remembered, I'm not sure if that was just because I was so excited to see him or if he really meant it. I asked him about his family. He has a younger sister. The boy selling necklaces with him was his friend BJ. As we were talking a woman came to chase them off. Apparently that wasn't their market area and they weren't supposed to be there. I was really sad. As the girls came out and we walked to the main street, I heard a whistle, and looked and saw the two boys a little ways down beckoning me. I went to them and we talked some more and we took a picture. I promised that next time I came back I would bring the picture and try to find him and give it to him. I gave them some money to buy some treats and we both went away smiling. That was by far the best part of my day. Not getting a great deal or finding Christmas presents for my siblings, but seeing Sam again. What an amazing God we serve that he would cross our paths again. I hope to have the opportunity to go back just once more to deliver the picture, although it will have to be a God thing because I have no idea how to find him again!
Joy. That is the word that comes to mind when I think of Emmanuel orphanage. 3 years ago when I left that place, after having been there for 9 weeks, I was so sad to think I probably would never be able to go back. And here I am, visiting again for the 3rd time! I cannot tell you how much my heart explodes with love for the kids there. Many of them are so grown up now, and it is wonderful to see them step into roles of responsibility. They joyfully serve the others there and look after and take care of one another. When I was there originally, there were about 280 kids there; now there are 92. Many have run away, been sent home, or gone to other orphanages. Every time I go back, someone else has left. My heart cries out for their safety and that the Lord would keep them in his hands and that they would remember what they learned about Jesus while they were there. There is a group of siblings there that I have fallen in love with since the first day I was there. Arti was the baby 3 years ago when I was there. She could always be found right next to me or sleeping in my lap. Despite the language barrier, we had a very strong bond. Pooja is next. She loved to be twirled around and up on my shoulders. Now she is too big for me to pick up! Supna is the oldest sister. She is such a young lady now! I am so proud of who she has grown up to be. Money is the oldest boy. I didn't know who he was the first time I was there, so I was constantly baffled when Arti would point and say, "money, money". I wasn't quite sure what she was talking about. Now I know. I'm not sure how I missed it, they look exactly alike! Since then, 2 more siblings have come. There is a little boy named Morgan, who I know very little about, and a beautiful little girl named Vijiya. I met Vijiya last time I was here, but I didn't know her name, so I called her little monkey girl, because that's what she was! She would crawl all over me, take gum out of my mouth, and was just generally curious about everything! I only went twice last year, but as soon as I walked through the gates last week, she ran up to me and jumped into my arms! I feel so at home holding her. There were also 2 brothers that I was close to, Michael and Ayub. They spoke very little English, but I adored them and loved being around them. Michael loved to draw and Ayub loved to sing. He would walk around in his own little world singing songs and making crosses out of anything he could find. They are still there and SO grown up! Their English is so good and it is awesome to be able to talk with them now! Of the 280 or so that were there that summer, most of them are gone. There are 92 children there now, but most of them are new. My heart continues to miss the ones that are gone and pray desperately for their safety and well-being, but it also brings so much joy to my heart to see the ones that are still there and be able to tell them that I still love them and think about them and that Jesus loves them too! (This trip back was actually 2 weeks ago... I'm a bit behind in posting but our internet has been down for awhile. We get to go back this Friday!!)
Me, Pooja, Arti, and Supna
Me, Michael, and Ayub
Me and Jessica, a member of my 2006 team and now the leader of this one, and some of the girls that are still there
