A Day in the Life…

rnrnThe day started at 5am which was challenging for most of us. The children were woken by the house staff banging loudly, and the place quickly came to life with the sound of mosques in the distance announcing morning prayer. The children prayed before doing their chores which included sweeping the floor and picking up leaves (patta). Jason and Fin got involved in the kitchen, peeling garlic and breaking chillis. This was followed by an early morning snack of peanut butter sandwiches. The children then had an hour and a half of studying to do BEFORE SCHOOL, meanwhile we enjoyed spending time outside as dawn broke over West Bengal.rnrn

rnrnAfter chores is the ‘official breakfast’ at 8am, but for us it felt like lunchtime! All the children are responsible for their own washing up at every meal, even the three year olds who get some help from their ‘big brothers’ (they are also empowered to do their own laundry too, another lesson for kids back home!). Once we had eaten, the boys showed us their ‘mad skillz’ (as Liam puts it) on the lattu, a spinning top with string. It was very impressive to say the least! (video to come). In this time the children get changed into their immaculate school uniforms and get ready to go to school at the centre and offsite.rnrn

rnrnWhilst Udayan’s teachers taught the primary school children their first period we made the final preparations to the lessons we were due to teach later that morning. We decided on a rotation over the 5 periods (3 today, 2 tomorrow). In each rotation, we took over a different aged class. We put ourselves in pairs, and each pair taught a different subject, either art, english, maths or music. The children were definitely very excited and energetic. Although we may have been worn out, it was certainly a lot of fun! Teaching’s actually quite hard work – props to the folks back at home.rnrn

rnrnBefore lunch there was time for some recreation in the form of frisbee, cricket, football and kite flying. This would be the time for siesta in the summer months yet some boys had the job of picking aubergines. When lunchtime came along, we felt like we had earned it! Along with curry, we were served fried shredded potatoes which were very crispy and very tasty. The food here is served by a really talented cooks assisted by the boys of Udayan! In the girls building the younger girls were having dance lessons whilst the older girls decided to paint our nails with intricate pattern and the boys played some basketball and some more frisbee then today became Kabuddi day for all of us and the girls at Udayan. Kabuddi is a bit like red rover meets rugby with no ball and wrestling. After a while of having mixed teams, we decided to play a best of 3 India vs England series of test matches. The girls then decided to up the stakes and the forfeit for losing was to buy the winning team chocolate. The days play finished India 2 – England 1. We may have lost the battle today, but we refuse to lose the war! We plan to come back stronger on Monday.rnrn

rnrnThis energetic afternoon was followed by prayers then the girls headed up to their rooms and the English girls went with them. The Joan of Arc boys were feeling tired and all fell asleep together – ahhh bless! After some gossiping and beauty talk, us English girls, Liam (who did’t need a nap and arrived after the gossip and beauty talk) and some of the Udayan girls who were not studying, played Chinese Checkers. Although quite complicated and intense, it was a lot of fun. As you may have guessed, none of us English lot won but we are determined to learn to play better. The children then began their evening studies and tuition at 6pm which was followed by another top class dinner at 8pm.rnrnDinner really is the end of the day here and things wind up quite quickly afterwards. Everyone heads off to bed which is where we’re going now as another 5am start lies ahead!rnGood night.

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Meeting the children of Udayan

rnrnAfter waking up feeling somewhat refreshed, we were picked up at the hotel to make our way to finally see Udayan. The distance may have only been 30km but it took us just under 2 hours! On this journey there was colour, noise and smells a-plenty! Our driver, although very skilled, was rather scary compared to the tame driving we’re used to at home! At one point he undertook an army truck full of soldiers – armed soldiers! However we arrived unharmed at Udayan, the haven we, as students, had spent 5 years learning and raising funds for. We were finally here.rnrn

rnrnThe peaceful and calm nature of Udayan was a huge contrast to the loud and claustrophobic Kolkata. We wasted no time getting settled and involved. We received a full tour of the school and accommodation, seeing the bunkbeds the school donated in 2007, the library, the computer room (computers donated by Joan of Arc) and the medical bay. It was reassuring to know that the children were not only being provided with above par education but also with thorough medical support – all of those who arrive with leprosy are cured of the illness within 6 months.rnrn

rnrnAfter the tour the boys agreed to a football match on the humble sports field in the centre of Udayan. Ultimately we were humiliated by the local talent – Liam blames the heat… and the surface… and his trainers. Meanwhile the girls were introduced to games such as Kabuddie and proved that language in not a barrier as they chatted the afternoon away – Bieber is popular here too! As is India’s own teen heartthrob Rohan, who they all think our Pedro looks like. See the picture below of him being swamped by his ‘fans’.rnrn

rnrnAfter freshening up we visited a few of the evening tuition sessions which featured pretty advanced maths, chemistry, biology and an intense grammar session from a team of dedicated tutors. This was followed by a Chicken curry dinner. The children all sit on the floor and are able to eat it all with their fingers, leaving no trace on the plate OR the floor – perhaps they can come and teach the students of St Joan’s their secret!rnrnTomorrow we’re experiencing a day in the life of an Udayan child which starts at 5.30am with prayer so as it’s 10pm now we’d better be getting to bed. More tomorrow. Night Night!

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Namaste from India

rnrnWe have arrived in India! After 13 hours travelling, we landed early this morning at Kolkata airport and were driven to the Fairlawn hotel in the Udayan bus James had sent for us. We experienced a slight glimpse of the chaos of Indian traffic and seeing a cow in the middle of the road is definitely not a sight we are used to seeing. Although we have been told the roads may be livelier tomorrow, a weekday.rnrn

rnrnThe first thing we noticed about the hotel is the striking but comforting green colour scheme, it offers a serene setting within the city. We were greeted with an English breakfast which was lovely and completely unexpected. Of course, after this, we were all in need of a nap so tried to catch a few hours of sleep before visiting a local market.rnrnIn the early afternoon, we made our way to this market in an attempt to buy some traditional Indian outfits to wear on our last evening at Udayan. However, as it was a Sunday the market was closed, so we ended up just having a trip round the block! The little outing certainly allowed us to see a bit more of India and also served as a reminder of the poverty around us.rnrn

rnrnUpon returning to the Fairlawn, James Stevens (founder of Udayan) and his wife Lallita popped in for tea and we got to hear a bit more about him and this amazing work that they do. This has definitely made us more excited to visit the children at Udayan tomorrow morning!

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