Hi All,rnrnWe are pleased to inform our readers of the India2011 diary that the group arrived back into London Heathrow to be greated by family and friends just before 7am this morning after a journey in which we left Kolkata at 6pm yesterday evening (12.30pm GMT).rnrnOn behalf of all the group we would like to thank our readers and those who have commented for their continued interest in the diary. The statistics of those reading our diary and the comments left for us have really motivated us throughout our trip.rnrnWe look forward to sharing our experiences of the trip and of Udayan with our friends, family, and in assemblies at St Joan’s and many other primary schools.rnrnrnThe India2011 Grouprnrn

rnrnrnrnrnrnOur last three days have been spent at Udayan and we have had the most amazing time! We have played football, cricket, hopscotch and hand games with the children. They have taught us some Bengali and Hindi while we have concentrated on reaffirming Beverley’s spoken English programme by talking to the children and assisting in their different classes. rnrnrnrnrnrnrnrnrnrnrnrnWe were blown away by how self sufficient Udayan actually is. They grow their own vegetables, bananas, mangoes, papayas and keep farm animals. The rest of the food that they provide for the children is sourced locally. We are all aware of how much food is produced by the fantastic team in the kitchen who looked after us for breakfast, lunch and dinner. We were amazed by how much all the children, even in the younger ones, eat and the fact that they ate more than our human hoover, Joe!rnrnThe staff were extremely welcoming and were very happy to explain all aspects of Udayan to us, from aspects of their day to day life, to their own business schedules at Udayan. We must extend our thanks to the staff for making us feel at home and to the children for truly making us feel part of their family. Despite coming from backgrounds surrounded by such poverty they are friendly, happy and grateful for all that is provided to them which is emphasised by how much they treasure the little they do have. rnrnrnrnOn our first day there the boys also participated in a football match of epic proportions; including many goals (no one actually knows the final score) and much bonding between the two groups. The girls also spent time with the girls at Udayan being taught phrases of Bengali which the girls persisted in testing us on for the duration of our stay. rnrnrnrnYesterday evening began with a variety of performances from us and the children of Udayan with Jamie performing a solo, Millie and Dominic performing a duet, Sabina and Shaunagh doing a Irish dance, the group performing the ‘Pizza Hut Song’ with Joe concluding the show with his own solo. The children of Udayan stunned us all with their fantastic performances which ranged from gymnastics, traditional Indian dance to Beverley and the younger years reciting the English book ‘The Blue Balloon’ accompanied with actions. After the musical celebrations we headed to the medical block for our surprise dinner where a study room had been transformed, beautifully decorated with lights, pictures and flowers by Swapan and helpers and the meal was provided courtesy of the generous Father James and his wife Lallita. rnrnrnrnrnrnrnrnrnrnrnToday was our last day with the children which we spent observing and participating in lessons and was filled with emotional goodbyes. Our time at Udayan has been life changing and unforgettable and we will cherish the children’s faces, love and caring nature for many years to come. We all hope to return again in the near future to continue the service that we all found so rewarding. From all the children at Udayan we would like to thank everyone who has donated money to Udayan, no matter how small, each penny you give can change their lives for the better just as meeting them has changed ours. rnrnrnrnrnrnrnrnrnrnrnrnrnrnrnrnrn

Today we travelled to the Asha Bhavan Centre, a home, school and rehabilitation centre for children with disabilities about 45km outside Calcutta. It is yet another of Dominique Lapierre’s great ventures to help the suffering of those in poverty. The visit started with the children greeting us with garlands of flowers and we were invited to have some tea before the tour of the centre. We briefly met some of the children whilst they were enjoying lessons and saw physiotherapists helping to increase children’s mobility and independence.rnrnrnrnrnrnrnrnThere’s an impressive and very creative new school building currently under construction which will be fully adapted to the needs of the children and linked to the existing building by an aerial walkway. It’s circular with a ramp spiralling gently round the interior, eliminating the need for stairs. The curved classrooms will allow teachers and therapists a good view of all the children and maximum use of available space. Only the fourth floor, which will be used for staff resources, administration and training will be accessed by low tread stairs. It really is an amazing project, worthy of a ‘Grand Designs’ TV programme to itself. It should be completed by the autumn. rnrnrnrnrnrnAfter this we were all shown a video depicting all the work that the Asha Bhavan Centre does, not only on site but in the local communities. This was a real eye-opener for all of us. rnrnAfter some delicious lunch the children danced and sang for us, which was absolutely fantastic; Joe sang a couple of songs and Shaunagh performed some Irish dancing for the children. After that the boys all played a game of football during which the girls played with the children as they watched the game. The children thoroughly enjoyed our company. After the game we had some tea before we sadly had to leave the children and the wonderful staff that are all so warm and welcoming, they are clearly committed to Asha Bhavan and its philosophy of helping children with disabilities to gain greater independence and confidence. At the end of the day we all left with a strong attachment to Asha Bhavan and we all hope it won’t be long before we will be able to come again. rnrnrnrnrnrnrnrnWatch Joe’s performance here:rnrnrnrnTomorrow we are taking to the streets to assist Udayan’s 2 mile march to help raise awareness of the plight of leprosy sufferers. After the march we’ll have a city tour of the sights of Calcutta which should provide us with plenty to tell you about tomorrow.rnrnrnrnrnrnFinally we would like to wish all those from schools in the UK who are about to start half-term, have a lovely week off and we look forward to reading more of your comments. We would also like to thank St John’s Primary School, Rickmansworth, for their continued moral support throughout our very spiritual and life-changing journey. We hope many of you will continue to keep up to date whilst away from school!rn

We apologise for the lack of entry yesterday, unfortunately we ran out of time prior to preparing for our journey to Kolkata. Yesterday morning was spent with the Jesu Ashram fraternity of the Little Sisters of Jesus, founded by Little Sister Magdeleine 58 years ago. Little Sisters Maryananda and Mary spoke about how the Blessed Charles de Foucauld and Little Sister Madeleine founded the religious order by working among the poor in the community. They have spread all over the world now. After having a delicious cup of chai and Indian sweets we went up to their terrace which overlooks the Ganges. We were all blown away by the view and felt a sense of calm and serenity.rnrnrnrnWe then walked along the Ghats as far as the burning ghat. This is where cremations take place. Hindus cremate their dead and if they can afford to bring the body to the Ganges it can be burnt there and the ashes scattered on the water; others simply bring the ashes of their cremated relatives, indeed we saw some ashes being scattered on the river. It was a moving experience for us.rnrnLater we took the sleeper train all the way to Kolkata which is 1200km away. There must have been a cow on the line as the train was 4 hours late! Contrary to expectations we all slept pretty well, and managed to pass the rest of the time talking with other passengers and playing cards. We finally arrived in Kolkata at 1pm and were thrown into the madness of Kolkata traffic and the heat on our taxi ride, crossing the massive iron construction that is Howrah Bridge over the River Hooghly. Our hotel, The Fairlawn, well known to Caroline, Kathryn and Chris was very welcoming and we were all relieved to be there.rnrnIn the early evening Bivash Saniel, Hon. Secretary of Udayan, came to visit us at the hotel where we chatted about our itinerary and our time at Udayan. It was great to see him again.rnrnTomorrow we will visit Udayan and the leprosy hospital at Tittagarrh. We look forward to updating you tomorrow.rnrnBig hugs and kisses to everyone. rnrnxxxxxrn

rnrnThe start of the day could not have been more perfect. It was another early start, but it was well worth it to see the sunrise over the Ganges. When we arrived there were many people setting up their market stalls. Down by the steps of the river people were having their morning wash in the river. We stepped into our boat and the sun was slowly rising, it was a magnificent sight to behold.rnrnrnrnrnrnWe returned to our hotel for brunch and at about 10 o’clock we set off to Sarnath, the birthplace of Buddhism. First we visited a relatively new Buddhist temple that was built in the 1930’s, we learnt the story about how Prince Siddartha grew up, how he found enlightenment and eventually founded the religion itself through beautiful frescos painted on the walls inside the temple. Just a few metres away was a bodi tree descended from the one under which Prince Siddartha reached enlightenment and gave his first sermon to his five disciples. We then visited an archaeological site dating back to the 6th century BC, uncovered by English archaeologists. We saw the remains of a number of stupas: large cylindrical constructions originally built to contain a small amount of the Buddha’s ashes and to act as a focal point and place of worship for Buddhists. We learnt of Buddha’s first teaching regarding finding the middle ground between self indulgence and self deprivation. rnrnrnrnIt was a very peaceful place with many visiting Buddhists from south-eastern Asian countries meditating and chanting around the main stupa. We also learnt that the original stupa would have been 61 metres in height; so 13 metres higher than Humayan’s tomb, yet considerably older. The Moghul invasion had brought Islam to India and Buddhism had declined as a result. Today there are fewer Buddhists in India than Christians. We also visited the neighbouring museum that contained both Buddhist and Hindu carvings, inscriptions and statues from the site, including a beautiful carved representation of the Buddha which was our guide’s favourite.rnrnrnrnrnrnWe concluded the day by returning to our hotel to enjoy a relaxing afternoon by the pool and this evening we are going to celebrate Dominic’s 19th birthday, WOOO! rnrnrnrnrnrnrn