View from the front row of the coach
I've shown plenty of pictures of the horrendous traffic in Bangalore. Today we left town on one of the few highways which happens to be a toll road. Traveling was much easier on the highway and pretty inexpensive too. The fare at this plaza was Rs16 for a car. At $1 =60 rupees, the toll was only about a quarter.
We don't see much selling going on in the street (and begging is a crime in the state of Karnataka where Bangalore is located) but the merchants were out today. This one is selling guava.
Today was our first day of having people "unwell." The combination of an intense schedule, foreign food, and recovering jet lag tends to hit people at the end of the first week. Fortunately, everyone seems to be on the mend now.
We spent the day in a rural village in an area east of Bangalore called Hoskote. The cityscape changed as we moved away from the heart of the city. In place of dense housing, the area became much more open but it was dotted with high rises under construction having billboards advertising 3 and 4 bedroom apartments and penthouses. Bangalore is growing at 1 km per day from it's perimeter. That kind of growth is astounding but explains why we spend half our day in traffic.
We left the main road and onto a narrow strip of pavement that twisted and curved through farmland and small enclaves of houses. Relatively small plots of land relied on drip irrigation to grow potatoes (see pictures below), tomatoes, grapes, carrots, and eucalyptus groves. We've heard repeatedly that we're not seeing the "real India." I've come to realize that sometimes that means we're being exposed to the wealthy side of the country including high-end shopping, meals in nice restaurants, and our base camp at Christ University; one of the best in India. Other times, however, it means we're spending all our time in the city and the real India lies in its villages which still comprise 70% of the country's population and are the source of all it's traditions and values. If so, today we saw the real India.
Reflection on the day: Namaste my friends! (from Genelle)
As I try to summarize today I am lost for words. I believe the best word that describes how I feel is empowered. We visited a small farming community called Hosekote Village and learned about a program that Christ University started in 2003 called Chetana. The Chetana project has been self sustaining for the past 4 years. While we were here we were given a chance to speak to the woman who supervises all of the self help groups for the community.
We also played duck, duck, goose with the children that attend the government school. Lastly, we had an amazing conversation with some women involved in one of the self-help groups and visited a few homes. Since this is a farming community, it was different then the slums of Janakiramnagar and not as heavily populated. There were oxen, we were able to see some harvesting of potatoes and the community was not as crowded. I believe this community is doing very well and I will continue to thrive on the future.
I've shown plenty of pictures of the horrendous traffic in Bangalore. Today we left town on one of the few highways which happens to be a toll road. Traveling was much easier on the highway and pretty inexpensive too. The fare at this plaza was Rs16 for a car. At $1 =60 rupees, the toll was only about a quarter.
We spent the day in a rural village in an area east of Bangalore called Hoskote. The cityscape changed as we moved away from the heart of the city. In place of dense housing, the area became much more open but it was dotted with high rises under construction having billboards advertising 3 and 4 bedroom apartments and penthouses. Bangalore is growing at 1 km per day from it's perimeter. That kind of growth is astounding but explains why we spend half our day in traffic.
We left the main road and onto a narrow strip of pavement that twisted and curved through farmland and small enclaves of houses. Relatively small plots of land relied on drip irrigation to grow potatoes (see pictures below), tomatoes, grapes, carrots, and eucalyptus groves. We've heard repeatedly that we're not seeing the "real India." I've come to realize that sometimes that means we're being exposed to the wealthy side of the country including high-end shopping, meals in nice restaurants, and our base camp at Christ University; one of the best in India. Other times, however, it means we're spending all our time in the city and the real India lies in its villages which still comprise 70% of the country's population and are the source of all it's traditions and values. If so, today we saw the real India.
Reflection on the day: Namaste my friends! (from Genelle)
As I try to summarize today I am lost for words. I believe the best word that describes how I feel is empowered. We visited a small farming community called Hosekote Village and learned about a program that Christ University started in 2003 called Chetana. The Chetana project has been self sustaining for the past 4 years. While we were here we were given a chance to speak to the woman who supervises all of the self help groups for the community.
We also played duck, duck, goose with the children that attend the government school. Lastly, we had an amazing conversation with some women involved in one of the self-help groups and visited a few homes. Since this is a farming community, it was different then the slums of Janakiramnagar and not as heavily populated. There were oxen, we were able to see some harvesting of potatoes and the community was not as crowded. I believe this community is doing very well and I will continue to thrive on the future.
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