Adventures in India: Introductions, Education & Cultural Experiences

This is the first installment of a running journal that I am keeping during our servant leadership trip to India. This blog covers June 15-23.

Participants of this servant leadership adventure include myself, my wife Reba, Dr. Jay Johnson, Ali Kayahan, Brad He, Ava Xing, Chandler Johnson, Natalie Collins, Juliann Baker, Shivani Singh, Daniel Morris, Vraj Patel and Nic Scoccimaro. Tiger Feng had also planned to attend but unfortunately he learned at the last minute that he could not get an India visa and had to bow out.

Met for breakfast at Hilton and learned Ava would arrive the next morning after having some issues in getting her passport back for renewal of her student visa for the U.S. (She had already secured her India visa). All traveled by bus to Sulabh International where we were met by Anju and her son and assistant; Dr. Chakar, the principal of the Academy; and the founder of Sulabh, Dr. Pathak, a follower of Ghandi, who, we learned, was concerned with sanitation in India and particularly the plight of the scavengers -- the women, who used to be of the lowest caste during the caste system and were known as "untouchables" at that time. Now scavengers, as they are known, are the persons whose job it is to clean up after human waste.

The purpose of Sulabh is to retrain the scavengers in such professional skills as sewing, secretarial, cosmetology, cooking, embroidery, etc. so that they can succeed in higher professions and elevate themselves out of a lower class. In addition, they are able to understand the importance of education not only for themselves, but to pass this on to their children, many of whom attend Sulabh Academy, along with a percentage of other public school students.

After an overview meeting with them, we were then invited to morning prayers where we joined the staff and the women and were all honored as special guests and introduced individually by name and welcomed with flower and sandalwood leis. Music and singing was provided. We were then given a tour of the grounds and saw how Sulabh has redirected human waste to provide energy sources, recycling, and how Sulabh has provided thousands of public toilets and washrooms around the country and we learned that the organization is totally self-supporting without any government assistance.  

We were then given a complete and extensive tour of the Sulabh International Museum of Toilets, both outdoor and indoor, by the museum curator, Mr. Jha, who really enjoyed taking us on the tour! Sulabh then provided a delicious lunch for us, and we got to know Jackie, a Ph.D. student from the University of Virginia, who was studying there and gathering material for her dissertation. (She is originally from New Mexico, is married to a theatre doctoral student at UVA who is Indian, and she speaks fluent Hindi.)  

We then all viewed a fascinating documentary about Sulabh's founding and world influence. Afterwards, we were given a tour of the school and the various vocational classes they offer for the adults in the community, including a Sanitation Club that makes and distributes sanitary napkins for women. We all left there feeling we had been in the presence of greatness that is making a real difference not only in India but all over the world. After a very full day we returned to the hotel in the afternoon for some free time and to catch up on jet lag, dinner in the hotel, and much needed sleep. Many took advantage of the fourth floor rooftop pool.

Breakfast at the Hilton, where we were finally a complete group, as Ava had arrived at the hotel at 4 a.m. Checked out of this gracious and very accommodating hotel for our bus ride to Alwar, Rajasthan, storing our larger bags at the Hilton for our return later in the week. Long, six-hour ride but interesting. Checked into the moderate but very clean Clark's Inn, had lunch, and then traveled over to Nai Disha (New Direction) Vocational Training Center, where we were once again welcomed with dots on our foreheads and flower leis.  
We rotated around in two groups to observe the women of this Sulabh center making tote bags, embroidering, and learning cosmetology. Most of the women (and Ali!) got henna tattoos on their arms. We also were entertained by the women singing to us, including two interpretive dances that were very humorous. We had a short refreshment on the upper terrace, where Mrs. Barnes spotted children playing on a beautiful playground across the street from the center, and the students headed there to hand out some of the candy and bubble gum we had brought for this purpose.

We headed back to the hotel for dinner and rest from another long day of unique adventures.

Breakfast at Clark's Inn, and we then travelled by car to a scavengers' basti (village,) where we were invited into their homes and met many of the women from the center and their families. One of the women has learned to read and write and has become a published poetess, and she recited one of her poems for us! The children flocked around our students as they handed out candy and bubble gum.  

We then returned to Nai Disha, where the students paired up and had hands-on experience working with the women on bag making, namda (felt wall hangings and ornaments) embroidery, cosmetology and food processing, making bread. After shopping extensively and boosting Nai Disha's revenue for the day, we returned to Clark's Inn for lunch and check out, and then boarded our bus for the four-hour ride to Jaipur (it was a bit longer than that.)  

Arriving at the gorgeous Le Meridien Hotel, we were once again welcomed with forehead dots and leis, refreshed a bit, and then left with Anju to see a few sites and go to dinner. We visited the Maharajah's Water Palace and saw the Amber Fort, the main attraction in Jaipur, and an indoor bazaar where local crafts and fabrics were purchased.

We then went to dinner at an Artisan's Village, where we left our shoes at the door, and where we were seated at low tables on the floor and served a number of local unrecognizable food items, which Anju explained were examples of native peasant food. We returned to the hotel around midnight for restful sleep from unique India. Unfortunately no time to enjoy the beautiful pool at Le Meridien!

The adventures today began with breakfast at Le Meridien, and we then were met by a local guide who took us to the Amber Fort, telling us all about its history. We parked the bus and were immediately whisked away up the stairs and on top of elephants! The elephants gave us rides to the first level of the fort, where our guide then took us on a tour of the immense fortress and palace. Vendors were very irritating, but the palace was very impressive and magnificent.  

We got into a traffic jam on the way back and were a little late returning to Le Meridien, but checked out and had lunch and then made the six-hour journey through country roads to Agra. We learned before we left that Friday is a religious holiday, so the Taj Mahal is not open, so we elected to stay two nights in Agra and go to the Taj on Saturday.

Before we arrived at our hotel, we spotted a KFC on the street and diverted there for dinner -- a welcome sight of mostly familiar food. Since our pace had been so hectic, we elected to have a lazy day tomorrow to catch up on sleep and enjoy the beautiful facilities at the JayPee Palace Hotel, another magnificent hotel facility.

We all slept in and spent time on the beautiful grounds of the hotel most of the day. Around 5 p.m., we began to assemble and went on our bus into Agra, led by Shivani, where we visited a marble factory which made beautiful marble objects inlaid with semi-precious stones, the same method as is used at the Taj. We shopped and then visited another crafts indoor mall where we saw handmade rugs being made.  

After that, we went to dinner at a local Indian/Chinese restaurant, and then returned to the hotel. Everyone assembled in our room after arrival, where we all agreed to visit the Taj Mahal tomorrow by leaving at 5:30 a.m. to avoid the heat of the day. Then we surprised Ava with a birthday cake and sang "Happy Birthday" to her. Before they left to hit the sack early, many stayed behind to add comments to the blog that Brad has set up, and we sent photos and entries to him. Another day in Incredible! India.

We had all agreed to leave at 5:30 a.m. to tour the Taj Mahal, and we left on time, met by our guide Mr. Gupta. I had tears in my eyes as we rounded a corner of the beautiful gardens through the East Gate and finally saw what is arguably the most beautiful and recognizable building in the world. Many, many photos later, we finally donned our shoe booties and ascended the stairs onto the main level and entered the mausoleum.  

Exiting onto the outdoor terrace in the rear, we were able to see close up and touch the exquisitely carved white marble and inlaid onyx, carnelian, jade, topaz and lapis lazuli that cover many surfaces of the building. The nearby mosques and gardens on the grounds are equally impressive with their intricate sandstone carvings. The building took 22 years to complete in 1639.  

Following our tour, we returned to the JayPee Palace for breakfast, and then to our rooms to rest. We checked out at 1 p.m. and headed back to New Delhi, stopping off at Anju's home to drop her and her son off there. We checked back in at the Hilton, where we will be for a week, and spent the evening settling in and organizing for our 8 a.m. departure tomorrow morning for Delhi sightseeing, including visiting the President's House. (Not sure which President, but we will find out tomorrow!) Dinner was on our own in the hotel.

Up early, breakfast at the hotel, where we were met by our guide, Mr. Sharma, and then traveled to Anju's house, where we picked up her son and began our tour of Delhi. After touring through the governmental areas of town, we stopped at the President's House, a much larger building and grounds than the White House in the U.S., but which serves the same purpose as residence and business address for the President of India, currently Pranab Mukherjee, and his visitors and guests. We explored the galleries, museums and meeting rooms of this magnificent building, thanks to Anju arranging this special visit for us.

Afterwards, we visited a modern mall and had lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe, New Delhi, where we were surprised to be able to order (imported) beef hamburgers, and of course many bought the classic T-shirt. After lunch, we elected to do the rest of our touring from the bus due to the oppressive heat and bugs, and saw many large temples and mosques, including the Lotus Temple of the Ba'hai faith, and the largest Hindu temple in the world. The Red Fort of New Delhi was particularly impressive.  

We did make one more stop at the site of Mahatma Ghandi's cremation, which was very moving. Following a few more sites, including many embassies (and the U.S. one!), we returned to Anju's house where we dropped off her son and some of the girls picked up done laundry. We then returned to the hotel for rest, pool cooling off, and relaxation and preparation for a late supper at Pomadoro, the Italian restaurant in the Hilton. We also finalized our plans for the first day at Sulabh Academy tomorrow, and the kids are excited to begin their servant leadership there this week.