Oh Kolkata....
Well We got to Calcutta(Now Kolkata) four hours late. Arriving at noon, we soon found a taxi to take us to a hotel in Sudder Street, (Kolkata's backpacker area). We were set to meet our friend Kate who is working in the City as a volunteer for Calcutta Rescue, a charity providing free health clinics to socially disadvantaged people. As we drove throught the streets we could feel and see that this town is very different to Delhi. Trees grow in profusion, the streets are so much wider and are full with beautiful yellow Ambassador cabs. We passed a park that looked like Hyde Park in London and saw some Raj era buildings that also reminded us of home.
This wasn't the Kolkatta we'd expected. We managed to get a room at the same hotel as Kate and it was great to see that she was happy and the work was everything she'd hoped it would be. We had a guided tour onto the Metro,(so much cleaner, spacious and safer than London's effort), we then made our way to the Victoria monument in The Maiden, (the park we had seen). What a wonderful surprise. A beautiful White Marble building, multipally domed and set amongst lush green lawns. Really bizarre to see this in India when we could have so easily been in South Kensington. This first walk has set the tone for our time in Kolkata. We REALLY like it here, generally, it's more friendly than anywhere else we've been,(however some of the young Indian men continue to be TOO friendly to young western women).
Yesterday, we ate at Pizza Hut in a shopping centre alot like the Trocadero in London or the Merry Hill Centre in the near our home in the midlands. There were ice cream parlours an air conditioned western movie theatre. It was a surreal experience but was great to share it with Kate and her fellow volunteers(British and German).
Today, we were fortunate enough to see the clinics where people are treated and educated in matters of health. We saw four clinics, a handicraft workshop and a school. The facilities although seemingly humble were really well organised by paid local staff and the overseas volunteers. Prescriptions were written in both Bengali and a visual format to ensure that people could understand when they were to take their medication. It was a fascinating experience and it made both Jo and me feel that what was going on there is a wonderful and worthwhile project. Kate and her fellow workers are doing an amazing job out here. They all deserve to be paid handsomely for the work they are doing for free and should be recognised for doing so.
On the flip side of the efforts put in by Calcutta Rescue, an annoying side of the poverty problem in kolkata is the 'do- gooding' western tourists we witnessed handing out money, biscuits and other food stuffs will-nilly as if it were 'the thing to do in kolkata'. they could be witnessed holding beggars hands and hugging the odd baby. You have to wonder who they are doing this for? Jo called this the Mary Poppins Syndrome which made Kate and me laugh. These people insist on re-enforcing the begging principle instead of implimenting the healthcare and individual empowerment that is needed to help eradicate suffering on the streets. They'd do better to give their money to an organised charity instead of putting it into the hand of another beggar reliant on other people for survival.
Anyway enough ranting. We fly out tonight, (Tuesday 30th) to Singapore. Looking forward to it. But not looking forward to saying goodbye to Kate and, believe it or not, India...
Bye for now,
xgregandjox
http://www.calcuttarescue.com
Tuesday, March 30, 2004
Sunday, March 28, 2004
Varanasi, city of the dead...well almost dead.
Story 1
One thing we hadn't planned upon in Varanasi, was meeting an Australian tourist at the station when we first arrived. Our train was late, so we ended up arriving in at about 11pm. We got off the train and immediately began to attract the usual attention from taxi and rickshaw drivers asking"where you want to go? and what hotel you staying at?" We've hardened up to it now and coped pretty well, considering we were frazzled from the journey. We emerged from the station to see a crowd of a dozen or so indian guys standing arguing around the base of a six foot bearded western man who was about 30. He looked stressed, to say the least and was fully laden with a huge back-pack. I asked him if he was okay and said he could join us in a rickshaw if he had no plans. He seemed really grateful and relieved to be going to a hotel we had pre-booked. Well to cut a long story short, Alex stayed with us(in the spare bed in our room) for two nights. Big mistake. On the boat at sunrise, he spotted someone he knew in another boat. He screamed hello to his friend and jumped ship! He stepped from our boat to theirs and waved goodbye. We were so shocked and I muttered something about paying the boat guy. He did a runner that afternoon, leaving us a small donation to the room and not having paid the hotel owner, (who was a really nice man) money for the food he'd eaten. He also never paid me for the boat. This man claimed to be a buddhist. He knew alot about the subject and practised his mantras regularly. He showed us his books and beads and how he used them. He seemed okay at first but both Jo and I went against our gut instinct to help another westerner in distress. Next time we'll think twice..... We saw Alex again on the way out of Varanasi. He'd attached himself to another bunch of people. Only hope they manage to shake him as soon as they could...
Story 2
Varanasi is a great place. Really atmospheric and very, very hot. The Ganges was the centre of all activity there, particularly in the morning when people went there to wash and pray to their various gods. We witnessed this amazing spectacle under the morning sunrise(the best we've yet seen on this trip) on two occasions. It was worth getting up at 5am and go by cycle rickshaw in the dark to the edge of the water where we were besieged by people trying to sell us boat rides. We did go on one boat ride and it provided an amazing viewpoint of the banks(or Ghats). We were shown by many people the way to the burning ghat. The site of cremations that happen around the clock 365 days a year. We witnessed bodies, wrapped in beautiful gold and orange silks being lowered into the water and then placed on a pire to be burnt. In broad daylight, we watched the moving ceremony that is as natural as breathing in this holy city. People are not allowed to mourn next to the body and widows are not allowed on the ghat through the fear that they might jump onto the fire aswell, (it happens!). Apparently, not everyone in Hindu society is disposed of in this way. Lepers, pregnant mothers, snake bite victims and priests are weighed down with a rock and dropped into the middle of the river. This seems ludicrous in a river that is already, heavily polluted and used by people to bathe. We later witnessed the 'fruits' of this type of burial. In the heat of the mid-day sun as people were swimming, an over turned bloated body came floating about 20 feet from the ghat. People did their best to ignore it and everyoned seemed to go a bit quiet. This was bad enough we thought, but then five crows proceeded to perch on the back of the fleshy pontoon and began pecking at the corpses behind! The sight took a few minutes to float away and once out of sight it was, seemingly, out of mind. Eveyone carried on as they had done before, Jo and I though had to go for a cup of tea and a long chat....
Anyway we've learnt a few a few things along the way in India, but most importantly know this. If you're going to throw a man in the river, weigh him down properly, especially if he's a six foot Buddhist named Alex....
Bye for now,
xgregandjox
Story 1
One thing we hadn't planned upon in Varanasi, was meeting an Australian tourist at the station when we first arrived. Our train was late, so we ended up arriving in at about 11pm. We got off the train and immediately began to attract the usual attention from taxi and rickshaw drivers asking"where you want to go? and what hotel you staying at?" We've hardened up to it now and coped pretty well, considering we were frazzled from the journey. We emerged from the station to see a crowd of a dozen or so indian guys standing arguing around the base of a six foot bearded western man who was about 30. He looked stressed, to say the least and was fully laden with a huge back-pack. I asked him if he was okay and said he could join us in a rickshaw if he had no plans. He seemed really grateful and relieved to be going to a hotel we had pre-booked. Well to cut a long story short, Alex stayed with us(in the spare bed in our room) for two nights. Big mistake. On the boat at sunrise, he spotted someone he knew in another boat. He screamed hello to his friend and jumped ship! He stepped from our boat to theirs and waved goodbye. We were so shocked and I muttered something about paying the boat guy. He did a runner that afternoon, leaving us a small donation to the room and not having paid the hotel owner, (who was a really nice man) money for the food he'd eaten. He also never paid me for the boat. This man claimed to be a buddhist. He knew alot about the subject and practised his mantras regularly. He showed us his books and beads and how he used them. He seemed okay at first but both Jo and I went against our gut instinct to help another westerner in distress. Next time we'll think twice..... We saw Alex again on the way out of Varanasi. He'd attached himself to another bunch of people. Only hope they manage to shake him as soon as they could...
Story 2
Varanasi is a great place. Really atmospheric and very, very hot. The Ganges was the centre of all activity there, particularly in the morning when people went there to wash and pray to their various gods. We witnessed this amazing spectacle under the morning sunrise(the best we've yet seen on this trip) on two occasions. It was worth getting up at 5am and go by cycle rickshaw in the dark to the edge of the water where we were besieged by people trying to sell us boat rides. We did go on one boat ride and it provided an amazing viewpoint of the banks(or Ghats). We were shown by many people the way to the burning ghat. The site of cremations that happen around the clock 365 days a year. We witnessed bodies, wrapped in beautiful gold and orange silks being lowered into the water and then placed on a pire to be burnt. In broad daylight, we watched the moving ceremony that is as natural as breathing in this holy city. People are not allowed to mourn next to the body and widows are not allowed on the ghat through the fear that they might jump onto the fire aswell, (it happens!). Apparently, not everyone in Hindu society is disposed of in this way. Lepers, pregnant mothers, snake bite victims and priests are weighed down with a rock and dropped into the middle of the river. This seems ludicrous in a river that is already, heavily polluted and used by people to bathe. We later witnessed the 'fruits' of this type of burial. In the heat of the mid-day sun as people were swimming, an over turned bloated body came floating about 20 feet from the ghat. People did their best to ignore it and everyoned seemed to go a bit quiet. This was bad enough we thought, but then five crows proceeded to perch on the back of the fleshy pontoon and began pecking at the corpses behind! The sight took a few minutes to float away and once out of sight it was, seemingly, out of mind. Eveyone carried on as they had done before, Jo and I though had to go for a cup of tea and a long chat....
Anyway we've learnt a few a few things along the way in India, but most importantly know this. If you're going to throw a man in the river, weigh him down properly, especially if he's a six foot Buddhist named Alex....
Bye for now,
xgregandjox
Thursday, March 25, 2004
Hello everyone,
We have now reached Varanasi - what a fantastic place this is!! I think this is the India we've been searching for. It is fascinating, friendly and has so much genuine charm, whilst remaining a living, working town. We took a boat ride this morning to see the ghats by early morning light, and it was magical. Unfortunately, our stay here is only brief, but this is definately a place deserving a second visit. There were 3 species of kingfisher diving into the Ganges, children splashed around, women washed clothes, men posed for our benefit, people performed blessings, bodies burned, water buffalo wandered around the shoreline - there was so much to take in, and the Ganges itself was vast and tranquil. We became lost in the jumble of backstreets and glimpsed folk going about their daily business in their homes, shops and workshops.
We sat and watched the cricket again yesterday, another well deserved win for India - more fireworks and merriment.
It is blisteringly hot at the moment and it's only 10.30am, but we have stumbled upon some delightful shady courtyards in guesthouses and cool alleyways where we can people watch and recouperate.
Next stop is kolkata, we leave on another sleeper train tomorrow night. Lets hope it's better than the 23hr marathon the last journey turned out to be!
Bye for now,
xjoandgregx
We have now reached Varanasi - what a fantastic place this is!! I think this is the India we've been searching for. It is fascinating, friendly and has so much genuine charm, whilst remaining a living, working town. We took a boat ride this morning to see the ghats by early morning light, and it was magical. Unfortunately, our stay here is only brief, but this is definately a place deserving a second visit. There were 3 species of kingfisher diving into the Ganges, children splashed around, women washed clothes, men posed for our benefit, people performed blessings, bodies burned, water buffalo wandered around the shoreline - there was so much to take in, and the Ganges itself was vast and tranquil. We became lost in the jumble of backstreets and glimpsed folk going about their daily business in their homes, shops and workshops.
We sat and watched the cricket again yesterday, another well deserved win for India - more fireworks and merriment.
It is blisteringly hot at the moment and it's only 10.30am, but we have stumbled upon some delightful shady courtyards in guesthouses and cool alleyways where we can people watch and recouperate.
Next stop is kolkata, we leave on another sleeper train tomorrow night. Lets hope it's better than the 23hr marathon the last journey turned out to be!
Bye for now,
xjoandgregx
