Last week I took the bus to Delhi with some friends and we spent about two days exploring the city before we parted ways. I loved walking through winding, bustling bazaars with millions of activities that overwhelmed all my senses. Sparks flew from shadowed workshops, endless streams of rickshaws and foot traffic swamped the road, men strained to pull carts with towers of boxes, vegetables and fruits fatly sat on stands, families stared behind dusty sweet counters...there was so much. We squished into the new Delhi Metro a couple of times with what seemed like over maximum capacity...it was like an awkward and uncomfortable group hug. One night we went out and just danced. It was a great weekend- but far different from life in the mountains...
Currently I am in the state of Uttaranchal, which borders Nepal and Tibet in northwest India. When I stepped off the train from Delhi and my breath was steaming in the freezing air, I realized that I should have brought warmer clothes. I met another intern at the station and we held onto our stomachs as we lurched and curved through the mountains on tiny roads for about 7 hours. She vomited, quite serenely in my opinion, from the window. Twice. Miraculously my stomach refused to get to that point. Maybe it was because when we rounded another bend and I saw the snow-capped peaks of the Himalayas, I was too happy to be sick.
The NGO I am staying with is called AVANI, which I, being used to Southern drawls and what-not, assumed was pronounced "AH-VAAH-KNEE" but actually it is "uh-vuh-knee," such as, "Mm. That bread is nice and oveny." They train village youth to install solar home lighting systems, as well as employ women as weavers. Basically I am trying to focus on renewable energy as a means of generating sustainable livelihoods. Issues I am looking at include: rural-urban migration, how solar power affects the village economy (income-generating activities?), social development impacts (health, education, community centers), the capacity of the Village Solar Energy Committee for development and governance, the empowerment of the Solar Technicians, aaand India's ambitious National Solar Mission. I have been interviewing people at the organization, but tomorrow I will begin interviewing in villages, as well. The campus sits right on the side of a mountain (hooray for terrace agriculture!), a 10 minute walk from a town with 2 shops, and 4 km away from a town with more shops. It is in the mountains, for real.
I live in a dormitory with the weavers, solar technicians, and 2 other interns on AVANI's campus. The best part is that they are all about my age! It has been so so wonderful to interact with Indian youth. In Jaipur I didn't have opportunities like this. At night they all like to knit, sing, and sometimes dance. I have become good friends with the other interns, who are here more for textile/fashion design. There are also 2 girls from France! We make quite an eclectic group. I actually caught a cold here and discovered a new renewable source: my nose. The nearest real town is 4 km away, so I bought a jacket there that boasts on the back: "Harley Devidson: Superbly Enbineered Motorcycles." I find the irony of this claim quite funny, and I will now be including, "Superbly Enbineered" in my vocabulary. Also, the most used word in my Hindi vocabulary would be "Tunda," which means cold. (They speak Hindi and Kumaoni, a local language.) On the really cold days the clouds swoop through the mountains like the tides of the ocean, completely filling the valleys. It's gorgeous. I have loved walking through the hills, the forests, and on the road in the clouds. I also have been helping the cook in the kitchen: peeling potatoes, onions, and garlic, or rolling chapatis. Everyone is very sweet here and I feel like part of this community.
Hopefully next week I can talk more about what I am finding in my research...
Currently I am in the state of Uttaranchal, which borders Nepal and Tibet in northwest India. When I stepped off the train from Delhi and my breath was steaming in the freezing air, I realized that I should have brought warmer clothes. I met another intern at the station and we held onto our stomachs as we lurched and curved through the mountains on tiny roads for about 7 hours. She vomited, quite serenely in my opinion, from the window. Twice. Miraculously my stomach refused to get to that point. Maybe it was because when we rounded another bend and I saw the snow-capped peaks of the Himalayas, I was too happy to be sick.
The NGO I am staying with is called AVANI, which I, being used to Southern drawls and what-not, assumed was pronounced "AH-VAAH-KNEE" but actually it is "uh-vuh-knee," such as, "Mm. That bread is nice and oveny." They train village youth to install solar home lighting systems, as well as employ women as weavers. Basically I am trying to focus on renewable energy as a means of generating sustainable livelihoods. Issues I am looking at include: rural-urban migration, how solar power affects the village economy (income-generating activities?), social development impacts (health, education, community centers), the capacity of the Village Solar Energy Committee for development and governance, the empowerment of the Solar Technicians, aaand India's ambitious National Solar Mission. I have been interviewing people at the organization, but tomorrow I will begin interviewing in villages, as well. The campus sits right on the side of a mountain (hooray for terrace agriculture!), a 10 minute walk from a town with 2 shops, and 4 km away from a town with more shops. It is in the mountains, for real.
I live in a dormitory with the weavers, solar technicians, and 2 other interns on AVANI's campus. The best part is that they are all about my age! It has been so so wonderful to interact with Indian youth. In Jaipur I didn't have opportunities like this. At night they all like to knit, sing, and sometimes dance. I have become good friends with the other interns, who are here more for textile/fashion design. There are also 2 girls from France! We make quite an eclectic group. I actually caught a cold here and discovered a new renewable source: my nose. The nearest real town is 4 km away, so I bought a jacket there that boasts on the back: "Harley Devidson: Superbly Enbineered Motorcycles." I find the irony of this claim quite funny, and I will now be including, "Superbly Enbineered" in my vocabulary. Also, the most used word in my Hindi vocabulary would be "Tunda," which means cold. (They speak Hindi and Kumaoni, a local language.) On the really cold days the clouds swoop through the mountains like the tides of the ocean, completely filling the valleys. It's gorgeous. I have loved walking through the hills, the forests, and on the road in the clouds. I also have been helping the cook in the kitchen: peeling potatoes, onions, and garlic, or rolling chapatis. Everyone is very sweet here and I feel like part of this community.
Hopefully next week I can talk more about what I am finding in my research...
What a beautiful picture! I hope I can learn from you, Sarah, about how to best use solar power.
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