CIE: Study Abroad Blog

Stuck in Delhi?

So, after a whirlwind trip and after traveling completely around the world, it is back to the grind as they say. Having just recently gotten back from South Korea, things have definitely been tough to get adjusted to.

After parting from the group in a fast and not so complete goodbye at Kochi airport, Leah and I set off on our own adventure to Seoul. The only problem was, we would have to wait in the airport in Kochi until check in at 12:30. After spending hours in the airport trying to hold onto our bags and not fall asleep, we were on a plane to Hyderabad and then Delhi to get onto our flight on Asiana Air. Little did we know what an adventure it would be!

When we finally did arrive in Delhi, we realized that our next flight was about an hour and 20 minutes after our arrival time and that we would have to get our bags and re-check them because of the change in airlines. After getting our bags (which was much quicker than in Kochi) we ran to the check-in area only to find that the check in for not only our flight, but all Asiana Air flights had closed. We spoke to the woman at the information desk and got re-directed to the Air Asia desk about three times before we were convinced that we would not be making it to South Korea that night and that we were going to be stuck in the Delhi airport.

Luckily, one more passenger arrived at the information desk who was also supposed to be on our flight and this apparently prompted the woman at the information desk to call Asiana Airlines in an attempt to get us checked in and on our flight. The next thing we know, a woman who is calm and collected strolls up and takes us over to a check-in desk to get our bags checked in and get our boarding passes printed. After calming down, we are given our boarding passes and it becomes chaotic all over again, fighting to get through security and running to our gate only to find that they delayed the flight by 30 minutes for us. Which was (unfortunately) very obvious as we came running up frantically, tears in our eyes and because as we were getting on the plane, one of the Asiana Air employees so kindly stated, “Next time, don’t be late for your flight.” Thank you, sir.

On the plane we were calm again and I was ready for my adventure in South Korea. Leah, due to unfortunate circumstances, would leave to go back to New York when we got to Seoul, but I was so excited to see my roommate from college and was ready for a Korean adventure!

~ Jennie Putnam

Farewell to Kerala. . . . Until the Next

In this final reflection, I want to capture the experiences of our last days in Kerala. The DYUTI Conference ended with a “ prakriti arangu “ which is an outdoor forum where students, faculty, practitioners, guest speakers sat in a discussion circle to reflect on the conference themes, the ways in which various constituents were involved in biodiversity strategies, and to support several resolutions for environmental strategies in the state of Kerala. The closing valedictory included the new conference theme for 2011-12 of “The Right of Family. “  The DYUTI conference was inspiring and reinforced for us as social workers to address the environment’s influence on people, and people’s influence on the environment. 

Our group enjoyed Sunday in our only full day of recreational activities at Njarakkal  at the MMatsyafed Aqua Tourism Centre fishing, swinging in hammocks, enjoying paddle boats and  a Kerala meal of fresh fish and prawns, and a short time at the beach of the fishing village on the Arabian Sea. Our student hosts, Anish and Eldhose, took us to Sree Matti to shop for clothing: saris, scarves, salwas, and men’s shirts, and to ride the ferries on the bay between Vypeen and Fort Cochin for a short evening there visiting more street vendors. These activities really involved us in the kinds of things that residents of Kochi participate in on their days off.

On  Monday, our final day at Rajagiri College, we had a yoga demonstration and exercise session, and an orientation to street theatre which all the Rajagiri social work students learn as a practice skill. We had an opportunity to try to prepare a topic for street theatre acting. It was challenging to begin to learn the differences between a “ skit” with acting, dialogue, and pantomime, and the street theatre techniques of symbolism,  limited dialogue,  and audience interaction. We closed with a sharing circle of our group together with Rajagiri faculty, students, and staff reflecting on what we were taking away from our week in Kochi.  For me, the School of Social Work at Rajagiri College conveyed a strong sense of community, unity, and leadership from every administrator, faculty, student, and staff member that we met. They were unified and focused in every aspect of hosting the conference and the several groups of visitors on study abroad programs.

We finished the afternoon with more shopping hosted by Mr. Biju and Mr. Vijesh at Joyalukkas and the Old Cochin Market area, with a little cold beer thrown into the mix. We then gathered at a hotel where Dr. Mary hosted a beautiful farewell dinner where we were joined by her husband and by Father Prasant, who arrived by motor bike from Sacred Heart College.

It was very hard to say goodbye to the people who had made us feel so welcomed and who made sure that we learned and experienced so much of Kochi and social work in Kerala from the perspective of human rights and environmental justice issues. As Mark Primus said, in India, we really saw how they kept environment part of  the “person and environment” perspective in social work.

We carry them with us in our hearts as we return home. 

~Carol Brownstein-Evans

Back to Life…Back to Reality…."How was India?"

After being home for a few days, (and sleeping thanks to jet lag!) I have been able to reflect on our trip to India and Dubai. Everyone asks, “How was India?” I can only respond with good things.

I believe that India was definitely an eye opening experience that allowed us to see many different cultures, environments, surroundings, and interact with many people. We were able to interact on many different levels within the campus and outside environments.  It was also a humbling experience because I was able to explore and search within myself who I really was and it allowed me to question how I view things in life.

Talk about a sensory overload! We saw beautiful scenery, tasted great food, smelled many different scents (especially in downtown Cochin) and heard many different stories and experiences from all walks of life.  As I continued to reflect upon my experience in India and Dubai, I realized that none of this would have happened without support from friends and family.  This trip has definitely made me recognize how much my friends and family supported me with this decision to come to India with fellow classmates and faculty.  In addition, I realized how supportive the faculty - both those traveling with us and back home - were in our endeavors.  Everyone followed this blog site throughout the whole trip!

It also allowed me to really understand how much in the States that we take granted for. Things like clean and cold water (especially clean water), Americanized food (pizza!), air conditioning, etc. You don’t realize how important clean water is to your daily living until you have visited India. For instance, searching for bottled water was on our daily “to-do” list of things because water is definitely necessary with the heat and humidity. Also, simple things like brushing your teeth, washing your hands, washing your face, anything and everything can only be done by clean water.  We went to the mall one day and saw "Country Fried Chicken" and pizza. I think we all screamed and ran to get in line. Things like this I believe we all were able to recognize how much we take for granted. 

After our stay in India, we made a stop to Dubai. How beautiful! I have to say I was very amazed by all the sights throughout our 20 hour visit. There were so many beautiful buildings, waterways, islands, you name it.  This was all structurally pretty, very modernized and technically advanced. That was their way of showing beauty in a sense. 

On the other hand, India’s sights of gardens, plants, trees and flowers were some of the ways in which they showed beauty.  All types of beauty can be appreciated by all walks of life.  I believe that India and Dubai has profoundly impacted me as a person and as a professional in many ways. The experiences that we had as a group and the friends that I made has allowed me to see things from different perspectives and gain a new way of thinking in life.

Truly grateful for all the memories, experiences, and friends that I have made all thanks to India! It took us half way around the world to realize that 4 or 5 of us all live within walking distance to each other! Thanks India!  You have been wonderful to us all.

Sincerely,

Alicia Franceschi

Finding Peace in India

    My experiences in India have been life changing. Living in the dorms at the Rajagiri campus and learning about how the students and faculty live has taught me less is more. With all the noise from the streets of India and our hectic schedule of fifteen hour days, I ironically found peace within myself. If anyone reading this knows me, I worry about everything. Observing and talking with the students and faculty at Rajagiri College and the many trips on the Rajagiri bus sightseeing has made me so appreciative of the small things I used to take for granted in America, such as clean water. The things I used to worry about seem so small when viewing them from a larger scale.  

    After our 9 day stay in Kochi we flew to Dubai for a night. We were greeted by our tour guide, Marshall, when we got off the plane. He hurried us on the bus for a full day of sightseeing. Marshall told us everything and anything we wanted to know about Dubai as our cameras took pictures of the expensive cars, expensive buildings and expensive houses. Cochin and Dubai were complete opposites. In my opinion, Dubai is about tangible things where as Rajagiri College is about the relationships they make with people. Dr. Mary said in our closing ceremony “you don’t have to give us anything; we want what’s in your souls”.

    I am so humbled by my experiences in India and grateful for the memories I will have forever.

~ Abigail Charles

Life-Changing Experience

Now that I’ve been home for a couple of days, I’ve been able to reflect on the journey I embarked on over the past couple of weeks. I’ve learned so much from my experiences in India.

The most important thing I have learned is not to take the small things we have here for granted, such as clean drinking water. I am also more appreciative for all of the opportunities and freedoms we have in America that are not as acceptable in India.

After our departure from India, we had the chance to spend a day and night in Dubai. This city was almost the exact opposite of Cochin. It was for the most part new and man-made, with everything being extravagant and flashy.  We were taken on a tour of the city with Marshall, our guide. We hit all of the major attractions, including the world’s biggest hotel and tallest building. We ended the day by observing a fountain show to Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” in front of this same building. It was a great way to spend the remainder of our trip. I am thankful that this part of the trip came after India and not before, as it would not have had the same effect otherwise.

What a great experience the trip has been. It was definitely a life-changing experience, and one that I will remember forever.   

~Courtney Anderson

Final Stop

Dubai and the world's tallest building . . .

 
We were also fortunate enough to watch a water lights show that was carried out to the tune of Michael Jacksons "Thriller".... it was simply amazing.

~Sarah Cataline

Gentleman on the Extreme Left

So we are technically on Day Six of our visit to India and I have a lot of catching up to do with my blogging.

It is January 7, 2011 here and I have already experienced so much. Stepping off the plane the first thing that hits you is the heat and humidity; it was completely overwhelming yet I was surprisingly okay with it. Maybe it was because we were coming from a place with a wind chill of -15 degrees. After getting through customs and having our bags scanned for any plant products,  we were directed downstairs to the baggage claim. This was yet another surprise and probably my first experience with what I like to call "Indian time".

Now I am not sure if this is isolated to Kochi or the state of Kerala or even just the people we have come in contact with, but nothing ever seems to run on time here. The majority of the time, people arrive very early - like in the case of the buses that transport us around - or programs and people run very late - such is the case with almost every speaker at the conference we are at. However, I think I have gotten away from my point, which is that we waited at the baggage claim for what felt like two hours before our luggage started to emerge from the conveyor belt abyss. It was probably the longest time I have ever waited to get a suitcase in my life and it had some of us doubting whether or not our luggage had made it from Dubai. Soon though, familiar luggage started to emerge and we were on our way.

Outside of the main airport area, after exchanging our money, we were greeted by our social work student “tour guides” Eldhos and Don and a wave of people and cars everywhere. Soon, we were on a bus with Michael Jackson blaring and all the windows open while we were flying around the streets of Kochi, wildly impressed by the driver’s ability to maneuver anywhere. It also seemed that drivers in Kochi honk at everything. Sometimes I found myself wondering why the driver was honking his horn when nothing was happening that I thought warranted it. After being here a while, I realized that a car without a horn in Kochi is probably a death sentence because the horn means others pay attention to you and if you do not have one it seems highly likely that you will crash.

While all of this honking is going on I was also observing what the streets of Kochi are like, which is best described as usually dirty with a large amount of litter. There are people walking everywhere and many people have small shops or huts that they are selling things out of. It even looks like some people just stand on the street and watch other people and the chaos of the road. Kochi is also an interesting mix of rice paddies, rivers, and forests crossed with large steel and concrete buildings and bridges. This makes the view from the bus commonly change and always interesting.

As we arrive on campus, I realize that the social science campus is rather small, but that it contains a kindergarten and schools for the children in the area as well. Immediately we are thrown off by the fact that we will be split up into three groups and will be staying at different accommodations around campus for a few hours until we have to be to lunch at noon. After saying goodbye to the rest of the group, Leah, Mark, Latrina, Bridgette, and I head to our hostel on campus. These accommodations were very much like camping and consisted of three cots to a room with one window, a very powerful ceiling fan, and concrete shelves. Leah and I had a room together and it was very much like camping. We could not drink the water, we could not brush our teeth with the water and the bathroom consisted of a western style toilet with the shower in the same area as the toilet. I knew right away this was going to be very different than in the United States.

After sleeping on our wonderful cots for a few hours, we all showered and headed to the mess hall for lunch at the college. The food was amazing, but we were not sure if we could drink the water. Later, we came to find out that Rajagiri College of Social Sciences is a green campus and the students and staff there have a system of collecting and filtering rainwater and then boiling it before serving it to us. The only problem with this however, is that usually the water is warm when it is served and the last thing you want is warm water when it is 80 degrees and humid outside. Following lunch we were able to see some of Kochi outside of the campus and did a lot on the first day of our stay.

We traveled on the bus again to a Jewish Synagogue. At first, the synagogue was underwhelming considering the ride to get there. However, I have noticed that many things in Kochi seem ordinary at first, but that there is usually a story or explanation behind it that makes it more interesting. In the case of the synagogue, which seemed beautifully decorated, but small, it was explained to us that the synagogue was built in 1568 by European Jews in India and the floor consisted of hand-painted tiles that were seemingly the same, but actually all slightly different if you look closely.

Moving on from the synagogue, we traveled to Fort Kochi and we were able to walk along and see street vendors as well as get out first taste of bargaining with the vendors. The highlight of Fort Kochi were the Chinese Fishing nets, which are huge, beautiful wooden structures with nets attached to them that are still used to fish in the sea. Immediately, all of my senses were activated and we were overwhelmed by smells, sights, and noises, but it was amazing to see and experience and definitely different than Western New York.

Soon enough came a welcome boat ride near the Chinese Fishing nets at sunset, which was unbelievable calming and peaceful, serving as a respite from the hustle and bustle of Kochi. After the boat ride, we had dinner at a restaurant in Kochi and returned to the campus for an overnight stay and a start to the workshops on the campus the next day. Exhausted and probably over stimulated, I went to bed trying to understand the differences between India and the United States, reflecting on how most things have a meaning even if you do not think they do and hoping I could sleep on my camping cot.

~Jennifer Putman

Gandhi, Kerala, Culture, and Unity . . . . (Part 2)

The Rajagiri students have addressed the theme of environmental justice in every possible way. They have spent a year preparing the conference which began Thursday Jan 6th. The campus was transformed with lights and structures which the students built to represent trees and plants with hands reaching out. Their skits, music and dancing represented traditional Indian and Malayalam culture as well as the theme of environment, including a fashion show of clothes humorously made out of jute, newspapers, reeds, etc. The campus won an award for being the most Green campus in Kerala, and takes re-cycling seriously, including a ban on use of plastics. It is impressive to see how they have made such a concerted effort to be green and each student contributes to the process at the front end with use of electricity, light bulbs, washing dishes, recycling paper, using carbon pencils rather than plastic ball point pens, etc.  

The welcome to the opening of the conference began with receiving a dot of sandalwood paste on our foreheads representing the opening of our minds to knowledge and unity with others at the conference. There was a ceramic pot with water and rose petals and floating candles that welcomed us, again representing enlightenment. Each major plenary session begins with a Hindu prayer sung by a student, and the singing of the lively Rajagiri College anthem. We are hoping to record that anthem. The women all wear beautiful saris, both on the campus and in the community. We are all hoping to have the opportunity to shop for saris to bring back with us.

My thoughts are spinning each day from the college workshops and the conference sessions, the cultural presentations, the cultural and social outings, the wonderful people we are meeting, the warmth and hospitality of the “Rajagirians,” and this brief immersion in Indian and Keralite culture. We cannot wait to return to Rochester and share our experiences.

Our students have been so enthusiastic, meeting and speaking with other students and faculty, discovering resources at the college and campus for their research on social issues in India, and embracing every experience with enthusiasm.  This is a delightful group of students to travel with, and we can all be proud of how they are representing our college and our collaborative program.

I just cannot say enough about our social work students.

Until the next,

Carol

A "Room" With a View

The view from the fishing village...too beautiful not to share.

~Sarah Cataline

“Oh My God (OMG)!! My Conversation Was Dropped!!"

I have been accused of having an unnaturally close relationship with my cell phone.  For the most part I pretty much know where it is and that is never too far from my reach.  I think in part our world has brought us to that point, may it be because most of us no longer have a land line or maybe for other reasons (professional or personal).

Here in Kochi it has been taken to a remarkably new level.

In our positions, Carol and I are often in conversation with our guides and others regarding the logistics of the day or just getting to know those around us.  On this particular occasion, I was immersed in a conversation about culture and life here is Kochi and then… the phone rang! I was in mid-sentence when “Oh My God! My conversation was dropped!!

I somewhat understand when a call is dropped and I quickly try to call the person back while talking badly about my phone courier… but a conversation! I’m standing right here! This was new. A little embarrassed, I looked around slightly thinking…did anyone see that?

I then started to observe that this is a fairly normal practice for most here in Kochi.  It did not matter what was going on, if the phone rang it was answered.  Presenters stopped lecturing to answer their phone; motorcyclist who can’t get their helmets (those that are wearing them) off fast enough pull off to the side of the road to answer their phone, bus drivers, women and children… no one is immune!!

Then I thought some of us drop conversations all the time…yes we do! We rush to answer our txt!!  OMG!!! But I’m standing right here!! 

God! I love culture!  Different but yet Similar!

Mark A. Primus