Editor’s note: Lake Life editor Ashley Hanry is sending dispatches from her journey to India as part of the regional Rotary Exchange Program:
Our Rotary GSE trip began and ended in Coimbatore, with many stops along the way. We saw temples, dancers and students; ate dosa, samba and curries; and were greeted with sincere hospitality by Rotary members of India in District 3200.
We crammed as much into a day as we could, and lived on huge meals eaten at all hours and little sleep. It was a whirlwind and a great experience.
Highlights of our month in South India include cultural visits and several stops at current Rotary projects:
• I was blessed by an elephant at Perur Temple.
• I met a Pomeranian, Jimmy, that wears a bindhi. His owner, my host in Tirupur, gave me a set for my dog to wear.
• Each day we experienced driving in India, but only once did we get to travel in an auto rickshaw. This tiny vehicle with only three wheels zooms through traffic of goats, people, mopeds and more while at the same time avoiding buses and cars. It was also surprising to see an entire family travel on one two-wheeler - toddler up front, father driving and mother sitting side-saddle in a sari holding a baby.
• Being dressed in a half sari and sari was also new. I still don’t think I could pull it off on my own, but was fine patiently waiting as a host wrapped me in layers and layers of colorful fabric then quickly made precise pleats, stuck in a safety pin to hold it all together and then tucked in all the loose ends in a tight bunch around my waist.
• Vocational days visiting newspapers and meeting local journalists were great personally. I was able to tour newspapers, talk with other journalists and see similarities and differences between our paper and papers nearly 10,000 miles away. The biggest comment I received at each paper was that our paper was the perfect width, making it easy to travel with and read. Newspapers in India are about an inch and a half wider.
Finally, learning about all Rotary does was eye opening. The group works on projects of its choice to better its community. We saw how local clubs here aided hospitals and have built schools, vocational training centers, low-cost housing and crematoriums.
This experience is one our team could have never had without Rotary, so we owe much to this organization and are grateful for the opportunity.
As our team leader says, “When we leave, we’ll have India in our homes, India in our cars, but most importantly, we’ll have India in our hearts.”
We crammed as much into a day as we could, and lived on huge meals eaten at all hours and little sleep. It was a whirlwind and a great experience.
Highlights of our month in South India include cultural visits and several stops at current Rotary projects:
• I was blessed by an elephant at Perur Temple.
• I met a Pomeranian, Jimmy, that wears a bindhi. His owner, my host in Tirupur, gave me a set for my dog to wear.
• Each day we experienced driving in India, but only once did we get to travel in an auto rickshaw. This tiny vehicle with only three wheels zooms through traffic of goats, people, mopeds and more while at the same time avoiding buses and cars. It was also surprising to see an entire family travel on one two-wheeler - toddler up front, father driving and mother sitting side-saddle in a sari holding a baby.
• Being dressed in a half sari and sari was also new. I still don’t think I could pull it off on my own, but was fine patiently waiting as a host wrapped me in layers and layers of colorful fabric then quickly made precise pleats, stuck in a safety pin to hold it all together and then tucked in all the loose ends in a tight bunch around my waist.
• Vocational days visiting newspapers and meeting local journalists were great personally. I was able to tour newspapers, talk with other journalists and see similarities and differences between our paper and papers nearly 10,000 miles away. The biggest comment I received at each paper was that our paper was the perfect width, making it easy to travel with and read. Newspapers in India are about an inch and a half wider.
Finally, learning about all Rotary does was eye opening. The group works on projects of its choice to better its community. We saw how local clubs here aided hospitals and have built schools, vocational training centers, low-cost housing and crematoriums.
This experience is one our team could have never had without Rotary, so we owe much to this organization and are grateful for the opportunity.
As our team leader says, “When we leave, we’ll have India in our homes, India in our cars, but most importantly, we’ll have India in our hearts.”