accident smaccident

4/8/08
Time races by, and our very pointless but fun (while not in the car) mid-internship return to Jaipur has come and gone. We spent 13 hours in a miserably hot and uncomfortable jeep for 32 hours in Jaipur, but we got to meet up with everyone from the program, catch up, and hear their stories of NGO life.
My impression is that everyone has dealt with issues of the same theme in their internships from complete confusion about expectations and purpose, to down time, to translation issues and project mishaps. However, no one was left in quite so absurd a position as we at Gagari, whether by chance or their NGO’s organizational ability or structure. A few people even had very legitimate projects to work on for most of the time. Shocker I know.
On an interesting side note, the remaining Gagari gang say they are happier, apparently partly because they (like us) have adjusted their expectations but more because the girls have fallen in love with Prem (very fine looking Indian driver with a purple scarf…and two children), Dillan creepily with 16 year old Lela. Strange.
I am ultimately very grateful that at least I was able to see and live the village life (even if I still regret the particular conditions of my time there) because it was a truly learning experience and far more memorable than at the blind school (even if I do love sweet blind children, Vaneja, and serious pool time).
The level of suppression of basic wants here continues to astound me. No one ‘goes out.’ The two times we were out past 11 PM turned out to be right disasters coming home, with a) drunk and angry rickshaw drivers and B) locked gates or packs of roving dogs. Its inappropriate to dance, drink, sing, kiss, date, hold hands, or otherwise let loose in public places and technically not in the homes. I hate to say it, but perhaps men here are so obnoxious—Sarah and I have new ‘friends’ in the boys that sit and call down to us from a school roof on our walk home each day—because there is no outlet whatsoever for them within normal societal bounds. Sigh.
As a last note: got into my first rickshaw accident. It was inevitable. And no worries, it wasn’t serious. Luckily, cars travel much slower here even if much more chaotically.

accident smaccident

Jodhpur, India