Small villages

I spent the last days in Begur and visited several small villages in the area. My driver and I took the motorcyle to the different locations and I got to see beautiful landmarks of the Indian countryside. We rode by fields of sunflowers, palm trees, banana and papaya trees, and other exotic plants. The first stop was at a small kindergarden and school. The children seemed shy, because they sat quietly on the floor the entire time. The kindergarden was one room with one small desk and one chair. The walls were full of colorful pictures, so that the children could learn the words of different fruits, vegetables, animals, body parts and so on. Before I left, I wrote a few sentences in a guest book and saw that two other Americans have visited this place. Unlike the kindergarden kids, the school children wore a uniform. I have noticed that most schools in this area require uniforms, often blue- or green-colored.

My driver then took me to see some rural projects of IHDUA. We stopped at several houses in about 8 villages and every person was very welcoming and friendly. Every single household offered me chai tea and some gave me snacks as well. In one village, I saw a kitchen garden constructed by IHDUA. The purpose is to provide nutrition through vegetables and fruits to the habitants. I also sat in another SHG (Self-Help Group) women's meeting. The women seemed very interested in my culture as well and my driver translated their questions to me. They asked if I was married and if I wanted to stay at the village with them sometime.

The second project I visited a smokeless oven, provided by IHDUA. According to Nanjappa, women used to inhale smoke and get sick while cooking, so the organization constructed one where the smoke goes outside only.

In a different village, I observed the production of silk. There were large wooden wheels on the front porch with hundreds of silk worms weaving. One of the men told me that it takes three days for the worms to construct the material. I refused a chai, but got one anyway. It seems as if nobody takes "no" as an answer here regarding to food or drinks.

Although it was pouring this morning, it fortunately stopped once we got to Begur. I had a different driver today and the motorcyle seemed to be going a lot faster. Because the villages today were a little more distant from Begur, we visited fewer areas. The people at the first house were keeping different food items, such as mangoes and spicy pickles, in different-sized, blue containers. Provided by IHDUA, these items apparently ameliorate their business.

At the next village, we visited a woman that was tailoring, such as the girls in Begur. At the last stop, women were preparing nutritional supplements for malnourished children.

Finally, I experienced Indian breakfast. Although I didn't order myself, I liked both dishes. One day, I had delicious wheat-based wraps called Booris together with saagu and chutney. This morning, I had Idlis, cakes made with fermented rice and served with spicy sauces. I took great photographs and will upload them as soon as I get back to the U.S.

PS: I saw two monkeys yesterday!