Day Thirty

So at this very moment, I'm sitting at the gate in Mumbai's airport only moments away from boarding my flight to Bangalore and then onto Mysore. I guess I still can't believe how much I had to pay in order to take the extra bag of things I bought with me while i was  traveling around India. 7600 Rupees total. Guess I really had no choice! However, I'm actually glad to be going back for some reason. I think I just miss the familiarity. Although if I had to choose my favorite place in India...It would definitely be Mumbai for all the reasons listed in my entires. There was so much to do and I never felt once, that I was bored or wasting my time. Now I'm just looking forward to unpacking and repacking all of my things, and maybe even having some shipped back to the U.S. in order to avoid the annoying extra baggage fees.

Day Twenty-Nine

Last Day @ SNEHA!

I can't believe this is my last day at SNEHA! Time goes by so fast. I remember the first day walking into the office with Aparna, like it was only yesterday! I really did have an awesome time here. I made lasting friendship and connections and hope to visit again soon. My only regret is not doing as much as I wanted to do given the amount of time I had to complete the internship. Despite the time limit, I think this was a great first experience working with an NGO.  The atmosphere was great for multiple learning experiences. Between the intellectual conversations with the SNEHA staff and the opportunity to sit in on research and advocacy meetings, I was able to dabble into different areas outside of working on my GGG Report.


The last day is always bitter sweet, which is why I bought a box of my favorite donuts from MAD OVER DONUTS to share with everyone. Fortunate enough for me, there was big meeting going on so I was able to say goodbye to everyone, besides Aparna. which was a little sad since she was my first contact with SNEHA! Today I met with Garima for the last time to go over all my paperwork and have my hours signed off and paperwork for SU completed. I gave a her a CD with all the video and pictures I took throughout my stay to share with everyone else, and in return she gave me a SNEHA T-shirt, which was nice to have as memorabilia of SNEHA.

Later on I had 1000 things to do. First I misunderstood which Guru house to go to first so I wasted one full hour at Guru Keka's house when it was actually Guru Subdha that had spoken with me. After finding that out...I made my to turner road to collect my Sari blouses that Mahnaz was making for me. After trying them all on several times to make final adjustments, only one needed more time than other so she agreed to have it delivered to me later on that night. From there I went straight over to Guru Subdhas house for my last lesson, when surprise surprise! Guru Keka was there as well. Then everything made sense! It was already quite late so I did not have much time to practice as much as I wanted. She invited me to have dinner, which was unexpected but really convenient since I didn't actually have anything to eat the whole day besides pieces of donuts. We all ate together and then I had a quick lesson before I was off to meet Nikki, Laila, and Preethi at Cafe Mocha Jomo. I'm glad I got a chance to meet up with them before leaving! I had so much fun with them, even if it was only for a couple weeks! Like the angels they are...Preethi and Nikki came back to Mrs. Gonsalves house to help me pack up my things. I really don't even know what I would have done had they not helped me. I had sooo much stuff. The thought of paying for it all to get to Mysore was making me sick!

Day Twenty-Eight

Lost my phone today! Might have happened when getting out the rickshaw at Guru Subdhas house or getting out the rickshaw back at the house. Either way...I'm sure its long gone. I only noticed it was missing once I got into my room and looked through my bag. Pretty upset right now :(

Day Twenty-Seven

Today I saw my first Bollywood movie in India! One of my must do, must see things before I leave! It was Guzaarish, with Aishawaraya Rai and Hritik Roshan. Half of it was in English and the other half Hindi. Nina and I had the same idea which is how we got the idea to go. We both wanted to see the same movie. We went to Andheri West at Big Fame Cinemas, which was pretty nice! Afterwards I went to my second day of Odissi lessons, and my legs were already in pain from the day before. I stuck it out like a trooper though...theres not much time to relax and take breaks!

Day Twenty-Six

Today was my first field visit. I went with Rajani and two other community facilitators to observe the SNEHA program SHAKTI in action. We took a rickshaw from the Santa Cruz sight into a slum near Juhu Beach. When we stepped out we weaved our way through the cement building through narrow pathways until we reach their community center, in which they already had a key to. Inside it was a room not too big or small with lights, fans, a couple tables and chairs. The two helpers both carried a large bag that had all the supplies for conducting checkups for the elderly. Once the Dr. Arrived, the women began coming one by one to have themselves examined. Many of them were in good spirits and seemed to be enjoying the company of the other women. When getting their examination they seemed generally happy, and I noticed lots of smiles, especially when the Dr. spoke to them in Hindi. In the middle of the examinations the Dr. usually gives a short 5 minute work out sessions where the ladies can do a bit of stretching and cardio. Today happened to be the Dr.'s birthday so one of the ladies presented to her a garland of flowers.

Day Twenty-Five

First thing I did upon waking up this morning was searching walking tours of South Bombay, since I heard this was a must see! So  I googled walking tours and came upon Mumbai Magic, which seemed pretty legit.

This is a fun tour of Mumbai using local transport – our famous black and yellow taxis, red buses, and local trains.

Your guides are a group of enthusiastic youngsters who will show you the city as they see it everyday – alive and vibrant, and constantly on the move. One or possibly two guides will be assigned to your tour.

The tour starts at the Gateway of India and covers all the must-see places in Bombay. It includes the following:

•	A walking exploration of the British Heritage District (30 minutes). Covers Gateway of India, Regal Circle, Prince of Wales Museum, Kala Ghoda, Bombay University, High Court, Oval Maidan and Churchgate
•	A bus ride from Churchgate to Mani Bhavan, Gandhi's home in Mumbai. The bus goes via Marine Drive and Chowpatty, with views of the Arabian Sea.
•	A brief stop for tea and snacks at the award-winning Swati Snacks, to sample Bombay's legendary fast food
•	A walk through a Bhaji Gully to see a bustling local bazaar
•	A train ride to see Dhobi Ghat (the city's unique open air laundry system)

The tour ends with a taxi ride to Victoria Terminus, to see Bombay's landmark Gothic railway station. At VT, the guide will help you find transport to your hotel or to the airport.

The idea behind the tour is for you to experience the city the way locals do, to see Mumbai from an insider’s perspective. However, for safety and convenience, we’ve picked off-peak hours for the train ride, and will travel in the opposite direction of the city’s rush-hour traffic.

When:

Any day of the week, either in the morning at 10:00 or in the afternoon at 2:00. Starts at Gateway of India, and lasts 4 hours.

Costs and Booking:

The tour costs INR 2000 per person. The price includes all transportation, entrances to Mani Bhavan, tea and snacks, as well as illustrated handouts for each participant. Please note that this tour runs only in English. Prior reservation is mandatory. 

After reading the description I decided to go for it, So I told the lady in charge and got a call moments later by my tour operator who turned out to be a young college students about my age who actually was a student of Priya from SNEHA. SMALL WORLD! She did a really good job giving the tour. Actually I wish I knew about this before because they have locations in all the places I toured in India. It was very organized and professional, and I felt totally comfortable since she was a girl and about my age.  

Day Twenty-Four

Today I was on a mission to get as many of my errands done as possible. It began with look for a place to have my Sari choli's made. After finally locating the place I was suggested to go...it turned out to be the same place Preethi took me to only a couple days earlier, except they told me they could not do it and the place next door they told me to try was charing 1000 rupees! So I had to look elsewhere, meantime the area I was in (Pali Naka) had pretty nice places to eat. I was starving so I ate at Papa Pancho...which I originally thought was Mexican cuisine but it was actually North Indian. It was good anyway...I ordered Dal Makhini. The inside was very nostalgic, I guess that is what attracted me to it in the first place. 

Across the street was a huge building I was curious to find out what was inside. So I asked the waiter what it was and it was combination of a gym, spa, and business offices. As soon as I heard spa, I made my way over. The minute I walked in, I was suffocating in aroma fumes of what they called "relaxation." That still does not help to identify exactly what it was. It smelled beautiful! Words can't describe the intensity of whatever oil they were burning. The spa had fair prices and was completely modernized inside. Everything was very clean and neat and the staff were really polite and helpful. Initially I came in not really knowing exactly what I wanted...by the time I left I dropped Rs1100, on a hair-wash and blow dry, facial, and threading. I also got the opportunity to scratch one more thing off my list of things to do before I leave India which is learn how to thread! I casually asked the girl threading my eyebrows if she would teach me how to do it, and with no extra cost at all explained the technique and allowed me to try threading some hair off her arm until I got it  down. I was livid! Super excited, because now I won't have to pay $8 to thread my eyebrows...I can do it on my own...or at least on other friends and family members! 

Once finished, I headed directly across the street to cocoberry (India's first  frozen yogurt place) and had a banana based yogurt with white chocolate chips and chocolate sprinkles...delicious. Next stop was turner road...because I was desperate to get these Choli's handed to someone to work on since my time is already limited. And then, I came to the first place I wandered into when I first arrived here, except this time I had sketches of the patterns I wanted for each I had. The women took on my request and approved each design I showed her! Now I can't wait to see what they will look like.