The 'Real' World - wherever that is

Well here we are again at the back end of another full on day as you the majority of our readers (being from NZ shores) are about to start a new day of your own. Ah we remember fondly as a group the land of green and clean!

Today has seen another round of contrasting experiences, almost as if someone was deliberately lining up interactions that would both challenge and inspire the touring party. I'm so impressed by how the boys are using this site to provide raw accounts, both of joy and hope, countered by equally important accounts of sadness and frustration. Not surprisingly the depth of the evening reflections/debriefs are also increasing as more is seen and felt, and thus needs to be processed. Long may this continue as the tour rolls on.

Enough of the global thinking for a minute though and onto the detail:

Thursday 12 December

7:30am- Wake up. Many sleep through the evening dramas that play out between the locals on the streets (yelling and horns through the night are the norm). It seems that occasionally if you practice thinking hard enough about it you can just switch off from the outside world (maybe just a male thing . . . )
8am- Breakfast at Blue Sky Cafe. It seems that many in the group will find morning wake ups for the rest of their lives dull without the energy of the staff in the world's best chocolate banana pancake restaurant
9:15am- Following on from breakfast Fletcher Boswell gives a well considered speech on the Caste System as his Experts in the Field topic. Mr Jordan stands midway through (when Fletcher acknowledges that teachers and religious individuals are the highest of all castes) and starts to demand respect. Mr Skeen encourages everyone to laugh loudly at the Captain of the Shane Train.
10am- After a 10 minute walk we arrive at Dr Bidham Chandra Roy Market; a market that specialises in sports gear and clothing. Situated across the road from the impressive Metropolitan Building which was a venue of completely filthy wealth during the time of the British Raj, the sports market offered an opportunity for our crew to 1) buy tacky imitation sports attire, with their names Biswell, Jint, Moreau, Hanish and Stewar to name a few, spelt incorrectly across the shoulder blades at 3 Rp per letter (approx 8 NZ cents). More importantly, the shopping outing was in aid of purchasing 4 cricket bats, 6 wickets (posts in Mr Jordan's language) and as many tennis balls as possible. These will be used in a very competitive game that the Editor has got arranged against a local side (the opponents numbering 132 kids, 3 dogs and a cow on their team list). Reuben McGregor-Sumpter was heard yelling 'let's try these out tomorrow, I need to get my eye in'. George Helsby followed up with 'and I need to roll my arm over'. All the meanwhile George Harman argued the final price claiming the bat he was going to buy for 280Rp ($6) was 'not made for sixes, only ones and twos coming from this'. All that toilet talk made Miss Candy feel slightly ill for a couple of hours but like a true Diva she performed in the programmed events tonight
11:25am- We left the shopping to freshen up before returning to the Blue Sky Cafe for lunch (as the head waiter for that shift had been disappointed that to date we had not met him properly). I simply explained that he needed to discuss his disappointment at me with my own mother- they would have lots in common
12pm- Lunch is ordered, people are smiling. Reilly Hodson tucks into a fine fusion meal of Asian noodles and Indian naan. Unfortunately he would feel the effects of this several hours later poor fella
1pm- The banquet is over and everyone goes their separate ways agreeing to meet again in Goa. No seriously, 90 minutes of time is afforded for the boys to either blog or hit the streets to shop for some cheap and nasty glasses and bracelets (did I hear it was Charlotte Manks 4th birthday today- YES exciting, presents coming home from her big brother upon return! A massive Happy Birthday to you Charlotte). Those that didn't upload today will be sending their thoughts to you all out there tomorrow
2:30pm- We depart for Future Hope, an inspiring NGO that both of the previous groups also have interacted with. Unfortunately 'we' do get lost trying to find the actual driveway within a one block radius of my closest guess work at the time (but honestly we all have our faults and without detailed maps being created for this little section on earth I was on a hiding to nothing)
3:30pm- Upon our eventual arrival, as a side note we have established quiet the walking bus, we split into 3 groups. The 12 boys with Mr Skeen head on a bus to the Maidan with 25 children aged between 7-11 years old. Miss Candy takes a further 5 boys to interact with another 25 Future Hope students, aged between 12-16, and finally Mr Jordan's group of five students head to hang out with 24 kids between 17-20. Each of our groups enjoy the interactions, whether that be helping with the young ones homework, or having some banter between teenage peers, etc. A real highlight though was sitting on the respective floors at each of the Future Hope boarding houses and eating with our hosts in an extremely authentic environment. Final note on this point, please visit the Future Hope website http://www.futurehope.net to read about their inspiring structure which is set-up to provide hope for those kids who once roamed the local Howrah Train Station living out an isolated existence of day-to-day survival, and now are fed, clothed and educated to become the new generation of Indian innovators/leaders fingers crossed
10pm- All arrive safely back on site after taxi rides home to Hotel Emirates from the various locations they were at across the city
10:20pm- Debrief commences. The focus- provide a high point and a low point from today. Clearly the roller coaster experiences that are unfolding around us are creating many gut wrenching feelings, and by absolute contrast some moments of pure ecstasy and hope
11:15pm- Lights Out


So that was our day. Currently we are three down- Toogood, Hodson and Ross all falling ill early this evening but they will definitely return to the land of the living within the next 24 hours. Callum Ross in particular was stoked with the sensation of throwing up as he announced it to the group with a big smile (weird individual that one). Have no fear parents this is India and it only keeps you down physically, mentally and emotionally for a short period of time. Tomorrow will be much 'quieter' anyway, so they have fallen at an appropriate time.

Take care in the 'real' world readers.

Ben


MVP- Fletcher Boswell. Firstly he manages to get most of his meal across his face, on his lap and over the floor- he just couldn't master the right hand scoping techniques at the Future Hope meal. More importantly, he loudly asks Mr Jordan across the floor, during the meal, and in front of the hosts, 'did anyone get Delhi belly from eating here last year'. Culturally insensitive legend! Other nominations were to Morreau for inappropriate 'skuxxing' and Allen for finishing up on 0 points, while an India chilli finished on 1.

Thought- Children provide a glimpse into what the ideal soul of the human race should look like. Young, vibrant and full of hope for the future, children remind us of all that is good about the world. Today over half the group gave out shoulder rides and kicked sports balls around the Maidan. For a few hours we were all 8 years old again and it was extremely invigorating.