Eager to post during my India adventure, I hit nothing but snags along the way. But let me not whine about technology or my own incompetence.
Starting at the beginning, let's pretend that this is about two weeks ago.
Delhi seemed more orderly to me since 2011 with less honking and less visible human misery. (At least in the areas where we were.) To our guests, first time visitors, it was a cacophony of sound and colors, movement and delay. It was a delight to see their reactions, mostly of awe that there was any forward movement at all and some laughter at the seeming hopelessness of any progress.
We so wanted these first days to make a lasting, positive impression and were not as successful as we had hoped. We visited Father Monodeep Daniels' projects with the Delhi Brotherhood, an Episcopal group associated with the Church of North India (CNI), but learned that they were not operational on that Monday as it was Dusshera. So children were not in school and staff had the day off. His projects include after school projects for children of sex workers, social work with sex workers, vocational training, and job referral. We did spend some time with him at the Brotherhood's home, talking about the ways they fill some of the needs of desperate people with projects that can easily be replicated.
That same evening we hosted a dinner meeting with Dr. James Massey and his colleagues from the Centre for Dalit and Subaltern Studies. Dalits and Subalterns are the most marginalized people in India and have suffered so much discrimination over the centuries from invading conquerors that their very psyche is damaged. It is hard to imagine themselves as persons of worth within the context of centuries of degradation. Dr. Massey focused on his most current research and plans for upcoming projects. His work has circulated within the Indian Government, which is a somewhat hopeful sign. Our fellow travelers would have benefitted from hearing more about the plight of marginalized people, their living conditions and the role the Indian Constitution plays in the continued degradation of Christian Dalits.
We were pleased to welcome, as well, Ms. Sushma Ramswamy and a group from the Women's Fellowship of CNI. They showed a short film highlighting the work of CNI in the community. Sushma is a powerhouse and fascinating speaker. She is also a good friend and arranged for our group to meet for lunch at Kareem's, a popular Muslim establishment very near to the Jama Masjid, the largest mosque in India. We visited the Mosque and then went on to the Kareem's
meat fest, with course after course of delectable dishes.
By this time our group had experienced some basic Delhi transportation, with a bicycle rickshaw ride through the crowded shopping area of Chandni Chowk in Old Delhi. It is an exciting experience with so much traffic and so many little shops selling all kinds of wares. Next Post: Fun Times in Delhi.
India Gate, New Delhi
Starting at the beginning, let's pretend that this is about two weeks ago.
Delhi seemed more orderly to me since 2011 with less honking and less visible human misery. (At least in the areas where we were.) To our guests, first time visitors, it was a cacophony of sound and colors, movement and delay. It was a delight to see their reactions, mostly of awe that there was any forward movement at all and some laughter at the seeming hopelessness of any progress.
We so wanted these first days to make a lasting, positive impression and were not as successful as we had hoped. We visited Father Monodeep Daniels' projects with the Delhi Brotherhood, an Episcopal group associated with the Church of North India (CNI), but learned that they were not operational on that Monday as it was Dusshera. So children were not in school and staff had the day off. His projects include after school projects for children of sex workers, social work with sex workers, vocational training, and job referral. We did spend some time with him at the Brotherhood's home, talking about the ways they fill some of the needs of desperate people with projects that can easily be replicated.
That same evening we hosted a dinner meeting with Dr. James Massey and his colleagues from the Centre for Dalit and Subaltern Studies. Dalits and Subalterns are the most marginalized people in India and have suffered so much discrimination over the centuries from invading conquerors that their very psyche is damaged. It is hard to imagine themselves as persons of worth within the context of centuries of degradation. Dr. Massey focused on his most current research and plans for upcoming projects. His work has circulated within the Indian Government, which is a somewhat hopeful sign. Our fellow travelers would have benefitted from hearing more about the plight of marginalized people, their living conditions and the role the Indian Constitution plays in the continued degradation of Christian Dalits.
We were pleased to welcome, as well, Ms. Sushma Ramswamy and a group from the Women's Fellowship of CNI. They showed a short film highlighting the work of CNI in the community. Sushma is a powerhouse and fascinating speaker. She is also a good friend and arranged for our group to meet for lunch at Kareem's, a popular Muslim establishment very near to the Jama Masjid, the largest mosque in India. We visited the Mosque and then went on to the Kareem's
meat fest, with course after course of delectable dishes.
By this time our group had experienced some basic Delhi transportation, with a bicycle rickshaw ride through the crowded shopping area of Chandni Chowk in Old Delhi. It is an exciting experience with so much traffic and so many little shops selling all kinds of wares. Next Post: Fun Times in Delhi.
India Gate, New Delhi
No comments:
Post a Comment