March 8 post

Another port day—another bus!

BTW—Did I tell you that India has 28 states and is the world's largest democracy? I hope I mentioned that Kerala, the state where the port is located, has 17,000 people working in IT only to support 300 companies with their technology. I think when I was having trouble with a gizmo of some sort, I called someone here to help me. Then, I gave up and called Andy Block! (If Andy's reading this, he'll smile.)

Today we went to visit the Chendamangalam Village Program. This is a group of women who work together to help each other and other women build their skills to earn money and their confidence. They work to do projects, save some money, and then loan money for women to start businesses. The “village” we visited seemed like it was in the middle of a forest full of banana trees, all sorts of palms, and flowering bushes, and the population is 27,000! You would never guess that many people lived there because of all the foliage and roads that most large vehicles could not get through. The houses were brightly painted—well, not all of the them, and they paint them every three years to keep them looking good. Lots of purple and pink here!

Drums played as we walked to the house in the village, marks of friendship were put on foreheads and jasmine necklaces placed around our necks before the hostess told us what to expect: dancing, cooking demonstration, eating lunch, walking into some of the village, touring the house gardens, and then visiting to a weaving factory. Perhaps you thought the banana leaf showed up again! It really makes cleaning up easy!

The hostess said it was her husband's ancestral home (remember—she moves in with his family), and that her 96 year old mother was living with them also. The brother of the hostess is a mechanical engineer and works right outside Chicago for CAT!   The house is surrounded by about an acres of property.  There is a well for water, electricity, telephone, but the "waste" does not go to a sewer. 

While the women were entertaining us, we were entertaining the neighborhood. Seriously, people were sitting around watching us—mostly men and boys. Up the lane from the house was a Hindu Temple and pre-school. Further down the lane was a Catholic Church. The hostess is Catholic and said that the Hindus, Buddhists, Muslims, and Christians all live in harmony there. When people greet each other, they put their hands in a prayerful way and bend toward each other meaning: I greet you and the God within you.

When we went to the factory, I was stunned. It was hot and dark—barely any ventilation or breeze—and poorly lit. At one time it might have been a factory, because there were about fifty large looms there, but about only 10 people working when we visited. I believe these were the women who are encouraged by the village program.

In walking around I noticed that people held hands. It was boys and boys and girls and girls, not each others. The people I have seen have bigger frames than the Burmese, and their skin is a little darker—not a blond or redhead around. I love their silky, shinny, and straight black hair.

Women wear beautiful sari's made from fabulous, multi-colored fabric. I haven't quite figured out the male outfit. Some men wear longish “skirts” as they did in Burma, but others wear much shorter outfits that look like a beach towel wrapped sideways accompanied by a regular shirt. But, the boys and younger men all wear jeans and slacks.