Day 84: Connections
It seems to me that everything in Vizag is conspiring to make us want to stay here forever.
About two weeks ago, Israel and Carly made a connection--through a series of very fortunate events-- with a very important man in Vizag who wanted to learn more about their NGO. He is part of the Rotary Club, has a large circle of very influential friends and besides that, he is extremely generous and interested in humanitarian work. We met him last night at a Rotary Club meeting (where Israel was presenting the KVM model) and after, he invited us to come out to dinner with him and his friends on Saturday night. So as this evening rolled around we waited for his car to come pick us up (cool right?).
He took us to this amazing hotel in the city. There were gardens and pools and fancy restaurants... it was definitely more of a resort. The whole time I felt like I was in Hawaii again. It definitely looked like it with the beautiful night sky, the heat, and the palm trees.
We sat with the members of the Rotary Club for an hour or so on a lawn where the hotel had set up these beautiful tables. And then when all of his friends had arrived we went inside to eat from the buffet. I won't list the food to you because it was just too heavenly... except I'll make an exception for one dish: bread pudding. BEST DAY EVER. Oh, btw, I'm a huge fan of bread pudding. This one was almost as good as my mother's-- and that is saying something.
So there we sat and talked with all these amazing people who have SO MANY connections. And I felt like this little fifth grader trying to fit in! But in the end I realized just how generous and willing to help Indian people are. If you allow them to volunteer, they will give you more than you could ever have expected.
Really though, it was so sweet how they automatically incorporated us into their conversations and showed genuine interest in our research. If only I had the time, I could have added 20 more people to my list of informants just from the connections Israel has made. So many people here are affected by emigration.
I'm grateful that the last part of our time living in Vizag can be filled with all these wonderful adventures and memories. Even if it makes it harder to go.
Love,
Stéf
About two weeks ago, Israel and Carly made a connection--through a series of very fortunate events-- with a very important man in Vizag who wanted to learn more about their NGO. He is part of the Rotary Club, has a large circle of very influential friends and besides that, he is extremely generous and interested in humanitarian work. We met him last night at a Rotary Club meeting (where Israel was presenting the KVM model) and after, he invited us to come out to dinner with him and his friends on Saturday night. So as this evening rolled around we waited for his car to come pick us up (cool right?).
He took us to this amazing hotel in the city. There were gardens and pools and fancy restaurants... it was definitely more of a resort. The whole time I felt like I was in Hawaii again. It definitely looked like it with the beautiful night sky, the heat, and the palm trees.
We sat with the members of the Rotary Club for an hour or so on a lawn where the hotel had set up these beautiful tables. And then when all of his friends had arrived we went inside to eat from the buffet. I won't list the food to you because it was just too heavenly... except I'll make an exception for one dish: bread pudding. BEST DAY EVER. Oh, btw, I'm a huge fan of bread pudding. This one was almost as good as my mother's-- and that is saying something.
So there we sat and talked with all these amazing people who have SO MANY connections. And I felt like this little fifth grader trying to fit in! But in the end I realized just how generous and willing to help Indian people are. If you allow them to volunteer, they will give you more than you could ever have expected.
Really though, it was so sweet how they automatically incorporated us into their conversations and showed genuine interest in our research. If only I had the time, I could have added 20 more people to my list of informants just from the connections Israel has made. So many people here are affected by emigration.
I'm grateful that the last part of our time living in Vizag can be filled with all these wonderful adventures and memories. Even if it makes it harder to go.
Love,
Stéf
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