Show and tell

We have show and tell on Monday's and Fridays.
Show and tell follows a standard format, and can be quite droll most of the time.

'Good morning everryonne'
'Good morning (name)'
'well, today I'm going to tell you about my....'
It's (insert), it's made out of (insert material, it's generally plastic)
...
'any questions?'
yes (insert name)...

blah blah blah.
I love it when they start asking people for questions, the way they say 'yes (insert name)' just sounds so business like from the mouth of a 5 year old.

Oh, and i forgot to mention that the show and tell has to be based on the topic. I've just managed to change the topic from Farm Animals to healthy eating. Thought we could have a bit of fun with new idea's.

So today we're having show and tell and the boy brings a red apple in a zip lock bag.

'today I'm going to talk about my apple. It's in a plastic bag and it's red'
It sounded like he was talking about a pet or something living, and in front of the whole class I cracked up. Unfortunately the teacher who was listening from the rear missed the joke.
In my mind I was picturing Monday morning with the next 5 students.
'Today I'm going to talk about my banana'
'Today I'm going to talk about my carrot'
'Today I'm going to talk about my grapes'
and so on and so forth until the topic is finished.

Thankfully there's some hilarity at school to make up for the leaking sewerage. Hopefully the men should've come today to fix it. Sarah and I couldn't eat in last night because of the smell. Great for dry reching, but it's not morning sickness, so really, we shouldn't have to go through it morning and evening!!

Back to Kolk

I'm not entirely sure what year Biman came into existance as an airline, but I'm pretty sure that the toilet I used onboard the flight had been uprooted from a tin shed outback dunny to help save on the costs of building the plane.
Onboard the flight we were shown how to use the sick bag, just in case we couldn't figure it out when the time came! Sarah and I were in fits of laughter about that one.

Arriving back at the flat we had no keys to get in and had to wait for Erina to travel from her house before settling in! Actually, I'd sent an email to Erina that morning, but as the news of the flight cancellation was so late in getting to us, we were in India before Erina had a chance to check her mail.

The streets of India definitely have a different feel to the Bangladesh ones. Even Sarah noticed it, and she'd only been in the country for less than 48 hours. India seemed a lot more crazier, and it was good to be back. Bangladesh had a lazy, businesslike feel about it. Or maybe it was just the Bangladesh that we saw.

I had been given a whole list of jobs to do while at the flat with Erina, but unfortunately due to our late arrival and most things being closed on Sunday I barely achieved anything. All the information that I needed to find had been tucked securely out of my way, and our visit to the printers to sort out sunday school materials was completely useless as the IT lady wasn't there. Erina and I spent nearly 2 hours Sunday morning at a side alley internet cafe trying to sort out the internet, but although we had all the details right, the site just wouldn't accept the information.

Swopan Monday, Chompa & Pritilata turned up for the exhort and also Nobin's mother for a first, so that was nice. I was given the most massive welcome ever. I think Chompa has missed us a lot!!
We gave Swopan an exhort to read out, but he came up with something from Romans 10 instead. Most of which we couldn't follow because it was all in the Bengali language.

Some goodbyes and another aeroplane ride later we were back in Hyd, back at the flat,
resting!

Not a grain of rice

I think I was so estatic when I realised I hadn't had a grain of rice for 3 days after the first ecclesial lunch on arrival, that I decided my Bangladesh blog would be named in the occasions' honour!!

Let's get some context first.
The weather was warm to very cold most days, so we really had to rug up in the evenings.
The first morning after arrival Sarah and I enjoyed the luxury of hot water coming from a shower nozzle, as opposed to the bucket baths we endure every morning in Hyderabad. Makes such a difference to the morning! And the pressure. We also didn't have to worry about only using one bucket of water. You might think this is silly but my hair actually looked like real hair again for the first time in months.
I realised I hadn't had a proper pressurised shower since before October!!
The mission workers of Bangladesh also are rewarded by the luxury of having a proper cook, who cooks vegetable soup every day for lunch. It was definitely a welcome break. He also sets the table for breakfast, and doesn't even allow you to cook your own toast. This did become a little annoying after a while! But the best part about the whole deal was that he went home in the evenings and allowed us to get into the kitchen and cook up fun things like pancakes and apple crumble!
It seemed like such a luxury, as we don't have an oven we can use in Hyderabad, and the last time we cooked sweets was back in Kolkata early December! Really made the week. When I found apple's that had some flavour, and cadbury's imported from the Uk, we were totally set. Oh, I can't forget to mention the caramelised Banana that Sarah whipped up one night.
One night our friend Pinto cooked up a regular feast. (ps at this point you need to know that he'd been ordered by Ben not to cook him ANY curries). Roast chicken, potatoes etc, WITH GRAVY. IT was incredible. He made me try a new vegetable. In Bangladesh they cook unripe papaya for main meal, and dish up ripe papaya for dessert. It has quite a good flavour, with the texture of pumkin.
There were a load of mosquito's at the mission flat, and they drove me bizerk (sp?) we had this tennis bat catcher, which was quite fun to use. When I was first introduced to it, it made me shudder every time it went off, by the end of our stay I was addicted to it.
The flat has a desktop set up in a study, so it's possible to contact ppl on skype, which was very cool when we were available during the daytime for the first time ever. Was lovely to call my family and some friends and be able to hear some of their voices.

We were at the Bangladesh airport the same time as Ben Bowen, so we caught a C.N.G. back to the flat with him which was handy, cause Ken Easson was in the middle of a contact class when we arrived on Friday morning. I arrived at the same time as Prince, and it was nice to be recognised and greeted in such a friendly manner in a city you've never travelled to before.
It was such an early morning flight we rested until the meeting began in the afternoon.
Before the meeting began I was able to meet with Uttam, and King Kong, and meet his wife and two gorgeous, if not naughty children, see Bappy, and Prince. They were all very lovely and we felt very warmly welcomed from the minute of our arrival.
That afternoon we stepped out and had a tour and induction round the block of the flat.
The week was filled with many free mornings with people dropping in and out of the flat to talk to, visits in the mornings to the Indian Embassy, and then every evening we went out to visit contacts and give classes.
For those of you who have been there I'll mention the names.
We were able to get to the Mirpor SS and contacts class with Bro Joseph, Shar/va SS with Daniel and Trina, 2 Bada classes, one with an interested family, and the other visiting Ronnie's family, and doing a class there for all interested contacts. Uttam and Shima also attended that class.
Brother Jewel invited us to his house for dinner one night and it was lovely to spend some time with him and to meet his brother. They treated us to such a lovely meal. I was amazed at the luxury of some of the cooking. The meals were gourmet at most of the houses we visited and they all provided us with dinner. Often giving us soup as starters and then a curry to follow. This is the reason that I was able to go 3 days without rice, as some of the meals provided consisted of french toast and vegetables.
I also got invited back on Friday night to meet his wife and his son. I went to his sister in Law's and enjoyed and amazing dinner. Only on arrival I realised that I was gatecrashing their 2nd wedding anniversary dinner. (jewel had mentioned casually that they'll give me something to eat we'll stay for 10 mins and then go to the airport!) It was one of those where you want to try everything cause it tastes so good, but you really can't fit it all in! We had fish curry, cauliflower, a sweet egg curry, and the rice was cooked in a semi Biryani style.
After the classes we would get back and enjoy a game of mose, while enjoying the amazing flavours of extra desserts and the incredible English cadbury flavours.

The visa saga was quite the saga, with the Indian Embassy not allowing me to apply for an Indian visa on a 'Bangladeshi landing permit' while the Bangladeshi officials assured me that it was their custom and it was fine. So I only ended up with a 1 month visa for coming back to India. So many trips to the Embassy later, I was quite frustrated. Who knows what God's plan is for me? But I feel that I can be useful here in India at the moment, and I'm thinking about heading out of India again to try somewhere else. I'm not certain yet, and have about 2 weeks to make a decision. I need your prayers.
Also our flight from Bangladesh on Friday night was cancelled, so we managed to be present for nearly the whole of the truth camp and help out with the ss for that. We planned for 7 members, ss age, and ended up teaching 3 12/13 year olds, and making Elijah's ravens with them out of paper plates. They didn't seem to mind. We made them as well and had a lot of fun:-) You never know what you're going to end up doing next in these crazy places.

Bangladeshi's like using the word 'something'.
On Valentine's day we were walking past a flower stall and a man tried to sell us red roses. Sarah said 'does it smell' and leant in to check it out! The man said 'something'. She smelt and made a funny face and also said 'something'. Something can be used to describe a lot, or nothing at all.
Like at SS we asked Bappy's brother if he understood our English. His reply 'something I understand, something I don't!

Sarah's accent is quite amusing on this side of the world. People find it very difficult to understand her confusion with the pronounciated of 'i's' and 'e's' in the opposite places. For instance Bappy repeated her 'git cold' sentence back to her and asked her if that really was a word.

The most stimulating part of the week for me was being at a family's contact class and taking the lady aside into another room (as she wasn't answering any of the questions in her husbands presence) with Nipun and doing a semi informal interview / fill in the answers she didn't know. I came away just feeling so excited. But then, that's what happens when you have a whole evening to try and cover the bible starting with God, His plan and purpose and heading onto promises and Kingdom on earth. We just didn't have enough time there. They have so many people wanting to learn, and every night of the week is taken except one to teach contacts the truth.
It's definitely an area that is very fruitful at the moment. Please keep the preaching work there in your prayers.

8 days in a country mostly surrounded by India

In other words Bangladesh. Despite being surrounded by India, and essentially people looked the same, there were so many differences to discover on arrival.

For starters, just some randoms:
The fruit is so much more expensive
The apples actually have flavour if you buy them off the street
Bangladeshi's drive vehicles like auto's except they are green and are called C.N.G's
(Converted Natural Gas. They are trying to convert all vehicles, but they don't call the buses or lorries or cars C.N.G's!!)
The C.N.G drivers are totally surrounded by metal gridlocks which somehow protects them from the passengers. I guess you can't stick a knife or fist through!
On the roads there is hardly much honking and tooting as opposed to the Indian roads
The ladies wear long sharee blouses and hence are a lot more modest than those of India
The street vendors sell peeled cut carrot along with the normal (Indian) cut cucumbers
Friday is their Sunday. I found that quite strange to get used to, but it meant that we could have 2 memorials at different locations this past week.
The residents eat a lot of fish. Some pieces with more bones in them than others!
The muslem prayer calls are a lot louder
We could use rickshaws all of the time, even while we were in the main city. (you don't see them at all in Hyderabad for passengers, as opposed to the city being crowded with rickshaws in Kolkata)
All cars, well at least 95% of them are fitted with bumper cars, and it seemed like there were some quite classy cars on the streets, or maybe they had all just been washed!

An Indian Birthday

What a day!

My day began a little earlier than normal with the collecting of Sarah Vogel from the airport and a birthday hug in the am. Then back at the compound, I received an amazing birthday present from her. Two blocks of chocolate: cadbury no less, all the way from NZ. She'd been guarding herself from them for the last 6 weeks, and I felt that it was the most amazing present.
Ok, it's reasonably random to be so excited by blocks of chocolate for a birthday present, as it's a pretty standard present. But when you've not had real cadbury chocolate for some time, and you think you're going to be in India for quite a few months more without it, you feel excessively comforted to have 2 blocks fall into your lap from the skies.

After that from 6:45am on I had phone call after phonecall!
From Erina in Kolkata, through coastal Ap to Hyderabad, I had about 8 calls from Indian friends, which included the birthday tune on the Harmonica thanks to Nani. Esther also called from the office to say she has something that needed collecting.
After a little bit of a lie in, and yes, we did miss the readings on my only day off in Hyderabad unfortunately, Sarah and I got to and made pancakes for brekky. So much fun to use a sparkling clean kitchen!!
I eventually made my way to the office to visit Esther and she had a bunch of 12 red roses for me. What a surprise. And a massive 3-part tiffin container filled with my favourite Indian sweet. Vermacelli made with milk, sugar, and cashewnuts. Amazing. I think her plan was to present it to me at breakfast, but my breakfast was some hours later than hers considering the time of Sarah's arrival!

Then Tim Uncle invited Sarah and I to lunch. When I arrived there, there was a lovely looking bday cake with God Bless Abigail written on it, and we had the usual birthday psalm reading and prayer before partaking of chicken curry and cake. Sarah Aunty presented me with a huge garland of flowers, and I got presents and felt much loved.
It was a very interesting occasion for Sarah's first few hours in India!

After lunch it was shopping time for Sarah and I and we headed off down the road to the Cali shop, and then caught an auto to the 2008 All India Arts and Crafts festival.
We found shop upon shop selling cushions, bed spreads and pillow cases, and had to walk half the way round and ran out of time before we actually found the spot selling Indian clothes for Sarah. Some man was really kind and gave me some free bangles as we walked past for my bday present!

Time flies when you're busy, all of a sudden Tim Uncle was driving us to the airport in the heavy traffic to catch our flight to Kolkata. On the way was dinner and we ate as much of the vermacelli as was possible. It was quite tragic to leave the roses behind, but they would probably not have got through customs.

The man sitting next to me on the plane had a driver coming for him and he lived 5 mins from Jodphur Park, so it was lovely to get out of the airport and not have to worry about haggling with the taxi drivers and also to get a free ride on my birthday!

Erina and Ben Bowen were at the flat to welcome us. I celebrated my 24th birthday by cooking Parantha's just after midnight and catching up with Erina.

Near Neighbours

Having seen Syam and ... will remember her name soonish, at the Sister's conference, I was walking back from Big Bazaar on Wednesday night, quite hungry, and exhausted after cleaning and who do I bump into but Syam and his wife.
They'd just been shopping and invited me for dinner at the Wah Tej.
It was really lovely to catch up with them properly over dinner, and then walking back to the compound they invited me to their place. So I hopped on the scooter and off we went. Actually it's more of a motorbike than a scooter.
They only live just around the corner, def within walking distance on a not so hot day and I was very glad that we'd just happened to 'bump' into each other.

God Willing, we'll be able to spend more time with each other while I'm stationed here in Hyderabad.

Moving house

Or more correctly bedrooms.

When Lionel and Marj left for Australia, they bequeathed their rooms to me! I had the induction and quickly became aware of the benefits of moving into the airconditioned rooms.
Wednesday after school we had the fun task of moving the beds around, from this room into that room, and then the other furniture into the other room! It was quite exhausting work, and i was very thankful for the help of Sunder and others while the move was in progress. I stood guard the with broom. Everything gets so dusty in India so quickly, so I tried my hardest to remove all cobwebs and dust as the furniture was moved.

Then I began the momentous job of cleaning the kitchen. by the end of the night there was nothing in the kitchen that had not been washed, wiped, dusted, or had water slosh over the surface. Sunder was the best for helping. He showed up at exactly the right time, and asked me if I needed any help. By the end of it all, I think he was glad to be out!
Sad facts are, that although I know everything has been cleaned recently, the dust is already beginning to settle on the electronic devices after only a week.

Ode to Hannah

At this point I have to say a massive thanks to Hann. Those of you who have done longterm mission work anywhere will totally understand this. We've had such a lovely January, visiting places and working together, and then the January family left. So on the Monday night, Hannah arrived for her weekly day off. I would've been a mess without her company!

It was lovely to have her here to talk to, and to cook vegetable's and eat chocolate with. Even though the new diet was going to be sugar free for 3 days.
It's been so great to have her here still.

Tuesday we got up at 6 for the morning walk with Sarah Aunty, and then Hann came to the school for the first time to help out in Maggie's class. Maggie has been really busy organising the production of 'Wizard of Oz', and welcomes any help she can get.
After school activities started this week and I started learning Indian folk dancing with some of the girls. I guess i'm meant to help supervise, but I had just as much fun as the girls and 1 boy doing the class.

Tuesday night was the class in at Hyderabad and Nani gave it on a chapter in John. I'm not sure how this has happened, and it can't have, but I feel like we've been going backwards. I'm positive the first bible class i was here for was John 21, but then the last classes were 19 & 20! Maybe the speaker just alluded a lot to that chapter, i can't work it out.

Once again

God provided, and the next night I had me driving with Tim J, Tim & Sarah G to the train station headed towards Kadium.
The Vice-Principal had allowed me to take Thursday off which was just as well, because I had to train back Saturday night and it wouldn't've left me much time if I'd trained Friday night and arrived Sat morning.
Tim had let me know the night before that there was going to be SS, so we'd called Hann to send the leftover worksheets from the Kurnool bw for the Kadium weekend. Thankfully Ravi remembered to bring them into the city, and I covered some of the same lessons as we previously taught. There just wasn't enough notification for any special activities.
Kadium weekend was lovely. I got to see Shubha's newborn baby, and so small she was. I don't remember seeing a baby that small, but maybe that was because it was prem? I don't know. Actually it's been a while since i've seen one, so maybe i'm forgetting!
Shubha and Andrew are calling the baby 'Nissy' from Ex 17 after the battle with the Amalekites. It's not in my bible, but mabye it's the original Hebrew. They were racking our brains for a biblical name to put with it, but it was quite a difficult name to add to another!
Gideon, Suma, & Joel turned up as well which was just lovely for me. I haven't seen them for over a year and Joel has really grown and is quite the little boy now getting what he wants! The best part about it, is that Suma has always been my translator at bible weeks, so it was a real blessing to have her there and work with her again. It felt like old times.
Sirisha turned up on Friday with Prisca and Titus. I love that family a lot. They've nicknamed me the Australian amma! I went with them during the spare time on Friday afternoon to visit their new place, and to give Prisca a story bible. For me, I felt like it would be a good thing for them to have, so that if they don't have sunday school, she can be read a lesson. The look in Sirisha's eyes when she saw it blew me away. Such complete gratefulness. She had wanted it for her child, but when she found out how much it was had put it back on the shelf. These lessons make you very humble.
So it was a real fantastic time to be in Kadium with such close Indian friends all in one place at one time.

Sarah and I trained back together on Saturday night. Guess who took us to the station, and wouldn't leave until the train had left the station? My little Rajahmundry family. It was late. But they always appreciate the company and see me off.

We were delayed by 3 hours at Vijahwada - (while I was for once sleeping peacefully, and didn't even notice it) so we missed out my only memorial in Hyd for the month of Feb which was a little sad and arrived just as everyone had gone.

Lunch was lamb cooked by Susie with roast potatoes and gravy. Followed by Icecream:-) :-) It's always such a treat to get a roast in India! The afternoon was spent muddling away talking to all in Sundry and preparing more goodbye's for Marj and Lionel who had been at the compound for 3 months.

They left, and left me alone in the mission flat.... but not for long.

Sister's Conference, & Jan goodbyes

I have come to the conclusion that January is a good time for fieldworkers to be in India. Although it's hectic for the longterm ones, it's a month where most weekends are busy going and doing trips.
My one weekend in Hyderabad for the month was spent at Shunem enjoying sister's conference.
Unfortunatly, due to just having started work I did miss out on the Friday's program (had to supervise a sports day!) which was really unnecessary, but was obliged anyway.
So I arrived Friday eve, as the games were beginning. Was so much fun to watch the ladies play musical chairs such a degree of excitement. I joined in the merriment and made it as hard for them all as possible.
It was really good to see Ruth and Pepsi, and mother in Law (forgotten her name)and some of the Rallapadu crowd. The group that was really excited to see me however was from Visak. Joythi, & Laxmi, Esther, Hannah, etc. Was just so nice to see them again.
Susan Daniels and her niece Natasha flew in from Bangalore and so we had an extra full guest house for the weekend with Marj Burgess, Hann, Annie & I there as well, not to mention little Zac. He was so cute. Such a good baby. Although I didn't wake up when he did in the night, so that was easy for me!
Saturday morning we had group prayers at 7am. These times are always amazing I find, for really developing close friendships with ppl when you get told what is at the bottom of their heart, and what they truely need to pray about.
Then we had brekky, and some discussion groups and some talks. Can't actually remember what order it was all in, just remember it was quite packed.
The theme was getting to know our Lord Jesus.
The talks were: Jesus as a Shepherd, Jesus with the little children, Being fruitful wherever we are planted, Jesus being the true vine, and we also had a talk on 3 women of the bible. Hannah, Naomi & Abigail.
I really loved the talk on Sister's. Hannah Ogden chose the subject because she wanted to learn more about the spiritual significance of the names of her sisters in the bible.
We learnt from Hannah to pray as soon as a problem arises and learn we can find peace as soon as we've given it to God. From Naomi that younger sisters can learn a lot from the faith of older sisters, and we should be listening to the wise words that older sisters give. And from Abigail, that all sister's have to choose to be wise. Abigail stopped a Godly man from doing the wrong thing by her humble attitude and caused David to bless God because of her.
It was truely a wonderful weekend spiritually!

Saturday afternoon for something different we got into groups and took some ingredients from the table and had to make something for afternoon tiffin. It was incredible. All the sisters kindled a fire outside and got big saucepans and began to cook. See photo's on facebook..they'll come soon. It was incredible to watch. And the food cooked was delicious. I particularly enjoyed an incredibly sweet one made from carrot and sugar! Delicious. Then we all got plates and piled the plates full of the sweet and savoury snacks and took them outside to eat in the sunlight next to the fountain.

Sunday morning the hyderabad ecclesia joined us and the men who had transported the ladies down to hyderabad. We had a lovely big ecclesial lunch on the lawn.

Everyone left, and we played cricket, and then somehow found the table tennis table, and I had the first game I've had in forever. It felt so good to be behind a table again. Strange, I know. But it's a sport that I've grown up playing. SO it was nice to play Jona and Andy before heading back via havemore's!!

The following week was very strange. One by one the January family left. First Andy on Tuesday night, and yes, we had the 3rd trip to Havemore's in the week before he flew out. Annie opted to stay at Shunem for her last night, so it was me, and the guys who piled into the car. Then Wednesday afternoon Jona was escorted to the airport, it was far too sad. I left for Shunem to spend the last couple of hours with Annie and Hann. Singing in the guestroom and recording my favourite song. Then we were back in the van, and Annie had said her goodbye's and we were driving to the compound, then in another car to the airport...boo hoo.

Why do family leave each other? Especially when they are getting on so well?
I'm not sure, but we'll be reunited very soon by God's grace!

Back to School

Working in a classroom that has 2 teachers and 14 children certainly has it's advantages, but I was too exhausted to notice that during the first couple of days as I was being moved around 3 different classrooms to help in the first instance with readers.
My first day during the last period I was supervising a class, with Maggie (as qualified teacher) also in attendance. Anyways, I was in the corner of the room answering a question, and she on the other side of the room asked a boy to get his reader. Instead of going round the desk in the middle of the classroom he climbed on top of it, and proceeded to swing on it before bringing the table down on his hand. I was exceptionally glad that I wasn’t supervising solo! Maggie took charge and sent him off to the ‘infirmary’ and he came back to school that afternoon with a greenstick fracture. I was a little apprehensive as to what was to follow!
On my second day I was inside during lunch with my mobile phone (alarm set) beside me, and I took a cat nap I was so tired out. For starters, I'd had no specific work routine in my life since June 2007 and for seconds, we’d been away every weekend in January.
After a couple of days instead of moving round classes, my position is now set as filling the maternity leave position in Ethan Jenner’s class. 5-6 year olds. They are very cute. Although it’s an international school, we really only have children with English or Indian speaking backgrounds in our class. I have filled in for a class since then that had 4 American, 2 Serbian, 3 Malaysian, 1 Australian, 2 Indian children, and it’s so much more fun to watch them interact with each other.
In the mornings I leave the compound with Maggie, her Aunt Esther, & Ethan, and generally in the afternoon Ethan and I come back by Auto as Maggie only works a half day. She works with the 3 year olds who leave at lunch which is nice for her. It’s so cute, because it’s usually quite warm in the afternoon Ethan goes to sleep on my shoulder, and I have to wake him up when we get to the compound gate and I need to pay the auto driver.
In the last week at school we’ve just started working on the ‘Wizard of Oz’ drama. Maggie and the Vice-Principal are co-directing. My little kids get to be the munchkins and sing the song ‘Ding, Dong the Witch is Dead’. SUCH a catchy tune. I sing it now everywhere I go. We have to teach them a dance, and it’s going to be so sweet. The music teacher is Russian. So the song goes ‘Ding Dong, the Vitch is dead... Vhich old Vitch... the Vicked Vitch’. Keeps me constantly entertained.
The ISH have just started afterschool activities, which I’m meant to stay for and it’s easier if I stay for, cause then Susie doesn’t have to drive to the school to pick Ethan up. Which is fine when it’s Indian Folk Dancing, but I’m not sure what I’m going to do when it’s Junior Gymnastics, or American Culture. I have to start preparing the lessons for the next day and do the office photocopying. Typical teacher stuff. Thankfully the teacher does all the planning, and handballs to me whatever she needs help with. It would be a massive job to do it all yourself...I’m starting to understand the workload, you teachers have who are reading this!!
Oh, and I should say that I’m quite pleased with the setup we have with the break times with the class I have. My teacher gives them all an extra 20 mins to eat their food before the break starts, so I sit down and eat with them and then when they go out to play and I’m not on playground duty, I can go to the library and catchup on reading, emails, etc. The teachers are all lovely and it’s amusing to sit in the staffroom and listen to their chitchat, but I feel it’s time used better elsewhere.
There is a tabletennis table downstairs, but I still need to find someone to play with, ... maybe the Irish PE teacher? And a piano upstairs, so I might take some music along one time. Hannah Ogden came last week on Tuesday, and we spent recess with her playing and me listening to the tones of REAL music.
Something else that I can’t leave this topic without mentioning is the canteen. Normal canteens sell loads and loads of junk food, so does this one. But it’s a little different with the same food prepared for all the children every day. A set fatty standard each day. For recess, for 22 rups, I can get choc milk and some sort of pastry with vege’s inside, or vege pizza, or something like that, and if it’s not hot choc milk, it’s orange / mango juice. For lunch, there is a full buffet everyday with vege and non-veg options. 3 of each. I had Spaghetti Bolognaise, and a pasta one day, and there is usually salad and a cake... eat as much as you can. After the first week of being consciencious, I lapsed, but now i’m trying harder again, because I could put on so much weight if I ate canteen food consistantly. It’s such incredible food. From now on, I have my cheese and tomato in the fridge and unless there is pasta, i stick to it. Not to mention getting up at 6am to go for a 45 min walk with Sarah Aunty.

Kurnool Bible Week

We were off to an early start the morning of the 17th, so thankfully I'd decided to stay at the compound, otherwise it could've been a very early start from Shunem. The night before we'd been busy on the computers copying telegu words for a banner, and for the drama, so there really wasn't much time for sleeping at all.
The older Shunem kids met us at the station, so altogether we took up most of the sitting a/c compartment! It was kind of fun, but really we spent quite a proportion of the 5 hours it took to get to Kurnool sleeping.
Discovered some amazing curried potato fritters. Hopefully I can find them again someday soon!

The details we had been given re: ss was that the approximate number of children turning up would be around 70. So according to that, Hannah, Annie, and I had all arranged to take different age groups and different activities. On the first day, about 20 children rocked up. So we told the story altogether, and then just separated for the activity work which Hann had been in charge of planning while Annie and I were in Kerala.
The 2nd day 28 children turned up and that was the total for the rest of the week. We had quite a stressfree week. Full on of course, but at least there were 3 of us supporting when all the children were together.
I really enjoyed just spending time with a smaller proportion of the Shunem children and getting to know them better over the course of the week. There are so many, that it's so easy to get confused as to who's who every now and again!
We were well looked after by Ravi and Prakash cooking us western meals, and on the last morning, Jona and I scrambled out to the kitchen and managed to cook up a storm of pancakes for the others. Cornflakes and bread being amazing of course, but it was fun for a treat!

I think the highlight of the week for me was sleeping on the rooftop with Annie, and Hann under the light of the full moon, and doing readings up there, and having midnight feasting up there. The rooms were really hot, and it was lovely and breezy on the rooftop, and barely a mosquito to be seen.
As well as working with the kids on the drama and teaching them the 'send the light' song. Twas a great hit. Especially when Hann took some of the older boys and taught them the second part an octave higher!
We had Paul in prison, and the children singing 'when i'm alone, lost or afraid, when it's too dark too see' and then the lights went out...they kept singing, and the show went on. Warmed my heart.

We got back to Hyd and decided that we deserved a trip to Havemore's...a icecream place, driving distance from the compound, so we took 2 cars and Tim and Susie joined us and we totally indulged.

Of course, the next day was my first official day at school. I was exhausted after the bible week.