Padmanabhapuram Palace

Padmanabhapuram Palace

Situated about half way betweent Trivandrum,  Kerala and the tip of India at Kanyakumari.
This sprawling palace complex  constructed around 1601,  continues to be one of the best examples of traditional Kerala architecture.
 This  place in crowded and requires long lineups to get tickets.  Only one person dispenses tickets and they go for lunch from 1h00 till 2h00 but this fact is not posted anywhere.  At most tourist attractions in India,  tourists are required to pay double fare  and  here you pay a fee to use your camera(1$).  (If you are caught taking a photo without a permit you pay a 500 rupee fine (10$)) Despite what seemed, at first, unfair, it is inexpensive and well worth the visit. (6$ per person).   It reminded me of  the Alhambra in Granada , hot, mysterious, beautiful  and crowded.

While the ticket booth is closed for lunch we eat and drink coconuts!

The kings council chamber cool and breezy, surprizingly.

beautiful wood work

There is a long line of people being told to move it!

this is how they keep cool slates on the walls

the Western Ghat Mountains

Many people sleep without mattresses even at Amar Seva Sangham 

The Ballroom!  the floor is a single slab of stone polished to a mirror finish.

Indian Republic Day

A bit of Indian history!

Republic day honors the date on which the Constitution of India came into force on 26 January 1950 replacing the Government of India Act (1935) as the governing document of India

Every year, a parade is held in the capital,New Delhi. This year the french president was a guest. 

^{It was televised and it showcases India's Defence Capability, Cultural and Social Heritage.}

you may have seen this on google yesterday

Here at Amar Seva Sangham the celebration was held at assembly in the morning at the  integrated school. There were performances of syncronised workouts, dancing, singing by various groupes of children. There was a flag raising and cadet march, singing the anthem and finally speaches by the direstors of Amar Seva Sangham.  

 This was my  occasion to wear a sare in public for the first time.  My Indian coming out so to speak...I consulted a you tube video to learn the tuck and wrap technique appropriate for this 6m colorful bolt of cloth. 

with Ai-vi in her new sare,and Sitara (notice the cows in the backround)

Wearing a sare is like wearing a toga but with an in skirt and  a crop top.  Like most women, I have added a few pins to the shoulder so the whole thing doesn't fall off me inadvertantly. 

I admire the elegance and grace with witch Indian woman work and play in these long gowns and I am trying to fit in.  I am clearly a visible minority and curiosity in rural India. In town, people stop to take photos with us, yesterday a man even handed me his child to take a photo.  The young tike was not pleased to be handed over to a stanger.  Like sitting on Santa's lap for the first time ....

Every holiday is a reason for a feast so we were treated to a special meal at the barrier free dining hall.

I love eating on banana leafs ! rice, dal, chutney, papadams an sweets!

 
We have been fortunate to share in two holiday celebrations in our two weeks here.  Now it's back to work....

SOUTH INDIAN FOOD

Food is love!  Here in India it is also compassion.  Being vegetarian is not a fad here.  It's been a way of life for Hindus for thousands of years and since their  population is near a billion it is proof that you can thrive on a veg diet .  A favorite food in the south is the Dosa; a lentil and rice crepe that is thin and crispy and usually stuffed with some spicy veg mix.

We all helped Sitara eat the Paper Dosa.

The other special food is the Idly; the same batter as the dosa but left to rise at room temperature it forms a sour dough that is then steamed.

My favorite fusion breakfasts:
Idly with Nutella and coconut chutney

rice with peanut butter and coconut chutney. Those black dots are pepper corns.

This was one of my first breakfasts... I hesitated before I took this into my hands.  Oh did I mention no utensils, eat with your right hand... The green chutney was actually very good, it had a light minty taste.

Now these are lunches and dinners with chutneys and sambars

I have decided I don't like eating wet rice with my fingers.  I  am using a spoon...The food is tasty and all vegan.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I eat all my meals on campus except when traveling which made eating out with staff something special today.

EATING OUT WITH STAFF in Tenkasi

we are sitting at separate tables facing each other so we can talk and the server can easily  serve us more food every few minutes.  All you can eat with service!

  Yes, that is a disposable, biodegradable banana leaf plate on a teak table. I was also offered a spoon midway thru the meal. 

The good news is: I enjoy the food, the spice and have not suffered any illness so far.  I am taking Canadian probiotics daily...

I leave you with this quote that put a smile on my Christian face.

 "There are people in the world so hungry, that God cannot appear to them except in the form of bread.”
― Mahatma Gandhi

Grieving Ste-Anne

Last night, I dreampt about an aged veteran I treated.  He was dying, I woke feeling sad, feeling a loss...
In real life, his humanity had touched me during the brief time we spent together;exchanging on how to best meet his needs and goals at Ste-Anne's hospital.  He passed away and his room was soon  filled with a new resident .  Another aged veteran that would share with me his touching life story before leaving this world. Working in long term care force one to be sensitive and practice grieving more than most people. 
The dream and the feelings it evoked compelled me to call my coworkers at Ste-Anne's. I am thinking of you... A few days before  I left for India, I  gave in my letter of resignation; refusing the provincial offer.  After the Jan 1st deadline,  everyone wanted to know who was staying, who was leaving. Realizing that more than 50% of the rehab department employees would be gone after the April 1st transfer was hard to fathem.

photos taken from the web(http://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/steannes-hospital/virtual-visit/scs

The fact that the place we had all spent most of our waking hours would no longer be the same was hard to accept.  For those who are committed to staying as well as for those who are leaving to an early retirement or to new professional challenges; the change and loss could not be avoided.  The mood was heavy and pensive.
This trip to India,  takes me away from the grieving and loss in body but it's still on my mind. I am dealing with it in my own way.  Honoring the people and veteran's that make working at Ste- Anne's a wonderful experience as well as looking towards the future for new opportunities to work with compassionate and caring people for courageous clients who's only hope is change. 
I can see that here at Amar Seva Sangham Ayikuty.  Donations and volunteers from all over the world coming together to empower those who are ''differently abled''. 

In the face loss, new opportunities arise, it is only our wish to keep things from changing that makes us suffer.  Change can be uncomfortable, adapting stretches us out of our comfort zone.  I am realizing that I don't want to get stuck in anger, denial, depression even though those feeling are very legitimate and normal.  I am moving towards accepting the enevitability of change and looking out at this wide world to embrace what ever comes next on my path. 

I leave you with this quote that has been displayed on my desk for over a year, reminding me.

“My storehouse having been burnt down, nothing obstructs my view of the bright moon.”

― Masahide

This is my new view of the moon.  It appears from the botton up, not right to left.

 

To the tip of India-Kanyakumari

Sunrise of the coast

There is a 133-foot tall statue of Thiruvalluvar (a tamil poet) erected at Kanyakumari at the southern tip of the Indian subcontinent, where the Arabian Sea, the Bay of Bengal, and the Indian Ocean converge.

For our protection and comfort we rented a car and driver for the long weekend (Pungal).  Normally we work 6 days a week, 8 hours a day.  So we take advantage of this long break to travel to the tip of India; Kanyakumari and make our way to the ouest coast, Kovalem beach and back over the Western Ghat mountains to our home base.

Southern Tamil Nadu is home to many wind farms.  At ASSA I see many turbines as I do my yoga on the roof but we drove through this area where there were hundreds of wind turbines tightly packed together.

the coast in Kanyakumari is home to fisherman and a boardwalk .

A ferry takes you to the rock to see a memorial dedicated to Swamy Vivekananda and the statue of Thiruvalluvar (a Tamil poet) . 




People gather to watch both the sunset and the sunrise over the ocean. 

We also spent lots of time shopping because everything is inexpensive.  (not a western tourist spot).  I now have a few outfits to wear to work at ASSA.  The dress code is very traditional and colorful here in the south.  Sari or salwar kameez. 

More about the rest of our weekend tomorrow...

With hugs and kisses,
missing you,
Chantal

Happy Pungal

HAPPY PUNGAL

 Pongal is celebrated on the  16th of January in Tamil Nadu province to convey appreciation to the Sun God for providing the energy for agriculture.  Something like our Thanks Giving. Part of the celebration is the boiling of the first rice of the season . Thanking the Sun God for agricultural abundance.
 At the school and the spinal cord unit  the staff and students Cooked Pongal (a dish of rice sugar and spices) is a traditional pot, outdoors over fire and made an offering of fruit, flowers and incense.  The students also make elaborate mandalas of colored chalk and played games to celebrate.  


 

 

We didn't get any work done for a few hours as we celebrated with the kids and took photos. 

 School uniforms were set aside for the day .  Every one dressed up.

This is a holiday weekend, we decided to travel .  More to come ....

rickshaws and shopping malls

auto rickshaw fits 7 women and baggage.

Our first day of Stage and we are invited by the staff to go to the town of Tenkasi to buy some supplies this includes money exchange, Indian clothes, shoes and snacks and fruit.   Uma arranges the auto rickshaw and we negotiate a 3 hour pass to get us out the gate to go shopping.  I realise they want us back before 8 pm.  dinner time at Amar Seva Sangham and an appropriate time for  women  to be off the streets...
All five of us fit in the rickshaw, then we pick up Uma and her friend that makes 7 in the back seat!  but the whole Town of Tenkasi is a press of human movement.  Cars, buses and motorcycles compete for every square inch.  When crossing the street you do NOT wait until the coast is clear,because it never is.  You simply walk out and know they will avoid you. Nobody is going very fast in this crowd.

We drive thru the maze of people and get out when are told to go shop... fruit stand, bakary, grocery store... each time the driver waits for us.
The clothing shop in mostly a fabric store.  Very few ready made items are available.  So I bought the fabric to make an outfit. 

 The fabric is sold as a set, pants top and scarf to match.  just cut and sow with a beautiful picture of a model on the bag of fabric.  no pattern needed.  The tailoring school will make the top and pants for less than a dollar!  Can't wait to see the final product!  I also have a Saree  and need to have the top made .                                                          

traveling

Life is a daring adventure or nothing at all.

 Helen Keller

I am here, now.

At 3 am I was wide awake... jet lag!

The flight from Montreal to Quatar was much better than I expected.  I sat with a very interesting couple on the plane.  We had lots to share and the time passed quickly.  I managed to sleep too. Traveling with a Roho cushion (because I had no more room in my luggage) was great for the 11 hour flight.  I forgot it on the last leg of the trip and was happy to hear my name on the airport intercom in India to claim my cushion.  I will miss it on the way home.

The driver who met me at the airport managed to get all my luggage and the wheelchair into his little car and we drove 3 hours (75km) through the mountains in the dark.  I have never seen such a winding road.  

About the driving!  well being from Montreal I have seen my share of crazy drivers.... but this is very different.  First of all they drive on the left,  The lines on the road are absent or optional. Passing is allowed at all times even when you cannot see,  that is why you have a horn. The horn seems to be the most important part of the car.  Drivers honk for so many things: In my short time here I have noticed they honk as they approach intersections and at any time to indicate: I see you, I am passing you, I am here, get out of my way...

I was thrilled to meet with ''Team McGill'' and walked through the village of Ayikuty today. The highlights were shopping (more on that later) and the elephant on main street.  I was amazed and excited as this enormous elephant walked towards me and brought it's trunk gently towards me, checking me out? looking for donations?  The look on my face must have been priceless because I realized people were watching and smiling at my reaction.  

The temple in town broadcasts its prayers from 5 till 6 am.  I will go do my Yoga on the roof now as the sun is rising.
Namaste