Siobhan
Siobhan Nolan Joined: July 12th 2006
Logged in: September 13th 2009
Logged in: September 13th 2009
Travel Blog Posts
Our first worksite
Sain baina uu! (Hello) I just finished up my first experience building houses. The experience has been so many things. Eye opening, back breaking, gratifying and frustrating. Mongolia has also been a place that has been surprising in so many ways. The city of Ulaanbatar is fairly ugly. It has heavy Soviet influence in its architecture. However, it is amazing how Western and specifically American the culture is. The people are extremely friendly and gracious. It is amazing how kind they are. The two families we built houses for would give us small tokens of their gratitude. My favorite experience was how although we couldn't speak the same language (we had an interpreter but often you found yourself with the carpenter or a family member working) and how a mix of sign language and their wonderfully ... read more
A young boy in traditional garb at Naadam
Hi Friends, I just wanted to post some fun Naadam photos from this past weekend. It was a complete kick to learn more about this special festival which celebrates Chengis Khan. It is a mix of three sports - horse racing (bareback with 6-9 year old boys), wrestling, and archery. I wanted to get these out to you now. To see photos from the festivities please click here Hope you are well! More soon, Siobhan... read more
On the road again
Hello Friends, I just wanted to quickly send out a message as I get ready to leave for Mongolia in just two more days! I hope to continue to use this blog to communicate with you through my summer adventure. I have finished graduate school and have two months to travel and explore. I will start by heading to Mongolia to begin on a Habitat for Humanity project for two weeks, then Luca will join me to head by horseback into the Mongolian steppes, the two of us then plan to take the trans Siberian to Beijing. After that adventure I will be flying to Paris to join my brother. It should be a terrific summer! Best wishes and I look forward to staying in touch with you through this blog. Cheers, Siobhan ... read more
Hello! I just wanted to post some quick photos of the Taj Mahal and the last few days that I was in Delhi for work! Click here here for the photos. I am about to download photos from Luca and my adventures in India shortly! -Siobhan... read more
RECOVERED
Hello Friends and Family! I just wanted to drop you all a note hello aften an amazing trip through Gujarat and Rajasthan, covering a little over 2,000 miles of India. The train trip took me through Ahmedabad, the home of the famous Indian Institute of Management as well as the National Instite of Design among other things, Bhuj, a very small town near the Arabian Sea and the boarder of Pakistan which is famous for its textiles. As well as Surat and Vandorada in Gudjrat. Then we went to Jaipur, Bikaner, and Jodhpur all in Rajasthan, one of the most spectacular states in India. To see a map of where we went please click here Throughout the trip we visited stores as well as many remote areas to meet the rural artisans that produce the ... read more
RECOVERED
It was my goal to have this posting written by this weekend and here it is 11pm on Sunday and I have yet to write anything. I wanted to get these photos up because this week is going ot be nuts and I hit the road again for a week starting the 14th. Ok, now I am already on Tuesday so I need to get my act together and write. The past several weeks have been an absolute whirlwind in a really positive way. Our social lives in Delhi are bustling, making friends with other interns, expats, locals and future classmates. We are having fun attending cultural shows, exploring historical sites and checking out the wealth of incredible restaurants in Delhi. For photos of exploring around delhi click here We are getting to be relatively ... read more
carpet factory
I apologize for not writing to you sooner. I think I am just starting to get somewhat used to things here three weeks in! Things have been quite a whirlwind ever since I began work. I would also say I am barely getting acclimatized to things. It is hotter than I ever could have imagined here. Everything at Fabindia has been incredible thus far. The interns will be rotating through various departments. I began with the CEO, William Bissell, and as a result I have been able to dive into the inner workings of the company. It has been quite an education understanding how the company works, what its vision for the future is, and what I can do to help. The company is filled with friendly people who want to ensure that our stay ... read more
Hemmis Monks
I have just returned after spending a extraoridinary five days up in one of the Northern most regions of India. I was in Ladakh, or "little tibet," an area that boarders both Pakistan and India. The landscape is absolutely breathtaking. It is nestled in the Himalayas and the descent into the Leh airport felt as though we were landing on the moon I felt as though we were only feet away from the mountains as we landed and then the landscape is the amazing desert, with windswept sand dunes and sand trickling down mountains. The culture and the people there are more Tibetan than they are indian and Tibetan buddism is primarily practised in the region. We travelled to many monestaries, some over six hundred years old that were still used and functioning today. After ... read more
Plane
Hello Friends! I am packing my bags, loading up on sunscreen and bug repellent, and getting ready to hit the road for India. I have only four more days in San Francisco until beginning a long journey to Delhi (via LA via London). While I am excited, I am at the same time quite apprehensive as I know I am entering into the complete unknown. I have tried to read as much as possible about India but have come to the realization that I simply have no idea what I am getting into. I look forward to sharing my experience with all of you and staying in touch through this blog. Please write to me often and if any of you have any tips let me know as I am sure I will be needing ... read more
Cusco
Wow! After a whirlwind trip I am sitting down to try to write about the adventure LUca and I had. Luca and I met at the Lima airport at around 1130 pm on Friday, the 19th, to then leave at 6am for Cusco. A day to adjust to the 3500m altitude and we were off at 5am the next morning for our four day trek. To be honest, I think although I had spoken to people who had told me it was going to be somewhat difficult I had no idea what was in store. It was a once in a lifetime trip, I hope these photos do the trail justice. We had a wonderful guide, an archeologist who made the trip even richer and made some new friends along the way too!... read more
