templed out!

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hey all, been busy these last few days, but for the sake of keeping my mom sane 😉 here are a few piccies of places i've been. headed to pondicherry this weekend, mainly to get away from certain ppl, but also wanted to see this really weird hippie colony juts outside the town, super super weird. they all meditate to 'the Mother' and whatnot, they do have some interesting theories thop abt living together and sharing resources. otherwise spent time in town wondering the beaches, looking at all the french houses, basically chilling out in 40 degree heat.

the project is going ok. i have very very challenging volunteers this time around, a few times having to seriously bite my tonge hard. i just can't seem to win with them, everythinh is an uphill battle. hopefully when some of the other new ones come along in 2 weeks it'll change, but for now i can't wait to come home...

the project: working in a village oif the lower caste. india is divide up into castes and you are born into it without hope of ever bettering yourself. the caste where we are working is called the Dalits. These ppl have the lowest social status. The Dalits, earlier referred to as "untouchables" by some, work in what were seen as unhealthy, unpleasant or polluting jobs. in the past, the dalits suffered from social segregation and restrictions, in addition to extreme povertyl, tyhey were not allowed temple worship with others, nor water from the same sources. Persons of higher castes would not interact with them. If somehow a member of a higher caste came into physical or social contact with an untouchable, the member of the higher caste was defiled, and had to bathe thoroughly to purge him or herself of the impurity.

what i am finding in the village where i work, social disscrimination has developed, and these seperate groups within the same group will not interact with ppl they see as lower than them. they are described as "outcasts even among outcastes".
the village has no safe drinking water, no toilets, the children walk 10-12kms everyday to school (i shit you not) barely any shade, and the villagers have no work and no way of getting out of their situations. i come home everyday feeling a little worse for being there, there is so little hope..

other pics include our house. living in a typical rural indian house, we sleep on the floor with mats like the locals and make do with a bucket shower. one of the volunteerrs snores incredibly, i hardly sleep, tonight i'm going to sleep on the roof or i'm going to lose the plot.

that's all for now. send me news. much love! x

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