Calcutta and the Mother Theresa Foundation

Diwali- fun in the streets

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I've been inCalcutta for the last week volunteering with the Mother Theresa Foundation and it's been amazing! Calcutta is not really high on the tourist destination top spots, so it seems that 80% of people here are actually volunteering! It's amazing the legacy that one woman has left behind- people come from all over the world. And for me that also means meeting lots of nice people from all over which is of course much fun!But it's been hard work...the day starts at 6 o'clock with a walk thorugh what can best be descibed as 'Butcher Street'. It's in a Muslim quarter so there are no qualms about killing cows...and they're on gory display in all shapes and forms- strings of intestines, piles of hearts and livers, whole carcasses...the whole lot! nice start to the day! :)  But that takes us to the 'Motherhouse' where Mother Theresa is buried and where the nuns live for 7 to have breakfast together and then everyone splits into different groups to go to the various centres and go about their work. I ended up in Daya Dan, a house for severely mentally and physically handicapped children. I was actually bricking it before starting, but it's been so lovely and fun. The day starts when we arrive with loud chorusses of 'aaaauuuntie, aaaaauuuntie' - what we get called by the kids and the workers! Of course it's mentally and physically exhausting but very very rewarding. The kid are lovely and lots of fun. Well some of them. Others are just heartbreaking. When you know everything is pretty much useless, it's just a matter of making them as comfortable as possible, you can't really get through to them at all. The work ranges from laundry to folding clothes to making beds, to washing and dressing the kids and then feeding them takes up a big part of the day. And of course always playing and trying to stimulate them and trying to train and massage their muscles...there's always stuff to do! I think my proudest moment, when I felt I really bonded with the little girl was during a music performance some Irish schoolkids were putting on for them: the little uns loved it, got really excited. The girl I was holding on my lap so much so that she peed all over me!! So I was covered in pee for the rest of the day- as well as the usual blobs of spit and vom and food! :) Looking my best!!

Living it up for the camera

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Interesting fact of the day: Calcutta's main roads are operated on a one-way basis...that changes direction every day at 2pm!! So at about quarter to two, the police has to start trying to organise traffic in such a way that all the cars start driving i the opposite direction! How complicated can you possibly make things?? Not entirely sure of the reasoning behind it but it gives taxi drivers a perfect excuse always to hike up prices- no matter which direction it happens to be it's of course always the wrong way!!

Calcutta also meant the last stop for me and Jacq travelling together. It's gone so quickly! It ended up being about 6 weeks again this time around, and it's just flown by! We also met Amit,a freind from BPP in Calcutta and had a few nice evenings chilling and drinking rum together. Classic night at the Farilawn hotel where I arrived late to join amit and Jacq. They told me they were drinking rum and coke. So that's what I went to order. Only to be told that the place only served soft drinks. So I INSISTED that my freinds were drinking rum and coke and please could I have some too...oh dear, Babs! Cop on! When the waiter came over and saw the hip flask I don;t hink he was too impressed!

trucks carrying god statues on the back

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And our final night was equally classic. Jacq and I decided to live it up a little so we headed to the classy "trinca's" , a resto with live music. Phew- a band of old Indian men with beer bellies and a dancer with really badly died blonde hair ina little black mini dress belting out 60s tunes and cheesy pop! But we gt intot he spirit of things and after a few cocktails let ourselves be dragged onto the dancefloor by a crazy Indian lady with a fro. But we were practically thrown off the dancefloor! We were told that it was 'the law' that only couples were allowed to dance, not two girls together! What?! Kind of put a damper ont he whole thing...ah well!

But it's time to move again. And it's really sad. Not only to leave the work, but I really enjoyed Calcutta, and the fact that there was routine in my life and purpose rather than always moving and always travelling. But at the same time I'm getting itchy feet again...there's just no pleasing some people!! ;)