"So you are telling me there is fruit in the desert?"

Today I visited an orchard in the Mewat village. The orchard was implemented by the Sehgal Foundation and is maintained by the village people. It has an advanced irrigation system that uses minimal water to keep the plants alive and save water in the well for other use. There is various types of fruit being grown in it, but I think one fruit is crazy. I will have to ask again to get the name of it, but it is not consumed by the mouth. It is so damn bitter (I tasted it and it tasted like fingernail polish remover....not that I have tasted that before) that people cannot eat it although it has advanced healing qualities. You would collect a large amount of them, put them into a tub, and then mash them with your feet until you get a bitter taste in your mouth. The juices will soak through your pores and help with medicating a heat stroke and other stomach problems. I even talked to a village man who was collecting some for his wife with a heat stroke as I observed them. This was shot really quickly with the FLIP camera I had with me...not that great of quality. I did not bring out the big HD camera today because we reserved the day for hanging out with our family that we will be documenting. I am still hydrating from the orchard visit.....damn hot.

We built this city on.......Temples

We had the pleasure to go into Dehli and experience the religious culture and history. This aspect most likely won't be included in the documentary, but I think it is just a bunch of really cool shit. Juan, my vato, took these photos on our journey that day. Here is some combined information from us recapping the eventful day.

Today we visited the Chattarpur Temple and it was beautiful. We could not take photos while in the temple, only outside. The temples are really detailed, and it is hard to imagine the amount of work it takes to create them. The entire place was like a city of temples as if you were somewhere else in the world. John describes it as a heaven and it really seemed as if it was a heaven for those people. We had to take off our shoes and while walking inside the city of temples and are feet became hot from the sun's intense rays hitting the floor. So we were rushing to enter one temple to the next. Inside there were life size Hindu gods with the skin of gold. It was awesome and hard to grasp at the same time. The thrones had extravagant details and the gods were dressed beautifully and the Hindu people would add more decorations to them in respect for their Gods. Too bad we couldn't take photos to show you.

There was a huge monkey god-like figure named Hanuman in the middle of the city. It was awesome and seemed like we were at the feet of a living giant. He had a significant story in Hindu culture, but we couldn't recall it exactly because of eveything else we imbibed that day. The mother god also had a detailed bedroom. It was as if the gods sit in their throne waiting to become alive. The atmosphere felt calm and peaceful in the city of temples. The contrast to the crazy city life is amazing that is just a few feet away.

We also visited another site which was Qutb Minar and it was an area that was in ruins. I love walking in the past. I love to imagine the past and how wonderful and peaceful it must have been during the time when the civilization was in its prime and before capitalism stepped in. The site is notable for being one of the earliest and most prominent examples if indo-Islamic architecture. The site was destroyed and the stones used to build other sites. The tower has so much details, it's amazing. You can see that the top is slightly altered than the rest of the structure. That is because it was struck by lighting twice and both times the top two parts of the tower crashed to the ground!

We also visited a Sai Baba Temple who was a holy man in India. Below are photos from the temple. Our driver (We call him Sing-is-King!) took us to the temple because he holds Baba true to his heart because Baba has helped him through a very difficult time in his life. Our driver is a very nice man who is always joyful and has one of the most optimistic outlooks on life.

With a documentary you have to have Character(s)...

After meetings with the Foundations and observation of the villages and interventions of the foundations, we have come to a conclusion of what the documentary will consist of. A family will be documented in a village known as Notki. This village is significant because it is a model village that has become quite progressive. The family is significant because each member of the family will encompass a particular intervention that the Foundation initiated (example: The father will have a story on how the Income Enhancement program has advanced his life as well as the families, the mother has become independent and is teaching other village women on health and other issues because of the Women's Empowerment program, and the children have benefitted because of the Education initiatives of the foundation). This will work great because we can include a number of the several different interventions the Foundations takes on instead of just covering one told by one individual. Mewat, India consist of primarily Meo Muslims, so there will be a thread with that topic as well.

You never know...

This is a vehicle similar to eighteen-wheelers in America. The crazy traffic, lack of rules and order, and rushed driving could have been a reason for this tragedy.

No Seatbelts..

It is amazing how far people will go to get transportation in these rural areas. It makes me think about how some people complain about not getting the front seat or having to sit in the middle in a car in America. Here people are willing to sacrifice their lives by sitting on the top of a small cart-type vehicle because that could be their only chance to go into a small town and gather the necessities they need for the day/week.

Here is some more pictures of one of the schools in one of the model villages that the Sehgal Foundation has stepped in and assisted. The specific village is suppose to motivate and empower surrounding villages to become more self-sustainable.

Curiousity is common around here...

I find that age is a lot different here than anywhere else I have experienced. The young must begin their adult life very early and some even get married at the age of 12. The old seem to never retire or take their well deserved break from a hectic life. Everyone begins working as soon as they are able to, and they keep working until they absolutely are not able to.

5-29-09

Here is a short video update on the day. It was shot on a FLIP video. I apologize for the resolution quality.

Imagine school in 100 degree weather...

Juan Elizondo

Day 3: Schools

Today we visited two schools. There were a number of small children and village people who were excited to have us. Once we started taking photos they began playing with us and were very curious of our purpose.

The first school we visited had 327 students which 150 are young girls. They learn reading, writing, the english alphabet, math and other subjects in standard education. The administrators hope that one day they will have all of the young girls in the villages enrolled.

The funding the government pays for the students to attend school is 225 rupees per student which is about 5 dollars each. I really was surprised how cheap it was, but as well as how many still don't have an education. The school has a shortage of teachers and textbooks.

The second school we visited I was surprised that they were reading about Abraham Lincoln. I wonder what they would think if they were told that the US education really doesn't have a lesson plain about Indian leaders. I can't really remember studying any.
The foundation has helped advance the physical appearance of the school such as fresh paint, restrooms, and they have added to the structure of the school so that the students may have a better learning environment such as a water tank.
When comparing and contrasting the education of the US urban poor
(well at least from my personal experience) with the rural poor in India I thought of it to be funny that there is laws in the US that make children attend school and many rather not attend. However, in India their education is something their parents value the most. Two countries with poverty, but both have different values.
The other day in the village a man asked if the states had programs that will send poor people from our country to visits their village because only rich people seem to visit. I think thats a wise decision

Here is a short video compilation of some footage from the journey to Ghagas. It was shot in HD, so I hope you get to enjoy it in that format. It is just a short video compilation...no structure...my apologies.

If you could only feel the heat...

.....you would wear clothes like this.....

Photos: Megan Peyton