Training in Aurroville
On Tuesday I spent the day preparing for the training course, getting equipment together and ensuring everyone present was clued in on what we were doing. We quickly realised we were just going to wing it so stopped preparing!! I went back to sleep, then Yaniv turned up with some shopping and made me shaukshkah, which is an Israeli dish. It was excellent we had wine and chilled looking at his photos of India. It was very civilised! That evening Mandar, Sameer and the gujariti paramedic had been out till late so they all crashed at the flat too.
Early next morning Yaniv headed off to Mumbai to get his train and we headed off for the training. It was a long but useful day. We talked out the issues we had had both internally and with HCC in relation to the trsaingings we had conducted. At the end of the day I went back and with no dinner plans called up Yonat to see if she was free, we met at E street and Guy joined us (it wouldn’t be right to go without him!). SO I caught up on Guys wanderings in Goa and had a relaxing evening. The next day we had all the HCC representatives for the training to discuss where wse needed to coordinate better. We had expected it to go badly, but actually it was really positive and a lot of issues were sorted out. I had a long chat with Niyati, who offered me a job out of university and oddly enough Sarbjit offerecd me one too with RedR, 2 offers in one day, not bad! At the end of the day we all went for dinner and drinks. I only had the drinks and then went with Ankur to Koregon park as Yonats boyfriend was playing with a funk group. It was great (jesse is an awesome sax player!), but another late night so I was exaughsted.
Saturday morning I made it for a run and met Sonali so she invited me back to tea and breakfast as she often does if I have time. As it was the weekend I finially met both her daughters. Breakfast took a while and I ended up rushing back to the office to find noone there!! I had intended to be in the office only a short while to tidy up a few things, so by 3 I left to have a nap. Yonat was going to an Indian classical concert in Koregon park so I said I would join her before meeting Guy for dinner as it was my last chance to see him before he returned to South Africa. We all met at the greman bakery and made contingency plans incase we got bored to meet elsewhere. At first I wasn’t so interested, however Yonat is studying Indian classical singing and once she explained the basics I was much more interested! I don’t feel the need to go again but its much more interactive then western classical music, the performer talked to the audience, allowed heckling, got the band to sing and you felt part of the concert. After the first half we decided we were cultured enough to leave!
We headed to MG road as it is pedestrianised on Saturdays, Guy needed to buy a few more things for home so we went to my favorite shop! I met up with a guy from couch surfing who a friend from Mumbai had asked me to meet up with and he joined us. Inevitably we ended up in E street which was really busy, but they promised to move us to where our favourite waiter was working when they had space. In the mean time we were else where. While sitting a guy was smoking a cigar right infront of the fan so the smoke was being blown straight onto us. Yonat wasn’t happy so we asked the manger to say something and when that didn’t work Yonat went up to him. He was really arrogant and would not take a step to the right, she got really angry and left. The whole of the staff were concerned and even called her to get her to come back, but she was half way home (she has been promised a free pizza on her next visit!)> The three of us continued and as usual Rahul the waiter kept us supplied with free drinks and treats! After goodbyes to Guy I headed back to crash (still no early night).
The next morning I had to head off to Pune airport, the first time I had flown from there. I met Sarbjit there and we headed off to Chenni via Bangalore. At Chenni we met Dave and Loren, both ozzies from Canbra, who were joining the shelter training in Arouville. Dave is a shelter consultant based in yogyokata and Loren is a shelter project coordinator also based in Indonesia but in a less civilised place! We all drove down to Auroville (3 hours). Dave had worked with Sarbjit in Bangladesh recently and he is the man to know in the area when it comes to shelter. It was an intresting journey down, espically as I had never seen Sarbjit swear nor tell dirty jokes!! When we got to Auroville it was not what I had expected at all (it didn’t help I thought the training was in Pondicherry), it is a beautifully green place that is a little weired. The area is a 35km commune, which is designed to be a lot like a kibbutz but with possessions. It is 1/3 indian and the rest are forigners. We went straight to the guest house which, even though it was dark, was obviously beautifully located. After boring ashram style food me Dave and Loren sat around drinking Perno before bed.
The next morning I attempted to go for a run, I got up and headed off, dog in tow, the area is all forestry broken up with crazy architecture and various gust houses. I got lost. My usual half hour run became an hour and I rsturned with scratch marks, mozzie bites and dirt everywhere! To top it off the dog left me half way round! Sarbjit and Dave were working on the course and as me and Loren were participants we had a free day. SO we hired a bike to go and explore the area. The idea was to head up the East coast road to see if we could make it to some caves I wanted to see. We made it to pondicehrry and ambled along the promenade and had a coffee. Loren made friends with one of the street sellers and then we decided just to drive.We went down as many small roads as possible and just explored. It was a lot of fun and I deffinatly see the benefits to biking around India, you see the real parts. Eventually we decided lunch was in order and on the 3rd attempt found somewhere near the beach. Earlier I had found Batman Uno in a shop and had not been able to resist. SO over lunch the Uno tournament began!! After lunch and a few beers it was decided that a walk along the beach with ice cream was in order. While there we bumped into Lorens friend so they played a game of chess! After our walk we decided to head back towards Auroville, Loren wanted to visit the swimming pool, La PIcine, as it is the pool that the guy from ‘The Life of Pi” is named after. After driving down the same road 3 times (the road had the sign ‘drive friendly’ on it so Loren insisted on being friendly ot everyone we encountered) we eventually found the pool on a completely different road. However, in true comedy style, it was closed for refurbishment!! So we decided that was our cue to head back. Most of the participants of the course had arrived, so after dinner we chatted a bit before calling it a night. I had a night cap with the boys, but then a storm atrated. What a storm!! Full thunder and lighting, it was righ overhead and the lighting even hit a tree right by where we were causing Lorens cigrettte to go flying!! In all the rain I battled back to my room.
The next morning the course started, we all got issued bikes to cycle to the training centre on! It was the first time we had such a europen mix. There were not only three girls (me included) but we were all British, for the first time in ages I could quote Monty Python and talk about neighbors!! Chloe is based in Bangkok and Hannah is a structural engineer who was working at the place we used for the training. We used the Auroville earth institute which develops structures made from earth and is basically an architects playground!! The first day of the course we did some theory and then spent the afternoon in the sun putting up tents!! After the day was over it was back to the ranch for another quiet evening. I went out with Raju to the shops to pick a few things up, on the way we picked up a guy whos motorbike had got a puncture (we were in the car not on the bikes) I was chatting to him, he is a travel writer for a company bsed in California and he had just finished writing a guide to Israel (obviously he was jewish) and was now writing about communities in India, interesting guy. Dave talked about his experiences responding to the earthquake in his village, which was really interesting, and then a night cap before an earlyish night. As Auroville has no public drinking places or much else of a night life I managed to get reasonably early nights, however I was up early so I don’t think I caught up on my sleep!
Another early morning and leisurely cycle to the training, I finally got a bike with a basket I can be such a princess when I want something! (I don’t think ive ever attended a training that started as punctually every morning!) another morning of theory followed by an afternoon of pratical. This time we were making compressed earth block (a type of brick) I had great fun! After the days work it was back early to chill out eat dinner and do our homework. I had an early night (10.30) before the third day. The third day of the course we had our usual structure. The praticle involved making a cement roofing support. It was cool. I got to trowl on the cement and get the shape and thickness, I was rubbish but I enjoyed it! And we got to lay some bricks, I layed 2! After the day we headed into pondicherry for some night life. Chloe and I decided to be civilised. We found a hotel on the promenade, funnily enough called the promenade, and sat in the roof top bar for drinks and dinner. Oddly enough Chloe was moving into the hotel the next days as her work was putting her up there, she saw it as a taste test! Obviously everyone joined us and we all enjoyed some of the best food I have had in India I had tuna and chole and I shared a bottle of sine on her company!! It wa thoroughly civilised. Then we headed back before the last day of training.
The last day was not as punctual as we were all a little tired from the night before but none the less we ploughed on. We got through the morning and onto the pratical which was checking our concrete from the day before and looking at how to make rammed earth walls. I found I really enjoyed getting my hands dirty but also seeing these principlesin action. Its all very well learning about them in Uni but the use of the methods is needed too. Anyway after goodbyes we headed back to the guest house to shower and jump in a car to Chenai as our plane was that evening. So right now I am on the plane writing this as tomorrow morning we have a workshop on using bamboo in emergencies. We land in Mumbai at 2300 arrive to Pune around 0200 and start again at 0700 but thankfully I have Sunday off to sleep!!