Oh - you're probably wondering why I was asking for lice shampoo. It was more of a precautionary thing... especially after a girl covered with lice decided to hug and kiss me and play with my hair. What?? I mean, c'mon, what am I supposed to do?
--
This past week was fun! Got to attend some really fun events:
Dastkar Nature Bazaar
Dodie, her friend Tanveer and I went to the Dastkar Nature Bazaar, an annual craft & environment fair in Janpath one afternoon. It was great!
It's a crafts fair, with tons of little stalls selling everything, from blankets to jewelry to bags to stuff for the house. I bought a necklace from Orissa, knitted headband and socks by women from a Hill station, and plum jam.
Even saw this: Haathi Chaap - it's paper that's made of Elephant Poop. Recycle, Reduce, Reuse.
There were lots of arts/painting projects going on:
Cute little monkeys were everywhere:
And of course, couldn't leave without visiting the Food Stall, which included food from all over the country. We settled for Maharastran: pau bhaji, methi na thepla, and saabu dana ni tikki. mmm...
--UNICEF India: International Children’s Rights Documentary Film Festival
I went to a viewing of this inspiring documentary film festival last Wednesday, which included these three films:
21 and Up South Africa: Mandela's Children
The Up Series are documentaries that revisit a group of children from different countries every seven years. In 2007, in post-apartheid South Africa, filmmaker Angus Gibson re-visits 11 young people of various races and backgrounds as they turn 21. The result is an insightful look at the lives of these young people who, faced with varying economic and social realities, must deal with issues such as unemployment, crime, race relations, education and the AIDS epidemic, which has killed three of the original 14 children. Sari's Mother
Director James Longley creates an intimate, revealing portrait of life inside war-torn Iraq. In the restive Mahmudiyah area of central Iraq, the Zegum family makes their living by selling milk and butter, farming land rented from their neighbors. Sari, their 10 year-old son, is dying of AIDS. Faten, the boy’s mother, does not lose her resolve as she visits doctors and ministers trying to get help from Iraqi’s broken healthcare system.
The Final Inch
Nearly 50 years after a vaccine for polio was developed in the United States, the polio virus is largely forgotten in many countries. But polio remains a threat to the world’s poorest. In India, The Final Inch follows volunteers as they try to persuade reluctant families that their children’s health transcends politics and religion. The film personalizes the global campaign to eradicate polio by capturing the dedication of volunteers as they search for the impoverished and vulnerable children who need the vaccine before it is too late.
Outside the auditorium, they had a small exhibition of really fantastic photography of childrens health initiatives taking place across the world. (sorry for the bad photo quality. My blackberry takes terrible photos. Hint, Atul: I like your iphone)
Check out more photo essays: http://www.unicef.org/india/media_1086.htm--
Happy Childrens Day!
Every year, November 14th is celebrated as Children's Day (also the birthday the first prime minster of India, Jawaharal Nehru), to celebrate childhood and promote the welfare of children.
At Khushi Girls Home, where Dodie volunteers, there was a program where tons of kids participated in skits, singing, and dancing.
I learned about a project called Music Basti, that focuses on raising the potential of street children through music.
It was fun to hang out with a few of the girls. They are so so nice and full of energy and talked to me in Hindi and became my friend (they confirmed the 'dosti' by shaking my hand, giggling, and then running away).
--Ultimate Frisbee in Lodhi Gardens
A few of us gathered together for an extremely intense game of Ultimate Frisbee at Lodhi Gardens. It's so beautiful!
It was the most exercise any of us had gotten in 3 months and aside from the occasional frisbee thwack across passer-by's faces, slipping into the splits at one point during the game, and my constant confusion when the goal sides would switch, it was great!
--Mosquito Killer
I leave you now with a few pictures of my new pass-time: mosquito killing. I am actually quite proud of these pictures: there were 2 mosquitos about to mate (i think) up against the mirror. So, I grabbed my soap dispenser and slammed it into both of them, smushing them like a melted oreo cookie. The less mosquitos, the less disease. That's my theory, at least. Rawrrr.
xx
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