Goodbye Goa

Cows on backpackers' favorite Arambol Beach 

It is unreal to think that I've spent six weeks in India already. It feels like time has solehow slipped away from me, and yet, when I think back to when I first arrived here it feels like it was ages ago. The road in India has been bumpy at times (both figurative and literal), but I can honestly look back at these past six weeks and say that I'm happy with the work that I've done here. I've made wonderful relationships with so many people: with the students at the preschool, with the families and children in our neighborhood, with the people working in our favorite shops in Vasco, and with the Goa base staff.

This past week our team threw parties for the neighborhood and the preschools that we worked at for a final farewell. The family I was closest with in our neighborhood invited five other girls and me into their home for dinner. (It was possibly the best Indian meal I've had yet). We've spent the past week closing ties with the people that we've come to love and said our final goodbyes. It has been a very busy and sad week because, well, my time in Goa has finally come to an end.

Neighborhood kids at our farewell party

Nevertheless, no matter how sad it is to say goodbye to arguably the most beautiful place in India, all of us on the team know that it's time to move on. The remaining weeks in India will be spent traveling to, and within, the north of India. We will be spending time in Delhi, Varansi (one of the two holy cities for Hindus), possibly the Himalayas, Agra (where the Taj Mahal is), and Mumbai. Our time will not be as scheduled as it was in Goa, and I believe it will be more crazy, more intense, more of a battle, and more spontaneous. As of now, the only thing I know for sure is that the team and I will be staying where backpacking hippies stay in Delhi, giving us prime opportunities to meet new people and have discussions about anything and everything with them.

Our team has been praying and we feel like these next few weeks are going to be more challenging than the last six weeks in new ways. In a way, we'll be experiencing a completely different outreach. And I'm so excited for it! It's going to be an adventure of a lifetime and I can't wait to get started. The first four people on our team leave by train for Delhi on Monday, while the other eight (including myself) leave on two separate trains the following day.

Please keep us in your prayers as we embark on a new season of outreach. Pray for safety, good health, team unity, boldness, and open doors and opportunities to share our faith and the Good News with others. Thank you for your continual support.

Blessings!

Asma and Salma, my favorite neighborhood girls

Neighborhood children

Katrine, Nathan, Lilian, Clo, and I with our preschool kids

Beautiful children

Life in India

View from the slum in Baina

Namaste!

Time flies in India! It's already the end of my third week here. We've had a slow start with our work, but we are finally in the full swing of things. Here's what my weeks usually consist of:

SUNDAY

Church in the morning- We've been going to two different churches of some of the base staff. It's so fun to experience church in India and be able to worship the same God as one international body.

Team meeting in the afternoon- We use this time to pray, worship, and to talk about the past week and the upcoming week.

MONDAY

Brila Preschool in the morning- Myself and three others help teach at a preschool where kids from the slum in Birla attend.

Baina Clinic in the evening- Four of us go to the Baina slum to speak to the women of Baina and to give out milk to them.

TUESDAY

Brila Preachool in the morning.

In the Birla Clinic's single room

Neighborhood in the afternoon- All of us feel that it is important to build relationships with the people in our neighborhood. The guys play cricket and talk to the older neighborhood guys (about 10-20 years old). The girls walk around talking to people outside their houses (and are sometimes invited in) and play with the neighborhood children.

WEDNESDAY

Team meeting in the morning.

Neighborhood in the afternoon.

THURSDAY

Birla Preschool in the morning.

Small group in the evening- This is just a time for the guys and girls to separate and get into a smaller group setting to discuss anything that we need to talk about or that's on our minds. Girl time is often a nice refresher.

FRIDAY

Neighborhood in the morning.

House Visits in Baina or Birla Clinic- The team splits into two groups. One group goes to Baina and visits people in their houses and talks to them. The other group goes to Birla to speak to women and hand out food. The groups switch locations every other week.

SATURDAY

View of the Birla slum

Free day- We usually spend our free time shopping in the town of Vasco or the state capital of Panjim and soaking up the sun on the tourist-filled Majorda Beach.

What's listed is just the planned activities that I do. There are often times when we have free time and choose to go build relationships with people. The days are full, but it feels like there is a lot of down time as well. We spend lots of time together with not a lot to do, so we often have to get a little creative. The team is creating a bond that naturally comes from spending so much time together in such closed quarters.

It has been such fun living in India and learning how to be a part of this culture. As a result, I am now close to becoming a pro at bartering and the Goan bus system. I'm getting lots of exercise from all the walking I do and my legs are getting toned from using the squattie pottie. But the food is so good and cheap that I can't stop eating! We have rice and curry twice a day, and I have yet to get tired of it. And I love trying new Indian snacks and goodies at the shops in Vasco. I'm now used to squeezing onto buses so full that Indians are literally on top of each other and close to falling out of the door. And so many people now know of us that they tell us what bus we need and when we need to get off even if we don't ask for their help! :)

Thanks for reading through my long descriptions of just some of my life here in India! There's so much I want to share, but just too little time, words, and space to write it all. Please keep this beautiful nation in your prayers!

Welcome to India!

It's hard to believe it's been only two weeks since I arrived in India. Straight away it started out rough, with only half of our team making it onto the plane from London to Mumbai. After waiting 24 hours to reunite, crazy jet lag, an 18 hour bus ride through the jungle of India, and extremely scary taxi rides, all 12 of our team members made it to the small town of Upas Nagar, Goa. We had a slow start with our work, allowing us to catch up on sleep, celebrate Christmas on the beach, and acclimate to the completely new culture of India. There have been some ups and downs, but I am falling in love with this place more and more every day. I absolutely love India, the Indian people, the music, the jungle nature, and the WARM weather!


Slum on beach at one of our locations



This is just a preview of the updates, pictures, and videos that are to come soon!