And the MayFair Hotel! The most luxurious hotel in the state of Orissa!
Okay, don't get me wrong. We're not spending your generous donations by putting our staff members up in 5 star hotels while they're in India. The MayFair is a fine hotel by Indian standards, meaning it has a restaurant, somewhat clean sheets and air conditioning. After 500 mosquito bites, the same basic meal for the last six days and uncomfortable heat at night, I'm ready to part ways with Sooch Village. Plus, The Miracle Foundation gets a generous discount at the MayFair, which makes the stay there all the more sweet.
We will be driving from outside of Ranchi to Rourkela, which the Indian staff says is about a 5 hour drive. Ha, I know better. I'm estimating it will be at least 8 hours. Indian time can be annoying if you're not used to it.
Talk to you when I'm in Rourkela.
Monday, September 29, 2008
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Sick at Sooch
Well, it was bound to happen sometime, right?
I began feeling ill late Saturday night and much of today, Sunday, was spent battling wacky body temperatures and trips to the bathroom. Needless to say, it wasn't as productive of a day as I would have liked. I suspect it was something I ate on Saturday but I'm not sure what. Maybe the American Style Sour Cream & Onion Lays potato chips?
Sushma did a great job of rounding up the kids to write letters to their sponsors and I'll take a look at those letters tomorrow. We're slowly but surely building this program to be the best it can be.
Tonight, I'm going to bed early to hopefully wake up around 11 PM to watch/listen to my beloved Kansas City Chiefs inevitably get destroyed by their intra-divisional rivals the Denver Broncos.
On top of a stomach ache, I look like I have the chicken pox from the literally dozens of mosquito bites I've gotten. I sprayed my room with bug spray earlier today, shut the door for ten minutes and came back to at least thirty dead mosquitoes on the floor and in my bed.
Hopefully I wake up tomorrow well rested and nausea free.
I began feeling ill late Saturday night and much of today, Sunday, was spent battling wacky body temperatures and trips to the bathroom. Needless to say, it wasn't as productive of a day as I would have liked. I suspect it was something I ate on Saturday but I'm not sure what. Maybe the American Style Sour Cream & Onion Lays potato chips?
Sushma did a great job of rounding up the kids to write letters to their sponsors and I'll take a look at those letters tomorrow. We're slowly but surely building this program to be the best it can be.
Tonight, I'm going to bed early to hopefully wake up around 11 PM to watch/listen to my beloved Kansas City Chiefs inevitably get destroyed by their intra-divisional rivals the Denver Broncos.
On top of a stomach ache, I look like I have the chicken pox from the literally dozens of mosquito bites I've gotten. I sprayed my room with bug spray earlier today, shut the door for ten minutes and came back to at least thirty dead mosquitoes on the floor and in my bed.
Hopefully I wake up tomorrow well rested and nausea free.
Saturday, September 27, 2008
Lots of Activity at Sooch Village
With a half dozen of the cottages at Sooch Village still under construction, there is a flurry of activity going on inside the orphanage walls. Right now, a saw is buzzing outside my window, cutting wooden boards. Men are banging on the windows, adding screens and metal barriers to the frames of the windows.
There are probably about ten men working on the cottages during the day. Just today I saw them working on the stone steps of one cottage; hoisting a water container to the top of another; grinding stones next to another building; and ferrying the house mothers via motorcycle to Ranchi to get baby's milk.
This is in addition to the usual work of the other staff here - the accountants working on the computers; sweeping and washing the floors of the administration building; and of course cooking for me!
Sushma and I have been working great together and the only impediment to success is the shaky internet. I am going to hopefully address that situation here and somehow, I don't know yet, get reliable internet to Sooch Village.
There are probably about ten men working on the cottages during the day. Just today I saw them working on the stone steps of one cottage; hoisting a water container to the top of another; grinding stones next to another building; and ferrying the house mothers via motorcycle to Ranchi to get baby's milk.
This is in addition to the usual work of the other staff here - the accountants working on the computers; sweeping and washing the floors of the administration building; and of course cooking for me!
Sushma and I have been working great together and the only impediment to success is the shaky internet. I am going to hopefully address that situation here and somehow, I don't know yet, get reliable internet to Sooch Village.
Friday, September 26, 2008
Back in India
After another American Airlines flight 292 from Chicago to Delhi, I am back at Sooch Village to work with our Sponsorship Coordinator Sushma to make The Miracle Foundation’s program the best it can be.
Sushma is responsible for updating the children’s information in our online database, as well as ensuring proper communications from the children to their sponsors with my help of course. I am here to learn about Sushma’s current tasks and her schedule and to find out how we can make communication between India and America easier. Together, we should build a fantastic program.
I can tell you that after my second arrival in India, only a month and a half after the first arrival, the excitement of being in such a magnificent country has not been lost. The feeling of arriving at the under-construction Delhi airport was less a shock than it was the first time, as I found myself maneuvering the terminal with an ease and confidence that would have been impossible to have on my first trip.
Any confidence I had on that first trip came from our indispensable, irreplaceable, (infamous?) and brilliant travel coordinator Barbara. Since I am alone on this trip, my confidence will have to come from seeing this terrain before. Wish me luck.
I am currently outside of Ranchi, Jharkand, India, at The Miracle Foundation’s newest orphanage – Sooch Village. The orphanage was officially opened in March 2008 and there are still tweaks being made to the administration building as well as many cottages still under construction. It’s a great feeling being able to come back here a second time and be familiar with the staff and the surroundings.
The plan is to travel with Sushma to our different orphanges and learn what can and can’t work for the sponsorship program. My philosophy and strategy for the program comes from one of those terribly clichéd, workplace team building sessions – What program would you create if you had no limitations? That is start of my thought process and we won’t disappoint.
Being the Web Manager as well, I’ve tasked myself with leveraging technology in a way like no other sponsorship program in the world has done. Part of this trip will help figure out how, over the long run, technology will bring the sponsors and the children of The Miracle Foundation closer together.
That’s all I’ve got for now. I look forward to updating you again on my travels and I hope you look forward to reading more.
Sushma is responsible for updating the children’s information in our online database, as well as ensuring proper communications from the children to their sponsors with my help of course. I am here to learn about Sushma’s current tasks and her schedule and to find out how we can make communication between India and America easier. Together, we should build a fantastic program.
I can tell you that after my second arrival in India, only a month and a half after the first arrival, the excitement of being in such a magnificent country has not been lost. The feeling of arriving at the under-construction Delhi airport was less a shock than it was the first time, as I found myself maneuvering the terminal with an ease and confidence that would have been impossible to have on my first trip.
Any confidence I had on that first trip came from our indispensable, irreplaceable, (infamous?) and brilliant travel coordinator Barbara. Since I am alone on this trip, my confidence will have to come from seeing this terrain before. Wish me luck.
I am currently outside of Ranchi, Jharkand, India, at The Miracle Foundation’s newest orphanage – Sooch Village. The orphanage was officially opened in March 2008 and there are still tweaks being made to the administration building as well as many cottages still under construction. It’s a great feeling being able to come back here a second time and be familiar with the staff and the surroundings.
The plan is to travel with Sushma to our different orphanges and learn what can and can’t work for the sponsorship program. My philosophy and strategy for the program comes from one of those terribly clichéd, workplace team building sessions – What program would you create if you had no limitations? That is start of my thought process and we won’t disappoint.
Being the Web Manager as well, I’ve tasked myself with leveraging technology in a way like no other sponsorship program in the world has done. Part of this trip will help figure out how, over the long run, technology will bring the sponsors and the children of The Miracle Foundation closer together.
That’s all I’ve got for now. I look forward to updating you again on my travels and I hope you look forward to reading more.
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
India's Super Highway
Great article about India's emerging national highway system and the nuances of driving in India.
Read the whole article here.
His specialty is the ritual called a puja, in which he spreads the munificence of the god Lord Ganesh upon a parade of newly purchased vehicles—cars, trucks, SUVs, motorcycles, and auto rickshaws, along with the occasional bicycle or bullock cart—whose owners wouldn't think of hitting the road without the blessings of a happy, four-armed god with the head of an elephant who brings prosperity and good fortune, particularly to machines and those setting out on something new.
Read the whole article here.
Thursday, September 4, 2008
Welcome Miracle Foundation Supporters!
If you're coming to The Miracle Foundation blog for the first time, we want to give you a big Thank You! and welcome you.
The most recent posts we've made are on the right side of the web site so that's probably a good place to get started.
Look around and let us know what you think about our new online digs. We plan on posting video, pictures and even a bit of news here as we move along.
If you have any questions or comments, please e-mail me at Chris@MiracleFoundation.org.
Thanks again for visiting!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)