Raleigh - India Expedition, September- December 2009: Money matters, Mysore market, medical mastermind and some mash

Wednesday 8 July 2009

Money matters, Mysore market, medical mastermind and some mash

Yesterday the day got off to a great start with Kath running a yoga session (see below pic).

Even Sixty-Sixty (one of our drivers) got in to the yoga spirit and joined us for a bit of saluting to the sun. From yoga guru to money head Kath then whipped us all in to shape with our budgets so that we can get all the kit and food for when the venturers arrive. I think for Kath this was possibly the most exciting part of the day. I have seriously never known any one to get so excited about finance!

Anyway…much more exciting, yesterday was our first trip in to Mysore during daylight! We were all really looking forward to having a hunt around and getting to grips with the traffic, cows and head nodding. Having been tasked by the PMs arriving on Saturday to find a rugby ball, our first stop was a sports shop…Nicky was expecting a Sports Soccer and this is what we got…

Needless to say they didn’t have a rugby ball (sorry guys) one of the PMs might want to pack one! We spent the afternoon chatting to all the suppliers, finding our bearings, eating in an Austrian café at lunch time (mash potato tastes so good even after only four days of curry!), visiting the market and then finishing off with some ice cream (Right M-J our administrator demolishing her cookies and cream).

The market was absolutely amazing, the colours, sounds and smells took your breath away (literally in the meat market you couldn’t breathe!). It was great to get out and about and sample a bit of the local culture.

Above: some amazing veg at Mysore market

And some sweet smelling flowers (much needed after the meat market.

Nicky our Deputy Programme Manager testing out some of the dyes.

Miriam (our medic) even managed to find about 50 clip shut tupperwear boxes for the medical kits, we got a few funny looks buying those. She actually attracted a crowd in the supermarket when she was stacking them up!

Today we’re off for our swimming test in a local pool a lovely escape from the complete dryness of monsoon season!!

4 comments:

Anonymous said...: MJ - It all looks so amazing, I'm very jealous! How are you? Glad to see you're keeping up the treats in India hehe, that photo is gorgeous! You'll have Mr Church and Miss Baker arriving tomorrow too! Hope you're keeping well and can't wait to hear all about it!
Amy x; 08 July 2009 18:19
Anonymous said...: Hi Amy, all is good thanks! Having a great time. We've managed to fit a lot so far and it's great to get out and see Mysore. The rain isn't too bad although when it rains it really rains! Went to the races this afternoon which was an experience, and got back looking like drowned rats! I hope all is well with you. I think you should all shut up shop and come over here too!
I hope the sun is still shining. Talk to you soon!
M-J x; 08 July 2009 18:50
Anonymous said...: Already packed a rugby ball! Just hope I'm within the weight limit as I seem to have packed everything including the kitchen sink!
Gareth; 08 July 2009 21:44
Sophie said...: Love the photo of you in the pool MJ! All looks incredible and I am very jealous! Keep up the good work and keep in touch. Missing you lots. Bye for now. Sophie x; 09 July 2009 19:55

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The start of something amazing!

Raleigh has a long and accomplished history of planning and delivering the very best and safest expeditions around the world for the young people who volunteer to be part of this amazing experience. That reputation is founded on 25 years of experience operating in over 40 countries.

Planning and preparation are second to none on a Raleigh expedition and this is something that sets us apart from other expedition providers. Our permanent team in country are continually working to improve and exceed the achievements of our expeditions. This, our 12th expedition in India, is no exception. We invest a huge 30% of the expedition schedule in training our project managers and support staff at field base to ensure the highest quality of facilitation safety standards and professionalism is achieved. The volunteer mangers of Raleigh India's expedition 09J are undertaking a 3-week training package in preparation for the arrival of our venturers on 10th October.

The next 14 weeks will be packed with adventure, excitement and discovery. A Raleigh expedition is so much more than a sight seeing opportunity. The experience you will have could never be achieved by independent travel alone.

South India is not the impoverished, dirty, disease-prone environment you may have imagined. On the contrary, what you will experience and remember is an incredible country, a rich country, not in the sense of wealth and prosperity, although there is much of that in some sectors of society, but rich in culture; the people if India are so happy, friendly, welcoming and kind; as well as beautiful scenery. India has a stunning diversity of terrains from beautiful mountainsides covered in tea plantations to tropical rain forest to palm-tree studded beaches.

We also have the best projects available for you. They are all challenging and all really worthwhile. Working in the rural farming communities will allow you to immerse yourself in local cultures and traditions in during the community phase. You’ll have the opportunity to trek through some of India’s most beautiful landscape; to gain privileged access to the Nilgiri Biosphere reserve – a world heritage site working alongside the Park Rangers on your environmental project.

Many travellers pass through the places they visit without fully opening their eyes or their ears or allowing their senses to absorb their surroundings. My advice to you is to be fully open to experiencing your new surroundings; be respectful to local customs; traditions; behaviours and ways of dressing – and to fully embrace new challenges and experiences.

I’ll warn you now that it’s going to be very busy and very intensive

I want to ask you to throw yourselves wholeheartedly into the few weeks you have ahead of you...it’ll really race by and I want you to get the maximum possible from the experience.

You’ll experience times on expedition when you’ll feel on top of the world and like life couldn’t get any better....but you’ll also have some low times when you want to give up and not face up to challenges. It’s those times when you really need to dig deep and find strength in yourself and those around you to realise that you really are capable of achieving anything....and I think you’ll amaze yourselves!

Gandhi famously said, “Be the change you want to see in the world”. I ask you to keep those words in your minds as you embark on the journey ahead of you and I wish you all a fantastic expedition.

Mark Ashby

Country Director

Raleigh India

The Fourth Challenge

Development. Poverty. Interdependence.

Want to know more about these issues while creating positive change back in the UK?

The Live Raleigh, Get Real programme will provide you with the skills and knowledge you require to be a truly active global citizen while contributing to your local community at a range of levels.

We will be holding 3 residential training weekends a year open to UK alumni. If you want to increase your awareness of international development issues while gaining valuable skills, sign up to become a Raleigh Global Ambassador. Our training weekends will include sessions on how to;

- inspire your peers

- motivate your local community

- run workshops and events

And much more...

In return for the support and skills we will provide, we ask that you challenge yourself to carry out 3 activities to raise awareness about international development. This can be whatever you want, from developing a Fairtrade recipe to submit to your local paper to doing a talk about your experiences of development while on an expedition.

You will receive more information in your alumni packs when you get back.

Go on, get out there and inspire.