Day 5

Hello everyone!

We can’t believe it’s Saturday already, we are having an amazing time!

Today was our 2^nd day in the Tigri slum, which we were really looking forward to after yesterday’s experience. We can’t believe the relationships that can form in just a few hours! Our morning was jam packed with painting, teaching, games and crafts as the centre was only open for 2 and a half hours.

As we arrived, we were welcomed with hugs, singing and smiles from all the children. We were so thrilled that most of them remembered our names, despite our poor attempt to remember their unique names!

Ella was busy today teaching her planned lesson on typical jobs which led to a discussion on their future plans. It was so humbling to hear that they’re basing their careers on helping others, such as teaching slum children or becoming doctors. Meanwhile, Rebecca, Sasha and Lyndsey were occupied with the task of assisting the children in making crafts based on a transport theme. Some of us were even offered to take their artwork home, which was very touching!

As for the murals, colour was being splashed all around as everyone chipped in to help! Emma and Lucy are so pleased with the progress of the painting and the help from the team. What’s more, the children thoroughly enjoyed the games outside- especially playing with the parachute! Despite the blazing heat (around 32oC), everyone was still so energetic with the children. It’s for sure that we are all receiving our 30 minutes of exercise each day from the intense games of cricket and competitive matches of football!

The kids are so enthusiastic to be involved in every way they can. At one stage, the children demanded a ‘dance off’ between a few of us and them. Their bright cheers and endless compliments assured us that our ‘East meets West’ dance performance mightn’t go as badly as we initially anticipated! Our cameras also proved to be a big source of entertainment as the children were so eager to take ‘selfies’!

We have been so moved with the generosity and selflessness of the children. They have surprised Tori and Sasha with bracelets, Johnny with a badge and other members of the team with sweets!

Since it was a half day we planned to visit the Lotus Temple, however, upon seeing the 3 hour long queue under a hot sun we decided to skip that today. Instead we headed to Humayun’s Tomb, an incredible piece of architecture built as a dedication by his wife after his death in 1572 AD.

For dinner, we went to Select City Walk shopping mall- the Indian version of Victoria Square in Belfast! Even in India, we still managed to find an English restaurant for some “good aul’ pub grub”! Unfortunately, we were missing a valuable team member, Dr Donnelly- who was invited to Dr. Kiran Martin’s house to represent the school at a special dinner.

We are having a ball on the trip so far and the team gets closer every day. Our daily meetings, dance offs and inside jokes are memories that we hope to cherish forever. It has also been rather challenging to witness the desperation of little children pleading for money in the midst of busy traffic. However it is amazing to have such a supportive team by our side.

We are loving the feedback and encourage you to spread the word of the amazing work of ASHA! Thanks once again, lots of love, from Lucy, Sasha and Julie xo