Leaving the humidity of Kolkata behind us, we found ourselves amidst the misty mountains of the beautiful Gangtok this week. Sikkim, of the Northeast corner of India, is like nothing we have experienced in this country yet– in fact, it’s often hard to believe we are still in India. Bordered by China, Bhutan, Nepal, and Tibet, and comprised of many Tibetan and Nepali people, the hussle and bussle of the lower country are not felt. In a welcomed change, there are not constant stares from locals, nor do children run up to us demanding money. The weather is cool, the landscape impeccably green and arboreous, and the skies adorned with prayer flags– an air of peace encases this mountain city . We were lucky enough to find accomodations under a single homestay roof, in a beautiful house where we were graciously permitted to consume more than six jars of peanut butter, and here I find myself unable to verbalize a description for this place other than simply magic.
In the mornings, we have split our time between two volunteer opportunities. The first was the Mirikai Rehabilitation Centre, for those with drug and alcohol addictions (hence the title’s reference to the Winehouse hit). The centre comprised of about 20 or so people, all of whom seemed thankful to have us there to play team-building games and engage in discussions. In fact, they often questioned what we thought of them for being addicts, and seemed incredulous to hear we admired them for seeking the help they need. Rehab patients have a bad stigma here, and we were honoured to be there showing our support. Mirikai has about a 50% success rate, and the positive energy and hope of the place was contagious; we found ourselves laughing along with one particular character, a 68 year old man who has a rousing passion for dance, and we spent many a day attempting to remember words to western songs to entertain them. The questions we asked them about Sikkim were reciprocated with interrogations about why we picked Obama as a president, and how we feel about gun control. Our little family was able to merge with their little family for the last week, and I found myself sad to part today as they bid us adieu with a traditional Tibetan song.
The other volunteer location was the local government school of the area. When we heard we’d be working with the kids, I doubt anyone expected to be thrown into classrooms as full-fledged teachers and expected to teach English, math, or whatever we fancied– all on our own! It was a godsend that the children were all wonderful and well behaved and seriously lacking any knowledge of “Simon Says”. I’m confident more than half of my time teaching was spent playing games, which I’m sure was a welcome change from the monotony of the typical bookwork. “Bring back three things that are green” and “pretend to be a puppy dog” echoed the recess field, and the whoops and hollers of good fun were not just from the kids. The seventh grade students took a particular fondness to Max, since to them he was the spitting image of the beloved Justin Beiber–no language barrier nor country border is enough to stop the Beibs!
The afternoons were ours to do as we pleased: checking out the market streets, eating as many “momos” as ones stomach capacity will allow, and hiking up to the nearby ridgetop to breathe in the fresh mountain air. Some found their way to a Tibetan museum, visited a rad bookstore/coffee shop at least once, and others made it to the local zoo (I spent my time there whispering to a leopard about possible escape methods). Though more relaxing than the busy Kolkata, our week was most certainly colourful– entertainment was in abundance, from our driver who was the Indian reincarnate of Snoop Dogg, to deciding which Lord of the Rings characters each group member would be, to staying up far past bedtime butchering “50 Shades of Grey” for poor diction and frequent overuse of the word “murmured.” Inside jokes are abound, and I’m fairly certain my name-twin Hannah and I have become one person. I write this now and can’t help but smile: gosh do I like these people who by happenstance came into my life in a far away India, and I can’t help but think this was simply meant to be. Here is to the next adventure that surely awaits us!
Love to the families back home– no communication for a few days as we head off for our trek tomorrow! <3
H. Rock
(pictures to come soon!!)