'You look Indian Ladan'

(Diwali,Thiravalangadu. India)

 ‘You look Indian’ if only you beautiful people knew how many times I hear this phrase in Thiruvalangadu village. To be honest, I am trying to blend in by wearing my new traditional Indian clothing and jewellery. I fully dress up from head to toe just to get some Chai from the local tea man. In Thiruvalangadu village, women often wear a sari, a long sheet of colourful cloth with patterns. This is draped over a simple or fancy blouse; worn by young ladies and woman. Little girls wear a pavada. A pavada is a long skirt worn under a blouse. Both are often daily patterned. How can I forget about the ‘Bindi’?  This is part of the women’s make-up in India. I am just attempting to explore South India at the moment since traditional clothing in India varies with region, religion and community. Every state of India has its own culture, traditions to follow and celebrate fairs and festivals with these traditions.

Receiving a ‘Diwali’ celebration invitation from one of the national volunteers was the highlight for this week. Diwali is a 5 day festival, celebrated to mark the triumph of good over evil. As Muslims regard ‘Eid’ as a special and important holiday, Diwali is a festival that has as much meaning for Hindus. Whatever your faith, you can join in the festivity that is "The Festival of Lights". Hindu Festivals are Huge in the UK, especially in London but I still never had the chance to experience any one of them. Luckily, me and the other International volunteers celebrated Diwali with Rakesh’s family in Thiruvalangadu village, their hospitality was incredible. The family cooked traditional South Indian food for us and just like a Somali house we were given Chai tea and biscuits after our meal (yummy).  

(Imogen, Laura, Pippa,Ajay,Anne, Natalie and me)

 

(Rakesh's Family, Thiruvalangadu)

 

Due to massive protests and ‘Diwali’ Holiday in Tamil Nadu district, we found it hard to organise events for the community. Yet, we have managed to take part in ‘International Day of Rural women’ event in Chenammapet village. The United Nations’ (UN) International Day of Rural Women celebrates and honours the role of rural women on October 15 each year. It recognises rural women’s importance in enhancing agricultural and rural development worldwide. Besides, it was an opportunity for Restless Development to spread its reach and message across the district. 

Personally, I would love to work with women in developing countries in the future; this event opened my eyes to the variety of issues women in rural areas deal with on a daily basis. On the day we organised games, competitions and even drama about the importance of education for young girls in the village. I feel compelled to mention, how stunning the women in the event looked; with their fresh flowers in their hair and colourful Saris. I have enormous respect for Indian women for keeping their tradition and culture.

(International day of Rural Women Event, Chenammapet)

 

I learned that I can grow so much through experiences that challenge me and place me outside of my comfort zone. I can adjust to a new country by myself and stretch myself to learn and teach within it. 

(My mommy didn't raise no fool did she hooyo? K'naan)

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Celebrating ‘Eid al-Adha’ without my family and friends

(Me and Anne, Thiruvalangadu)

India is one of the most popular destinations for Somalis...I am only joking. I must say, India loves to toss up the unexpected, this can be challenging, particularly for the first time visitor. Yet, due to its vast size, rich history, copious transportation options, and cheap cost of travel, India attracts masses of tourists each year, all seeking something unique and different. No matter what your purpose of travel is in India, pack light so you can fit it all on your back.  

One of the greatest benefits of volunteering abroad is being able to spend an extended period of time in a new country. It's a truly unique learning experience that will see you interacting with new cultures, trying out loads of awesome new food, speaking new languages and meeting new people. As a volunteer you will get a glimpse of the local culture, allowing you to become a traveller, rather than a tourist. (Love it)

Staying in a small village in Tamil Nadu made me realise that, I am not a tourist. Generally, the typical tourist will be too busy visiting all the popular destinations and having the photos to prove it. Thus far, I am experiencing another culture; intentionally avoiding popular spots as much as possible and enjoying the food.

(A Hindu temple, Chennai)

             (A Hindu temple, Chennai)

I was tremendously concerned about the food situation in India since I only eat ‘Halal’ meat. Fortunately, Tamil Nadu’s favourite foods are overwhelmingly vegetarian, with lots of coconut and chilli. No matter where you go you will find ‘Dosas’, Coconut Chutney and sambar. Tourists coming from every part of the globe want to experience the exquisite taste of the various dishes of Tamil Nadu that are available in numerous eateries and restaurants of the place. I was lucky enough to find a local vegetarian restaurant called ‘Hotel Saravana’ in the village that I am staying. (Dosa’s for Ladan) Surprisingly, for a state that grows a lot of tea, Tamil Nadu really loves its coffee. Among the special drinks of the place, the filter coffee of Tamil Nadu is one of the widely tasted exclusive drinks. Made of coffee powder, milk, sugar and boiling water, the coffee has a distinct taste altogether due to the special mixing and filtration process. 

Eid al-Adha

Although I personally aspire to challenge myself, I am apprehensive about celebrating ‘Eid al-Adha’ without my family and friends, we all know that, Eid is mainly about being around family. For ‘Eid al Adha’ we (Muslims) commemorate Ibrahim’s readiness to sacrifice to god by slaughtering a goat or sheep and sharing with family, community and the poor. I have a huge family in the UK/London and we typically all come together and have a big meal and spend time together. Conversely, this Eid was an interesting one since I was far away from my loved ones. To be fair, the people I’m volunteering with were beyond thoughtful and that made my tricky situation easier. Despite, being the only Muslim person in the group, I have managed to fully celebrate Eid with my new friends and they were too considerate; we had a talent show/Eid Party, I even got an Indian henna done.(Happy Ladan)

(Eid Henna, Chennai city )

(Roberta, Jay, Danielle, Mabel, Natalie. Chennai)

(Mabel, Anne and me, Eid Party, Chennai city)

(My Eid outfit, Chennai city. 2014)

Throughout my first week in Thiruvallur, we have done some planning with the national volunteers and by next week we should start working on different projects. I am focusing more on Health with two other volunteers. I will be planning Stigma awareness regarding health and disease lessons - the aim of this lesson is to reduce negative perceptions of patients.
 
The overriding feeling I get from volunteering is that it's just great fun. I never feel like I'm working because I'm doing something I really enjoy and I know that I end up benefiting from volunteering just as much as the people I'm supposed to be helping. I've gained so much -

India

Tamil Nadu and Chennai 

There are complex global issues and challenges facing our world today. Taking part in the International Citizen Service and working with Restless Development will enable me to use my knowledge and experience to consider my own perspective of the word. This trip will be a life time transformation; it will impact my future role in taking action on issues I feel passionate about. I have always enjoyed working with different charities, helping others and attempting to change the world. My journey started with Somali Relief Development Forum charity, I started volunteering for this charity when I was 17 years old. (SRDF) charity is an umbrella organisation supporting Somali-led charities registered in the UK. SRDF charity is working extremely hard to help people in East Africa; I wanted to be part of this amazing work and volunteer. I usually fundraise and host events; this enables me to network with young people in London/UK. 

So far, this experience has been stunningly unforgettable. I am now in Tamil Nadu, which is the Homeland of one of the humanity’s living classical civilisations, a people whose culture has grown, but in many ways not fundamentally changed, since the Greeks sacrificed goats to Zeus. Here you can reach the ends of India, where three oceans mingle. Flying from Heathrow London airport, Chennai airport was my point of entry into Tamil Nadu. I stayed in Mumbai city for 5 hours before making my way to Chennai city. Mumbai (Bombay) is a beautiful mess, full of dreamers and hard labourers, actors and gangsters. This city is also shaped by flavours from all over India and the world. Clearly, it’s impossible to explore Mumbai city, hopefully I will comeback in the future to see the Taj Mahal Palace.

I was in a group with 27 other volunteers, they were as excited as I was, and all age 18 to 25. We landed in Chennai city around 5pm and waited outside of the airport terminal for about an hour for someone from Restless Development to pick us up. Chennai city does not always make a good first Impression. The streets are clogged with traffic; the weather is oppressively hot, the air is heavy with smog and sights of any great interest are thin on the ground .We eventually made it to the hostel/Office to start training the next morning. I am currently enjoying my time Chennai city, yet I am only here for one week to train with the other volunteers before travelling to ‘Thiruvallur’ with six other volunteers to do Livelihood and Health work in surrounding communities. We started training with the national volunteers and our team leaders. We have done some team building and interesting activities to prepare us for a placement in the villages. I must say, during training we enjoyed having long tea breaks and the fun activities.

 

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