There is one place in the world that I would call exceptional and extraordinary – southern India. It is tropical with its coconut palms, but that is not what makes it so idyllic.
People make a place. My measure of a wonderful place is this. Would they take you off the street if you were injured and carry you to medical care? Some places would step over you if you had a heart attack. Here, you can count on help.
People are bright here. Literacy is 100% – cause for crowing.
The nurse who befriended me was offended that I brought malaria pills. “We figured out how to prevent malaria long ago,” she explained patiently. “We teach our children to turn the coconut shells over so they don’t gather water for the mosquitoes to breed.”
I volunteered through NGOabroad. I wanted to go to an amazing Gandhian community that gave me an important glimpse into Indian culture. It is a joyful and intimate community. People are very friendly so I would recommend this place for shy people, young travelers, families and people who want to observe how this community feeds, educates and provides health care to its people on a per capita income of $200.00 a year. I didn’t really volunteer here, I sat with my mouth open in amazement.
I was delighted by kids who asked for a pen so that they could do their homework! “What planet am I on?” I would think. “Everywhere else in the world, children ask for candy!”
As I walked down the path through the rice paddies and homes, six-year old children came up to their door to greet me. “Hallo! What is your name? Hallo! Where are you going?”
Gee, what are they teaching here? What are they doing differently that they have such bright, friendly, respectful youngsters? Buses could be packed and the littlest ones did not fuss.
I did a lot of my marveling in my first couple of weeks, and then made more of a contribution in the latter half of my sojourn. I did sweat a bit more at another site that really wants you to sweat. They appreciate testosterone exertion to dig latrine and wells. When you need a break, there is a wonderful lake to jump in to cool off!
This is also a great place to sit in on what they call “Women’s Self Help Groups". These are the rage in India, Bangladesh, much of Central America and are taking hold in Africa too. What are they? Micro-loan meetings. “One dollar a day for one hundred days.”
Mohamed Yunis got the Nobel Peace Prize for advancing this practice of giving small loans to the poor to help them start an enterprise. The self help meetings are for the women to problem solve obstacles to their success. The meetings are fascinating.
If a vacation is to renew you, my sojourn in this part of the world surely did that. My experience with these smart, friendly people restored my wilting faith in humanity.
If you are interested in volunteering in southern India or many other places in the world, I’d highly recommend NGOabroad. It's a unique service that helps people enter international humanitarian work and provides frugal, customized international volunteer options.
