Greetings from Auroville, South India
Vannakam!
The Living Routes Program for Fall 2005 (though to be frank, it is still the tail end of the summer here) started out with hugs and smiles and whiffs of the sweet smell of jasmine . . .
Having waited in the middle of the night for about an hour at the airport, Rajaveni and I were relieved and excited to see Aaron, Amy, Andy, Brendan, Jules, Katie, Kyle, Kirsten, Liz and Zeno emerge from the interiors of the Chennai airport.
Like most of India, the Chennai airport is a busy place, teeming with life. But we found a quiet spot within and without to hold hands, to introduce ourselves and send a thanksgiving prayer to all those visible and invisible elements who had made it possible for us to come together and to embark together on a new adventure . . .
Riding the bus back home to Auroville with Shiva, the Living Routes driver, at the helm is always special. Despite their tiredness, the students were all wide-eyed at the sights, sounds and smells that India offers . . .and bites of Auroville cookies and sips of home-brewed of chai (Indian tea) kept most of us awake and talking till we arrived at Verite--our host community in Auroville.
Today, the students' first day in India has been slow paced to give them time to adjust to their new surroundings and to get know each other. They are all well and happy, and we hope will be able to contact their family and friends by phone or e-mail, latest by Tuesday evening (Indian Std. Time).
In community,
Bindu (Faculty)
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Posted by: Bindu Mohanty on Sep 04, 05 | 1:16 pm
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