Sarab Talla - Week in a Village

One of the Woodstock students stated at the end of the trip, "How could Mr. Nagarwalla do this to us? First, he made us go on a trip that I was ready to hate. And then he made me leave a village that I love." Though we went to different villages, I feel the same way.

Activity week was almost like a dream come true. Maybe because the reviews had been so horrendous. I had fully been expecting to hang around all day with nothing to do, not showering for a week, using trench "toilets", and doing pointless tasks. Instead, I came back with a rich cultural experience, sharing happy and thoughtful moments with my own Woodstock students, the village children, the village elders, and the other chaperones.

(Though yes: we did not shower for a week. But I was able to sort of shampoo my hair twice. We did use dirt trenches as toilets. I did catch fleas. Other than that, we had plenty of bucket water, and were able to keep our hands, faces, and teeth clean.)

So, the three chaperones were me (math teacher), Nate (math teacher), and Ajay (high school admin & resident hindi speaker) -- all of whom had either a nerdy or wicked sense of humor. You can imagine the math jokes. Or the lies we told our students, "Oh, I think they're getting the waffles ready now." We came with 13 Woodstock students: 8 girls, 5 boys.

Sarab Talla is a village about 3 hours away from Mussoorie. Their population is approximately 350 with 35 families. They live off the land and grow/make everything they need.
DAY 1



We got dropped off at the side of the road and walked about 10k (6 miles), up and up to the village. When we got there, the village kids there were so excited and curious to see us that they followed us and watched everything that we did. They liked taking pictures too.



Above is a picture of Anah pitching her tent. We camped out on their playground/cricket playing area. In the background which you can't see, are the black plastic tarps which surround the trench toilets. After I recruited the local girls to play frisbee, they realized I was a fun adult and took me and Nate on a private night tour up to the temple. They called me Didi which stands for older sister in Hindi, but stands for younger brother in Chinese. Confusing.

The girls were photo pros and pointed to everything that I should take a picture of. They all knew when to pose, and I got a lot of pictures of them holding flowers.

DAY 2

This day was our long hike up to a temple. The villagers told us it was 16k (9 miles) one-way, but it only took us 4 1/2 hours so I think the distance was less. Here are pictures of our journey.

(this is the second village that we passed through)

(terrace farming)
(Spider City where you had to duck to avoid these communal creepy creatures)

(Nate explaining the Remainder Theorem involving how to split 4 cans of tuna amongst 16 people, and what's left over.)
(at the temple)

(Mikuz, Nate, and Lan. Mikuz was our secondary tour guide who always backed up the line.)

Upon return, some kids rested, while others played frisbee with the villagers. The interesting thing is, the girls took possession of the frisbee almost immediately, but in the following days, the boys slowly picked it up too.

That night, we went to our Host Family #1 and had dinner that they made for us. It was nice.
DAY 3

Tuesday was fille with teaching at two elementary schools and pulling kaligass. Our students did a great job with improvisational teaching math, english, and hindi, even though they were supposed to plan the lessons. Ah, they are already learning about the true nature of teaching, ha ha! Here is the first elementary school:
Here is the second elementary school. The learning ended up being about walking in a circle and playing soccer and cricket. Oh well!

(Koreans vs. little kids)

(ladies watching the activities)

When we got back, we started our birdhouse project so that the village kids could observe birds up close, not like they don't see them every day or anything. We'll see if birds actually use the house! But some kids got bored and started playing an Indian game involving dodge ball while building a structure 7 stones. The Woodstock boys really got into it, and ran around like crazy. The next day, Nate and I played with the village girls, and we got so confused, because they kept pelting us regardless of which team we were on. I think they just liked seeing us in pain. ;p


That night, we went to our second host family. They were wicked cool. It was Nagindar's (our main tour guide / organizer) siblings, and then his mother and father came into the room. We called Nagindar's dad "Grandpa", and he was just one of the wisest, smartest, and eloquent speakers ever. Woodstocker Shreen translated for us.

Some of Grandpa's wisdom includes: 1) One of the most important thing in life is education. 2) Money is should not be the most valued thing in life. 3) You should explore the world and become your own person before you get married. 4) The way you learn about yourself and other people is by traveling. He was born in 1935, went up to a fifth grade education, and has 4 children. Three of them are in their 20's and are not married, which is almost transgressive according to their traditions.

DAY 4

On Wednesday, we got to teach at our own village school which was right next door to the camp ground. Apparently, Grandpa is one of the 5 village elders and had the school made, as well as making sure that females received equal education as well. This is the middle school -- grades 6 to 8. Girls from other villages come here too.

(spreading soccer propaganda around the world)

(these students were so good in math!)

The students had a performance for us after teaching. It was cool.

Here are some cows plowing right above our campsite:


Next, we went to help pull out kaligass, a invasive species originally from Mexico. Kaligass spreads rapidly and has taken over much of the hillside in Mussoorie. At the village, there were big patches of it. It is poisonous to humans and cattle, and prevents grass and fodder from growing nearby, which the villagers really need.

That night, we went to Host Family #3, but the wife was tired and left, and the father was still out working. We chatted with two boys and then left early, finding our way to Grandpa's house, where we had another stimulating and indepth conversation.

DAY 5

On Thursday morning, we pulled kaligass again. Then, we headed to the village for some cultural education. We learned about the different staples that they must prepare. Below, I am helping to beat some dahl plants, to get the dried lentils out of the pods.

(beating the living "dahlights" out of it)

(dahl and chilis)

(grinding henna to make the ink)

(sorting the dahl)

Next, we headed to the fields. We were supposed to learn how to milk a buffalo, but got sidetracked in the mustard field where we helped a lady harvest mustard plants. They use the mustard seeds for oil.

And then onto handicrafts! They make rope by soaking the branches of a special tree, for a month. After that, they peel off the bark, and that is the source of the rope. They make their rope for cattle and baskets and such from this bark. I made a small basket that was good enough to carry a water bottle, but is now holding onions in my apartment.

Finally, that night, we went to the village center, where we had the cultural exchange night. The village children did some dances while the men drummed. Our Woodstock kids sang some songs and whistled the India national anthem.

DAY 6

We headed to the river and spent a day thrashing about in the water.

(Nagindar is such a gentleman. The lady then carried the bundle back to her house. I couldn't even lift it up!)

Then to the flour mills!

That night, Grandpa paid us a special visit at the campsite, and we had another great conversation about girls growing up in the village and women's rights. He had more advice about marriage, and also said to smile a lot to make people feel comfortable.

DAY 7

Sad, we got up early to pack our tents. Here are the group shots of the adults and then everyone.

I would definitely love to go back. I would say the important things about this place was the sense of community and responsibility, and also living off the land. We, as in the world, have a lot to learn from them. It was such a meaningful and great experience!

CLICK HERE for the 254 pictures. I recommend clicking on the "detail" option under the Sarab Talla title. That way you can view a bunch of pictures all at once and still see the whole picture.