I am on the verge of embarking on a personally epic journey. I will be backpacking all over India. This will be the first time I am traveling north. Carrying as little as possible, I am using cheap transport and cheap accommodation to get around. I will be hitting the streets, being part of the local cultures, experiencing life as an INDIAN. Being Indian is not easy. It encompasses several cultures and behaviours. I will try to experience as much as possible from different cultures, and hopefully pull a lot out of it. I love to travel. I love to live off the land.
Trains are magical. I wonder who invented the A/C compartment. A pox on them. What is a train journey without the wind blowing in through the windows, the sweltering heat induced by the cage of iron we are traveling in. I cant wait for the 'chai, chai'.
As you may already know, this is not idle travel. I am on a mission. A mission of significance. Those who would have seen the papers on the 2nd of June, would know that I am now a volunteer for autism. Autism lacks awareness severely in India, and I hope to make as much of a difference I can.
I will be hitting several schools in each city I travel, and walking into classrooms and imparting the kids with some knowledge on autism. Its a great way to spread awareness- 1. Its coming straight from the heart. 2. In the long run, these kids will grow up with knowledge on the subject. 3. The teachers present, will understand better on the subject as well.
Places I am hitting:
1. Siliguri / Sikkim / Darjeeling
2. Kolkata
3. Hyderabad
4. Delhi /Agra
5. Bombay / Pune
6. Baroda / Ahmedabad
7. Punjab
8. Rajasthan
I will return in 2 months. That's 2 months away from home. phew. And this is just 1 leg of my proposed itinerary.
My work for autism is centered in Kolkata, Hyderabad, Delhi, Bombay, Pune, and Ahmedabad.
Lets say I visit 5-10 schools in each of these cities, that would be anywhere between 30-60 schools having a good introduction on autism. multiply the number of classes i visit, and then the number of children in each class- that would be quite a good number of aware youngsters.
I shall elaborate more on my work in coming weeks.
Right, I need to finish packing!
Jai Bajrang Bali
