Societal structure & its influence on architecture in Kerala

Today, we left early and went to the LBC for our last day of lectures and our final presentation.  I snapped a quick pic with the doorman of our hotel – He has been there every day and night and is always so cheerful (despite this look on his face, haha!).

(I’m wearing a traditional kurta that I bought in Kanyakumari.  I figured it appropriate to dress up for our last day!)

Dr. Priyanjali, an associate professor at the College of Engineering in Trivandrum, spoke about the history of Kerala and how the societal structures have changed over time in comparison to traditional architecture.  The lecture described the caste system and how it was imposed on the rest of society by the Bramins.  The castes were developed on the basis of occupations, and there was horizontal as well as vertical discrimination between separate castes.  Although the caste system was formally outlawed many years ago, some areas in Kerala and India in general are entrenched in the tradition.  However, Professor Priyanjali mentioned that more prevalent are issues within classes, not castes.

The architecture in Kerala has differed significantly based on the caste that one was born into.  The upper classes had large, expansive compounds and were much more exclusive, as one would expect.  Lower classes commonly lived in mud/wooden dwellings on the outsides of the community.  The Laurie Baker style of architecture and building materials have been rejected by many people in India because of its resemblance of lower-class living, as was originally constructed by the lower castes.

Many of the lower and middle castes have joint family compounds, where all family members share a kitchen, but have separate parts of the house.  The house is constructed on the basis of Vastu Purusha Mandala, which was based on Vedic principles.  The picture below shows how the layout of the house was divided into blocks.  Specific rooms could be located in certain parts of the grid, which was interesting.  (I think I’ve discussed this in another blog.  If so, sorry for any redundancy!)

Learning about the caste system and how it affected patterns of construction in India was really fascinating.  The lecture was fantastic, as all at the LBC have been, and it was a great note to end on.

We got in the bus and traveled to a government elementary school that was nearby.  Our visit was pretty informal, so we weren’t allowed to take pictures of the children or even talk to them.  That was what we were told initially, at first!  Our mere presence caused a frenzy and students were hanging out of classroom windows and were quite excited.  It was great to see the utter joy and complete excitement on their faces.

(The entrance to the school – everything was so brightly colored!)

We met with one of the administrators of the school and talked logistics for a while.  The school has 348 students between the ages of 5 and 13.  It serves an 8km radius and has a bus that picks up students (students must pay for the bus). The students have access to music class, a science lab, and a large library.  They get an hour for lunch, and attend school from 10am – 4 pm.  Traditionally, the lower-income families send their kids to the government-funded schools, and upper classes send their children to private schools.  One thing that really impressed me is that there was a center on the campus for kids with mental disabilities.  I haven’t seen this type of attention given to children that are disabled, so I found that to be really great. We went into one of the classrooms and were able to meet some of the kids.  They seemed to be around 10 years old and were in math class.  They were excited to have us as visitors and allowed us to sit in their desks, which were TINY!  We probably all looked ridiculous, but they were too sweet to not comply with their request.

We left the school to go back to the LBC for lunch, and then we gave our final presentation.  I opened the presentation and discussed the non-construction activities of COSTFORD and other agencies, which was good.  The presentation went really well and I think the audience enjoyed it.  It was fun to recap all we’ve seen, done, and learned on this trip!  It’s hard to believe it is finally over.  I’ll never forget all I experienced in India and couldn’t be more thankful I was able to take advantage of the opportunity to travel here.  The staff at the LBC and COSTFORD have been amazing in helping set up all of our activities and the lectures, so a HUGE thank you goes out to them!  Professor Anthony was such an important part of this trip and it wouldn’t have been the same without him.  Having him speak Malayalam and Hindi was invaluable and it made the experience so much richer.

Thanks for following along with me on this journey!

Town Planning, a Daycare, and a Boarding School.

This morning we went back out to the LBC for our second to last day of lecture.  We met with A. Kasturi Rangan, Chief Planner for the state government of Kerala to discuss town planning at the local, state, and central (federal) levels.  He provided a great overview of the planning process and the different types of planning that are emphasized: Crisis planning, problem solving (existing or anticipated problems), managing resources, and development planning (promoting economic and social objectives). 

He continued to describe how planning takes place at each level of government, and the types of plans the government uses (5  year plans, annual plan, sectoral plans, subject plans, and project plans).  His overview of the planning system was comprehensive and very thorough, and I was surprised by how much I enjoyed it.  

Near the end of his presentation, he started talking about water issues in Kerala and Trivandrum in particular.  He discussed how each person uses, on average, 150 liters a day, but only 30% of this water is used for consumption.  He continued to describe how the sewage system is directly tied to the water supply, and how the water supply is also connected to school attendance for females (due to availability of water for restroom usage). Through this example, he encouraged us to think about planning problems as part of a system, rather than an individual issue.  Because I am interested in water issues anyway, his example really stuck with me and gave me a broader perspective when looking at access to clean water and how it affects society on a much larger scale.  He finished his presentation with an overview of the government structure in India, which I found to be really helpful.  I wish we would’ve had this lecture in the beginning of the course, because their political system is a little different and more complicated than ours in the U.S., and I think it would’ve helped me ask better questions of the other lecturers.  

After a quick coconut water break, we walked up the street to a local daycare.  The kids were aged 3-6, and were ABSOLUTELY adorable! The class sang us a song about toys; they were so shy, it was hard to hear them, but it was so sweet! 

(These little guys kept smiling at me so I took their picture.  They were SO cute; I asked if we could take one home 🙂  )

After the daycare, we had lunch at LBC, and then drove to Mitraniketan, which is a boarding school that was started by a close friend of Laurie Baker.  Many rural tribes about 20 kilometers from Trivandrum do not offer school for their children, so this campus was built to offer free education to those children in particular.  The school began in 1956 and has been successfully operating ever since.  http://www.mitraniketan.org/

One of the most interesting things the students were doing was preparing for an upcoming local festival where the students showcase crafts and skills they’ve learned.  The boys in the picture below were building a hut out of bamboo and palm tree leaves.  

 

 

(The palm tree leaves are woven under the bamboo and make a covering that is actually water proof)

We continued to tour the campus, and stumbled upon their bakery.  We were given some of their goodies to try, which were delicious! We’ve definitely been well-fed this trip.

After the bakery, we went to other parts of campus.  We watched one of the instructors make pottery – it was fascinating and kind of mesmerizing!  

(The finished product)

We continued our tour and went to a training facility where instructors teach students how to grow mushrooms out of rice patties.  They take 14 days to grow and then can be sold or eaten. 

The most interesting part of the day was our last stop on the tour – the coconut tree climbing training center.  We watched a few of the workers climb up the trees – it was crazy! There wasn’t a safety net or any ropes in case one of them fell.  We all wanted to try it, but had to decline since I highly doubt the University would condone us climbing in coconut trees…  It would’ve been awesome, though!

 

After the tour concluded, our driver let us out on MG Road to get a few more souvenirs, and then we caught an auto-rickshaw back to the hotel.  We’ve been busy blogging and finishing up our presentation for our last day at COSTFORD tomorrow.  We have a farewell get together tomorrow night and then we leave for the airport at 1AM on Friday to start the very long trek home.    

 

College of Architecture and Ayurvedic Massages

Because we got home so late on Monday night, we were able to rest until about 1 PM yesterday.  We met in the afternoon to visit the College of Architecture where Professor Anthony got his undergraduate degree.  We met the President of the College and then listened to students in one of the first year courses present on a recent redevelopment project.

The redevelopment project was funded by the state government and focused on the boat jetty area in Kochi.  The students went through the entire process for their redevelopment plan – history and determining current resources of the site, land uses, infrastructure (social and physical), transportation issues, etc.  They completed a SWOT analysis and put together recommendations for the state government for the area.  They recommended promotion of tourism in the area, restructure the market area with proper infrastructure, development of waste management mechanisms, construction of an entertainment center and performance stage, and construction of a vertical parking structure (these are very rare).  The students did a really great job with the project and gathered their own data for all statistics.  The project was done in a 6-week time frame, and the amount of information they’d compiled was most impressive.  It now makes sense as to why Professor Anthony has such high standards!

After we left the College of Architecture, we went to a resort on the Sea for Ayurvedic massages.  This was something I’d never experienced, and wish I would’ve had a little more information about prior to.  However, sometimes it’s best to be surprised and experience something out of your comfort zone.  I won’t get into details about the massage, other than it is something I will never forget and likely never experience again.  

While we waited for the massages, we crossed the lake and went to the other side of the resort for a few snacks.  I found a hammock to relax in and could’ve slept for hours.  

(View from the boat dock – a lake and the Arabian Sea)

(I’m going to miss looking at the beautiful sunset over the Sea!)

We made our way back to the hotel and had a King Fisher on the roof to celebrate surviving the massage experience.  It’s hard to believe my time in India is quickly coming to a close.  Although, I am ready to be home!  

Thekkady: Wildlife reserve and one LONG bus ride!

This morning we got up at 4 AM to head to the wildlife reserve.  Getting tickets to get into the reserve is quite the ordeal, and it resulted in Jerry and some other students taking an autorickshaw and going off-roading!  Luckily they were speedy and we caught the first boat tour.  

(Where we watched the sun rise as we waited for our boat to arrive)

(The scenery was beautiful and it was actually quite crisp!  I loved getting up and putting on jeans this morning.  A little reminder that it’s actually January…? )

(The water was calm and the fog created a really relaxing ambiance.)

(The wildlife reserve has tigers, supposedly.  However, we didn’t see any, so I have tons of pictures of the water and the mountains.)  We did see wild boar, elephants, monkeys, and plenty of birds. 

(Caught a pic of this little guy up in the trees!  There were probably 10 small monkeys climbing around the tree and they even came down to see us.  It was a little frightening!)

(Someone gave him food and we were able to watch from about 2 feet away… Plenty close for my taste!)

After we left the wildlife reserve, we stopped and bought tea and spices from the plantation we visited yesterday.  On the long (about 9 hours…) ride home, we stopped at a tea leaf processing plant.  The plant was having mechanical issues so we took a tour and learned about the process without the machines working.  We took the tour with a group of people from the Netherlands, Germany, Spain, and France.  It was nice to hear languages other than Malayalam and Hindi and to talk with new people about their travels.  

The bus drive was long and pretty awful, but we finally made it back to Trivandrum around 10:30 PM.  We get to sleep in a little tomorrow morning and I could not be more excited – I’m exhausted!

Thekkady: More elephants and a spice plantation!

This morning we left Thrissur to begin the long trek up the mountain to Thekkady.  The drive took about 6 hours and was very intense.  The roads were narrow, curvy, and very steep.  There was no railing and we looked down the cliff side the entire ride.  I felt very car sick but was able to open a window for some fresh air.  

(View from the van window)

On the drive, we stopped at a pilgrim shrine to alleviate the car sickness and stretch our legs.  The weather had cooled significantly and it felt like a perfect, dry, Oregon summer day! The blue sky was one of the brightest I’ve seen.

(It’s actually called St. Francis – The “i” was missing!)

(St. Francis overlooks a large tea plantation – The air was so much cleaner than in the city – a welcome surprise!)

We got back in the van and survived the oncoming traffic, random cows/elephants in the road, and finally settled into our hotel before doing some sight seeing.

Our first stop was to a wildlife preserve to ride elephants!  I’d been looking forward to this most on the trip, and it was an amazing experience!  

(With the elephant I got to ride – he was the biggest of the six in the reserve and was a gentle giant!)

(Abby, Dana and I rode together.  It was about half an hour long and we were guided by one of the trainers.  Sitting in the saddle was actually extremely uncomfortable, however it was an extraordinary experience that I’ll never forget!)

(National Geographic was filming on site today, and this elephant had been “injured”.  The trainers were giving her a bath to wash off the stage make up – It looked like quite the job!)

After we left the wildlife reserve, we went to a spice plantation.  The tour guide took us all over and explained each of the spices they grow – It was really fascinating and I learned a lot. (I also took a ton of pictures, so brace yourself!)

(Cardamom – We opened the pods and ate a small seed.  It was delicious but very pungent.)

(A rubber tree – the rubber runs out the side of the tree after it’s cut and is collected in these bowls.  They cut the same tree, once a day, for 30 years.)

(Black pepper – It grows on a vine and it’s wrapped around another tree to grow properly)

(These pods contain cocoa beans.  We didn’t eat any, though.)

(Coffee beans!)

(Vanilla growing on a vine)

(Fresh lemon grass – you can see in the pic where I grabbed a piece off the stalk to smell- It was delicious!)

While I was walking around the spice plantation, I snapped some photos of all the beautiful flowers.  I don’t know what any of them are, but it was an afternoon well-spent!

(my personal favorite!)

After the spice plantation, we did a little shopping (of course!) and had some dinner.  I had Malai Kofhta again since it’s my favorite, but I didn’t like it at all.  It looked completely different and didn’t taste as fresh as the restaurant in Trivandrum.  I’ll have to visit that place in Trivandrum one last time to get my fill before going back to the US!

 

(The sunset outside my window – a breathtaking view!)

Tomorrow we are leaving at 5AM to take a boat ride to see some wildlife and the sunrise, then we begin our trip back to Trivandrum.  Our hotel in Trivandrum feels like home since we’ve spent most of our time there, and I’m excited to get back! 

 

Zebra Crossing and Elephants!

It has been a wonderful day!  We started out going to COSTFORD’s original headquarters in Thrissur.  The campus was huge and had many classrooms and venue halls that were filled with people and events.  We took a short tour, and quickly left to go on a site visit.

(Notice the bamboo scaffolding)

(Laurie Baker Hall on the campus – notice the jali shadows on the back wall)

Next, we went to the Talukulam Vikas Trust headquarters.  COSTFORD helped set up the Trust which provides funding for programs that improve education, housing, health, social security and employment for low-income women in the local community in Thrissur.  The campus was really beautiful and had been recently renovated.

(Courtyard in the middle of the campus)

One of the education/employment programs that the Trust is involved in is a sewing center on campus.  They visited women in Thrissur and conducted a survey to determine what type of employment the women would be most interested in doing and the result was to learn how to show and to produce garments.  The women make around $100 a month and are provided on the job training (paid), three meals a day, and living quarters.  This could be considered a “sweat shop” by US standards, but the conditions were sanitary and the women weren’t being harassed by male supervisors.  They were making jeans and jean jackets.  I felt a little awkward taking pictures of them working, but wanted to show that “sweat shops” can actually look a lot different than what we perceive them to be.

 

The women in this unit were making bras.  

After we visited the bra factory, we went and had a short presentation about other activities the Trust funds.  What I found most interesting was that the panchayat (lowest form of local government) president stopped by to introduce himself.  However, he only introduced himself and shook the hands of the males in the room.  It seemed at the end he had a moment of consciousness where he realized he should shake one of the women’s hands, so he did.  But, it seemed pretty disingenuine and is a small reminder of the gender inequality that still exists today.

We left the trust site and went and visited a geriatric daycare center.  Most of the elderly live with their adult children, and are left at home alone during the workday.  They are able to come to the center and interact with others and have meals made for them.  They even read the newspaper each morning and discuss current events.  When we arrived, the group was sitting in a circle and singing some songs and poems they’d written themselves.  One woman was singing and the group was responding – we later found out she was singing a song that is a traditional agricultural song in Kerala.  The group joined in and everyone was having a great time.  Some of the students got in front of the group and sang to them; they LOVED it!

One of the best parts of the visit to the geriatric daycare was getting to talk and meet a group of women.  We asked them about their families and what they liked most about the center.  Three or four women were standing with us and they said their favorite part of everyday is sharing it with each other. They told us that they’d found friendship there.  It was really touching and they were so incredibly genuine.  The center is provided free of cost and even offers healthcare services to anyone in the community.  

After the daycare center, we visited two small businesses that are part of a JLG (joint liability group) where between 4 and 10 women join together and start a business.  One of the businesses created flip flops out of banana leaves and another ground and packaged spices.  

After the site visits, we headed to Thrissur to do some shopping and see the city for a few hours.  We walked around and came across a huge parade and we stopped to ask some of the locals what the parade was for.  It turns out that today is the 150th anniversary of the birth of Swami Vivikenanda, which was the statue that we saw in Kanyakumari.  It felt great to understand a cultural reference!

 

We walked around the city but were unable to find a place to eat for dinner.  Instead, we found a supermarket and grabbed some crackers and some chocolate, and I bought some chocolate soy milk!  It was actually pretty awesome.  We made our way back to the bus, and found a few elephants standing outside of a Hindu temple.  We were allowed to touch them!  It was amazing! It was beautiful and had black spots on its nose, just like freckles. It was such a surprise!  What a great way to end the day.

A funny picture from today…

 

One long day…

This morning we started out at our hotel in Kochi, and it was quite a production.  Because of power issues here (the lights go on and off pretty regularly), the hotel was having issues with power and water supply.  I tried to shower, but there wasn’t much water pressure, so we had to find the maintenance man, and when we finally had enough pressure to shower, the water was ice cold! I’ve only had a few warm showers since I’ve been here, so this isn’t completely out of the norm.  But, on a day after a bad night of sleep, it causes a little more stress than usual.  After a quick breakfast, we left Kochi for a quick drive over to the conference center. 

The conference was sponsored by the India Development Coalition of America, and the focus of the conference was “Finding Innovative Poverty and Climate Solutions”.  The conference was held at the Rajagiri Center for Business Studies in Kochi, and the venue was really modern — quite the contrast from the LBC.  
(The venue for the conference was beautiful – They had some bizarre horses in the front lawn…)

My favorite speaker was Ms. Shukla Bose, Founder of Parikrma Humanity Foundation, which is a foundation that builds school for very low-income children in high-risk areas.  She had worked in the private sector for 25 years, and then had a day where she examined her life and couldn’t figure out how she’d left her mark on society. One thing she said stuck with me about her attitude about change: “Today is the right day to do what you want.  Tomorrow will never be the right time.”  She made it all sound so simple!  So, she pooled all her savings and started the foundation and then built the first school.  The schools are much more than just education – they provide three meals a day, meet with parents often and even give them training, and follow the progress of the child until they are placed in a job or attend college.  

Here’s the foundation’s website: http://www.parikrmafoundation.org/

(The campus was next to a lake! It created a really nice ambiance)

 

Most of the speakers at the conference were actually pretty terrible.  We went to the conference because Professor Anthony was supposed to speak, but his engagement got canceled and we stayed anyway.  I felt the speakers at the conference were trying to showcase what they’d done, but there was no part in the conference when all of the speakers worked together to try and come up with ways to eradicate poverty.  While everyone individually was passionate about their specific area of research or personal endeavor, without a more cohesive effort to try and eradicate poverty or affect global warming, nothing will be gained.  It was honestly a frustrating experience, and I left feeling a little discouraged.

(I have only seen three or four trashcans the ENTIRE time I’ve been in India.  And somehow, someway, they have all looked like this.  What makes NO sense to me is that there’s a huge cut out in the back of it, so the trash falls out…)

After we finally left the conference (an all-day event) we drove to Mannuthy, which is close to Thrissur.  The drive took longer than expected due to some construction and heavy traffic.  We passed through a toll booth, and we entered on to a two-way highway (two lanes on each side).  I was listening to music and happened to open my eyes to see a Semi-truck coming at us head on! Driving in Kerala is absolutely crazy as it is, but I thought something had to be wrong.  I looked out the window, and noticed that ALL the traffic was coming directly at us.  At this point, it was around 7:30 PM and it was dark outside, so all we could see were headlights coming at us.  Our driver quickly realized that he’d made a mistake and pulled a U-y to get us going in the right direction.  I don’t know that I’ve ever been that scared in my life – The bus doesn’t even have seatbelts (Sorry, Mom!) so if we were to get into a wreck, it could be fatal.  I was WIDE awake for the remainder of the bus ride to the hotel, and was very happy to get out.  I called the restaurant at the hotel once we arrived to see if I could order a beer, but they don’t serve alcohol.  Alcohol is restricted by the state government and women can’t purchase it in public but sometimes hotels are different.  I was bummed to say the least, especially after the long day and night we’ve had.  I’m sure tomorrow will be a better day!  🙂     

 

Kochin: Coconut husk bracelets and traditional dance

This morning, we started out with breakfast and a one hour boat ride through the backwaters.  The water was incredibly calm; it was a wonderful way to start the day.

Once we docked, we hopped in the van to drive about 3 hours north to Kochin.  Our bus driver recommended we stop at a Communist Co-Op, so we decided to give it a try.  The Co-Op makes rugs and door mats out of coconut husk.  We were given a tour and watched the process.  It was really interesting to see!

(The coconut husks)

(What they use to spin the husk into rope)

(Making the rope)

(The women made us our own bracelets!  They actually rolled the coconut husk by hand and braided them for us.)

(They have quite the production process for their larger items)

We drove a few more hours and arrived at Kochi.  We did some sightseeing and more shopping, of course.

(St. Francis Church)

(Inside)

(These large pieces of fabric are actually fans – People would be outside the church and would pull on the rope to create a breeze.)

(Santa Cruz Basilica – A remaining Portuguese influence)

After sight-seeing, we took a ferry to Kochin and met up with another India Winterim class through the University of Iowa. 

 

(Waiting for the ferry)

We went to a traditional dance performance with the other class.  We weren’t sure what to expect but it turned out to be really fascinating and SO impressive!

(They had an entire dance on metal plates! Yowza!)

After the dance performance, we caught the ferry and walked back to our hotel.  The days are flying~  It’s hard to believe we’ll be boarding a plane back to the U.S. one week from tomorrow.  

 

A night on the water: Alleppey

Yesterday was a fantastic day!  We leave Trivandrum and took a five hour trip north to arrive at Alleppey.  We boarded our houseboat and toured the backwaters for about five hours, and then docked for the night.  It was about 90 or 95 degrees and partly cloudy.  It was wonderful to have some peace and quiet – no car horns or loud music, no gun shots (fired at the nearby Hindu temple regularly in celebration – blanks, I promise), and no hustle & bustle of busy city life.  
(Our boat for the day/night)

(Dana and I snuck down and the Captain let us steer the boat!)

(We came across two men herding ducks – there were TONS of them!)

 

 

 

(Our back yard for the night)

We didn’t sleep very well on the boat, although the accommodations were very nice.  The boat didn’t rock or move much, but we were in tight quarters and didn’t get much rest.  I’m still feeling pretty under the weather, but am hoping the cleaner air outside the city will help my lungs clear and I can get back to feeling normal.  Well, normal for being in India!  

Thanks for reading and sharing this journey with me! 

Kudumbashree: Empowering Women

Today was a wonderful day!  We were fortunate enough to have representatives from the State agency Kudumbashree join us at the LBC for the morning.  Kudumbashree is an agency dedicated to programs that support and empower women in Kerala.  We were supposed to go visit Kudumbashree at their office this morning, but because of the city-wide strike, they and we were unable to reach their office.  Instead, they came to us, and brought about 15 people to talk to us.  

Kudumbashree has three main focus areas: micro-finance, micro-enterprise, and general empowerment programs. In their micro-finance division, they have programs that provide internal loans, linkage loans (between business owner and bank), matching grants (maximum of 5000 Rs which is around $100), interest subsidy on loans (subsidy provided so 9% interest rate is only 4%), and also a financial literacy program.  The linkage loans have been very successful and have had a 95% repayment rate.  Prior to the programs through Kudumbashree, traditional lending institutions were “allergic” to poor women.  (I thought this was an interesting way of explaining the relationship)

While we were listening to the presentations, it started to rain.  It really started to pour!  But because we were in the rain forest at LBC, barely any rain drops made it through the thick foliage.  It was a beautiful sound! 

The microenterprises that Kudumbashree provides grants and loans to are incredible!  We learned about a few in lecture, and then visited three sites in the afternoon.  One I found that was particularly interesting is a healthcare enterprise that trains young women that provide door to door diagnostic tests for body mass index, blood pressure, and blood glucose to very low-income communities.  Because of the funding that Kudumbashree has provided, the tests are able to be done at a fraction of the cost that going to a normal clinic would be.

The social development arm of Kudumbashree provides a school and training center for people with disabilities – mental and physical.  I found this surprising because it seems that in developing countries a lot of times those with disabilities are pushed to the streets and are forgotten, or seen as a burden to the family.  So, this program personally had an impact on me, and I am thankful someone here is helping those with disabilities.  

After we had lunch, we went and visited three of the microenterprises.  We started out by going back to an area near Kovalam, the beach we went to for New Year’s Eve.  It’s a designated tourist area funded by the State where local businesses can set up their shops and tourists can visit. However, it’s only been in existence for about a year, and it’s slow to start.  We visited Pioneer, a women-owned business that sells handmade jewelry and bags that are made out of recycled paper.  

(The complex)

(The owners of the business)

(Hard to believe it’s made out of recycled paper!)

We were given a bag today during the presentation with info about the agency.  Their jewelry is absolutely beautiful and is so colorful; they use old magazines and cut up the paper and somehow fix it together in patterns.  You’d never know it was recycled paper by looking at it.  The business started 10 years ago when 13 women individually put in 1,000Rs of their own money as start up funds.  The company has since condensed to 5 women.  They were given a grant from Kudumbashree for 100,000Rs, and took that as collateral to a traditional lending institution to get a loan of an additional 100,000Rs.  The loan had a repayment period of 3 years, but they were quite successful and were able to maintain profits and repay the loan in 2.5 years.  As a result, they were given an incentive from Kudumbashree of 25,000Rs to stay in business.  

 

What I found most interesting is that the women who started Pioneer had never worked a day outside of their traditional roles as homemakers.  They had no formal training, yet had an idea and gave it a try.  They were incredibly courageous and took a risk, and started a women-owned business in India. These women now make a living wage.  They received awards from the state agency for being open for 5 years and later 10.  They brought out their awards to show us.  They were extremely proud, and I can’t blame them!  They sell their products to all of the hotel guests at the super swanky hotels at the beach we went to for New Years, Kovalam.  They continue to innovate their business and have bought machines to manufacture their jewelry on a larger scale, and are still working out the kinks to make it successful.

After visiting Pioneer, we were taken to another site where a woman owns cows that she uses to sell milk to the same nice hotels in Kovalam.  She started the business just two years ago with a 115,000 Rs loan from Kudumbashree. She has repaid the loan and expanded her operation to five cows.  Her operation is quite sustainable, as she puts their waste into a biodigestor to produce cooking gas.  Her business is very profitable, and she is incredibly successful – She makes around $10,000 USD a year.  

We visited the cows and a calf had been born just 15 days ago!  She was so cute! 

(The owner’s house)

(The milking operation – She was able to purchase a milking machine so she doesn’t have to do any work by hand)

(She was SO adorable!)

After seeing the milking operation, we went to a distributing center for a product called Nutrimix.  It’s a formula for preschool-aged children that is packed with nutrients.  Nutritionists came up with the formula, and Kudumbashree provided a grant and a loan to the owners of the distribution plant to get started.  The operation is wildly successful and the product is sold to all government-funded preschools.  The women make a living wage (5000 Rs a month) and share profits.  We took a short tour of the facilities and met the owners.  

(Where they package the mix)

(Where they make the formula)

We actually tasted the formula, and it wasn’t too bad.  It tasted like peanut butter, which surprised me considering that most young children aren’t given peanut butter until they are three (right, parents?) or so.  But, Professor Anthony indicated that nut allergies are practically nonexistent in India.  

Once we got back to the hotel, I went with three other students to MG Road for some dinner.  

I had some clear soup and some vegetarian spring rolls – the sauce was sweet and delicious!  It had a lot of garlic in it, which I love!

After dinner, we walked along MG Road and came across this HUGE bridal store.  We went inside to check out some of the trends in Indian bridal-wear.  The sarees were incredible and so intricate! We were approached by a sales associate and she walked us through the store and told us the process – Many Indian women have sarees made specifically for their wedding.  They allowed us to take a picture of one of the dresses, and I chose my favorite.  Only Christian Indian women wear white for their ceremony, and since that’s a minority of the population, most were brightly colored and covered in jewels! 

(It’s hard to believe this saree cost less than $300!)

We grabbed an auto-rickshaw back to the hotel and are now packing and getting ready to head off on our next adventure.  Tomorrow we head to Aleppy and Kumarakom (north a few hours) and will be staying in a houseboat!  On Thursday, we’re going to Kochi to do some sightseeing.   It’s possible I won’t have internet and will be MIA.  Thanks for reading! 🙂