Elephants, SPF 45, and the coolest Achievers

Today we finished leadership team training in Chennai with the Camp Rainbow team and boy, what a week! Early in the week during a session on 'finding our strengths' we learned that many of the team members exhibit strong 'Achiever' characteristics and following this there were such thoughtful discussions and so many signs of growth in this team--these achievers are more than ready to take on camp independently. I am overflowing with love, pride and admiration after this week and looking forward to returning for another week with this team at the end of April! The week also marked personal growth as Tim and I tag teamed to facilitate the trainings, including many new variations which we developed. Tim and I just celebrated the close of our week with dinner at Papa Johns ha! Now next up is Camp Rainbow Bangalore for 4 weeks--a first year program which will mean lots of enthusiasm, learning and laughter.

Let me backtrack a bit to last Thursday and Friday. Tim and I were in the north of India, in Jaipur to be exact. We visited Fatehpur Sikri temples and palace, Amber Fort and Palace (by elephant ride), and we did a full elephant experience on Friday. This included feeding, riding, painting, and bathing our elegant, Masakalee. She was such a gentle giant and pretty playful with us. We also enjoyed a wonderful homemade lunch at the home of the elephant village owner's mother.

Saturday evening we touched down in Chennai and coming back to the guesthouse felt like the comforts of home--where we could finally unpack our bags and not worry about packing and moving the next day. Even with the heat, getting up to 90% humidity one day, I managed to go for a few runs along the beach. It only takes about 20 minutes to work up a good sweat! Tim and I enjoyed some of our fave dining spots, cooked dinner a couple nights and for the first time rode in autos with the locals! We wouldn't have had any problem doing this in the past, but we didn't know we could! The ride is equally comfortable and folks are usually curious about us, and it's cheaper. Why not have some friendly chat and save money at the same time?!

Of course my favorite part about Chennai (second to the Camp Rainbow leadership team) are the sunrises and sunsets. The sky manages to blaze a pinkish orange color that I have never seen before and at sunset there is an added lilac touch. So much beauty here, starting with the smiles of the people I work with.

Attached are some of my favorite photos that I took on my phone :)
xo

Golden Triangle-Day 1

It's about 730pm and Tim and I are ready to call it a night (and quite an incredible first day!) We flew out of JFK at 11pm on Monday, landed in Delhi at 2:30 am Wednesday, and then toured from 11 to 3 pm.
We saw a beautiful sunrise on our drive from Delhi to Agra--the sun was huge and looked like a solid sherbet orange dot in the sky. As we entered the outskirts of Agra, we could see the hazy outline of the Taj Mahal and the massive red Agra Fort. We also stopped to feed some monkeys a few sweet treats and hard candies which they unwrapped and popped in their mouths.
Walking through the gateway and seeing the Taj Mahal, framed by the gateway arch, is absolutely breath-taking. With a bare backdrop and the contrast between the blue sky and white marble, it really is a magnificent site. Then as we walked the grounds and moved closer, we learned how it was actually built and what the 20,000 workers put into each day of those 22 years! One of the fascinating bits of info is that the Taj Mahal is actually a 42 acre grounds including 3 gates, 1 gateway, 1 mosque, 1 mausoleum, and a few additional buildings. The memorable white marble mausoleum is the most photographed though the surrounding red sandstone buildings are also impressive feats. Each archway, of multiple buildings but particularly the mausoleum, has chapters of the Koran written. Also there are 4 towers at each of the 4 corners of the mausoleum, and since they were built to fall away from the mausoleum (if they ever fall), they are at an 87 degree angle instead of 90....actually maybe 83, something in the 80s!
We had a tour guide who provided us with great fun facts on the Taj Mahal mausoleum, which he called 'a noble tribute to womanhood.' He was also an enthusiastic photographer who had us posing all over the grounds! Most pictures were taken with our cameras but I took a few today with my phone which are uploaded here.
After Taj Mahal, we visited a marble handicraft studio where we learned about the decorative ornamentation that we saw on parts of the Taj Mahal buildings. All the colorful decorations are gemstones; one artist carved out the marble and one artist shaped gemstones into fine pieces to fit in place. Since they are gemstones, they don't fade, which they would if just painted. The process is very precise and detail oriented, and big pieces of the decorated marble take years to make. Three special components of the white marble are 1) it is non-porous due to the crystals in it 2) it is translucent and 3) the minerals in it make it strong and scratch-resistant. The art is so specialized, they even measure young children's fingers to see if they'd be the better marble artist or gemstone artist.
Lastly, we hit Agra Fort, and I'll be honest, I was getting tired so I didn't retain as much information there. It was essentially a walled-in city, massive grounds and many sections including some red sandstone and some white marble. I do remember that part of it was a concubine for 5000 women and there were areas for people to be on house arrest (with a nice view of Taj Mahal, pretty spiffy). Also, it has a wet moat and a dry moat with about 4 different gates to pass through to actually get in!
Ok, that's all for day one as I am utterly pooped in Uttar Pradesh! Tomorrow we take on Jaipur...

PS I also saw one of the big five that I missed in Botswana--check out the water buffalo crossing the street!

Bangalore: Food Edition

Tonight we went to a spot called Rahhams about a 15 minute walk from where we are staying. First we stopped at a place called Kebab Manor, but there were no kebabs on sticks like I was hoping for and having my mind really set, the group felt it was necessary to continue walking until we found kebabs on sticks. I could not ask for a more supportive team :) Anywho, we ended up at Rahham's where there were beautiful kebabs hanging in the window! We ate kasturi kebab, kebab sholi and some chicken spring rolls with a phenomenal sauce. We also had a bottle of water that had a questionable cap. Fortunately, we had our camp mama, Rochelle, grill the waiters to make sure it was actually a sealed bottle. The bottle also advertised 300% more oxygen, so it could either make us very sick or increase our breathing capacity three-fold! And of course we ended the night with some form of ice cream--this time gelato. Fer Rocher to be exact. It tasted just like Nutella. Deeelightful!! Fun fact learned at the gelato spot: gelato was first invented in the north of Italy, close to the Dolomites. Folks would pack snow in their basements and then use it to make gelato to sell to tourists and visitors in the summertime.

So here's to food, our favorite hobby, and the wonderful people I get to share this hobby with. Thanks to India for all the intense flavors that make eating so fun and adventurous. And thanks to Ferrero Rocher and Nutella for existing!

Beauty in Bangalore!

After a wonderfully successful visit to Camp Rainbow Chennai, filled with innovative ideas for camp, some serious(ly fun) documentation sessions and only one trip to Bella Ciao--home of questionable beverages that has quickly become infamous for our SeriousFun team....anyway, after all of this magic, we are now in Bangalore. It's a very pleasant city, a bit calmer than Chennai (I know what you're thinking; wait until you go to Bombay). Just yesterday we met the team here for the first time and we are quickly seeing the incredible potential of this leadership team and this new partnership. There is a lot to be excited about--I just need to remember to soak up the whole process and journey along the way :)

We have tried some new foods on this trip including a baby corn dish, garlic chicken, ragi dosa, sev puri, and kesari bhat. While in Chennai though, we went to some of our favorite spots: Azurri Bay for Thai, Rochelle's for an amazing home-cooked meal, and Drizzle...with a stop at Baskin Robbins on the way home.

This trip in Bangalore has already been filled with Rochelle's happy giggles, Becs' enthusiasm for everything including early morning workouts, and of course Tim's witticisms. I am very much looking forward to being back in a short 5 weeks!

Touched down in Chennai

We landed around 8:30 and arrived at the guesthouse a bit after 9:30. I was greeted by a bird pooping on my head, which raised the question, is that really good luck? Whether it is or not, it smelled horrible. It also added to the long list of reasons why I needed to shower ASAP! The guesthouse got many upgrades from last year including new AC units, which was beyond exciting. However, the temperature here is pretty perfect and there was even a cool breeze.

Welp, here goes an attempt at getting some good zzz's. Tomorrow morning we'll try to motivate to do a workout of some sorts, get some groceries at the grocer on the corner and then head over to meet with our partners!! We'll also welcome Becs to Chennai when she gets in tomorrow night :)

Hello Tomorrow!

So here we are in 2014 and here I am back at Dubai International Airport. Leaving New York, we were a little delayed because of the 3-4 inches of snow dumped during the morning hours, however it worked out in our favor because it meant a shorter layover in Dubai (4 hrs versus 6). There's definitely some déjà vu as Tim and I had the same breakfast sandwiches in the airport pub at JFK, flew the same route and will be on the ground in India again--same and yet better. We're all another year wiser, more creative and more experienced. And as the whipped cream and cherry on top, we get to share this year with GPP's newest fellow, Becs, and help launch a new program in Bangalore!

Hello Tomorrow is Emirates slogan which I've been visually bombarded with this morning. It is also a perfect phrase to capture my excitement for what is ahead in this year! Next post, we will be in Chennai :)

Don't blink, for you might miss a magical moment

Wow! It's been an unbelievable 2 months in the field! What a wonderful adventure ending with an adorably thoughtful send off from our team here in Cambodia, complete with homemade super staff awards, a framed photo from our modeling shoot, and a NHCC tshirt...all to remind us we are a part of their special family. Such an honor and a dream to witness camp lotus and be part of their magic.
There is a camp-time continuum where the days go by fast but when you look back, things feel like forever ago...June 14th feels like last year yet I have so many vivid memories of the past 8 weeks...being a part of our first year program in Botswana, going on safari, eating kudu and baby duck eggs (tasty, just can't think about it), toilet paper tosses, LT modeling shoots, lightning plans, epic stage nights, the most adorable little humans, Cape Town, sprinting through airports, colleagues and friends that fill my heart with so much love and my life with so much happiness.
To those back home, get ready 'cause here I come! Thank you for your love and support from afar and I look forward to sharing stories and catching up.
Enjoy the photos, a compilation of my favorites!
Love
Mary