Kolkata

Hello again.

We arrived in Kolkata this morning after a long 24 hr road trip on jeep and train. We left the fresh, cool climate of Darjeeling yesterday morning and rode down the mountainside (with a couple of stops along the way) into the hot, humid plains of Siliguri. There we made a brief visit to the Jesu Ashram and then we caught the overnight train to Kolkata.

Our stops along the way were pretty interesting to say the least.

The first stop was at St. Alphonsus school, which was started by Father Abraham (a Jesuit priest since 23), who is now 83 years old and living in the mountains just above the school. We toured the building and then visited the father in his home where he told us a number of stories. He talked about the invasion and retreat of China in the days of early independance and how it impacted the landscape. He told us about how he raised the money from Canadian donors by asking them to give up dessert every Friday ($2/dessert) for a period of time, and then how the cost of concrete shot up and forced him to continue searching for donations and coming up with innovative ways to get the job done... having the students excavate the land and build the school with their own hands. It was wild listening to the story of patience, perserverance, and determination. I'll try to remember this the next time I get stuck in traffic!

The second stop included a tour of an organic tea factory, Makabrai (sp?). We saw how the tea was produced (old equipment and simple process), met the owner (quirky but super interesting dude), and then of course... bought some tea.

The third stop was at the Jesu Ashram, which is a hospice designed to care for sick and dying people who have nowhere to go and no one to care for them. These are adults (and children) with HIV, TB, leprosy, and other degenerative diseases, who are either dumped on their doorstep, picked up off the streets or floors of the train station, or even some who travel miles on their own to receive treatment or care in their final days of life. We listened to how the building was established (by Father Bob, another priest from the Jesuit order who has since passed away), walked through the rooms and halls to meet the patients, and spoke with the other Jesuits who run the facility. This was the most challenging part of the trip so far... seriously, what an inner struggle.

Finally, we caught the overnight train to Kolkata, which is where we'll be spending our final week. This is where Sister Cyril Mooney has established the Loreto Day School. I look forward to sharing more later.

Bye for now.