July 6, 2015

Good evening from Delhi! After settling into the lovely Hotel Mantra Amaltas last night and enjoying a good night’s sleep in a real bed, we awoke bright, early, and excited for our first full day in Delhi. We were greeted with a rainy morning (the monsoon has arrived!), which we spent getting better acquainted with all of our group members, as well as becoming oriented to our program goals and schedule. Afterwards, we set off to downtown Delhi for a lunch of delicious North Indian food at Sagar Ratna, and an opportunity to learn about and purchase some traditional Indian clothing at Fabindia (http://www.fabindia.com/company/). Everyone dove right in, trying on kurtas, colorful dupattas (scarves), pyjama pants – and a few intrepid young women even learned how to wrap a sari…not an easy task for your first day!

The rain stopped briefly and we headed over to Lodhi Gardens, a serene urban park and archaeological preserve, to stretch our legs a bit. Students spent time in small groups exploring the grounds and the tomb of Mohammad Shah, using all of their senses to fully experience their new environs. We all enjoyed the opportunity to meet other young Indians and watch a vibrant cricket match between friends in such a beautiful setting. All that fresh air worked up our appetite, so we headed to the Big Chill cafe for ice cream on the way back to the hotel. Three words: Fresh. Mango. Smoothie.

We’re now back at the hotel, where everyone is packing eagerly and setting our alarms for 2:45am for an early flight to Ladakh tomorrow morning. We can’t wait to arrive in Leh and meet all of the students at SECMOL (the Students’ Educational and Cultural Movement of Ladakh)!

Keep in mind that there is no internet access at SECMOL, and communication from us will be a bit more sporadic. We will do our best to update you as much as possible.

More to come soon!

– Sarah, Jonathan, and all of us at GA India