Second Week Of Training

Monday 4^th October

After almost three weeks of rambling travelling holiday around Karnataka & Goa, hopping from peaceful Hindu temple town to golden palm tree lined beaches, we returned to our base in Bangalore on Friday and back to work (as much as you can call this work anyway). 

We spent the weekend buying more materials - this invariably takes longer than one can possible expect.  When visiting Shanthi Metals on Saturday to buy more brass wire & sheet, despite having called early to see if they were open and being told that they close at two, we arrived at ten to two to find the shop perfectly open but with no shopkeeper in sight!  The man that vaguely seemed to be watching the shop, or waiting for the owner, I couldn’t work out, ensured us that he would be back in ten minutes…a hour and a half later (after a broken but very passionate conversation about the Muslim/Hindu conflict in Andra Pradesh accompanied by disgustingly sweet Chai that I had to make myself drink as he had so kindly bought it for me), the owner returns from his lunch.  It was worth the wait – he didn’t have what we needed but disappeared once again down the road somewhere and came back with 2.5 kilo coil of shining brass wire – it should keep us going for a while!

We caught the 6.30am train back to Dharmapuri.  A very pleasant train journey - watching Indian life in full flow through the wide open windows & doors; scenes of make shift tents, palm trees & people pooing, dowsed in morning light & appearing through the lifting mist as the sun re-finds it’s heat;,savouring hot coffee, the shouts of ‘Chai Chai’ and the smells of morning dosa.  Followed by a very bumpy rickshaw ride further still into rural Tamil Nadu to the farm and large project in which our small production unit sits.

We arrived to find a sea of peanuts (grown on the farm here) drying in the sun outside of our room, and to find the one of the dogs – Twinky - has had puppies!  Now we have puppies, kittens and baby children to play with (all riddled with flees!).

We received a really warm welcome from the ladies – ‘Good morning sister how are you I’m fine thank you’ & back into the training as if we had never left.

I think a few wires got crossed with regards to the work that we left for them to do whilst we were away (i.e. not much was done!) but they were all eager to get started again & don’t seem to have lost their enthusiasm for making jewellery.   

However, there are three new faces here this week, two of whom the ladies had gone through all the processes & techniques with them, as we had done with them, and they were proudly wearing their handmade bracelets.  This is really exciting, to know they want to pass on their new skills, & encouraging, as they are able to.  Laxshmi had also produced a new earring design!  Lottie & I have been thinking a lot about how lucky we have been to receive an art training - something most people here cannot even comprehend, so it is really heart warming to be able to encourage peoples creativity & to watch them find it.  We had a hugely productive day making time-consuming but beautiful necklaces.  All in all a wonderful first day back.

I have been writing this whilst watching the sunset, with the distant sound of thunder to accompany it (it never seems far away despite us having seen hardly any rain), but the mosquitos are threatening to get me and warm chapatis are now beckoning.