We have arrived in Bangalore! We received a colorful and warm welcome from Christ University, where we will be staying for a little over a week. We all love taking in the beauty and serenity of the campus, and feel happy to be among other college students!
On Monday, one of our activities for the week included visiting the ISKCON temple in Bangalore which is known for their philanthropy through their development of Akshaya Patra which is the largest school lunch program in India--serving 1.6 million school children across 12 states. They have their first kitchen at the temple which includes many multiple cauldrons that each can make rice to serve 1,000 government school children, plus many other large cooking equipment. The visit, information session, and tour of the temple and Akshaya Patra was inspiring as their mission believed that no child should be denied education because of hunger.
On Tuesday, we met up with twelve other psychology students from Christ University and traveled to the Lalbagh Garden together. Here, we were split up into groups to work on an observation project. The goal was to find a certain spot in the park and observe people there. We had to select a behavior to observe and make notes on what we saw. It was really fun to work with students from the university and learn more about their studies and life in India. Many of us bonded over Netflix shows and music, and of course, our love for psychology and working with people!
After our observations, we all returned to campus together and shared a traditional Indian meal. Then, we were asked to present our findings to the rest of the group. All students got really creative with this assignment! Groups presented about observing people’s cell phone usage, levels of physical touch or public display of affection, forms of exercise, and variability of interactions based on gender. It was so interesting to hear about everyone's different topics and findings, and also interesting to
compare and contrast these behaviors with the United States. The day ended with tea, cookies and conversation with new friends. It was so fun to meet new people, and bond over interests we all share. It was also interesting to explore more of this complex country and some of the people that characterize it.
On Wednesday afternoon we had the exciting opportunity to work with the Christ University culinary department and make four Indian snacks that represent a few different regions of India. In small groups, we each tackled cooking a tasty dish and experienced chopping, dicing, stirring, and frying popular snack foods. We made Gujarati Poha, Pav Bhaji, Onion Pakoda, Garlic Chili Chutney, and Aate Ka Halwa--each with a distinct taste and method of cooking. This class emphasized the importance of the use of spices and locally sourced foods. The culinary professor told us that all the ingredients are grown India--nothing imported and at maximum only 100km away. Not only did this cooking experience bring us confidence in the kitchen and a feeling of community, but it also familiarized us with Indian cooking and some new recipes to bring home!
- Bridget and Fiona
On Monday, one of our activities for the week included visiting the ISKCON temple in Bangalore which is known for their philanthropy through their development of Akshaya Patra which is the largest school lunch program in India--serving 1.6 million school children across 12 states. They have their first kitchen at the temple which includes many multiple cauldrons that each can make rice to serve 1,000 government school children, plus many other large cooking equipment. The visit, information session, and tour of the temple and Akshaya Patra was inspiring as their mission believed that no child should be denied education because of hunger.
On Tuesday, we met up with twelve other psychology students from Christ University and traveled to the Lalbagh Garden together. Here, we were split up into groups to work on an observation project. The goal was to find a certain spot in the park and observe people there. We had to select a behavior to observe and make notes on what we saw. It was really fun to work with students from the university and learn more about their studies and life in India. Many of us bonded over Netflix shows and music, and of course, our love for psychology and working with people!
After our observations, we all returned to campus together and shared a traditional Indian meal. Then, we were asked to present our findings to the rest of the group. All students got really creative with this assignment! Groups presented about observing people’s cell phone usage, levels of physical touch or public display of affection, forms of exercise, and variability of interactions based on gender. It was so interesting to hear about everyone's different topics and findings, and also interesting to
compare and contrast these behaviors with the United States. The day ended with tea, cookies and conversation with new friends. It was so fun to meet new people, and bond over interests we all share. It was also interesting to explore more of this complex country and some of the people that characterize it.
- Bridget and Fiona
