Sunday Service:
After getting all the kids settled on a carpet in a small chapel, one of the small boys began to play on the bango drums while others shook their tambourines and all sang to the top of their voices--not exactly sounding like angels but surely with purest of hearts. What an inspiring service!! I was with Mukul helping him stand and sit as well as keeping his drool wiped and with a blind girl who happened to find me and hung on my pants. Rog had a squirrelly one on his lap. Needless to say, we didn't doze off. Mukul had greeted me when I arrived this a.m. handing me a string he had found. He was so proud to give me something. Rog has connected with several boys who enjoyed tossing a rag ball with him. A big part of our day is feeding those who can't feed themselves. Suffice it to say, it's a messy affair and we both agreed not to discuss it while we eat...or really anytime. We continue to watch and learn from the nuns and local workers... Smile and touch each one.
Volunteers at Mother Teresa's:
I understand the Tower of Babel now. Each morning the volunteers gather for breakfast (chai, bread & banana), announcements and prayers. It's a social time so there is lots of talking going on and you hear so many languages being spoken. We've met volunteers from: Ireland, Switzerland, Sweden, England, Italy, China, Japan, Spain, Mexico, Germany, Canada and good old USA. Most are young college kids and a few of us old folk. All are friendly and thank goodness, many speak English. We so admire the ambition and kind heart of the youth!!
Tuk-Tuk:
A tuk-tuk is a three wheeled taxi that is suppose to carry two or three but usually crams in four, five or six. It can go about 35 mph at full speed and that's the only speed they travel. At night, they are lit up like Christmas trees. The driver is an expert at dodging, swerving, honking and stopping on a dime. Often they try to pass each other and any other moving obstacle in the way. I feel like I'm in a Disneyland ride...but without any of the safety precautions.
Sidewalks of Kolkata:
Turn up all the noise around you, put something pretty rotten near you and then add these sights and you might have an idea of what the streets are like: broken, uneven bricks, protruding cement blocks, tree roots, broken glass, trash, homeless campsites, laundry, water gushing out of square basins where people are lathering up & washing every part of their bodies and others are scrubbing their laundry about every block, street vendors every couple feet selling odd and old collections of whatever, trash, dogs, outdoor kitchens cooking up a variety of smelly food, large pots of coffee, milk & tea steaming, shrines with dead and live flowers, walking vendors with baskets of fruit on their heads, charcoal grills made of clay with a variety of beans, potatoes and red carrots cooking in large, flat pans, vendors carrying large plastic bags of fish (heads & all), children playing with sticks/stones/brick pieces who run up to you & beg, goats, chickens, mice, and did I mention, trash. It's an obstacle course to say the least. Many times, it's so difficult to walk on, you just walk on the street and dodge the traffic. I chucked when I saw one sign that read: Accident Prone Area. That could be posted every foot of the way!! We sigh with relief when we get to our destination!!
Communist Rally:
While riding a bus today, we started to notice a large walking crowd carrying red flags with the hammer and sickle on them. The group kept getting larger and then trucks & buses of people with flags joined them. Our bus was creeping along and then several men started yelling and pounding on the side of the bus. We came to a halt and since we could not see wait. The crowd filled five blocks. We hoped the BBC would not get a picture of us as we weeded our way through the crowd to get back to our hotel.
Well, enough for tonight--except I think I gave some of you the wrong site to view our pictures and blog so I'll try again:
www.rogerandjane.shutterfly.com
www.rogerandjane.blogspot.com
Bekah--feel free to correct me if I got it wrong again!!!

Thanks for the emails some of you have sent.
We love hearing news from home!!
Jane and Roger