Kachchh trip by KOJAIN Youths 2003-3004

____________________Comments By: Neha Shah__________________

The Kutch trip sponsored through Kojain that I participated in this past January was one of the most rewarding 10 days of my life. The trip entailed both visiting various sites around Kutch and volunteering at the Bidada hospital during their camp. Some of the many things we did involved visiting Bhuj, Anjar, Mundra, Vijay Villas, Vaand (a primitive gam), VRTI, Nature Cure Center, Mandhvi, Veerayatan, Abhiyan and much more. Although the whole trip sticks out in my mind, a few places are especially highlighted. Going to Veerayatan and Vaand allowed us to meet many children in Kutch which was an amazing experience. I was able to really talk to one girl from Veerayatan when they came to the Bidada hospital for checkups. She explained to me about losing her family in the earthquake and then being sent to Veerayatan by her uncle. Hearing her story was simply amazing. I definitely would like to go back to Kutch and spend some more time there. The sightseeing we did throughout Kutch was also a good time because I had never seen or even known that the places we saw existed before this trip. We saw many earthquake sites and saw much of the damage it did. Another huge plus of the trip was being able to get to know our whole group and all of the kids who volunteered from America and parts of India. We went to Mandvi at night all together to eat pav bhaji off the street, held a garba raas at night on the cement/sand of the building we were staying at, played cards on the train ride to Kutch, and just hung out all week long, which made the trip so much fun. Another aspect of the trip that was so great was the flexibility we were given. My brother and I were able to visit our grandmother in Koday three times and stay overnight with her twice. We were able to see our gam and meet all of her friends which was very nice. The hospitality that I saw in Kutch is something that I will never forget. My brother and I were offered dinner and a place to stay if we ever wanted when we met people on a 15 minute rickshaw ride. All in all, I had an incredible time on the trip to Kutch and I know for sure that I am going to go back at some point throughout my life. This trip has made me truly proud to be a Kutchi-American.