This blog began when Matthew spent a summer volunteering at a hospital in Kolkata, India. Read his thoughts from his time there.
You should see the city tonight. Durga puja is in full swing (it is a Hindu religious festival celebrating the goddess Durga which is embraced by everyone as a national holiday. It is kind of like how Christmas is a Christian celebration that results in a holiday for everyone). The festivities put our celebrations of… Read More A Final Glimpse at the City of Joy
Here I sit in my little apartment and I am surrounded by buckets, towels and drops of water. Last week we had nothing but wonderful sunshine. This week is a whole new story. The rains have returned in force and I have become an expert at wading through flooded streets. Apparently this is the “exit… Read More Exit Monsoons – Who Knew?
*I apologize in advance that this update is so lengthy, but I promise you will get a few laughs at my expense out of it if you read all the way to the end… I seem to start a lot of these updates like this, but WOW it’s been a while since I’ve posted! My… Read More Crap Happens – Especially when I am not Looking Where I’m Walking
UNBELIEVABLE! It really is hard for me to believe that September 30th will be my last full day here in Kolkata – it just seems incredibly close and far away all at the same time! What is even more strange is that September has traditionally marked the beginning of the school year for most of… Read More T-Minus 1 Month and Counting
WOW – time is flying! I cannot believe that I am approaching the two-month mark here in Kolkata. I realized that I have not really kept everyone up to date on what I have been doing. I still work with children who have thalassemia and leukemia – they are still the highlight of my day.… Read More You Don’t Say
The power in belief and encouragement really is remarkable. There are examples of this all around us. In the much beloved story of Peter Pan, all it takes to end the life of a fairy is for someone to announce they do not believe in such creatures. On the less fairy-tale side, one cannot help… Read More A Discouraging Encouragement
Let me begin with a clarification to a question I have received a lot lately –Calcutta and Kolkata are the same place. I am not in some remote village with a name that is similar to that of the big city. Since India gained independence from British rule just over 50 years ago, the national… Read More Clarification, Contrast and a Pencil
Yes, I am in the hospital. They say I am going to be here for at least 7 weeks; but do not worry, it was a planned move into Mission of Mercy Hospital and Research Centre. In order to be more economically-minded I have taken up residence in the hospital in which I have been… Read More Home Sweet…Hospital
So it has been a while since I last posted. Sorry for the delay, but life got busy! So let me share some of what I have been doing here in Kolkata. During my first week here I got to visit a number of the smaller satellite clinics that are spread around the edges of… Read More It’s Been a While and It’s Official
As I am sure many of you are aware, on Tuesday eight bombs exploded on trains and in stations in Mumbai’s western rail line. These explosions came during rush hour (between 6:00-7:00p.m.) and have killed nearly 200 people and injured over 700 more. No one has yet to come forward to accept responsibility for these… Read More Attacks in Mumbai
the price post 