No room at the Inn ... A Christmas Story

The Deenasevanasabha (Servants of the Poor) is a congregation of Sisters founded in 1969 in Pattuvam, Kannur in Kerala by Petra Moanigmann a German national who was studying Medicine in Kerala at that time. Today they are spread across 80 different houses in various locations with a congregation thats over 600 strong. Their Bangalore house is currently guided by "enthusiastic and spirit filled " Franciscan Sister commonly referred to as Mother Willingard.

The sisters run a home called Little Flower Children's Home . Its a home for children who suffer from AIDS. A few close friends and family gathered yesterday at the home to celebrate the day of Christmas (and a couple of birthdays too it seems) with the children, staff and the sisters. After lunch as we were preparing to leave, a sister pointed to a tiny little baby being tended to by one of the staff. The baby was found abandoned in one of Bangalore's hospitals. The hospital knew about this home and asked them for help. They sisters sent their staff and the ambulance to pick it up.

It was Christmas..... The baby was 7 days old and HIV +ve.

There was no room at the inn

The stories of the each of these children are terrible ones, that usually begin with either one of parents being HIV +ve and then transmitting it to the partner. In some cases this is a terrible crime in itself as the men knowingly infect the partners. We met with the children in various stages of the infection. Some gut wrenchingly ...in the final stages . Here they are struggling and dying for no fault of theirs. There is a hopeless feeling that wells inside, that accompanies the anger - that we humans, the species with empathy and intelligence... can actually bring about this fatal disease to our very own.

The first step is always to combat the ignorance. The previous post list links to a few select sites that provide lot of information in this area. It also includes some care and treatment information for HIV infected pregnant women and/or their partners.

But there is light and hope . While all children of infected mothers carry the HIV virus for a while only about 30 % of them are really infected and after about 18 months tests will indicate this. These "HIV -ve children" - the remaining 70%, are then set up in schools around the area and put for adoption through the Ahshraya . A couple of HIV -ve children have already been adopted.

The real miracles are performed by unassuming, un-hero like people who go out of their homes, their villages, their cities, their countries - their comfort zones and build shelters for others in the midst of despair and misery ......and truly bring joy to the world. In this case one, tiny, HIV +ve baby at a time.

There is room at this inn. Merry Christmas.

HIV / AIDS & Children In India

HIV / AIDS
"Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in humans in which the immune system begins to fail, leading to life-threatening opportunistic infections"

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HIV
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AIDS

HIV / AIDS in India
India has the largest HIV infected population in the world. Based on the last official estimate the number is around 5 .2 million. But if infected children are included it goes up to around 5.7 million, giving us this dubious distinction

This, by the way, is the official count of the cases. Those that were tested and found positive. It does not include the (dare i say this) millions of cases who are not yet tested but go around continuing their infection spree. Given that the first reported case was in India in 1986 it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that this disease is spreading and spreading dangerously fast.

While there is awareness, initiative and the funding to combat HIV through government and non governmental agencies in India their main challenges are :

1. The population in India
2. The intense social stigma and discrimination attached to this disease.
   
3. Access to HIV care and treatment. (57 % of the HIV +ve cases are reported in rural areas Of these housewives are the second largest group).
   
4. Inappropriate use and management of funds and resources

Some links below

• Advert - An International Aids Charity with a very informative and easy to navigate website.
  
• The United Nations Development Programme.
• The National AIDS Control Organization - India
  
• Rajan Gupta's collection of links and resources on the web.
  

HIV / AIDS & Children
The thrid main cause of HIV infection is the transmission during pregnancy , delivery and breast feeding. Fortunately only about 30 % of the women who are infected with the HIV transmit it to thier children. Of these only about 5 % of the transmission occurs while the baby is in the uterus. The remianing 25 % occurs during delivery itself and breast feeding post delivery. With the right use of ART drugs during the delivery (a dose for both the mother and child) the transmission percentage has reduced almost 2% in most countries.

• http://www.avert.org/pregnancy.htm
• http://www.marchofdimes.com/professionals/681_1223.asp

As i mention in the next post the Deena Sevana Sabha is doing some great work with HIV +ve children in Bangalore. Please visit them when you have a chance and lend them your support.

Deena Sevana Sabha
Deenanilaya, Kothanur, Bangalore 560077
Phone : +91 80 28465318, +91 80 28465948
deenanilaya@hotmail.com

Dr. Maya & Myrada
A dear friend of ours Dr.Maya Mascarenhas, has been working with HIV / AIDS and other public health issues in the rural areas in Kartnataka for along time. She is part of an Non- Governmental Organization called Myrada . She helped me with the facts provided insights into the fight against AIDS and would be the right person to contact for more information and queries. You can reach her at the details below

MYRADA (www.myrada.org)
No.2, Service Road, Domlur Layout
Bangalore 560 071.

Phone: +91 80 25352028, +91 80 25353166, +91 80 25354457
Fax : +91 80 25350982
myrada@vsnl.com

Vishalla in Sepia

In a quiet corner of the bustling city of Ahmedabad lies a tiny oasis of old world charm - Vishalla - a restaurant, a village, a museum, a theater ... and a true blue Gujarat experience.

View in Google Earth

Vishalla is among other things famous for its restaurant. Many a picture of its famous patrons adorn the open air foyer ... bollywood stars, cricketing heroes and even the occasional prime minister. So you have to be prepared when you visit for dinner. Prepared to wait around 2 hours to be seated at the table, that is. But if you have an open mind and are willing to experience a small slice of the glorious culture of Gujarat ... then its definitely worth the wait.

At the foyer they advise you to wander around and insist that the time will fly by without feeling the hassle of the wait. I would tend to believe them. Once we paid for dinner (A fixed rate of Rs 215 / $5 as of Dec 2006) and collected our token, we were left to our own means with a promise that a waiter would shout out our name (much like a town crier!), once our table was ready.

In the evening the place is lit up by mostly kerosene fueled lanterns creating a subdued ambiance and yet an atmosphere of adventure, as you peek around discover the little nooks, cubby holes and stages that dot the Vishalla campus.
We started off in open an air theater which has a small stage for musicians surrounded by a lots of charpai (cots with wooden posts, stringed with coir and a rough rug thrown over), swings, machaans , and other casual seating spaces. The sounds of musicians drumming their dhols to a steady beat envelope you you in the cold night. The local Gujarat families spontaneously get into the center and dance the Garba. A wonderful social dance form very unique in India. Interestingly the Garba dance is based around a mythical fight between Goddess Durga and Mahishasura . Hence the Dandyias or sticks that are used in this dance form.

More Pics >>

We then spent a little time at the traditional puppet theater where a couple ... so very much at ease with their craft .... presented a wonderful drama. They didn't have a large audience and it allowed me to get the couple together for a few photographs.

More Pics >>

We wandered back to the main stage and caught an artist demonstrating amazing dexterity and balance with his mouth.

More Pics >>

This was followed by traditional dance and music by the Rabari tribe. They are famous for their brightly colored dresses, enchanting voices, hypnotic dancing and the evening was truly magical when they held center stage.

More Pics >>

We eventually sat down for dinner which was an elaborate affair with over 30 different items served one after the other . In the words of Sanjeev Kapoor a venerated chef - A simply superb meal.

Vishalla is also home to Vechaar. An amazing museum housing more than 3500 utensils ...some dating back a 1000 years. Its story I shall experience and recount another day.
Meanwhile check out Smita Jain's blog for a good review of the museum

The photographs I took were muted by the lack of light or blazing because of the colors of the Rabari dresses. A sepia treatment seemed to make a little more uniform and compliment the rustic ambiance of Vishalla. Not my best photographs but check out the entire album

Xena - 1st Birthday

Our tiny little puppy is all grown up now !

Xena - 2 months old > More pics

Xena is one year old today. Our brindle Great Dane has probably reached her full height . Check out her album.

Diwali at the Abraham's

Spent Diwali at the Abraham's this year. Their roof provided a grandstand view of the city bathed in lights. So I borrowed their tripod and clicked away... in the hope that my amateur efforts might capture the spectacular fireworks display that was resplendent across the night sky. As you might notice I have been rather indiscriminate with the time lapse on the shutter.

Bangalore skyline on Diwali night > More Pics

For those interested I used a Canon EOS Digital Rebel and Sigma 28-300 Zoom Lens.

Walnut Torte with Coffee Whipped Cream

Thought I'd bake something over this weekend and since I had a lot of walnuts in the larder, I picked up a nice Walnut Torte recipe from epicurious. Didn't vary from the original recipe except that I doubled the portions ...and the reviews of this baking spree were not bad at all.

> More Pics

Here is a tip if you have some left over coffee whipped cream and walnuts : They make an awesome combo with pancakes topped off with some regular maple syrup. Yes, I have a very sweet tooth - so be warned :-)

A 10 Megapixel Camera !

Oh did i forget to mention, its a phone too ? The Samsung SCH-B600,scheduled to be launched initially in Korea

Search for the Samsung SCH-B600 on Google.

What is ...Foodie... Techie ?

Wikipedia redirects the search for the term foodie to gourmet. Well I can definitely live with that. Although how knowledgeable or sophisticated my tastes are, is open to discussion.

And the techie bit ... well, that I am... albeit with a "mobile" inclination.

So ladies and gentlemen welcome to my blog.

Up Up and (a)Hay - Google Earth to the rescue

I've always been a big fan of Google Earth and this story in a national News Channel only spells out what free public domain information of this magnitude can accomplish / empower.

Seems like some bureaucratic tyranny just got caught in the act.

Check out the link below to find out how Google earth comes to the rescue. Google Earth aid for Maha farmers

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