It feels very odd to think that almost a month has already passed since my arrival in India. Despite how full of excitement, new experiences, and new memories it has already been, the days left here seem fleeting. Because of the amount of content in the past month, I’ve thought it best to split the […]

Over my journeys across India so far, I’ve found that the transportation options are endless. Whether you’re looking for a quick and affordable ride in an auto (also endearingly referred to as a “Tuk Tuk”), a comfortable ride on the speedy Delhi metro, or a luxurious ride on one of the many air-conditioned trains of […]

Our intern cohort has a running joke that goes something like this: Aravind understands and speaks Tamil, Suhaas understands Tamil, Manya understands India, and Celeste is just along for the ride. “Along for the ride” definitely characterizes my first few weeks here, but I’ve been enjoying every moment of it. Here are some abbreviated highlights […]

Hello everyone! I’m Suhaas Narayanan, one of the four CASI Interns at the Aravind Eye Hospital in Madurai, Tamil Nadu. I’m a rising junior at Penn, studying Finance and Neuroscience, from Fort Collins, CO. It’s exciting to join the CASI Program to explore both healthcare and a new country in diverse contexts. A brief bit […]

Hello! I’m Manya Gupta. I’m currently a rising sophomore at Penn in the College of Arts and Sciences, prospectively studying economics with minors in international development and chemistry. I’m an international student from Jaipur, Rajasthan. This summer, I’ll be interning at the Aravind Eye Hospitals in Madurai, Tamil Nadu, with Celeste, Suhaas, and Aravind. I’ve […]

Hello! My name is Celeste Xu, and I’m a rising junior in Penn’s Life Sciences and Management (LSM) program. I’m originally from Buffalo Grove, Illinois, which is ~30 miles north of Chicago. This summer, I’ve been placed at Aravind Eye Care System in Madurai, Tamil Nadu along with my co-interns Manya, Aravind, and Suhaas. After […]

Hi everyone! I’m currently writing this in Helsinki, Finland as I wait for my third of five flights to Tamil Nadu. My name is Aravind Krishnan, and I will be interning at the Aravind Eye Hospital in Madurai, Tamil Nadu this summer. At Penn, I’m a rising sophomore in the Life Sciences & Management (LSM) […]

Hi! My name is Himanshi and I’m a rising junior from Gainesville, Florida. This summer, I have the privilege of interning at the Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI) in Gurgaon, Haryana. A fair warning in advance, this post will probably feature one too many uses of the word “excited”. As I’m writing this introductory […]

Hello again from Dhaka! I wanted to share a bit of my findings in my final post for the Summer (which ended up actually being Fall — sorry Laura!!) I mentioned in my last post that there were two cyclones: Amphan and Yaas, that affected the Sundarbans during the first two years of the COVID-19 […]