I’ve compared my work from this summer and last summer quite a bit throughout my blog posts. Last summer I worked for a non-profit organization in Honduras that initially worked to transplant families and individuals living in a riverbed slum to a safer environment with collectively built houses. They now build school infrastructures in poor […]
I know it’s a strange thing to say, but it weirded me out that I felt so positive and fulfilled as Chan and I completed our final presentations and summed up the work that we had done over the previous 10 weeks. For those who know me back at Penn, I’m heavily involved in clubs […]
After I travel abroad (or have any big, perspective-altering experience), it usually takes me months to fully process what I’ve learned. I usually don’t even bother reflecting on big takeaways until weeks after returning home. However, the impending blog post deadline is a great way to speed things up, or just a good excuse to […]
Since we arrived at Shahi Exports, we’ve witnessed the stark differentiation between “staff” and “non-staff.” The staff includes the company’s management, the HR team that we work under, us, and all of the other marketing and design groups that help a garment company function. The people who do the actual labor – cutting fabric, washing […]
As Aparna has alluded to in her “Bangalore luxuries” instagram, we’ve been living a very pampered life here in the city. I take hot showers, have never had to use a “squatty potty,” and I have so many comforts available at my fingertips (like the nutella crepe I just ate…). Although my work brings me […]
When I lived abroad in Ecuador, I could never pick up a word just by hearing it. I always had to write it out and see its physical manifestation. I would carry around a tiny notebook that was eventually filled with words. The same has been true with learning Hindi and Kannada. But, other than […]
Hello from Bangalore! We’re just finishing up our first week here, which has been a whirlwind of learning more about factories and garment production, devouring mangos, figuring out how to cross the street, and trying to develop our meager tolerance for spicy foods. As soon as we landed in the city, we noticed two things: […]
