Curious Tourist

I usually get up early in the morning on Independence Day to catch the special Independence day speech of India’s Prime Minister live from the hallowed grounds of the Red Fort. This time I decided to do something out of the ordinary and paid a visit to Hajratpur Primary School, a low income government school in Noida that is supported by Samsung’s CSR initiatives. I was delighted when I got the offer from Samsung Noida’s CSR team to visit the school. After all, there is no better way to celebrate the spirit of freedom than to be with little kids who are the future of our country. Little ones dancing on a patriotic song After struggling a bit to find the exact location of the school, I finally managed to reach on time. I knew I had reached the right location when I saw my friends standing in the prayer ground along with so many smiling children. Some children were wearing magnificent tri-color paint on their cheeks and foreheads while others were waving the flags with boisterous

I was thinking about the recent initiatives taken by the Indian government and citizens collectively towards transforming our country. Promises have been made in so many diverse fields ranging from cleanliness and education to clean energy and digitization. The important thing now is to not renege on these promises and work towards their successful completion. New programs, policies, movements, fellowships in both public and private sectors are showing the way in this regard. Full fledged plans have been made and the work is also under way- a reinvigorated Plan to clean all our rivers, an innovative Swachh Bharat Fellowship program to nip corruption in its bud, Niti Ayog's 'Mentor Of Change' scheme to educate young innovators in classrooms and many such well meaning projects have come up. A change in government policy that is giving a fillip to electric cars and promoting clean energy sources such as nuclear, solar, wind and hydro is also welcome as it would help in redu

A way to enrich one’s life is through a regular practice of self-reflection. Reflection when done after every new experience or even after daily work helps create a conscious awareness of that experience that results in the formation of new neural pathways for faster learning. Being detached from the process and behaving like a silent observer standing in the corner, we open ourselves to unbiased and deeper insights into the experiences that we had in the day. It creates a possibility of improving ourselves from one day to the next as we try to do the same things differently and with a different lens and perspective. There are multiple ways of reflecting- writing in a journal, silently sitting with eyes closed which is akin to meditation, walking slowly with the objective of introspection, talking to a close friend or family member whom we trust and many other similar ways(It clearly depends on the person). Since I love to write and blog, it’s natural for me to reflect by m

I am an educator in a low income school where I teach underprivileged kids. I strive to give them an excellent education by making them aware about the issues around them and helping them to think and have their own opinions on these issues. Change starts from within, hence I would start the clean India mission by first reflecting upon my own actions as an individual- generating less waste by reducing and reusing materials, segregating the wastes right at home, adopting the little space outside my house and ensuring its cleanliness. Once I am doing these activities as a ritual myself, I am going to spread the message to all the students of my school. Apart from educating my kids on the what, why and how of cleaning the surroundings, I will also organize events such as poster making, essay writing and theater as part of the Clean India campaign in the school. I will establish a ‘Clean Your Community Challenge’ in which students from each community would group into teams

Day 5 Spectacular Sand dunes in the backdrop Somewhere between Dubai and Oman It was the last day of our trip but many adventures were still in store for us. We boarded the morning bus from Abu Dhabi to Dubai that dropped us right in the middle of the historic district called Bur Dubai. We were lucky to contact one of our friends who lives in Bur Dubai who agreed to keep all our luggage with him(we did't have any hotel as our flight was scheduled for the same night). After dumping the bags at his place, we were off towards the Indian markets and the Old Souk(Arabian market). It was still morning and shopkeepers were just beginning to pull up their shutters and hawkers were gradually setting up their materials. We could see lots of locals going towards the Abra station(Abra rides are traditional ferries that carry passengers across the Dubai Creek) and decided to just flow with the rush. Since you love experiences like Desert Safari, have a look at these as well   Spice

Day 4 All smiles in front of Emirates Palace Abu Dhabi We checked out of our JB residence(an AirBnB) early in the morning as our itinerary showed that we had to travel to Abu Dhabi that day. We called an Uber and headed to the Main Bus Terminal which is adjacent to the magnificent Emirates Mall(yet another shopping landmark in the city). We reached in good time, bought tickets for the next bus to Abu Dhabi and waited for the bus to open its doors so that we could relax inside. Without any fuss, we boarded the bus and were on our way to our next destination in the U.A.E. It is always good to rest your eyes once in a while when you get the opportunity, especially during strenuously crazy travel that we guys were doing. So we kept mum and slept our way through to Abu Dhabi. We were greeted with refreshing morning showers and a clear sunshine(paradoxical weather indeed) and could feel the coolness and dampness in the fresh morning air when we stepped out of the bus. We immediately

DAY 3 A happy selfie at Jumeirah Beach with Burj Al Arab in the backdrop  We again got up early in the morning but this time there was no usual hurry(even my friend Shubhankar felt at peace that morning). It was going to be a full day at the beach and we got totally engrossed in the vacation mode. This time we didn't even take a shower as we had a plan to bath in the sea whenever the sun would show up. A sunny day was in the forecast and we just couldn't wait for our fun to begin, so we quickly popped out of our room with backpacks stuffed with towels and pairs of extra clothing. We were happy to leisurely amble on the beach and allow the fresh sea breeze to seduce our senses with its soft gusty sounds and aromatic scents. We also saw many locals jogging with great energy along the sea and some children playing football on the damp sand close to the sea. It was still quite early and tourists had not yet populated the beach area, it would be a territory of the local Du

DAY 2 Having a peaceful time at Dubai Mall, Downtown Dubai We got up at 6 am(yes you read it just fine) the next morning, thanks to my friend Shubhankar who did not want to waste any time while on vacation(how stupid I was to think that vacations are meant to while away your time). hahaha! Sometimes I wondered whether he actually caught any sleep over the entire trip or not because he was always up and ready whenever I saw him(I literally never found him in his night wear or while brushing his teeth). Well that was a boon for me as I always got the bathroom to myself every morning throughout the entire trip. Jumeirah Grand Mosque So let's talk about Day 2. I didn't take much time that morning, got up, had a bath and was all set to begin another day's adventure with my buddy. It was still time for check out and other people in the house were still asleep, so we decided to take a walk in the neighborhood. We headed towards the Jumeirah Mosque, one of the mos

Day 1 All excited and upbeat, at Ahmedabad Airport   from left: Shubhankar, Anshumaan(that's me) A customary selfie when on board  We were onboard our flight from Ahmedabad to Dubai when the captain suggested passengers who had not yet dozed off to peep outside the window for a breathtaking view of the port of Karachi. My friend and I obliged and leaped to our left to get the best view of the spectacle. The port city was dazzling in the darkness, ships shining like floating candles along the coastline. We were humbled to behold such a spectacular sight, also wondering how important a role this port must have played in the past just as it does today. We left Karachi, moved over to the Persian Gulf and flew towards the desert of Oman. I opened my Google Map, switched on the GPS and excitedly located the blue dot floating in the desert and heading to Dubai. After an hour, we approached a complex network of buildings, roads and bridges and we knew that we had reached our

Change, change, change, I needed to change my actions, What good were they when my students didn't get fractions! So I shifted, I twisted, I had a fresh start, But change was as slow as a shaky bullock cart It was a test of my character, my patience, But I had faith my class will reach excellence, The goal was clear and always in our mind, As we inched closer to it leaving the past behind Expectations were on a high, the bar was also set, At all costs, the goal just had to be met, All actions were aligned and goal was now in clear sight, Courage and grit ran high as we gave status quo a tough fight, All in all, change was good, it was bright and made everything right! Design For Change to build STUDENT LEADERS

I love to teach little kids and then I like to observe the way they use their learning in real life. It makes me immensely gratified and joyful to see them apply the knowledge that I gave them. Earlier I used to work in a technology company, helping my clients to design new softwares but now I work closely with the school and community, designing lives and creating a lasting impact in direct and indirect ways. Working right on the ground level has humbled me and made me realize the vastness of the challenge of ed-inequity looming over our country. The challenge is hard and surely daunting but not impossible to overcome. My journey so far has been to overcome my own hidden fears, personal difficulties and hardships. It is essential to get sorted out yourself before trying to lift up others. I have managed pretty well to tame the ghosts inside of me and started to take the challenge head on. Despite being all upbeat and enthusiastic about facing the daunting task, my journey has bee