First Day at the orphanage...

Ok so this post isn't going to be quite so sunny.

Jo, Niema and Me have been split up into me working at one of the orphanages, and Niema and Jo working at the Kindergarden. We got a choice in this, so everyone was pretty happy with how it worked out. Anyway, onto the Orphanage.

We (me and a girl 'Niche' at the centre) have to get 2 busses and then a taxi to the Orphanage every morning and it takes us just over an hour to get there.

On arrival, it all looked fine and we went into the main room where Indian girls go when they are young, not married, and want or have to give up their babies for adoption. They live at the orphanage, and part of the deal is that they have to help look after the other children and babies there. These girls are mainly around 17-19 and at the moment we have 3 pregnant girls, and one who has just had her baby but has to stay to feed her for 1 month or something afterwards. The girls have all lied to their families and said they are going to work in another town to get some money, then they come to us, their bump starts to show, and they have their baby, then leave. The girls dont talk to us (volunteers) much, I dont know whether they cant be bothered or whether they dont know much English.

There are 7 babies here ranging from 2 weeks old to 6months old (so they are all tiny), and the other kids are all between 3-6. There are 7 3-6 year olds and out of the 10 of them 7 have disabilities. I'll talk you through them.

When I first walked in all the kids were in their cots and they sat up, or stood up, or did whatever they could to get our attention when we walked in the door. There is:

Niskika: A one year old baby girl who is BEAUTIFUL, she doesn't have any kind of disabilitiy but she is HIV possitive.

Preeta: A 3 year old who cant use her feet, I dont know why because her legs work fine but there is something wrong with her feet so she cant walk unless you support her. She has super arm strength because of this and also has some kind of ADHD -ish disorder.

Dash and Peroni: Two little boys, so so cute, absaloutly inseprable and love things being tied around their heads like Rambo!!

Washka: Young boy, Paralysed waiste down and has some mental issues, he cant talk or respond very well.

I cant remember the other boys name but he has water around his brain so he has a really big head, and cant be taken out much cus he is like a baby and cant support himself due to the weight of his head. He is about 4.

Priyanka: 6 year old girl, just started school.

And my Favorite, Pinkie.

When I walked into the orphanage we started to take all the kids out of their cots to play, they dont have many facilities here so the kids play in a corridor which has gates either side, despite their being a play area (it is very rusty and they dont have money to make it safe again). Their toys were a box of lego between all of them, two pushchairs (they actually want to go in it and be pushed around unlike other kids! Anyway, when we arrived most of the kids were out of their cots, so when I looked around and saw one girl (Pinkie) still in her crib I walked over towards her to bring her out to play with the rest of us.And when I did I was pretty shocked by what I saw.

------ (nxt blog 'Pinkie)