After a long slumber of conflicting time zones, we had finally awoken to scavenge for wifi. After settling for a total cost of 2000 rupees, we were happily on our way to Hazrat Ganj. Hazrat Ganj is one of the up and coming areas of Lucknow, renovated and revamped by CM (chief minister), Mayavati. You can go to Hazrat Ganj to glide across the marble floors which lead to brand name stores like United Colors of Benneton, Calvin Klein, Nike, Puma, in addition to Indian brands like Biba, Meena Bazaar, and Jashn. You can also make your way to the numerous cafés and restaurants like Pizza Hut, Royal Cafe (a personal fave), the Cherry Tree, and more. After dragging Nolan to Biba and buying a few well deserved beautiful cotton pieces for ourselves, we went to the Cherry Tree Cafe, known for its garden and cute Parisian style space.
After having our cold coffees, iced teas & masala cokes (only adventurous Nolan), we made our way to the Safed Baradari. Safed= white, Bara= 12 Dar= door. The Baradari is known for its cross ventilation and is actually currently controlled by the British India Association. Currently, it’s used as a function hall.
Hi everyone! I’m super excited to be going to Lucknow in 2 days & to keep you all in the loop. This summer, I have three amazing volunteers coming with me and I wanted to take this post to talk about them first:
1) Amina Abdelilah
My name is Amina and I am truly looking forward to volunteering with the Lucknow team this summer! I study Sociology and Communications at McGill University and I am always passionate about offering what I can to benefit a community. I hope that with my activities and time spent teaching in Lucknow I will be able to help out well and advance this project, all while creating new relationships and great memories!
2) Nolan McGahan
Nolan McGahan, a graduate of The Juilliard School, spent the better part of the last decade as a principal dancer performing contemporary dance. He was featured in duets in renowned theaters all over the world, including at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC, He currently performs with The Metropolitan Opera in New York City. While at The Juilliard School, Nolan was involved in the Community Service Fellowship, collaborating with other artists to provide artistic and therapeutic experiences in schools, hospitals, and other humanitarian facilities. He believes that we are students and teachers to each other. Through this opportunity to teach students in Lucknow, he is looking forward to the lessons they will teach him.
3) Mahathi Ramesh
Hello, I’m Mahathi and I study Psychology at McGill university in Montreal, Canada. I’m very enthused about the Lucknow teaching project because I steadfastly believe in the transformative power of education. I’m grateful that I can contribute my efforts to this endeavour aimed at the upcoming generation; and I hope in turn that I can learn something new about the country that I love.
