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__________April Donadea News________


A TRIP TO INDIA

On the 3rd of March a group of 3 rangers from Ashbourne, 3 rangers from Galway, myself and our leader Claire Davenport from Enfield set off to India. We left Ireland with snow on the ground and arrived in Italy at about 4o’clock. We were met by two priests- Padre Davide and Padre Damain, who are also scout leaders. They drove us into Monza and there we rested for a little and then had Mass and met up with the Italian scouts for dinner. They had each brought a dish from home and we just sat around and ate and talked.
After dinner we went on a walking tour of Monza and all too soon to bed. Next day we were up at 6am and on the plane to India by 9.30am! At around midnight local time – suddenly there we were. India after an 8 hour flight. The heat and the smells, a different one around every corner. The noise, too many people and the mosquitoes. Hustle and bustle, passports, immigration, packed rucksacks and the minibus.
Everyone went quiet as we drove through Mubai on our way to Pune. For most of us it was our first intimate realisation of the poverty in India as we passed people sleeping in the streets. Children and adults in rags, on the bare dirty earth. Living in filth and squalor. This is their reality, this is their home, their life.
We arrived in Sangam at about 4am. Sangam was the place we stayed, it is one of the Girl Guide World Centres. We were greeted by Margo and Liz- the World Centre Manager and the Assistant World Centre Manager. The next day our event began and we began to explore the concept and the reality of communities and community action. There were two Canadians and an Australian in our group with another Canadian and Australian, an Argentinean and two British people on the staff. We had sessions where we explored what a community is, who a community is and why a community is.
We went to the SOS children’s village, which is a village for orphans. We played some games and sang songs and taught the children some crafts. We had a speaker in from Family Circles and we were invited to visit this institution. In the Family Circles the women learn different skills such as sewing and cooking.
We also went to visit Deep Griha Family Welfare Centre which is an educational and medical institution working in the poorest areas of Pune. We also went sari buying- saris are the traditional costume that women wear. We visited temples, the uptown shopping areas of Pune and Phule market where the locals buy their fruit and vegetables. One evening we went to dinner with an Indian family. The Indian people are very very hospitable and we all had a brilliant time. We also had our own mealtimes at Sangam when we got to know the domestic staff and ate Indian cuisine.
All too soon the event was over and the two Canadians and the Australians were going home but we still had a few days to explore. Some of us went to a Hindi film, which was a different experience. We also spent a day at Ishwari Training Centre working with the young women there.
Before we went to India we all collected net bags from the washing powder and samples of shampoos and cosmetics etc. As we gave each each woman one of these bags their faces lit up, they were so grateful for them. Between the 8 of us that went we managed to raise £3,600 in donations. We gave £1,000 to Ishwari and £1,000 to Sangam and £800 to the SOS children’s village and £800 to Deep Griha Family Welfare Centre. They were very grateful for our donations.
It was then the last day and we got up at 5.45am and caught our train to Mumbai at 6.30. We had a tour of Mumbai all day. That night at 1am we boarded the plane to Italy. Arriving in Italy at 6.20am we were met by the two priests again and taken back to Monza for a rest and a wash.
After this we met up with a local youth group and we went for a bike ride with them around the famous Monza racecourse. In the evening we met with the scouts again and they took us by train to Milan and on a tour of the Cathedral and Galleria. On the last day we were up at 6am and headed for the airport at 6.30am. We arrived in Dublin airport on 23rd at 12.20 local time. We were all glad to be home but we all promised we would go again.

NICOLA LYNAM, TIERMOHAN, DONADEA


WHO SAYS KILDARE MEN DON’T GET ABOUT
Part 2

They arrived in Martinique ( Lesser Antilles) at the beginning of Easter Week – very pleased to be on land and to be able to sample some real fresh fruit and vegetables again – and of course some of the local wine. They were rather amazed to find that they were the only white people in Church on Easter morning - and Martinique is a French Province!! They stayed a few days relaxing and exploring, but as it is a rather expensive place to live, they soon set sail for St. Lucia (nearby) and then Curacao, which is off the north coast of Venezuela, where they arrived at the beginning of May. This was a deadline they had to make, as Ruth was flying out to join them – and as she only had a one-way ticket, Edmund had to be at the airport to vouch that she would be leaving the country as a crew-member of Santhia. Now they were 4 – but not only was Ruth an extra crewhand, but she had navigation qualifications, which meant that Edmund had someone to share navigational responsibility. Curacao was not a very pleasant place to be, it seems; first evidence of a rather seedy type of atmosphere – drugs, prostitution etc.. While they were there, they were well occupied otherwise, as the engine’s alternator had developed some form of ailment, and also the couplings on the propellor shaft needed attention. Together with trying to sort out these problems, there was still the problem of the “stowaway” leak, which refused to be solved, as it was not caused by the loose-fitting shaft.
They finally set sail for the Panama Canal, arriving in Colon (at the eastern end) on 13 May. While there they met up with friends they had made in Las Palmas, and they had the opportunity to go through the Canal on board their yacht. This would probably have been the first time that Edmund was actually able to sit back and relax – he was not in charge! They had feared that the Panamanians (who had taken control of the Canal from the US government as of 1st January, 2000) would delay their passing through the Canal for 2 – 3 weeks; but luckily they were allowed pass through immediately and they stopped in Panama for some days, trying to stock up on equipment, foodstuffs etc. So on 21st May they left Panama for the Galapagos – a group of 13 islands, belonging to Ecuador, which is now a Nature Reserve and where Darwin established a Research Centre. The crew were delighted to find that they could get a meal for $1 – so there was not much cooking done on board; also – the weather was great - to quote “the weather is lovely here – cloudy a lot of the time and cold!!! (28 degrees) what a luxury after hot and sticky Panama”.
This article will be continued in next month’s issue. – editor.


PERSONAL ATTACK ALARMS

Carephone, the company who supplied the socially monitored alarms recently installed on behalf of Donadea Community Alert Group also supply Personal Attack Alarms. The Personal Attack Alarm is a small device which can be carried in your pocket or handbag. It is activated by pulling a pin thereby activating a 130db sonic alarm. It has a small light which can be used as a torch and will strobe when the alarm is activated. The Personal Attack Alarm is designed to startle and deter a would-be attacker and draw attention for assistance. Further details are available from Morna in the Tir na Mona office @ 045-869977

GRIDDLE BREAD RECIPE INGREDIENTS

16 ozs. Creamflour
1teasp. Bread Soda
6-8 ozs. Buttermilk

METHOD
Sieve flour and bread soda into a bowl
Add buttermilk to make a stiff dough
Turn onto a floured board Knead into a round shape and flatten to approx. 1”-1.5” thickness
Place on a hot floured griddlepan and place over a high heat on top of a stove or range (a heavy pan will do either)
Cook on high heat for approx. 10 minutes on each side, keep turning over until firm to touch
Cook edges of Griddle Bread by turning cake on it’s side all the way around Unlike Soda Bread, this cake is flat
A dear lady gave this recipe to me from “The Young at Heart Group” in Newtown, and it has been enjoyed many times by the group with their bowl of soup at lunchtime
BERNADETTE CREAN

Kildare & West Wicklow Doctors on Call Service Ph 1890 599 362
If you need a doctor at night or during the weekend when your own doctor is not available, the Kildare & West Wicklow Doctors on Call Service can provide assistance.
The service is operated by Kildare and West Wicklow GPs and supported by the South western Area Health Board The service will operate local treatment centres and mobile units to cover urgent medical problems which occur outside normal surgery hours.
When you call have the patients name, address, phone number, doctor’s name and your GMS number (if appropriate) ready. The service will operate Mon – Fri 6 p.m. 8 a.m. the following day Saturdays 12 noon – 8 a.m. Sunday, Sundays / Bank holidays 8 a.m. – 8 a.m. the following day.


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