The student news site of The Archer School for Girls

The Oracle

The Latest
  • March 17The Holi celebration will take place at 10:30 Friday, March 22, on the backfield.
  • March 17There will be no late busses Friday, March 22.
  • March 17Spirit Week events will take place from Monday, March 18, to Friday, March 22.
The student news site of The Archer School for Girls

The Oracle

The student news site of The Archer School for Girls

The Oracle

Instagram Feed
Email Subscription

Archer Group Experiences a ‘Whole New World’ on India Abroad Trip

A+few+girls+show+off+their+henna%2C+which+is+a+well+known+Indian+tattoo+art+that+is+made+from+a+plant+based+dye
A few girls show off their henna, which is a well known Indian tattoo art that is made from a plant based dye

As the smell of burning trash wafted by, Travis Nesbitt, Emily Silver and 12 Archer students got off the plane in New Delhi, India, and already knew they had entered an entirely new world. From Nov. 16-28, the India Archer Abroad trip was an opportunity for students to experience new things and expand their horizons.

Everyone left LAX Airport “with anticipation and preparation,” Nesbitt wrote on the Archer Yak-Yak Board, a blog page created to follow the group and update everyone at home. The group embarked on the trip with curiosity and open minds — only Ava Mandelbaum ’15 and Sofia Garrick ’16 had been to India before with Archer.

The backyard of the guest house the first morning. "Good Morning from New Delhi!  just wanted to share an image of our new friends that have joined us for breakfast!" Ms. Silver wrote on the Yak Yak board: Emily Silver
The backyard of the guest house the first morning. “Good Morning from New Delhi! just wanted to share an image of our new friends that have joined us for breakfast!” Ms. Silver wrote on the Yak Yak board. Photographer: Emily Silver

Silver said that the first morning still felt familiar, despite the area being “a lot greener than [she] had expected.” 

“The scene of the guest house wasn’t that different,” she said, “I think we all felt like ‘Oh okay, we can do this.'”

It was only once they immersed themselves into Indian culture that the feeling of familiarity changed.

Silver said, “When we went out into Old Delhi, we went on rickshaws in Spice Market, and we really were like: ‘we’re in a totally different world.'” The people were “friendly and really, really colorful,” Silver said.

Madison Florian ’15 said that the food was “new and interesting, but delicious.”

On their third full day, the Archer girls got to meet the girls they were paired up to work with — or sisters, as they called them — at Pardada Pardadi Educational Society, an organization that employs and educates women and girls in rural India.

“Many of us had to push ourselves to finish the food in order to respect the school and the girls,” wrote Ava Mandelbaum ’15.

The PPES girls were eager to integrate the Archer students into the Indian lifestyle. Elizabeth Johnson, one of the trip instructors, said on Yak-Yak board, “It was a beautiful greeting and our girls learned Hindi basics from their Indian peers, including ‘What is your name?’, ‘Where are you from?’ and ‘My name is….’”

The Archer girls meeting their sister's for the first time at the Pardada Pardadi Educational Society. PPES is the development  Archer works with that empowers, employs, and educates women living in rural India. Photographer: Elizabeth Johnson
The Archer girls meeting their sisters for the first time at the Pardada Pardadi Educational Society. PPES is the development Archer works with that empowers, employs, and educates women living in rural India. Photographer: Elizabeth Johnson

The Archer girls saw differences between themselves and their Indian sisters.  Rather than having those differences be obstacles between the two groups, Archer students used those differences to learn something new.

Mandelbaum ’15 said,”I began to build new friendships and step outside of [my] comfort zone in the village today” on the Yak-Yak Board.

After their time at the school, the group traveled eight hours to the Swami Rama Sadhaka Grama Ashram in Rishikesh, where they learned even more new practices.

Kimia Khatibi ’16 wrote that she was, “excited to see what we discover within ourselves and what else we can observe about this beautiful country.”

The group spent two days at the Ashram where they participated in meditation sessions and breathing classes called Pranayam and yoga.

By the end of the trip, the girls felt like they had grasped the once so foreign culture.

On the final day, Kimia Khatibi ’16 wrote, “The culture and systems of the streets tracking back to the crazy and amazing rickshaw ride, the interactions and connections strongly made with the girls at Pardada, and the calm and patience learned from our time meditating and reflecting at the Ashram will last and hopefully be integrated into our experiences at home.”

See below for an overview of the itinerary and a photo gallery of images taken by Lindsay Cayton ’16 during the trip.


Untitled Infographic

Navigate Left
Navigate Right
  • The Ganges River was one of the most “awe-inspiring” sights for the girls, according to Florian. Photographer: Lindsay Cayton ’16

  • Girls from Pardada Pardadi Educational Society follow Sara Rabinowitz ’17 in a dance. Photographer: Lindsay Cayton ’16

  • A girl drinks from the water faucet at the Pardada Pardadi Educational Society: Photographer: Lindsay Cayton ’16

  • Sofia Garrick ’16 gets a bindi, which is a small dot on the forehead that many India women wear. Photographer: Lindsay Cayton ’16

  • Girls pose for the camera at the Pardada Pardadi Educational Society. Photographer: Lindsay Cayton ’16

  • The city of Delhi lights up at night. Photographer: Lindsay Cayton ’16

  • Nesbitt and Leandra Ramlo ’16 smile in a rickshaw in Delhi. Photographer: Lindsay Cayton ’16

  • The group gathers for a photo in Delhi dressed in their new outfits from Fabindia department store. Photographer: Lindsay Cayton ’16

Navigate Left
Navigate Right

 


View Comments (3)
More to Discover

Comments (3)

As part of Archer’s active and engaged community, the Editorial Board welcomes reader comments and debate and encourages community members to take ownership of their opinions by using their names when commenting. However, in order to ensure a diverse range of opinions, the editorial board does allow anonymous comments on articles as long as the perspective cannot be obtained elsewhere, and they are respectful and relevant. We do require a valid, verified email address, which will not be displayed, but will be used to confirm your comments. Because we are a 6-12 school, the Editorial Board reserves the right to omit profanity and content that we deem inappropriate for our audience. We do not publish comments that serve primarily as an advertisement or to promote a specific product. Comments are moderated and may be edited in accordance with the Oracle’s profanity policy, but the Editorial Board will not change the intent or message of comments. They will appear once approved.
All The Oracle Picks Reader Picks Sort: Newest

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

  • J

    Jamie WoodallMar 20, 2015 at 9:41 am

    Hello Archer! I finally got the chance to watch the Vimeo video you created and to read the article here about your trip. So wonderful to see how you have amalgamated all of the experiences into this format for all of us to share. These photos are great and I loved the video clips of the dancing especially! Such a pleasure working with Archer, as always!

    Reply
  • D

    Debi GoldmanMar 11, 2015 at 1:20 pm

    OMG! Thank you so much for sharing this!!! The Archer girls and staff were sooooo amazing to work with!!!

    Let’s all go back next year!!!
    Namaste,
    Debi Goldman
    Dragons Instructor

    Reply
  • R

    ReannaJan 30, 2015 at 11:29 am

    Wish I could go back!

    Reply