Horse drawn carriage

Here's a fairly disappointingly poor quality photo taken with the camera on my mobile phone. I took Alistair with me to buy some train tickets for some friends who are coming to do a bit of travelling in India. It took a while to finalise all the tickets, and Alistair was really very patient. We were standing on the route of these horse trips, and every time a carriage went past Alistair would shout at me (or hit me in the face- I'm a bit worried about that tendency) to get my attention, and say "I want to go on a horse one day"! I think what he actually meant was "I want to ride in a horse drawn carriage today"

I was really very dissapointed in his grammar, and told him as much (only joking).
It cost 50p for the ride 

House visits

Here is sister Shanti (R) who works as a social-worker and counselor. The lady in green (Manakshi) is a lady who is supported by our fellowship to come and show God's love to people 2 days a week. The street is a fairly typical, but actually quite plush slum street. 

Teaching

These are the junior doctors from Lok Hospital. This was taken at one of their teaching sessions. I do teaching for them two afternoons a week (most weeks). 

Travelling in style

We recently managed a rare trip to the nearby town of Matheran. The town has a strict "no motor vehicle" policy, so here's Jo, Ali and Freya travelling to the town! I walked. Figured I needed the excercise!! 

Taxi

Here's a picture of a typical Mumbai Taxi. Until recently it was illegal to run a taxi that wasn't of this traditional mould 

Bog out our window

Yes, quite literally! This photo was taken by Jo during her breakfast! All these people are going to relieve themselves amongst the rocks! The book I'm reading at the moment "Maximum City" says that women have to go to the toilet at 3am in the slums of Mumbai! (what do women do when they have the runs??!) 

Wet Bog out our window!

The rains have come!
What a dramatic, and welcome break from the heat. We have been known to sit in the flat in the evenings without any fans on, and we have been sleeping under a sheet. Being scottish I have to complain about something though...
... it is now even more humid. 

this is an early morning picture of the same stretch of ground a few days before. It is so humbling to see that people right outside your window have so little, and sleep under 4 poles and a mosquitp net. I don't know where they are sleeping now that the rains have come.