A Walk in Pune

With no parties to go to, no way to get anywhere in the city other than by walking, and little knowledge of what to see anyway, our weekends to be pretty laid back. Usually that means doing some reading, sleeping in a little bit (all of us managed to get up in time for breakfast...just barely). Instead of sitting in our room all day, we decided to walk around Pune.

My last blog post was about the people living in India's slums. It's no secret that their lifestyle lacks some of the most basic living conditions, but they're still better off than a very significant population of the country. Today I realized that firsthand. As we were walking beneath an overpass, a young girl with her baby was walking in and out of traffic (pictured right), knocking on windows of cars there asking for money. A few yards away, a small family was spread out on a blanket on the sidewalk under the bridge (pictured left).

A few minutes later, as we continued walking, a young boy who couldn't have been much older than 4 or 5 came up to me and started tugging on my arm and putting out his hand. After initially saying no, the little boy pointed at his mouth and again put out his hand, asking for money. It was difficult to tear myself from looking into his light brown eyes and walk away. What kind of life is that? To live under a bridge from the time that you're born and begin from the time you can walk to ask for money from strangers? Humans aren't meant for that! After seeing that, you have to wonder what there is that can be done. These people aren't the same as those living in the slums, who can be reached by various programs and immunization projects. These also aren't the bums you typically find on the streets of major US cities, so you feel a lot worse turning them away.

Our next stop was a Hindu temple (pictured right). Given the fact that we didn't really know the customs, nor were we with any Indians, it certainly was a bit awkward for us. However, the temple is situated on one of the several knobby hills in Pune, so we climbed up to the top of the temple, and found a path that wound its way to the top of the hill. The view from the top was totally worth it, as we had a panoramic view of Pune and the mountains that surround the city. Away from all the traffic and noise of the city, we were able to catch a glimpse of the city spreading out to the mountains that border it (pictured left). Truly a wonderful sight!