This morning, we split up into two groups to visit two different schools in Delhi that are Roshni's partners. Here, we met the families of the Roshni girls and had a "Town Hall" with them. We each asked each other questions and the Roshni students and teachers helped with translation. All around, everyone thought it was a wonderful experience. We all got to see how supportive the families are of the Roshni girls along with how thankful the girls are to their parents and the Roshni program There were tears shed and many hugs and kind words that were shared. This experience was the highlight of the trip so far for many of us.
After the session, we headed to to lunch. We went to Le Meridien, a five-star hotel in Delhi. We ate an amazing meal in this luxurious hotel and it was a strong contrast from the schools we visited in the morning. Although we all enjoyed our meals, some people felt guilty about the food they were eating after seeing poverty on the streets as we drove around.
In the afternoon we went on a rickshaw ride through Old Dehli. In pairs, we rode through the crowded markets and streets. The markets sold anything you could have imagined: clothes, fabric, tools, jewelry, food, tires, animals, and much more. We were suprised by how busy the streets were (Old Dehli is the most densely populated city in the word.) In the rickshaws we noticed that motorcycles were constantly honking at us because they wanted to go around (even though the traffic was not moving) and people were holding on, pushing, and walking around the rickshaws.
Then, we visited the largest Muslim Temple in Asia and the largest Hindu Mosque in the world. At both the temple and the mosque we admired the beautiful architecture. We especially were in awe of the carvings at the mosque. After walking around the mosque we watched a light and water show which was very cool.
Today was an amazing day and we are all very excited to visit the Taj Mahal tomorrow!