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Summer Camp 08

From 10th to 25th June there was the ‘Learn For Life Summer Camp’. Eighteen children accompanied by an equal number of adults have been to Haridvar, wich is next to Varanasi one of the four  most holy cities in India, and Rishikesh, where the Ganga leaves the high Himalaya and enters the Ganga Plain. Also situated next to the river Ganga, Haridvar is quite a big city full of pilgrims. Here the children together with the teachers, the women empowerment group and the doctor visited different Temples and various holy places.
            Rishikesh, famous not only as the Beatles vacation place, was the second stop of the summer camp. Rishikesh is a small town, built on the side of the Ganga, full of Ashrams and really is a quiet place, perfect for take a rest from the frenetic and hectic life of Varanasi. Apart from visiting all the Temples of the town and bathing in the river Ganga almost everyday we went to bathe in the waterfalls which are 5 km from the town, which is a wonderful place completely in the nature. The children enjoyed this very much as did the adults.
In Rishikesh the Ganga is very clean because it comes down directly from the Himalaya and it was important for the children to see what Ganga looks like at the beginning of its route and how it changes by the time it reaches Varanasi, dirty and full of trash and plastic.
            In both places the whole group stayed in an ashram. In Haridvar the ashram was just for Learn For Life and here we made community life as a big family, increasing the relationships between the children and between the children and the teachers in an not-ordinary school contest. In Rishikesh on the contrary the ashram was full of other people and here the children could socialize with other children of other countries and other cultures.

            We chose Haridvar and Rishikesh as the location of the summer camp because for the Indian tradition and the Hindu religion they are two of the most important centers in northern India. We deemed it important for children growing up in the holy city of Varanasi to see other realities of life that are  at the same time similar and different in many respects.