KERALA TOURISM NEWSLETTER
Interview
What we have for you this month as part of our interactions with guests to Kerala is the "Rickshaw Relief" team from New Zealand.
Given below are excerpts from the talk that Kerala Tourism had with Harriet McGregor at the Vedic Village Resort in Kodungalloor. Harriet was one of the members of the New Zealand "Rickshaw Relief" who participated in the rickshaw run organized by "Adventurists", from Kochi to Shillong.
According to Harriet McGregor, she was enjoying every moment in Kerala and wanted to call it a life changing experience. Her team, nine in total, had seven boys and two girls. Though some of them had been to India before, it was their first visit to Kerala for all of them. A confident Harriet said: "We heard Kerala was tropical and beautiful and so decided to make it the perfect starting point. We were overjoyed to find the people here warm, gracious and hospitable."
All the teams participated in the programme to raise money for charity. "Rickshaw Relief" opted to raise money that will directly go to Social Change and Development, an organization that supports and empower rural communities in India to become architects of their own development.
Harriet believes that the program has generated a growing sense of responsibility to understand more about the charity being done in India, to make lives better. As it was an opportunity to learn about the Indian cultures, people, religion and tradition, she calls the trip a wonderful combination of tourism and philanthropy.
"Nevertheless, there are challenges too. Barriers of every kind: cultural, traditional, language, lack of mechanical skills, getting lost, getting sick …to falling in love with India and never wanting to leave," says Harriet. While talking about the splendors of Kerala and the gratifying circuit they had to cover, she observes: "We are here to learn from you. The people here look after the families, age is given due respect, and the cultures weave communities together. We want to soak up everything on this journey."
The team's stay at Vedic Village nestled on the crest of the Muziris Heritage Zone enabled them to go for local trips to historically significant places and various religious sites, including a local temple festival.
"We are amazed at how green and lush the landscape of Kerala is. It is a tropical paradise. The pace of life here is exquisitely slow. It is similar to what we call "Island Time" in our part of the world, which is where the people take time in every day to simply enjoy the small things in life. The people here live with a grace and poise that gives them the quiet power, which we call "mana" back home," she said.
