Namaskara! My name is Miriam, I am from Germany and I am doing voluntary service in India, working with FSL.

Since August 2016, I have been living in Mysore, Karnataka and working in a school and farming project. Before coming to India I didn’t know much about the country I was going to live in for the next 10 months and I had only a vague idea how my life would look like.

Now, after 9 months of living in a small host family, working together with the local community on the field, chatting with all the smart kids at school, travelling to the most beautiful places, wearing Indian dresses, washing my clothes by hand, cooking Indian food, having a shower with only a bucket of water, eating more and more rice than ever before, celebrating Hindu festivals, and getting to know the most adorable people… I learned and gained so many experiences and got to know a completely different way of living that let me grow in personality.

My project “Shri Gurumahanteshwara” is placed in the small village Hosakote, 40 minutes away from Mysore. Rahul, the founder of the project, took the initiative to build an organic farm. His mission is to do farming in as natural as possible, by using no chemical fertiliser and no pesticides. With his way of farming, he wants to set a good example for other farmers, to teach the importance of environmental awareness and to inspire youth to invest time, money and ideas in villages. The target of the project is to increase health in community and to create sustainable jobs in the rural area around Mysore, since people started migrating into the city for work. The farm is still in its setup, so that there is always a lot to do. My work includes planting, weeding, installing drip irrigation and calf-care. Even if people in the village don’t speak English, they are very interested, keep smiling at me and talk to me in their local language – Kannada. Everyone is very friendly and caring. After finishing my work at the farm, I go to the school, which is in the same village. There I do extracurricular activities with the children, like handicraft work and sports.

I experienced India as a safe country and especially during travel I never faced any problems. Everywhere I went people treated me respectfully and with a great hospitality. Time went by so fast and I’m gonna miss everything what I came to love so much.

Thank you India, for giving me a second home and an experience of a lifetime!