In the month of July 2017, FSL-India, organized a 2 week work camp at Jaipur, Rajasthan, under the theme Environment/ Kids/ Culture, with help of 6 European girls from the different cities of France, Italy and Spain.

Jaipur is the capital city of Rajasthan, called the ‘Desert State’, in the north of India. It is also known as the ‘Pink City’. The city has maintained its traditions, culture and heritage for nearly three centuries of its existence in spite of very low temperature during cold winter months and the scorching heat in the hottest summer months. In the month of July, it was the monsoon arrival for the region. The group had pleasant weather with rain sometimes, during the camp. Around 4.5 million people reside in Jaipur. It is also part of one of India’s famous tours – the Golden Triangle Tour.

The volunteers worked with Badodiya Basti Government Secondary School. The school has more than 180 children and is situated in Badodiya Busthi slum, near the railway station.

It was not just fun with games, the volunteers decided to paint and decorate the classroom of the kindergarten of these children. For 2 weeks, these motivated volunteers interacted with the children, engaged them in various activities and taught them basic English, health and hygiene, environment and solid waste management.

As to the cultural aspects of Jaipur, Rajasthan is rich in its cultural heritage and the volunteers enjoyed visits to the Hawa Mahal palace, Amber Fort, Jal Mahal (water palace), city palace and  it was an unique opportunity for them. The “Teej Festival” celebration in Tripotia Circle, organized by Rajasthan Tourism department with its rich cultural heritage, also had a lot to offer to these enthusiastic volunteers. They enjoyed the Henna sessions, the puppet show, the Rajasthan folk dances, music, traditional costumes and dances performed by different groups. The volunteers enjoyed the show in the streets, which left indelible marks in their hearts.

Another interesting aspect of this camp was the interaction between the local Rajasthani family and the volunteers of FSL-India during a family function visit. They understood about the traditional Indian family function and enjoyed the interactive session about the culture, volunteering and local customs etc. The volunteers were enriched and in return, exchanged information with the locals of Jaipur about the cultural practices of their respective countries.