Westridge in India, Spring 2011

The students and their families at the Homestay Welcome Tea.

Hello families this is Julie and Mirannda and we are here to tell you a little bit about our experiences in our homestay! We have an Amala (Mother), a Pala (Father), and an Ajala (Sister). They are very kind and loving to their host students. Our family has been hosting students for many years and our Amala speaks impeccable English. She is patient when we try to learn new things and she has even taught us some Tibetan words. Now we try to speak Tibetan around the house, words like simbodo (delicious), tojeche (thank you), and nyaljay (blanket). We say simbodo the most because our Amala is an amazing cook. We eat breakfast and dinner with our family every day. Last night she prepared Vegetable Momos for dinner which are like dumplings. Amala taught Julie how to stuff and fold the Momos. Julie made one or two but our Amala and Pala made at least 30 and they each had a different style of folding them. After they were cooked we sat around the table and ate them with some egg soup. The food was simbodo! Before bed we can take showers using a bucket system that consists of a large bucket filled with water and a smaller bucket to pour the water on your body. These homes are nothing like the ours at home but we feel very comfortable in them. Our family is loving and we will miss them very much. (Don't worry they will never replace you!)

Love,
Julie and Mirannda