Touch Down Bodhgaya

Photo: Downtown Gaya, Bihar. The nicest part. Watch your step.

We visited Sheri’s School in Bakrour (Sajata) Village. Promid was at the guesthouse early in the morning. We walled over together. It’s a wide stretch of sandy flood plain and dry riverbed from Bodhgaya to Bakrour. As we approached we could see the school. It’s clean beige lines sitting above the riverbank. A good sight. They welcomed us with broad smiles all around. School was out because of the ‘Holi’ holiday. The nine boy orphans who live there were ecstatic to see Sheri. They were made to stand at attention and recited their names and answered questions in English. At the first down time they swarmed Sheri. They were bright and well kept and adorable. They live in one room with a caretaker and the school guard. One poor boy suffers the affects of polio. We all shared breakfast and a cup of chai on the roof top kitchen area.

We met with Promid andMahmod and talked and decided a few things one of them being setting up a computer with internet access. So no time like now. Promid and another man and us hopped into a tuk-tuk and went to Gaya. We arrived in the main shopping area which was really dirty and fully Indian. We bought a monitor, a universal power supply, a blue tooth antennae, 150 school uniforms, a cell phone, and looked at a generator. We visited the dingy office of the school’s accountant and went over a stack of receipts and a salary book. After we had a crazy tuk-tuk ride in the dark back to Bakrour. We were all dirty and exhausted. They greeted us at the school with smiles and a roof top dinner and a peaceful cup of chai. Looking over the river towards Bodhgaya we were very happy that the school is located in this peaceful village.