Option One Long Stay Exchange Québec photographers & Indian photography students in Varanasi and Bhubaneswar, India Dates: 11 – 31 march 2014 Price: 1525 $ based on 9 Québec visitors About FairMail FairMail is a social enterprise producing fair trade photographs and photographic greeting cards. The pictures are taken by underprivileged teenagers from India, Peru and Morocco. FairMail provides them with free cameras and photography training. They receive 50% of the profit from the sale of their cards to finance their own education and housing. Read more on fairmail.info About travelling with FairMail The FairMail team likes to invite travellers to come with us during our photography trips. If you want to join us, you have to realize that you travel with teenagers and that you’ll have to adapt to their way and goal of travelling. The main goal of the whole group is to take pictures, not to view as many tourist sites as possible. Due to the limited budget of FairMail and the teenagers, we sleep in a basic accommodation, use public transport as much as possible and we eat in local restaurants. Sometimes we will walk for a few hours in a row to take pictures. Walking shoes and a raincoat are part of your equipment! Alternately we speak Hindi and English in the group. There is a Dutch English speaking tour guide, so it is not necessary to speak Hindi. It is possible to take some Hindi lessons during your first days in Varanasi if you want. Group composition: • 9 Québec photographers • 9 FairMail India teenagers • 2 Indian FairMail staff: Akshay, Dhiraj • 1 Intercultural facilitator: Janneke • 1 Dutch FairMail guide: Peter Program Outline: Day 1: Delhi to Varanasi by plane or train Day 2: Acclimatize in Varanasi Day 3: Meet the FairMail teenagers, tour of the FairMail office, getting to know each other dynamics. Day 4 – 11: Teach photography in Varanasi in pairs Day 12: Travel to Bhubaneswar by train Day 13 – 20: Travel & photography in Bhubaneswar & Puri Day 21: Canadians fly from Bhubaneswar to Delhi, FairMail group travels back by train to Varanasi Program in Varanasi: In total the Québec photographers will be in Varanasi during 10 days. Besides being the location for the FairMail India office and the home of the FairMail teenagers it is one of the most important pilgrim cities for the Hindus. It is a very traditional and mystic city, with many Hindu temples on the borders of the holy Ganges river where the pilgrims perform their religious ceremonies. This in combination with the great light make it a great spot to take pictures, especially if you get the chance to blend in with the locals (=the FairMail teenagers). After arrival and acclimatizing in the hostal on the shore of the Ganges river we will meet the FairMail teenagers on Wednesday in the office. We will organize some fun dynamics so everyone gets to know each other and give everyone the chance to present themselves. On the fourth day the 8-day photography training by the Québec photographers will start. The aim of this period is to facilitate both a photography and a cultural exchange between the Canadian and Indian teenagers. To do this all the Québec photogrpahers will have to prepare themselves in Québec by making a photo documentary about their lives back home. By showing this to the Indian teenagers it will not only give them an impression of their lives but also show them how to make a documentary about their own lives which will be the goal of the coming 8 days. Every Québec photographers will be teamed up with 1 or 2 Indian students. In this 8 day period the Québec photographer will guide their Indian buddy with theoretical and practical guidance to make a similar photo documentary about “My Varanasi”, showing images of what is the most important in their lives in Varanasi. This will consist partly of theoretical classes and feedback moments with the whole group in the FairMail office. But the biggest part of the time they will be out on the streets, walking through Varanasi in pairs to practically work on their joint assignment. This means talking about the assignment, planning where to shoot and going together to the school, houses, sport grounds, markets, working places of their parents and other places that are important for the lives of the Indian teenagers. The students plan their work together at times that are convenient for the type of pictures they want to take and the places they have identified for this. After shooting together the Québec photographer will review the pictures together with the teenager and provide constructive feedback to help them improve. The documentaries that come out of this will go on exhibit in India and Europe in 2015 giving an inside look into the lives of these Indian teenagers. At the same time the Québec photographers will also be working on their own documentary about the lives of their Indian FairMail buddy. By working on a similar assignment at the same time there is the possibility for a great exchange, both photographically and culturally. The Indian teenagers will also have to give their feedback on the pictures of the Québec photographer. The documentary about the life of a FairMail teenager in Varanasi by the Québec photographer will be offered with an article they have to write to a Québec or Canadian magazine as part of the Québec photogrpahers assignment. Program around Bhubaneswar: After 8 days in Varanasi we take a long train ride to Bhubaneswar in the Indian state of Orissa. This is a new destination for the FairMail teenagers too and the first time they will see the sea! Bhubaneswar is the capital of the state of Orissa containing many great Hindu temples, ancient spiritual caves and a botanic garden. Nearby Puri is a nice beach resort where the Indian teenagers will see the sea for the first time and possibly go for a swim with their Québec buddies. Nearby in the city of Konark is the UNESCO world heritage site containing the Sun temple, one of the oldest and most beautiful temples in India. The 9 days in this diverse area will be used for all sorts of photography exercises organized by FairMail and by the Québec photographers like: • “Photography scavenger hunt” in pairs as a looking exercise in a new surrounding and fun competition who can find all the objects on the list and take the best pictures of them in Bhubaneswar. • “Only 3” where the students are sent out in pairs with one prop that can be used for greeting card photography. Together they have to take only three, all totally different, pictures of the same prop in Puri. Afterward the whole team will vote on who took the best & most different pictures. • “My perfect picture” where the Indian teenagers present a drawing of their perfect picture for a FairMail greeting card including the visualization of the theme, message, background, light, angle etc. After the feedback from the group they will work on actually making this perfect picture which should result in a new FairMail postcard in Puri and Konark. • Street photography session. The bustling market area in Bhubaneswar is a great place to do street photography together. • Night photography session. After some theory we will do a night photography session in Puri. • Religious photography session. Taking pictures of the temples in Konark and Bhubaneswar in a way that they are suitable for spiritual/wellness magazines. • Nature photography session. The botanical garden in Bhubaneswar is a great place to practice macro photography. • Portrait photography session. After some theory we will do a portrait photography session in Puri. Your role as Québec photographer: • Teach documentary photography to the Indian students. • Work on the Indian teenager’s documentary in pairs while in Varanasi. • Help with the Indian teenager’s eventual picture selection and help with post-production if there is time. • Take part in different photography assignments during trip to Bhubaneswar. • Make their own documentary about the life of a FairMail teenager for an article that need to write for a Canadian magazine when they are back. Language: The volunteers teach in English. About 80% of the teenagers understand and talk English good enough. For the new teenagers that dont speak good English yet we always have a translator during classes. About the accommodations We mostly use small basic hostels during this journey. We use them because there is no alternative on the destinations we visit, but also because of the limited budget we have. The teenagers are not accustomed to luxury and for you it can be a new experience. By this way of travelling you get to understand what living in India is like, and it also gives the local owners a benefit from tourism in their area. About the meals The food is included during the part of the journey with the teenagers. Only the 11 days in Varanasi you pay for your own meals. This means that you eat the same food as the rest of the group. This is the best way to experience some of the excellent local dishes! Due to the budget and the expectations of the teenagers we often eat in simple and inexpensive local restaurants and not in tourist restaurants. Of course you are free to order something else at your own costs. About transport We use trains, buses, rickshaws and sometimes private jeeps during this journey. Travelling by train is a unique experience and way to get to know the country. As the distances are long (sometimes more than 10 hours) we do make use of the more luxurious trains that provide meals and beds with sheets, toilets and sometimes even have air conditioning! For the routes between smaller cities there are only simple buses or jeeps available. When the quality is acceptable and the distance not too long on these routes, we use public transport. For a couple of times it is also a nice to experience how the public transport is organised in a developing country like India. Sheep on the roof, chickens is the bus, loud Hindi music on the radio and there you go. And stop again, and go! The level of comfort during this journey The places we visit are not the general tourist hotspots in India. That’s what makes our trips different. This does mean that we visit places where the tourist infrastructure is not as developed as you might be used to. The accommodations are fine, but consider that you mostly stay in primitive hostals, not always with hot water for example. The state of many roads in India is bad and the traffic is chaotic. The advantage is that you drive pretty slowly, so you can enjoy the beautiful scenery. About Culture: Varanasi is a traditional city, where it is appreciated if you adapt to the more traditional way of clothing: for women this means no bare shoulders and knees. Also, kissing and hugging in public is considered awkward (also just among friends). What to take? • Cash, during some days there won’t be any ATM’s. • Raincoat / extra dry clothes • Warm clothes (during the night-time) • Hiking shoes • Light clothes (during hot days) • Cap or sun protection for your head • Bathing suit • Photo or video camera • Valid passport and Visa for India • Copies of travel documents • Daypack • Towel • Sunscreen • Sunglasses • Flashlight • Pocket knife • mosquito net • mosquito repellant • all vaccinations needed for India (malaria cases are also reported around Varanasi) • medical and travel insurance • oral rehydrating solution powders (for diarrhea situations) • cotton sheets (or a thin cotton sleeping bag) What makes this journey sustainable? The good thing about FairMail photography journeys is that you not only treat yourself to a unique holiday but also one of the FairMail teenagers. With your contribution to the journey, we can cover the costs for one of the FairMail teenagers to go with us on tour. Its obviously not just about money. You can also share your western view on beauty with the teenagers, so they learn what customers of FairMail cards like to see on their postcards. This helps them to sell more cards and earn more money for their education. In a fun and relaxed way you support talented, but underprivileged teenagers, to improve their future! Included in the price: - English speaking guide (founder of FairMail) - Hindi translator (national manager FairMail India) - All overnight stays in a private room in hostals - All meals with the group, except during your stay in Varanasi. - Transport during basic program - Entrance fees during basic program - Train station or Airport pickup in Varanasi and Bhubaneswar - Dinner meeting with all the FairMail teenagers in Varanasi. - Trip costs of one of the FairMail teenagers -One meeting with all the photographers participating prior to the trip Not included in the price: - Flight to and from India - Transport by train or airplane to Varanasi and from Bhubaneswar before and after the start of the trip. - Any (taxi) transport besides the basic program - Food en drinks besides the 3 daily meals during the part of the trip with the teenagers. - Photography equipment - Tips - Optional tours around Varanasi Deadlines: • All participants must register by the 10th of November 2013 by sending us their CV in english • Québec photographers confirmation and 50% down payment needed before 12th of November 2013. • Québec photographers information needed to make reservations by end November 2013.
Posted on: Mon, 21 Oct 2013 13:46:27 +0000
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