Downing 2010 cover opt b_Layout 1 - Downing College - University ...

DOWNING COLLEGE ASSOCIATIONWildlife Sanctuary. The resort boasted a natural swimming-pool set against astunning backcloth, and cosy lodges – even a tree-house – but the evening searchfor animals in the wild was mostly fruitless. A taxi took us on, up 36 hairpinbends, to Ooty, although this time we lived in hotels, not in the school. Despitemany staff changes since our departure last year we slotted in as if we had neverbeen away. We were keen to be of service and over the next few days we weregiven the task of teaching music to younger pupils, to relieve the head ofdepartment. The sense of Christian fellowship was as prevalent as before. Herewe experienced the ‘worst monsoon storm in living memory’, according to thepress, with mudslides blocking roads and a number of fatalities. When we cameto leave, our normal escape routes downhill were blocked. Nevertheless ourskilful taxi driver picked his way through the potholed roads of back-road villagesand we reached Coimbatore Station in time to catch our train.Staff from Samaritan School, our destination, met our train and we woundour way up the more gentle slopes of the Yelagiri Hills. Unlike Ooty, the schoolis in a very rural situation, with its own cattle, rice paddies, vegetable fields andsilk farm. There is no village and there are no shops. The slopes have a natural,undramatic, boulder-strewn beauty, often shrouded in mist at the beginning ofthe day. When the sun shone the temperature was equivalent to an Englishsummer. Our accommodation, well removed from the school buildings, wasprimitive. We had a basin in the room, supplied with undrinkable water, but theshower was in the toilet which would have rendered it useless as a toilet if we hadused it – so we managed without! We had to use our cases for storage; the bedswere hard and the coverings uncomfortable. Our colleague had a room to himselfand between us we had another space for some of our meals and for meetings.We were cared for lovingly by a male member of the domestic staff, rather like anarmy batman – there are so many echoes of the British Raj in this part of India –whom we had great problems understanding but whom we regarded as a saint.Our task was a very delicate one. We were insistent that we had to gatherinformation about the merits and demerits of the school, which had falling rolls,from the students and from the staff – something which did not fit easily withthe top-down Indian culture and teaching methodology. However, we graduallywon over their sympathies and by the time we left there was some very goodprofessional practice in place. The pupils were delightful, impeccably dressed intheir uniform and greeting us cheerily wherever we went. The boarders formed amagnificent choir while we were there, the senior boys being an unusual strength.Worshipping with them on a Sunday was a great joy. What we hadn’t bargainedwith was being woken up every morning at 5 am by a tinny church bell, rung 25times, right next to us, followed by numerous Christian songs at full blast, whichmade further sleep very difficult! Our reaction was far from spiritual!24