hey all

man its been too long - sorry. really is so flippin hectic here, hardly have a minute to myself! have been lame in keeping up with this. sorry! whoopsie.
okay so whats been going on. well, were kinda starting to wrap everything up now, which is weird, and very sad. its jus 2 weks til were out of here to trek around. theres lots of things to tie up, and people to say goodbye to. Hospitality is a HUGE part of indian culture, and for the next 2 weeks were at someones house every single night. for real. no eveings free! but thats absolutely cool, i love spending time with these people so much, and we have got a pretty awesome holiday ahead to relax and do what we want. its all going so fast though, im sure were going to be leaving before we know it, and yeh that does make me sad to think about it! i really have had an amazing time, met some quality people and got to know the people ive been working with in the slums and stuff so well. will be hard to part, but will be satisfied with the knowledge thatweve had a really great time together. and who knows, maybe i'll see them again......
it is hard when leaving people you know havnt got all that much hope, and leaving people who you kno w are in real bad violent and un fair situations. nearly every woman ive been in contact with in the slums is wrapped up in a load of domestic hardships, with absolutely no where to go and no one to turn to, well except the few staff that ive been working with here at Oasis. i can see that the projects really have been so beneficial. they all have sucha positive attitude even though their situations are appauling. theyre really rich in charcter and optimism, which really blows me away. and theres something really genuine and true in these people - theres no posessions or materialism or society for them to hide behind. what yo usee is what you get. and i like that.
So, onto oz in a few weeks. we heard from Oasis UK a week back about our placement. We'll be working with the Salvation Army in melbourne.yes i see you squiming, but dont worry, i wont be wearing navy blue boys trousers and a grandad jumper, blasting 'onward christian soldiers' on my trumpet. no way. they actually have a really cutting edge youth programme, and we'll be working alongside a team dealing with drug addicts and prostitutes and stuff. very much street based, i think. but who knows it may end up being completly different - seems to be the story of OASIS! but always turns out to be amazing. am really excited about it. cant wait. think it will fly though, seeing as its the last placement and the shortest. the time were there excluding the holiday is actually pretty short, jus 10 weeks. jus have to get stuck in from the start.
so yeh, we leave to go trekking around india on the 22nd, have a late train so have all day to get things together. probably start packing in the morning, knowing me. leaving things to the last minute surely is the best policy...

okay well i have full intention to write again just bfore i leave, so yeh, watch this space.
i hope everyone is well,
miss you all a lot

with love
rebecca xx