Felicitation Ceremony today for students moving into 11th grade (Junior College) who scored well on their exams. Here we are with the English teachers. 
We got dressed up! Manisha, an English and Geography teacher, loaned us saris and everyone was so impressed with how we looked. 
It looks like we’re mad at them, but we’re not. We’re proud–really! 
The top ten students with their awards. 
Ta da! 
Well…this happened. I really DO know how to dab, I swear. 
Pallavi (R) treated us to lunch afterward. Her friend Kalyani joined us. 
An Indian twist on the taco. Delicious paneer tacos with all kinds of spices. 
I gave the students in the 9th grade class I co-taught on Wednesday letters from my students in the U.S. Inside this book are letters they wrote back. 
To Noah 
To Meghan 
To Selina 
To Nalani 
To Owen 
To Claudia 
To Feven 
To students, generally 
To Alex 
To students, generally 
To students, generally 
To Joe 
To Yossan 
To students, generally 
To Yossan 
To Ibrahim 
To students, generally
Today was our last day in Pune and our last day at KHS. We were lucky to be in town for a special occasion — the annual ceremony for standard 10 students (10th graders) who have taken and passed their big exams and who will now move on to Junior College (grades 11/12 in the U.S.). To mark the occasion, Davie and I were told that we would don saris and give a big speech to the crowd of students, their parents, and all the teachers at the school! Manisha, an English and Geography teacher who has accompanied us on a few field trips, kindly brought some saris for us to choose from and then helped us get dressed. It was quite a process, but she made us look good. Everyone was so impressed by how well we cleaned up and just generally happy to see us wearing saris. It was fun for us, too. We then made our way to the auditorium where we were given gifts from the school, watched the students receive their awards, and then gave our own speech on the importance of working hard academically while also remembering that there is more to each of us than the college we attend or the job we secure. The teachers, especially, were pleased with the message. It was bittersweet to say goodbye to these incredible teachers today. They were so kind throughout our visit, welcoming us into their spaces, chatting with us over home-cooked meals they cooked for us, and visiting historic and educational sites with us throughout the week. We felt welcomed and loved from beginning to end and I really look forward to finding ways for us to stay in touch so that our students can benefit also from this connection.
Tonight for our final outing we will head to a theater production (I guess Pune is known for excellent theater) with Pallavi and a friend before flying out early tomorrow to get back to Delhi.
Ms. Otty in India 