Last day in Hyderabad. Last day in India.

Today we awoke tired but satisfied as yesterday we managed to visit the Charminar, the Chow Mohalla Palace, Birlar Mandir, shop for bangles, ride throughout the city in auto rickshaws (or tuk tuks as some people call them), and enjoy a full Indian meal next to Hussainsager Lake to end the evening with spicy mouths and full bellies.

After breakfast in our hotel dining room overlooking the lake and the city of Hyderabad, we met our driver, Mohammed. We were driven to the Pushpagiri Eye Institute where we were warmly greeted by Vijay, the Course Administrator, as well as our guide for the day. We hopped into their van and were driven to one of the many slums of the city. As we unloaded from the vehicle, our eyes widened as we attempted to take in all that we saw. Hundreds of tent-like shacks constructed out of mud and found objects made up an entire community of thousands. Pushapagiri had put up a camp for 15 days in the area to examine and prescribe surgery and/or glasses to those in need. It is difficult to describe the experience of meeting these beautiful and kind people and seeing the way in which they live. At one point, I was introduced to a young girl named Sarahita who was blind at birth. She shook my hand and expressed her gratitude in meeting me. My eyes filled with tears as I hugged her and told her the pleasure was all mine. As we walked through the slums, we took pictures of the children who giggled with pleasure when we would show them their image on our camera screens. We also took pictures of the doctors who have given their time and skill to serve the less fortunate. They are truly heroes.

From the slums we returned to the clinic for a tour of the facility. It was a beautiful building that is run by those who give of their time and talents. It is all paid for by the generosity of others and a little seems to go a long way. 10,000 Indian Rupees pays for the complete surgery procedure for 10 individuals. This includes transportation to the hospital from the slums, the surgery, boarding and food for two nights, medicine and transportation back. Amazing as 10,000INR is the equivalent of about $200 US dollars. It challenged us all to think about what we could give up in order to potentially help give sight to the poor and blind.

And so, we end today knowing that we return to the states tomorrow morning. It is with mixed emotion that we return home. We are grateful for the experience and we will treasure the memories that were made on this journey.