We have now finished the main scope of the project and I’m now tying up the loose ends before I head to Goa at the weekend. Jon left for the UK on Tuesday so I am spending the week finishing the report and visiting local sights. We found a really secluded waterfall last week where you can swim and dive off rocks so I think I’ll go back there. Some friends from home are visiting and are being shown the sights and sounds of Phaltan too, that’ll be the local shop and the cricket field then!

The guys at ARTI are very happy with our results and although we didn’t achieve the target we set out for in terms of fuel saving I think we did the best we could. I am still a bit sceptical about the merit of the other reports that have suggested an 80% saving. There is defiantly scope for a project next year which I will hopefully be managing. I think it would involve designing and building a large (100 cubic metre) digester so that the engine can meet the demands of a village for a day, not just one hour.

I think after 2 months here I have come to appreciate the Indian way of life a lot more and I’m sort of beginning to understand how things work amongst the chaos and frustration! The people in Phaltan are really friendly and genuine and although I won’t miss the town that much, I think the friends that I have made and the faces that I recognise everyday will be missed. I am really looking forward to seeing a bit more of India in the coming weeks. I am hoping to explore the south a bit more then head to Darjeeling before visiting Nepal and returning home. I’ll keep updating the blog with pictures and (hopefully entertaining!) stories.

I’ll put a link to the report when it is finished if anyone is interested.