Paradisa??

Before setting off for India, we registered with an international organization of organic farmers (WWOOF) with the intention of volunteering on some farms. We thought this would break up our travels and provide the opportunity to get to know an area better and learn about the local farming practices. The owner of a coffee and spice plantation responded to us that he was in need of help, and we thought it sounded like a great opportunity. Yet, when we found ourselves at an upscale resort nestled in a spectacular green valley we were a bit surprised. Paradisa resort was going to be our home for 2 weeks, but we only made it for three days. Expecting simple accomodations and food, we found ourselves being served by the wait staff and receiving many of the perks of the resort. While this sounds ideal, it wasn't what we had anticipated and we didn't feel comfortable with the arrangements. In exchange for harvesting coffee, we were getting meals prepared by the head chef...even though we had to eat them at a table in the corner of the kitchen instead of the dining room. The village women that we were harvesting coffee with made 170 rupees/day (~3USD), and so it could not have been advantageous putting us up and feeding us instead of providing work for 3 more villagers. We were also collecting this 'organic' coffee in old paint cans with paint caked on the insides. The owner successfully evades our questions of where he sold his coffee, and didn't seem to have a straight answer for any of our questions. Not speaking Malayalam, we couldn't interact with any of the women workers, nor the supervisor. We felt as if we were stepping on toes and taking work away from them instead of providing any valuable service. The final straw was when the owner actually asked us to buy wine for him (with his money) because he does not have a liquor license for his resort, and if we bought the wine suspisions wouldn't be raised at the liquor stores. All in all, it appeared to be a shady operation that we didn't feel comfortable contributing to, so we opted to continue on down the road and leave Paradisa behind.