Sarah Milligan and Sarah Masters, medical students at Queen's University Belfast visited St. Luke's Leprosarium during the summer of 2009.  St. Luke's is located in the southern tip of India.  Here is Sarah Milligan's reflections on her visit to St. Luke's:

After a long day of travelling, Sarah and I finally arrived at Trivandrum international airport in Kerala, South India. Exiting the cold, comfortable, air conditioned airport, I had not fully prepared myself for what was about was about to hit me – the heat! First tip about India, get used to sweating – there is no relief to the heat, and no escaping it!

From the airport, we had to travel 5 hours by car to our final destination, Peikulam in Tamil Nadu, the neighbouring state to Kerala. This journey is one which I will never forget, as I quickly discovered, when driving in India, there are no rules. The roads are poor, and very busy, and those driving, drive fast and love to overtake. This leads me to my second tip – when a passenger in a car, if a nervous traveller, I would say it is best to keep your eyes closed!

Despite the hairy journey, it did allow us to get a flavour of India that flying would not have allowed. There were people everywhere, the place seemed so busy, and every turn we made just led to more people – so unlike home, it was a lot to take in!

Once we finally arrived at the hospital, we were met by a man called Jesuraj, who was to be our invaluable guide during our stay, and a mob of very excited children, who would be living beside us. We were served our first Indian meal on a traditional banana leaf, and had our first attempt at negotiating curry and rice with our hands!

Over the next 3 weeks, Sarah and I got to spend time with the patients, staff and extended family of St. Lukes leprosarium. We soon discovered, that this place is not just a hospital, but a home to many, and an essential lifeline to those that have been affected by leprosy and their families. Their work is so important, and it was a privilege to be part of it for short time that I was there. I am very grateful to the staff, children and patients of St. Lukes for welcoming me into their home last summer.