A sign at a mass burial site, Colochel, Kanyakumari

Pipes at the mass burial let the gases of decomposition out

Much of the destruction still has not been cleaned up 6 months later

The mud homes in Kannur village were washed away like sandcastles by the tsunami

A young girl in Kannur village, where many tell me they haven't eaten in days

Boats battered by the tsunami in the foreground as fishermen return to the sea in the morning

The tsunami washed over the base of these monuments in Kanyakumari, a popular place to watch the sun rise and sunset.

I am welcomed to Etipower Island, Andhra Pradesh where my organization will build 125 homes

I am only the second foreign woman to ever visit the island

The first of many ceremonial shawls and garlands this day on Etipower Island

Me and some of the villagers of Etipower Island

My ride on Etipower Island -- a tractor with some plastic chairs on it

Two "semi-orphaned" children of Etipower which means they lost one parent

I sit with some of the children of the Kurumba tribe, Gudalur, Tamil Nadu

A little girl from the Kurumba tribal community

I sit with women of the Paniya tribe who are using small loans to buy seedlings

Children of the Paniya tribal community

More children from the Paniya tribe, Gudalur, Tamil Nadu

My ride in Kanyakumari is one of the ubiquitous Ambassador cars

My favorite ad reads, "Talk All Night." I love how the passage of time is depicted by a burned-down mosquito coil!