Panchakarma

Panchakarma is an Ayurvedic purification program. As my pre-treatment I had 3 days of shirodara and oil massage (explained in further detail in my Christmas Eve post). The treatment itself is 5 days and I am on day 4.

Day 1:
I was given this syrupy liquid to swish around my mouth before instructed to drink 50ml of ghee (clarified butter) followed by a medicinal tea. It was not so bad. It was a little gross drinking so much ghee, but not terrible. I basically just hung out in my room all day reading Holy Cow by Sarah MacDonald. I felt pretty exhausted so I decided not to go anywhere. At 6:30 I had a bowl of incredibly bland, watery porridge. Then I went to bed at about 8:30, for lack of anything better to do.

Day 2:
Again I got the same as Day 1, but with 100ml of ghee. It was really horrible to drink that much, and I really felt like retching after. I was good about it though. I went out for a bit in the afternoon, just to check my email and whatnot. Again, I had some porridge later on and then finished my book before going to bed.

Day 3:
Yesterday! I was given 150ml of ghee! It was possibly the most disgusting thing I've ever done. Honest to God. I felt nauseous pretty much all day and I could taste the oil and grease for hours and hours and hours (it was probably 6 before I couldn't taste the ghee anymore and I had taken it at 8am). I went to bed at 7pm last night because I felt so sick I couldn't even read.

Day 4:
Today. I feel much better. I had a gentle Ayurvedic massage today followed by a swedan (sauna) and then body scrub. It was actually quite nice. Today is my day of rest before I am given the "medicine" tomorrow, which is apparently some sort of herbal laxative. So it looks like I will probably spend all day tomorrow in my room, rather, on the toilet. Oh well, I am so glad it's just one more day after today. Also, today I got to eat kicheri, which is rice and mung beans. It tasted absolutely decadent after only eating porridge, bland bland porridge for 3 days. Every night I have been dreaming of food. I can't wait.

Hm... well, I think this is a boring post. I was going to write a lot more, but I've been writing some emails and doing some searching, so I have been here for almost 2 hours already, meaning I don't feel like writing anymore.

One interesting thing though. There is this pigeon who roosts in my window sill and she has 2 eggs. I've been watching, I can't wait for them to hatch. I think it might be annoying, but I'm excited anyway.

Christmas: Alone in India

Sometimes India makes me want to cry. It just happens, out of the blue. It's always because I see some particularly maimed beggar, or a mangy dog, or a dog with his head half smashed in from some accident, or a cow with bloated belly from eating plastic bags but the rest of the body is clearly emaciated, or a goat hobbling with a broken leg... god, there are so many terrible things to see. But the incredible part is not that sometimes it makes me want to cry; the incredible part is that it doesn't always make me want to cry. Sometimes I just walk with my head high and I am unseeing and unhearing. I often walk and hum to myself, sometimes I sing this mantra for universal peace that I learned at the ashram. I wanted to post the words, but I cannot find a copy of it online, so I'll have to transcribe it later from my journal. Somehow, if I'm singing this mantra, I feel like everything is okay and honestly, it seems like people bug me less. It's not as though I'm singing loudly or anything. I'm really just singing under my breath, so I reckon they'd only hear if they were close (have I mentioned how noisy India is?).

Today was one of those days where I had to sing the universal peace mantra just to get by. I walked to the ashram thinking, again, that I might go in to see the Christmas ado, but I couldn't do it. I don't know if I'm lacking curiosity, courage or will, but I just couldn't bring myself to go in there. Instead I went to the German Bakery and treated myself to a slice of lemon cake and a cappuccino. Tomorrow I start my 5 fast. It's not really a fast- I drink a bunch of ghee in the morning and then I get a bowl of porridge which looks about as exciting as the watery gruel you'd imagine they fed to Oliver in Oliver Twist. I think I will find it difficult, especially the drinking butter bit.

Anyway, after passing so many beggars today I put some change in my pocket and I found the remaining cigarettes that I have left over from my last digression and made them easily accessible to give away. Then I started walking (to this internet shed) and singing and I don't know what happened, but I got here with all my change in my pocket and these accursed cigarettes still in my purse. It's like all the terrors just disappeared, and seriously, I was looking!

I also gave a little gift to Lidia this morning. I just left it at her door with a Christmas card I made. I kind of hope she doesn't react. I almost didn't give it to her because I don't really want to make up with her, but I already had it for her and it seemed very small and petty not to give it to her. You know, Christmas spirit and all that jazz.

On a lighter note, I am doing a little Christmas line dancing with singing performance with some other folks tomorrow morning. How bizarre! Haha... we're singing Santa Claus Is Coming To Town, a little tardy, considering we're doing it the day after Christmas!! Oh well, maybe he's coming on India time, but he's using North American time so it'll still be Christmas in North America and in India it's quite normal to be late... make sense?! No problem!

Well, I think I will be on the internet every day this week. It is an easy activity which I can achieve even while fasting, so you'll get lots of my incredibly deep thoughts during panchakarma! ha ha read on!

Christmas Eve shopping

For Christmas I bought myself a ticket to Bangalore and a ticket to Sri Lanka. Pretty sweet, eh? I also took a walk down to the ashram and considered going in to listen to their Christmas choir, but I chickened out last minute. You have to go through too much security, and although I don't have anything to hide, it's still irritating and not worth the trouble.

[I was just complimented on how fast I type, by a man in this internet cafe...er, more like internet shed.]

Really, for Christmas and New Years I am being a total dork and staying in an Ayurveda Hospital, which is similar to a retirement home. I will be undergoing Pancharkama, which is a fairly intense detox. Yesterday and today I had some medicines I had to take (one in honey the other in ghee), plus I had an Ayurveda massage (lots and lots of oil) and shirodara, followed by some oil in my ears and nose, inhaling some smoking reed through my nose (I have no idea what it is), a full body scrub, some concoction to gargle, and then they "smoke" my hair (they literally billow some scented smoke into my hair, it's kind of nice actually).

In short: this is not where I could have ever foreseen myself spending Christmas and New Years. Let alone, doing a hardcore cleanse, like Panchakarma. I haven't really begun the "hardcore" bit yet, but I've been told it involves drinking relatively large amounts of ghee (clarified butter). I'm a little worried; that sounds pretty gross. Luckily, tomorrow will just be a repeat of today and yesterday, which is nice.

I swear, I am such an old lady sometimes. For fun, I am doing line dancing to Christmas carols with some older women (and one gent!). I have impressed everyone with my incredible aptitude for the moves... really though, I shouldn't brag, I had lots of experience on Savary.

The Complaining Woman

I was sad to leave Goa and leaving in the taxi in the morning with Lidia, I really second-guessed myself. Lidia is quite crazy: she is known, especially by businesses, as The Complaining Woman. No. I am not joking. She honestly complains all the time. I won't go into details, because then I'm just complaining, but suffice to say, I usually just let her choose the restaurant or seats, or whatever it might be, since she is so incredibly picky. Well, we got in a bit of a fight last night, actually, she was screaming at me in the street. It was really quite unusual and surreal. I had to bite my cheeks not to laugh. Here is this skinny, big-eyed, 50 year old, intense Italian woman screaming at me for not being grateful (oh the irony!) enough to her while these street vendors try to sell me some door decorations every time she takes a breath, or looks away, her jaw set hard, to translate some other insults from Italian into English for me.

But let me backtrack.

We initially left Agonda for Hampi in Karnataka. It is a really beautiful place. As I said to my mother last night (and maybe in a postcard too): if you can imagine that everything has a soul, but that the soul of a rock, for instance, is small and hard to feel/sense; in Hampi, these boulders are so big, and they look like they have been thrown down from the heavens, and I swear- these rocks have soul. They are magic. And it's obvious, but also kind of odd, that people would build so many temples here. The number of temples is ridiculous, and it makes me wonder why they're even necessary when nature has provided the most beautiful space to pray already.

On our last day there, I rose early to climb this mountain (to a temple) to watch the sunrise. The sunrise itself was unremarkable, but the view was astounding! I felt a bit stupid climbing up in the dark, alone, but I'm glad I did it. Later, Lidia and I climbed 500 steps to the Hanuman (Monkey) temple which was also very nice, followed by some other temples and then a great fight with the rickshaw driver (excitement!). Later still, we took a coracle boat down the river to some other temples (see? too many temples!). I got to paddle the coracle boat for awhile, it's quite easy actually. So that was our last day, but it was the busiest day. We did so much, I was truly exhausted afterward.



Yesterday, we left Hampi to come to Puttaparthi. I was lucky, and got a room in the Ayurveda center. Lidia and I went to the ashram for dinner. It is a really really weird, cultish kind of place. People are fanatical about Sai Baba, and they all seem to believe he is God. Literally. This shit kind of gives me the creeps. The ashram is like a village. It was shops and restaurants and banks, it's huge. There are some really arbitrary rules, like women must have a shawl over their shoulders, but apparently they aren't dictated by Sai Baba (but you can't come in if you don't have a scarf and you're a woman). One positive thing I'll say, is that you don't have to worry about being ripped off in there. Everyone is really fair and honest. Everything is cheap, which means that even the poorer Indians can afford to come, and there are lots of Indians there. Indians come, as well as many foreigners, as a sort of pilgrimage. Anyway, the place kind of gives me the creeps, but it's interesting to see. Heh, there is this huge bookstore and I got all excited, but then when I started looking around I realized it was all books on Sai Baba. Not a single book about anything else!

Oh well, as I said, I am staying at the Ayurveda clinic. I am going to look into to doing some treatments, like maybe Panchakarma, I'll have to see what the doctor thinks. I don't know yet how long I'll stay, I may have some difficulties getting out of here, just due to trains being full and such... we'll see.

I think Lidia won't talk to me anymore. I saw her this morning at breakfast and she would barely look at me. Don't get me wrong, her temper tantrum wasn't entirely groundless, but it was definitely an overreaction to a small affair and to be honest, I don't really care to apologize to her. Mostly, because I'm not sorry. I think I put up with enough of her crap to be a bit annoying once in a while. But yeah, wah wah wah, as I always say.

One more thing though, the fight with Lidia was about shoes. Ever since my shoes were stolen, I cannot find a decent pair of sandals. I have already broken 3 pairs of Indian sandals, and then I ditched another pair because they were so uncomfortable. Today I bought another pair, my 5th pair, I hope they'll be good. *fingers crossed* *toes crossed*

The Universe answers me through Italian telepathy

I have spent the last week relaxing on the beach. It's so peaceful here. I get up in the morning, and I walk down to the end of the beach and scramble over these rocks to a secluded sandy cove. In the cove I practice yoga followed by a swim, then I scramble back over the rocks, walk along the serf and grab some breakfast at a restaurant overlooking the beach. It's like paradise.

My second day here it was raining really hard, which is rare for this time of year. I went to a little bakery and had a coffee and croissant while waiting for it to let up. I saw these two women at another table deeply engaged in conversation and I suddenly felt a bit jealous of their friendship and intimacy. As cheesy at it may sound, I asked the universe to introduce me to a woman companion, because I was (and still am) quite sick of just meeting men all the time. Sure enough, just a couple hours later, I met this Italian woman Lidia, she showed me the way to that little private cove and we went for a swim and then for lunch together. Her English is pretty good, but it is clear she does not always understand what I am talking about, but never mind. She was very helpful in finding me the cheaper place where I am staying now.

The other day I was sitting on the beach and wondering how I would ever leave this place, it's just too perfect. I thought that perhaps I would just develop inertia and end my travels in India by becoming a beach bum here. I wasn't sure it was such a great idea though since I want to see Kerala and I wasn't sure I wanted to spend Christmas alone on this beach. So again, I asked the universe for some guidance. I was walking from the beach to my room when I saw Lidia. She exclaimed that she had been looking for me! That first day that we had had lunch together I had mentioned in passing that I was interested in seeing Hampi and it got her thinking that she would also like to see Hampi. Lidia proposed that I accompany her to Hampi on Friday, December 17th and then go with her to her flat in Putaparthi to spend Christmas with her. She had already looked into the trains and there was still space. It was absolutely incredible that twice now she had answered my queries to the universe! Naturally, I said yes.

In Putaparthi there is a big ashram and an Ayurveda centre. I am looking into staying at the Ayurveda centre because Lidia says it's very nice and clean and cheap. Her flat, although big, is still new and unfurnished, she only has a bed, but if I have troubles finding accommodation I can stay with her. It's always nice to have a sure back up plan!!

On the weekend I received an email from Abby and he told me he was in Goa at Palolem, which is just the next beach over (about 7km away). I told him I was at Agonda and where I was staying and said he should come find me. To complicate things, my phone does not work at Agonda, although apparently it works at Palolem (Abby is on the same network as me), so we had no way to plan it. Abby decided to come yesterday, but I did not use the internet yesterday, so I did not know he was coming. Naturally, I was off doing my thing, and it took him 2 hours to find me! In his search for me he managed to find Lidia, and she told him some places he might try looking for me at. It was amazing when he finally found me because I was just about to leave this cafe to go check my email to see if he was coming or not and when. It was such a joy to see a familiar face. We went for lunch at this amazing organic cafe in the jungle. Before Abby left to go back to Palolem, we decided to go down to the beach for a swim. While we were swimming I turned around and saw something with giant eyes behind Abby. Abby and I freaked out and swam as quickly as possible, while laughing, back to shore. Abby was convinced it was a crocodile, because that's what it looked like, but it turns out we saw a giant monitor lizard. Apparently not dangerous, but quite frightening and not really a desirable partner, for me, while swimming in the great Arabian sea.

Today, like most days, I spent all day on the beach reading. I was thinking that I felt like Italian food tonight. There is an Italian restaurant which Lidia tells me is quite good. I was leaving the beach, and who should I see but Lidia! She told me that she had spoken to the Italian restaurant and they were making fresh ravioli, so she had asked them to save her a portion for tonight. Seriously, this woman reads my mind! Even if our spoken conversations are sometimes a little convoluted and confusing, our universal telepathy is crystal clear!

Relaxing with the cows on the beach...

I knew that I had made the right decision to come to Goa when I got off the plane into the hot, dark, humid air on Wednesday. The cab driver who drove me to Agonda was lovely, and we shared a good laugh while he taught me some Konkani. When I got into Agonda it was just after 11pm and the place was dead. The boys at the place I was staying had waited up for me to arrive. After showing me my hut and getting me some water, they went off to bed also. Definitely not a party town!

I spent the first day basking in the sun and reading. It was delicious. I decided then that I wanted to stay for more than 4 nights, so I found some cheaper accommodation down the road. It turned out to be a bit awkward moving, which I did today. The owners of the first place were sad to see me go, and they were willing to bring down their price. Unfortunately, it wasn't just the price, I also prefer the place I'm staying now. It's much more private.

At my "beach hut" (which was not on the beach) my door opened to a view of the restaurant. Any time I opened my door I didn't know who I might see there. This morning, as I was packing up, I opened my window, and immediately I was greeted by the owner. It really drove home how eager I was to get out of there. I want to be able to open my window without drawing attention.

Hm... well, I really wanted to write all the stories over the last few days but I received some emails which have altered my mood. I no longer feel like writing. I think I will go contemplate on the beach awhile.

Delighted in Delhi. Going to Goa.

I was absolutely ecstatic to get into Delhi last night! I could not stop grinning stupidly the whole walk up the busy Main Bazaar to my hotel. It is preferable to have a straight face when walking alone here as it invited less attention, but I just could not contain my joy! At last freedom! At last warmth!
Leaving Srinagar was intense and irritating. The airport security is strict and I sense, ineffective, kind of like American airports. I had my bag scanned 3 times, my purse emptied out for scrutiny, I was patted down 3 times, and I had to identify my bag before it could be loaded onto the plane. It took almost 3 hours for me to go through all the lines of security. Luckily, I had given myself plenty of time, so I had about half an hour to kill (my flight was delayed) and a security officer suggested I do some shopping. I told him that all people in Kashmir ever talk about is shopping and I don't want to shop anymore. He gave me a pinched smile and did not talk to me again (thank god!). I was so sick of Kashmiri people by that point, I had no interest in engaging with anyone. Every single person I met asked me for money. Even the imam who lived on the adjacent houseboat asked me for some charity for his daughter's surgery. I think it's kind of ironic that Kashmir prides itself on having no beggars and yet almost every single Kashmiri person I met asked me for money.

I gave Gulam about $120 for everything- the 3 day tour and room & board. I did my own recalculation of how much I thought everything should cost. It was fair and he was disappointed but he did not object (which is the true sign that it was still profitable for him). Today I met Abdulla for a coffee and to return his coat. When I told him that I had felt tricked, he acted shocked and offended (surprise surprise) and he denied my impressions. He said that it was not about money and that I did not have to pay Gulam anything (right, "as you like"). Honestly, I like Abdulla, which is how I was persuaded to go on this terrible trip in the first place, so I accepted his explanation, even if I did not believe it. I will accept that in his mind, Kashmir is a beautiful place to go and that he was providing an interesting experience to me. His intentions were not to make me uncomfortable, au contrair, he is hoping that I will tell all my friends and family what a wonderful place it is so that they will also go there.

Actually, being there kind of reminded me of Egypt with everyone constantly haranguing you for money. Only it was really freaking cold, there were no baffling sites (like pyramids) and the people were less overt about their intentions. So yeah, I would say Egypt is worth the trouble, Kashmir, well, we have plenty of mountains and lakes in Canada. I also know some houseboats you could probably go stay on if you're interested...

Well, I have to go. I have a taxi booked to go to the airport. My flight has been delayed by more than 4 hours to Goa. It seems this is normal of Indian airlines, whereas the trains have (so far) all been very punctual. Okay, gotta go. Don't worry dear friends and family, I am quite well, and I did not lose too much money in my (mis)adventure. :)

crazy, stupid and LUCKY

So I just posted the blog I started writing on the 2nd, before I caught my flight to Srinagar. I didn't want to post it in case I got some other people worrying, so I thought I would just sit on it until I knew the outcome. The blankets were just blankets, just like the coffee was just coffee, and now I see why: it is absolutely freezing here. It goes down to -10C at night, and I am staying on a houseboat/hut with no heating in the middle of a lake.

It seems this experience is, in fact, a bit of a scam. Abdulla's brother, Gulam, is definitely trying to extract money from me, albeit, in a fairly honest fashion. I mean, I was certainly tricked into coming here. No person in their right mind would agree to come to Srinagar right now to stay on a houseboat which they had never seen, nor even negotiated the price for beforehand and where they are at the mercy of the proprieter whenever they want to leave. I was led to believe that I was being invited as a guest, but when I got here I saw that I had a room- like a hotel (only it's a hut in the lake) and that I was not staying with the family. I got worried about how much he would want to charge me. I talked to him last night and he said "as you like." which I hate, because it's vague, but I also like, because I trust he means it. Then he sold me a 3 day tour package for about $100, which is an extraordinary rip off. I don't know why I said yes, I guess I felt a bit pressured, and I wasn't sure how big a rip off it was at first. Today, the first day of my tour, I realized how bad a deal it really is.

I was shipped off to visit a series of gardens. They were nice, but it's winter, so the flowers are all dead, lots of the fountains are either dry or frozen, and they're a bit depressing. Driving around to get to them was interesting, seeing all the army guys with their guns and bullet proof vests and all the barbed wire. I've never seen so much barbed wire in my whole life.

After the gardens I was taken to a carpet making "factory." The carpet factory was nothing but a warehouse where the owner tried to sell me carpets and then, when I wasn't interested, he hit on me. Ah, the joys of India. My driver informed me afterwards that that place is not a good deal, but if I wanted a good deal he could get one for me. He gave me his number. Haha... man, Gulam would be pissed if he found out! But I wouldn't tell him, I believe that my driver, Mairaj, is actually a good person. Gulam is a good person, but he's a shrewd business man, and the latter has more influence on his relationship to me.

Despite all the scamming and scheming, I am having an interesting time. I have been included in all the family preparations for the wedding. Last night all the women got together and sang. Tonight we will do that again, and someone will come to do henna for all the women. The couple getting married are poor, so it is a small wedding and it is only 3 days. Only about 30 people will attend. I am curious how it will be.

It is so cold here that everyone wears these long dresses, like a mumu, and then has a little wicker basket with hot coals in it that they hold under their dress. It's quite effective at keeping you warm. Brilliant thinking! They have lent one of their dresses to wear over my clothes. I only have one long sleeved shirt and one decent pair of pants so it looks like I'll be wearing the same outfit this week. My long sleeved shirt I even wear to sleep! This is a whole new level of hygiene for me. I change my clothes more often when I'm camping!! Oh well, what can I do?! I can't wash anything, because what would I wear while waiting for it to dry? I can't wait to warm up in Goa next week!!!

I'm crazy for flying to a stranger's home so far North in India. I am stupid for not realizing it would be about money. And I am LUCKY that it was for nothing worse.

I have so much more to say, but I think I should get going. Ciao ciao.

crazy, stupid, both (December 2)

I think I might be crazy, or stupid, or both. I am flying to Srinagar today to go to a wedding. They have asked me to bring these blankets along; it reminds me of going to Egypt with that coffee. I know that it's ok, they really are only blankets, but the horror stories make me nervous. I don't want to be a camel or a mule, or whatever the expression is. Also, I don't even know the family I'm staying with. I have been assured there will be lots of women though. This morning, when I got into Delhi, I went to Abdulla's house and had a nap in his bed with his wife (not him, just me and his wife). What is considered culturally normal here is very different than home! Mind you, I was comfortable and slept well.

The bus was awful last night. At first it was okay, but then after we stopped somewhere for a pit stop another man sat beside me. The first man had been fine, but the second man had wandering hands. At one point I said I wanted to change seats (he had put his hand on my thigh!) but then he moved. He came back later though, I'm not sure why. He behaved after that but I was still uncomfortable and could not sleep anymore. The experience was a bit unsettling, which is why I think I am feeling a bit more trepidation over my trip to Srinagar. I pray it will be fine- better than fine- I pray it will be fun!

rishikesh

on sunday night i took the overnight bus from delhi to rishikesh. it was a grueling affair. the bus was 2 hours late to pick us up and when it did arrive, it was a terrible ride. the seats were bouncing all over the place; it seemed they were barely attached to the base of the bus. it was also freezing and the windows wouldn't close. that is, they would close, but then as the bus bounced along they would slide open again blasting you with cold air. luckily, while waiting for the bus, i made friends with a guy from argentina, nico. the only other foreigners were a couple from russia who really stuck to themselves. they were very unhappy about the state of the bus!

all in all it was fine. at least we made it anyway. we arrived into rishikesh around 7am and nico and i had a chai while we tried to recover from our ride. then we walked along the ganga, it was astounding!!! the air was so fresh and the wind was really howling. although the sun was up, we couldn't see it yet as it was hidden behind the himalayan mountains. I was so happy, despite the exhaustion.

i got a beautiful room overlooking the river in a hotel up in the mountains. i love my room. i love this place. yesterday i went for a small hike up to these waterfalls with nico, marnie (a girl from oz), and john (a bloke from england). we all went swimming in the waterfall's pool. then we had a lovely dinner last night.

today nico and i did a longer hike to this temple. the temple was nothing special, but the hike was amazing. so many monkeys. so many breath taking views. i am exhausted now. i am catching a night bus back to delhi tonight (oh the joy!!) so i have already checked out. thankfully, marnie has lent me her room key so i can go have a much needed nap.

tomorrow i'll be flying to srinagar. i kind of wish i had more time here. it is paradise. incidentally, some cops were killed in srinagar on monday. i have been assured by abdulla that's it's perfectly safe. i hope he's right!! i'll keep you posted.

More Indian Experiences

Only in India would you have your photo surreptitiously snapped on a cellphone camera by a police officer who you stopped to ask directions from (who didn't know the directions anyway). I hope I was blinking.

I have been invited to an Indian wedding in Kashmir by a man I met in a coffee shop. Now I have bought a plane ticket to Kashmir... just a slight change in plans! I will only be in Rishikesh for 3 days. Not very long, but oh well. Hopefully it will be enough time to actually do something.

It's strange how some days just completely escape me. I really have not done anything today. I guess I did all my Christmas shopping today (I didn't get any very good deals, my bartering skills are not that great) and then posted it (I hope it makes it!). I meant to go to the art gallery, but I got intercepted by Abdulla (the man who invited me to the wedding). We had lunch together. He's a funny man. I know instinctually that he's a good person, but I still wonder at why he invited me to his niece's wedding. He's not even going, but his brother, Noor is. I met Noor and he also has a very good vibe. I think that this hospitable/inclusive nature that many Indians seem to possess is still a bit of a mystery to me. I don't quite understand it yet. Often I feel a bit suspicious of them at first, but then it (usually) turns out that they really are just being nice and that they are not expecting anything in return (like that man from the plane when I arrived). It's difficult to find the right balance between being smart and open. I mean, if you're too open you can be naive and get in trouble, but if you're too "smart" you become closed and don't meet anyone. Sometimes you have to take chances on people. Anyway, I feel good about this one. I'm excited to go so far north!! Good thing I still have the sweater I bought in Istanbul! Many times I have thought about ditching it to lighten my load, now I am pleased that I am still hauling it about, mind you I have used it a few times in Delhi as it can be a bit chilly at night and in the mornings.

Last night I went for a beer. I met a couple of other travelers who were super sketchy and weird. I have met many nice travelers here, but I also see that it is easy for less-than-savoury types to be drawn into the Indian life. The affordability of India and the availability of anything you could possibly wish for, including drugs, opens the door to everyone. One of the travelers I met last night looked like a crack head. He depressed me deeply and it was easy for me to not stay for more than one beer!

money = evil, Hari Krishnas = weird

Today Abby, my Persian travel mate left for Goa. This morning, while I was eating breakfast on the terrace of the hotel, this man, Boaz from Israel, said he had arranged a tour for the day around Delhi and would anyone like to join him? I had initially planned on walking around and going to the art gallery today, but it sounded like it could be fun, so I told him I might be interested in going. I decided to go. Delhi is huge, so it is hard to see much without a car. Well, it turns out that Boaz paid way too much for the car hire and then expected me to pay half! Meanwhile, I thought that he was just looking for company on a tour he'd already paid for, but I had thought I would pitch in a bit anyway. Ultimately, it sucked. We had a pretty good day which ended in a bit of a fight. I told him I wouldn't have agreed to come if I thought I was going to have to eat half of his mistake. I mean, the guy is a bit of an idiot!!
Earlier, he wanted to catch a bike rickshaw so I said I would negotiate the price (he was absolutely clueless about these things!). I negotiated 20Rs, and when we got to the site I paid the driver 20Rs. Boaz, the idiot, asked if it was enough and then took the 20 back and gave the driver 50, which he took, happily. I was like, wtf? He didn't understand that I had negotiated this price already... argh. It's so silly really, but it drove me nuts!

But yeah, I'm so frustrated over this simple issue. I still have to give him a bit more money, and here I am feeling angry and spiteful about the whole thing. I hate the way money makes us act.

In other news, I went to this super weird psychedelic show at the Hari Krishna temple in Delhi today. I don't even know how to begin to describe it! It was just totally wild, tacky, a little scary, super cheesy, hilarious fun. Boaz didn't want to see the show because it cost too much, so I did it alone. It was worth the money actually.

It began with a little intro video displayed on 12 tvs which were surrounded by mirrors to make it look like there was a globe of tvs. It was pretty cool actually, even if the graphics on the video were a bit old school. Then you go into this room where there is a life-size figure of Krishna, Arjun and his chariot. [Some of you may know that I am slightly terrified of mannequins, wax figures, any of these sorts of things, so this was actually a bit scary for me.] All these lights start flashing around and a voice booms overhead starting the story of how Krishna convinced Arjun not to fear death and send his troops to war. The next room is like the first, only the figures are behind glass and when you enter a bright light shines on you so that all you can see is your reflection in the glass. Then the loud voice (like god himself!) asks who you see in the reflection. Who are you? Are you your face? Are you your body? Are you your hands? Are you your eyes? etc. Then he asserts that we are not the container of our soul, but that we are our soul. It was rather effective. When the light changes to behind the glass, we see that the figures are actually the stages of life, from baby to skeleton. After this, the most terrifying room of all! A dark room with all these huge scary images, flashing lights and loud, booming scoldings about the motivations in our life. We are either driven by goodness (not scary), passion (a little scary) or ignorance (very scary). The Indian guy, Samir, who was taking me through the Sound & Light tour thought I was funny for being scared, but he stood with me through all the sets, especially this one. There seemed to be a lot of these mannequin rooms and sets, at some point there was also a room where I watched a video on reincarnation (that was good). The show went back and forth telling us about how we should behave in modern day, and back to the story of Arjun and Krishna. From what I understood, it seems that Arjun doesn't know if he should go to war or not. Krishna comes to Arjun on his chariot and tells him not to fear: everyone will die on both sides, except for Arjun, which gives him courage to follow the words of Krishna (weird, no?). The last room is a simple maze of mirrors which I was instructed to walk aimlessly through while listening to the Hari Krishna chant:

Hari Krishna Hari Krishna
Krishna Krishna
Hari Hari
Hari Rama Hari Rama
Rama Rama
Hari Hari

The more I know about Hari Krishnas, the stranger I think they are.

wasting time

i basically came all the way to delhi so that i could find reliable internet access to write the CASPer exam. so here i am, at reliance world web, poised and ready for this damn test to begin! i tested the system, and it works. unfortunately, i forgot about daylight savings time, which i guess they don't have in india, because now the time difference is even greater and i have to wait. i have already been waiting for more than an hour and i have another half hour to go... ugh, this is killing me!!!

so for the past hour + i have been looking into ashrams in rishikesh, which is where i'll be heading next. there are so many ashrams it's crazy. i think i'll have to just roll in on monday and then go visit a few to see how they are. it's too hard to tell online. i also booked my flight to goa. i am going to goa on the 8th of december. so i have been looking into huts to rent on a beach there. again, it's just too hard to know. i think i have to book something for my first night though, because i will be arriving after dark and it's just safer if i have something planned.

i have been really jonesing for a drink these days. i haven't had a sip of alcohol in india. i did, however, have a glass of wine on one of flights on the way to india... my, that was a long time ago. abby doesn't drink at all, and he quite disapproves of it, so it wouldn't even be fun to have a drink while hanging out with him. he is flying to goa tomorrow though, so maybe i can go have a beer somewhere tomorrow evening... if i meet another traveler who will want to join, that is; i'm not going out drinking alone in india. in greece? sure. india? i don't think so.

hm... nine minutes.

i just checked my bank balance and it seems i'm not doing too bad. in the last 2 weeks i've spent less than 200 bucks. india really is cheap. mind you, i spent at least 2 days sick in a scuzzy hotel room where all i took in was a bit of water. days like that are very economical, but not especially fun.

i am still crazy homesick. i don't know why it has hit me so hard. i keep waiting for these feelings to subside. for some reason, i feel like i will be less homesick once abby leaves. maybe i just know that i'll have to be on my toes, so i won't have to time to be pining for the comforts of home.

5 minutes... wow, it's going by pretty quick actually.

after this test i think i'll call mum and dad.
oh, and speaking of this test, it goes from 7-9pm, india time. this place usually closes at 8pm i just found out, but luckily, they are opening until 9pm tonight because some company is doing some video conferencing here. wow. looks like i am supposed to write this test this time around! i would have been quite irritated if it didn't work, considering all the trouble i've gone to to take this test...

okay, i only have 2 minutes now. so i'll post this insipid blog for you to waste your own time reading. :)

***

I finished the exam!! Wow. It was awful, and I was interrupted by staff about a million times (which was weird, because they never spoke to me once in the 2 hours I spent sitting here before the test), and then a guy started playing LOUD video games right beside me and trying to show me his awesome moves (wtf?)... but, it's OVER!!!

18 hours on a bus...

and it was surprisingly not that bad. not that i wish to repeat the experience any time soon. when abby and i first got to the bus station we were quite horrified to see the bus we were about to inflict upon ourselves for (what we thought was only) the next 16 hours (but we were 2 hours late in the end due to traffic). it was just another crummy city bus, like a school bus really, only not yellow and with an additional bar going along the inner perimeter of the windows. the shocks are non-existent and there really is no seating protocol, unless you've reserved a seat, which we had, when we were under the illusion it was a coach: like a greyhound. luckily, the conductor was helpful in allowing us to actually secure our seats. we briefly considered trying to sell our tickets and then finding some other way to ahmedabad, but the prospect of spending another night in our dingy, smelly hotel in aurangabad was enough to spur me into proclaiming "come on abby, be positive! it will be an adventure!" abby was not too keen on the idea, but he didn't wuss out, thank god.

well, it turns out it wasn't too much of an adventure, because nothing much happened. the most notable happening was perhaps when i woke up because i was lurched from my seat as my head crashed into the bar over the window, from which i now have a small goose-egg. it was more startling than dramatic though, and i quickly fell back asleep.

i also made friends with the family behind us and took their pictures for them. i have agreed to make prints and send them their pictures. they were so sweet. they really wanted me to come home with them, but it wasn't really on my way.

well, now we're in ahmedabad. it's a pretty awesome city so far. i can't wait to go get some food! abby and i are basically just killing time so that it will be a reasonable time to eat dinner... and i think it may just be that time!

bon appetite!

???

I just let Abby cut my hair... pictures to follow. One day. When I'm brave. He insists it looks marvelous. Very stylish... right.

Incredible, Inedible !ndia

After an exhausting, enthralling day at the Ellora caves I suffered my first bout of food poisoning in India. I knew it would come sooner or later. In fact, as I was eating the chana masala at the canteen in Ellora I was fairly certain it would make me sick. Luckily, I managed to stave off being sick until I was back in my room at the formidable Crown Plaza. After spending all day yesterday being ill and sleeping, this morning I was finally up to leaving the dank room.

Last night I had an incredible dream though. I dreamed that it was Halloween and I was dressing up like Hunter S. Thompson. I was getting ready at Libby's house, and her and Greg just lived down the street from Mum and Dad. Katy and Nate came over, and Katy helped me fix up my costume so that I was now Beetlejuice. The party was at Nate and Katy's place so Claire, Simon, Katy, Nate and I all left to go their place. We had to fly to get there, so we jumped in a plane. The pilot was a super funny guy and he took us on a bit of a tour. We were flying low and there was this scout camp exhibit. It was some strange fair where everyone was dressed up like old fashioned peasants. They were training for some shows and practicing throwing darts and daggers into apples perched atop of ladies' heads. We decided to crash the fun and the pilot landed, more like crashed the plane. Nate, Katy, Simon, Claire and the pilot got dressed up and performed a silly show while I went through the crowd encouraging people to clap along to the music. When the show was over it was clear that the people were not so impressed with the performance, or the destruction of their fortress-like gate. Luckily, there were enough cars in the plane for us all to jump in one, and I had a little red sporty car, which looked like it belonged to Savary as it had plants growing in the back seat. We all sped off to the party.

It was an awesome dream. Super fun and I was so happy to be with my loved ones.

Well, I have to figure out what my plans are now. This day of sickness and now today, which is still a day to recover, have thrown off my original ideas. I have to start considering what plan B is...

Aurangabad

Arrived into Aurangabad last night from Nashik. It was a little hellish trying to find accommodations, but we finally settled on a crusty, not too clean, "Crown Plaza" which bears no resemblance to the chain I think of at home. It seems that most of the hotels in Aurangabad are either for Indian citizens only (news to me!) or they were full. The youth hostel was completely empty, but if you saw the place you would know why.

Today we planned on going to the Elora caves. Rather, we did go to the Elora caves, only they're closed on Tuesdays... damn. When we were trying to figure out which bus to catch, this one rickshaw driver told us the caves were closed, but we didn't believe him. When we finally got on the bus to the caves but were still at the station, this guy tried to pickpocket Abby, but Abby caught him and he fled from the bus in a hurry. An old woman kept going on (in Hindi) that that man should have been beaten! A bit of excitement anyway. This evening we saw that same rickshaw driver who told us the caves were closed and he asked us about the caves!! I had to laugh and give it to him. He was, indeed, telling the truth. Anyway, it wasn't so bad, on the way to the caves I saw another tourist attraction which is this massive fort, Daulatabad, so we caught a taxi there. It was really really cool. So I'm happy we went, if the caves had been open today I never would have seen that fort. So there you go, it seems things really do happen for a reason. Tomorrow we'll go see Elora.

I also talked to Rishi today, he said he would help me find accommodation in Delhi when I arrive next week. He also said that he might be able to arrange for me to go to an Indian wedding. YAYAYAYA.

I'm starving though. I'm not quite sure why. I guess all this running about has stimulated my manipura! Heh, just kidding.

As an aside, when I was taking the Ayurveda course I thought it was weird that they showed us all these eye cleansing techniques. Now I think it makes perfect sense. Every single pore and cell, inside and out, feels filthy right now. I feel cleaner after camping for 10 days. Showering almost seems pointless since the sheets I'm sleeping on are possibly crawling and I feel like an extra layer of grit on my skin might actually protect me! Lovely lovely. Still, India is incredible.

new travel partner

I have a new travel partner now: Abby. He is the best barterer I have ever met, yes, he may actually rival Umit in his bartering abilities (although Umit is an excellent barterer also). As I mentioned in my last post, someone stole my sandals, so naturally I needed some new sandals.
Today Abby and I had a bit of time to kill so we decided to go look for some appropriate ware (the flip-flops I have will not do for any real length). We found a little shoe store and I found some suitable, albeit plastic, sandals which will suffice. The salesman quoted me 210 INRs (which is about $5.25), Abby said 150 ($3.75). Of course, the salesman laughed and said something about 210 being the price and there is no haggling in here. Then Abby, with a tweak of the salesman's mustache (I am not exaggerating, Abby really does this!), a laugh, a head bobble, and a "very nice, very nice" he simply took the money out (150) and gave it to the salesman. In response, the salesman asked us to sit down and have tea, and of course we were much obliged. It turns out that the salesman also teaches yoga so we had a nice chat with him about pranayama and suryanamaskara. After our tea Abby asked for a gift (was he joking? I'm not sure) and the salesman gave us both a PRADA (fake, of course) change purse. I find these types of interactions absolutely fascinating, and hilarious.

So yay, I now have some plastic sandals (with silver flowers!), a little blue PRADA change purse, and a belly full of warm, milky, sweet chai, all for 150INRs.

Well, I must dash. We have a date with an Indian to go see some temples this afternoon and we wouldn't want to be late!!

love love love and all that good stuff! Hari Om Tat Sat.

Ayurveda and beyond

I have spent the last week in an Ayurveda course in Nasik. It was a course mostly to do with beauty products like face, eye, and ear cleaning. The eye cleaning was perhaps the most remarkable experience, considering there were a large array of different annointments we could put in our eyes to "clean" them. Mostly, they just felt like acid drops, albeit, your eyes did feel quite cool after, but I'm not sure if it's just from the relief of them not burning anymore or if it actually does cool the eyes. Nevertheless, we all entrusted Joshi (our instructor, pictured below) with our tender eyes.


Unfortunately, I got a sore throat and an ear infection during the course. Luckily, it seems to be clearing up on its own. I'm glad, because I really did not want to take any antibiotics for it, and also because I was kind of miserable for a few days which is never fun. I still managed to see the silver lining, which is that this is the first time I've been sick since I left, and I didn't even need any antibiotics, and it's better than the stomach flu or something like that!

My sandals also got stolen, but I don't mind. They were stolen from the Therapy centre where I'm staying, so I had other shoes. Also, they're good quality sandals, so they should last the next woman (I presume) who has them for a lot longer than I would have kept them I'm sure.

It seems I've been writing this blog for ages, but that's because I've been distracted about 100 times, so it is disjointed. I can't even remember what else I wanted to say...

On Monday I am going to Aurangabad with Abby, an Iranian guy I met in the ashram. He's quite a joker, so it should be an interesting trip for sure. For now, I am spending the next couple of days taking it easy so that I can completely recover from this earache and sore throat before we leave. I am excited to get going though. I am ready to be on the road again; living the adventure! The ashram and therapy centre are so safe and caring. It's really nice, but sometimes I feel a little too watched. I am eager to have my own room... ah, luxury. I would love love love to find a place with a bath tub, one that I would use, that is. This seems like an unlikely dream at the moment, so I think I'll just keep that desire as a distant promise to be delivered when I get home.

Speaking of home, I have no idea when I'll come home. I've been looking at other places I can go, and if I manage my money well, it looks like I can go to Sri Lanka, then Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam... pretty amazing.

Initially I had every intention of actually relaying some stories, but it seems like this has turned into just another one of my random thoughts entries. Next time I'll try and actually tell a story. For now, I'll put up a picture from lunch today, which was delicious.

yoga teacher and story teller

i have finished my exams!!! here is a picture of the class i had to teach. we were split into smaller groups so that the lesson exams could be done in just a few days, so this is only 7 out of the 32 students in my class. we all became close through this learning experience. first we had to teach a trial class, which was, in some cases, quite hilarious. then yesterday and today we taught our final exam class (the one we were marked on). anyway, this photo was taken today. the indian man on the left, was our examiner. although a hard marker, he is very sweet.

this morning, after the exams were all finished, a group of us decided to do some of the hatha cleansing techniques again. it was [oddly] fun.

yesterday i had to give a presentation on the paper i'd written. i am ashamed to say that my paper was very bad. i did not want to read my paper, let alone really tell people, in 5 minutes, the lack of substance which was my paper. instead i told them a story.

thousands of years ago there once lived a sage, agastya. agastya decided one day to visit a demon named atapi. atapi had a brother, vatapi, and together they were a dangerous pair.

whenever they would receive guests, atapi would magically turn vatapi into a goat. he would then prepare a delicious goat curry to serve to his guest. when the guest had eaten all he could, atapi would suggest that the guest meet his brother and call "vatapi, please come out!" vatapi would then burst out from the guest's stomach, thereby killing them.

when agastya went to visit atapi, atapi as usual morphed his brother and prepared him into a spicy goat vindaloo. agastya began salivating as he approached atapi's home, the aroma was intoxicating. agastya ate and ate and ate and when he had polished off the entire curry he sat back patting his stomach and complimenting atapi on his culinary prowess. atapi smiled and sweetly said "you should meet my brother, he would adore you. come out vatapi!" but agastya said "vatapi, stay where you are. it is better for everyone that you are digested in my stomach." and thus was the end of vatapi.

agastya was able to digest vatapi because he had a fully awakened manipura chakra. the manipura chakra governs our digestive system, and therefore, if you awaken your manipura, you can digest anything, including demons.

and that was my presentation. or at least, the gist of it. i think it went over pretty well. at least, it made people laugh. then i told them a few ways to eat like a yogini/yogi. for instance, you should eat with your hands. each bite becomes a mudra as you lift your fingers to your lips. also, this preserves your pranic energy; for your hands are an extension of your heart and they radiate prana (life/vital energy). when we use utensils we are breaking the flow and losing prana.

CASPer exam in India

hm... I don't think this test is meant to be done from an internet cafe in India. I am trying to get through just the first little test to see if the system will work, which I need to do before I can take the test. Unfortunately, I have been trying to watch the same 5 minute video for almost half an hour now... so far, outlook does not look good.

oh my god. it is 20 minutes later, and i am still watching, or attempting to watch, the same video! crap. I don't think I'll ever be able to start the real test...

okay, now it has been almost an hour and a half, almost an hour into the time allotted for my test. i guess i cannot write this test from india. crappy casper.

you know casper can be rearranged to spell "scrape".

i am also not going to mcmaster next year. no hamilton for me i guess. en shallah.

sibling rivalry and my pride

so today i was on gmail chat with nate, my older brother. he told me he's been reading my blogs and i suddenly felt a little worried, or embarrassed, if you will. so i asked him if my blogs were drivel and he said no, as he is pretty much obliged to say. i didn't know why i felt so insecure all of a sudden about my blog... but i think i have found out, and i'll tell you!

sibling rivalry.

plain and simple.

i was looking at simon's facebook profile (my younger brother) and i saw that he was updating his blog. then i read his blog, and it's so funny and smart! i thought, shiiiiiiiit, i can't right like that! no wonder i'm so worried my blog is a complete bore! i'm comparing myself to simo. then i read one of nate's comments and realized that he's also pure genius... and we all know what a great writer claire is! nevertheless, i shouldn't be limited by siblings' cleverness. now that i've identified it as something so utterly juvenile as sibling rivalry, i can let it go. in fact, i can do more than that: i can be proud. proud that my siblings are so freaking brilliant. i wonder if it has anything to do with how great my parents are...?

haha.... and now i'm just being conceited.

regardless, if you are not already reading simon's blog, you should be. it really is a joy. he's truly hilarious.

the address is myspace.com/russellsimon

anyway, just spreading the word...

very nice, very nice

it has been a busy week at the ashram. we have started teaching micro lessons every day. soon we will have to teach full length classes. it's quite nerve racking, but i enjoy it. i wasn't sure that i would actually be interested in teaching yoga prior to this, but now that i've had a little experience i think that i actually would. i wonder if i'll be able to find a studio or community centre or somewhere to teach...

last week, after i wrote my blog post, i went into the old part of the city with 2 of my roommates, Nicole and Steph. we had an amazing time. we visited a beautiful temple and saw the Godavari river.

today is our weekly day off. i woke up at 5, as per usual, but managed to lie in bed until almost 6. i met up with another woman, becky, at 7 and we walked to trimbak. trimbak is a small town. we had to walk about an hour through the fields and sometimes what seemed to be peoples' yards. it was a beautiful walk in the early misty morning, albeit, super muddy. it has been raining a lot here. too bad i don't even have a raincoat. not very good planning on my part!

when we got into trimbak, we went into a temple. we posed for lots of family photos. i felt almost rude that here we were, at this amazing temple, and just being 2 white chicks we were almost getting more attention than the site. our presence was eclipsing the glory of the temple... how weird.

we ran into another guy from the ashram, peter. peter is a christian priest from belgium. he is a very spiritual guy. it was really pleasant to run into him, since i really didn't know him very well before. the 3 of us hopped a rickshaw and went into the town town, since we were still a bit on the outskirts. in the town there is a very famous temple where many indians come from all over to visit, as a pilgrimage i guess. it says that it is for hindus only, but we bought some flowers to offer to lord shiva and entered regardless. it was an amazing experience. not because the temple itself was so special, but because just waiting in the huge lineups with all the indians was an incredible experience. there was a school group there from gujarat, all girls, and they were so funny. becky and i sang sanskrit chants with them and exchanged names while we waited in the line for over an hour. we weren't allowed to bring cameras into the temple, so we left our cameras (daringly) with the guy who sold us the flowers. after the temple, we did get our cameras back and we took a bunch of photos with all the girls we'd met in line.

peter was staying in trimbak, but becky and i wanted to use the internet (which isn't available in trimbak) so we caught a public bus into nasik. we met some college kids who helped us find our way once in town. it was pretty nice. everyone is very nice. very nice.

goodness, i'm tired now. i really want to add photos, but i don't really understand the system here...

in other news, my training has been really interesting. this week we did some cleansing techniques. we did neti and kunjal kriya. most of you are probably familiar with neti, where you clean your sinus' with warm salt water. kunjal kriya is a stomach cleansing technique where you drink a bunch of warm salt water and then vomit it up again. i drank about 6 glasses of the saline solution and then was sick. it was surprisingly difficult to actually get it all up. even though you feel nauseous, it seems that feeling quickly passes into just feeling full. it is said that it often brings up a lot of emotions in people, and i was fully expecting it to. unfortunately, i think i may be a bit of an android; it brought up absolutely no emotions in me at all. i felt completely neutral after; neutral and composed. almost everyone else was a bit of an emotional wreck after... i wonder what's wrong with me. that said, you are supposed to have a shavasana after for at least 10 minutes, which i did without skimping on like i think some people did. after that i also took a therapeutic shit and then did some pranayama (breathing practices) in the outdoor meditation gazebo. i did lots of calming, meditative pranayama. it was soothing and centering. i felt very good after.

i've also been doing quite a bit of soul searching. i won't go too into detail, but it seems all my dreams are surrounding this. in all my dreams i am walking through huge apartment buildings or hotels. i am always looking for a safe place, or my room, or somebody... i'm always searching for a place to reside. for my soul, for myself, for both.

i've also been dreaming about dogs a lot. but i think that's just because i miss taco and feta and because there are dogs which bark in the night here. if any of you see taco & feta please give them a good pet from me, and a cuddle, and a walk! if you can.

love love love.
ri

Hari Om! Bombay to Ashram extravoganza!

I've been in the ashram for more than a week now. Today is our day off and most of us have ventured into the city, Nashik, to use the internet and pick up any missing essentials. I think I probably would not have come, and gone for a walk over a mountain (or hill) to the nearest town, Trimbak, instead. Alas, I could not do that. I had to sign up for my CASper exam. :( I am now booked to write it a week Wednesday. I hope it goes well!!!

About the ashram, it is great. It's fairly intense, in a peaceful, meditative way. We get up at 5 am every day and lights are officially out at 10:30, although ours are always out by about 9:30 or 10 at the latest. We do yoga asana practice for 4 hours a day: from 6-8 am and then from 4-6 pm. My body is sore from all the yoga! In between we have 3 hours of lectures and then time for self-study including assignments. It is school 6 days a week.

Yesterday we had an exam in yoga asanas (postures). It was pretty good, but weird. It is strange to have the examiners approach you and tell you to do a specific asana. The examiners count for you to come into the posture, time you for a certain amount of time that you must stay in (from 15 seconds up to 2 minutes), and count for you to come out. Yesterday was also a silent day. It was so hard to not talk after the exam. We all just wanted to compare our experiences, but there we were, in our own silent bubbles... haha everyone is super chatty today!

Today we were allowed to sleep in, but I woke up at 5 anyway. I lay in bed until about 5:30, but then I got up and went to the hall to do some yoga asana practice. It seems I am accustomed to this schedule now. I am also really enjoying the wholesome, vegetarian cuisine of the ashram. I am happy to report that quitting smoking has essentially been a total non-issue. Quitting caffeine was a bit of a headache, but not too bad either.

Getting to the ashram last week was a bit of an ordeal though! After my flight from Abu Dhabi I was absolutely exhausted. I met an Indian man, Yog, who had lived in Markham, Ontario for 5 years. Him and his wife, Soniya, live in Surat but his son, Parth, lives in Bombay. He offered for me to come and rest at his son's flat while I waited for my train. I was a bit nervous at first, but I asked if his wife was picking him up from the airport and he said yes. I got a good vibe from him, so I accepted.

Stepping into the arrivals at Mumbai was so intense, at 5am it was hot and sticky and dark! There were so many people there, I was so glad I had Yog to escort me (although I was still praying that they weren't actually some psychos and that I wasn't going to die!). We drove to his son's apartment where they gave me some tea and offered to make me a bed on the floor. I gratefully accepted and Soniya made me a bed on her son's floor where Parth and Yog were both already asleep in the bed. That was a bit odd for me, but I crawled under the blanket and rested my eyes. It was absolutely freezing in there! I felt like I was sleeping in a refrigerator the air con was turned up so high.

Soniya woke me up around 9 and gave me some coffee and toast. Then she showed me where the bank was so I could get some cash and she left me. I went and got some cash. Finding a taxi was quite horrible. I was still really tired and they were all trying to scam me. Luckily, this older gentleman helped me get one of the taxi drivers to take me on the meter. Bless that man! It took about an hour to get there, and I was a bit worried about the taxi driver, but I got there.

When I got to the train station all these men were talking to me. Trying to "help" me. It was a nuisance, but nothing more. They all thought I was trying to go to Goa, good thing I wasn't, because apparently I missed the train! Hahah... I got my train no problem. The train attendant came and sat in my booth with me. I think he was looking out for me. I think he bought me a chai, but I'm not sure. I got a chai for free at any rate! When I went to the washroom, I discovered why my back had been bothering me- I had my period. It really sucked because I couldn't for the life of me find any sanitary napkins or tampons or anything in my bag!! I just had to use the little tissue I had... gross.

Later I met a young man on the train. He was super nice and he invited me to his sister's wedding. Of course, I could not go, even if it was 10 days, as I would be in the ashram. He also said I could visit him and his wife in Bombay any time. Wow.

In Nashik I got a little rickshaw and then paid about 30 rupees too much (that's about 75c) for the ride to the ashram office. Oh well. The man and the girl working at the office were very kind. The girl took me to buy pads, and the man took me on his scooter to get photocopies of my passport and to get a sim card for my phone. It was pretty unreal riding on the back of a scooter in the India traffic. It was fun!

I had arrived at the office at 4 but I had to wait until 8:30 for the next ride to the ashram. It was a super long day, but I wasn't too fussed. At least I was safe and they fed me at the office and let me lay down on their little couch.

Once at the ashram I ended up getting my own room for the night (I don't feel like going into the details. Suffice to say, my roommates are very sound sleepers and could not be roused to open the door). I was (again!!!) so grateful for my own room. It meant I could shower and wash my gross, stinky clothes without any embarrassment.

Well, I should really leave it at that for now. I have to go eat lunch at the office before heading into the old part of Nashik to explore. I am excited, but a tad nervous to deal with all the chaos. Thankfully, this time I will not be alone!

Love to you all!
Hari Om

waiting in abu dhabi

the abu dhabi airport is stifling. i feel like i am under an angel food cake pan. you know the one? with the hole in the centre, only if you're under it there is no hole. it's ornate, and quite beautiful with green and blue octagonal tile work, but there is something about the dome shape which makes you feel trapped. it makes the ceiling feel low, even though i'm sure it's actually quite high. i guess i kind of am trapped. for the next while anyway.

my next flight is only 3 hours and then i will be in india. i am nervous. i find the stares of the indian guys a little unnerving. it's somehow different from the arab stares... i'm not sure why. i guess i feel like arab men are easily shamed, but i have little to no experience with indian men. of course, i'm not saying they're all the same. i'm just refering to the leering ones, which are already a class of their own.

i met a saudi man in the smoking area. he is on his way home from toronto where he had been to take his son to university (u of t!). he gave me a dark chocolate cherry kashi bar- just like home! i will eat it when i'm starving in india, which will be in just a few hours i'm sure. for now i am still full from the meal fed to us on the flight from athens.

my flight can't come soon enough, and yet i dread it. i dread my arrival into india. rather, i am nervous. i feel anxious about getting to the train station where i will have to wait until noon for my train! i arrive in mumbai at 4:30 am. that's a lot of time to kill, while tired. sometimes i find myself in these types of situations and i think i must be crazy. crazy or stupid. i don't know which.

when i was looking at online forums about how to book a train in india last night, there were all these people asking questions about the protocal not just weeks in advance, but months and months in advance. then here's me, 2 days before i arrive trying to secure a spot. well, it worked, so i guess i'm lucky. in fact, i know i'm lucky.

last night i also thought i had a hostel reserved, but when i got to the hostel in istanbul they said they were full and my reservation had not gone through. i am amazed that i stayed perfectly calm, and i even felt cheerful, because i didn't really like the place. i found another place without too much ado and ended up having a mixed 13 bed dorm room all to myself. LUCKY! seriously. it was so nice too, because i had to get up really early this morning to catch my flight and this meant that i could repack my stuff at my leisure, using the other 12 beds for my stuff, if i wanted. also, in the night i was cold, so i took a blanket from another bed. a luxury i would not have had had the room been full!!

anyway, i guess i'll go check on the status of my flight. sorry i can't incorporate pictures. i took a picture of the airport, i hope it works out. it really is something else.

the real hamam experience

Yesterday I went to a Turkish bath, or hamam, with Ümit's sister, Dönüş. I'm not entirely sure what I was expecting, but it certainly wasn't like the hamam in Van!

It's really just a big public bath filled with (mostly) older, heavy half-naked women dousing themselves with water and scrubbing their skin; furiously, vigorously, almost violently until it burns pink. There are all these marble basins constantly filling (and overflowing!) with water, each one with a ewer so you can pour the water over yourself. The din is astounding as all the woman yell and squint at each other over the sound of the water and through the mist.

Dönüş and I paid the extra to have the scrub and massage from a professional (otherwise you can just do it yourself). A heavy woman of about 40, wearing white panties scrubbed me down. She looked serious and a little tired, but nice. Her hands were all pruned from working in the steam all day, the rest of her skin looked soft. I was wearing a bikini, but she ordered me to remove my top and then had me lie, face up, arms over my head on a marble slab in the middle of the room while she scrubbed me down. I felt like a snake shedding her skin- almost painfully. Because of my little bike incident last week my legs are covered in bruises. This did not stop her from scrubbing those down too. I thought I might cry from the pain, but I just bit my lip and bore it. Then she had me flip over so she could do my back and then sit up so she could scrub my arms. The arms felt really great!

After being scrubbed/pumiced, I was told (with actions) to go rinse off while she did the same to Dönüş. Then I went back for the massage where again, she accosted my shins. While she was massaging my neck, her boobs were hanging in my face- occasionally touching. Really... a truly odd experience for me. I felt very clean after, if not a little abused. I'm not sure I dig the whole Turkish bath, but I'm glad I tried it.

Istanbul

I have to check out in a few minutes, but I thought I would just provide a quick update.

After my posting on Wednesday I went and rented a bike. I'm kind of a nervous nelly on the bike, and the guys renting me the bike could tell, so they gave me this small red cruiser and put the seat super low... yes, like a child. I felt a little silly on my kids bike, but it's not so different from my childlike ride in van I suppose (my little blue bike).

I rode for awhile along the coast and stopped at a beach for a swim and a think. I was actually feeling a little bit down, but I couldn't quite put my finger on it. I guess it was a mixture of lack of purpose and worry about the future. Finishing my application to U of C got me thinking about what my chances really are, and whether or not this is something I want to do...

Well, I decided that I was probably partly depressed because I was hungry, so I decided to ride back into town. On my way back in, I was peacefully cruising and looking behind at something when I somehow managed to veer into the adjacent wall. I went flying! I got up and all I had was a minuscule cut on my leg and my right knee was throbbing. Luckily, I was wearing longer pants so I didn't scrape it. Anyway, the chain had come off, so I turned the bike over to get it back on (it was quite stuck). I proceeded to get very dirty and covered in grease, only to discover the bike was not ride-able, since I'd managed to crumple the whole front end in. I guess that's what happens when you run into a wall... brilliant! I walked the bike back to the rental place (luck was on my side again, since I was only about a block and half away) and lied and told them a story involving pedestrians. Not just to save face: but hopefully to minimize cost as well. I think it worked... I got charged, but only 35 euro. They were very nice and concerned about me. They were impressed that I didn't break anything or even really hurt myself.

...

so lots has happened even since then, but I'm running out of time and I'm in Istanbul now. Stayed in this hostel last night, my first time in a hostel since I was 21 traveling with Simon. It's just as I remember! Cramped, a little dirty, but lots of company. So I'm going to leave it at that. I'm going exploring today with an Aussie I met, Johnny.

Gule gule.

Greek Islands

My parents left while I was sleeping, early in the morning from Rodos Palace (it's more of a resort than a palace) on Sunday. I awoke about 9, packed my stuff and went for a swim in the pool.

The day before I had asked the friendly staff at Rodos Palace (who were really not so friendly, but actually fairly rude)if there were any boats to Tilos in the afternoon. The woman at their information booth said that there was only one, and it left at 9am. This didn't sound right, so I checked the internet, and it appeared there was one at 5:30pm, which suited me better.

As I was leaving the hotel I again stopped at the information booth to see if they knew when the bus came and how much it cost. She made up some information and off I went, fully convinced that the information booth is actually just some sort of ruse, but for what I'm not sure.

Anyway, the whole time I was in Rodos I barely saw any public buses, but it seems luck was on my side. As I was approaching the bus stop, the bus came! It was completely packed (probably because that was the first one to run that day!!! haha, T knows what I'm talking about), but I managed to squeeze on as the last passenger.
That's right, I actually managed to catch one of the elusive buses of Rodos.

I got into town and found a travel agent who sold me a ticked to Tilos on the 5:30 boat (wow!). It was much cheaper than the other ferry company, so I guess those Rodos Palace cats are affiliated with the other company? Anyway, it was only half past noon and I didn't want to walk around with my pack for 5 hours, so I asked the travel agent, Tony, if there was a place I could leave my bag. He said I could leave it in his store if I wanted, but that he was closing at 2. When it was clear that 2 was too early for me, he kindly offered to come back and open up the store for me when I wanted to pick it up, so we agreed on 4.

I wandered around the old town for a few hours which was nice. Since this was my first experience alone in the town, I now understand how forward Greek men are, but they're much easier to deal with (and even a little flattering), unlike the Egyptians I encountered.

When I went to get my bag, Tony offered me a lift to the ferry on his scooter and I accepted. I'm so glad I did, because it was hard to find where the boat was supposed to leave, and he helped me find it and waited with me for the ferry to arrive. He was super nice (and not creepy, and not hitting on me).

The ride to Tilos was rough and rainy. I arrived in the dark and felt a little worried about finding a place. Luck found me again, and I met another Tony who rented me a super cute little studio for quite cheap. I had the best balcony!! I also had a bucket and a drying rack so I did all my laundry that night. Sounds stupid perhaps, but this made me really fucking happy. Small things, I guess.

The next day, Monday, I went for a big hike to this beach for a swim, then through a gorge and up this mountain to an old deserted town. It was crazy! The town, Mikro Horio, was last occupied by a few in the 60s, but it's super old and most of the buildings are just ruins. There is still an operable church and what appears to be a bar or club (with a sign saying "we open at 23:00 every day"). Other than that there are just goats roaming the stony streets. It was like a ghost town- only a goat town (hardy-har-har) It was surreal and I didn't see anyone. I was the only person there! Now that's solitude.

I was kind of a retard though, and in lieu of bringing enough water, I brought my journal and a book. Of course, I didn't read or write the whole time, so I just had a heavy purse and I was super thirsty... it was easily a 15k hike that I did, plus a swim out in the ocean, and all I drank was 0.5L. I survived, of course, but when I got back to my room I drank about a litre of water and pigged out on digestive biscuits and chocolate with yogurt (the yogurt here is more like whip cream than yogurt).

I was planning on leaving Tilos yesterday, but then I found out there were no boats leaving the island. Luckily, I met these Brits who were sailing to Kos so I asked for a ride. It was amazing! They were a funny lot of older sailors from Brighton. 5 men and one woman. They were a tad dry, but they gave me a free lift on their 42ft yacht, fed me lunch in a Turkish bay where we went snorkeling, and they made me feel very comfortable. I had dinner with them last night, after I had secured a place to stay.

I swear, my luck has been insane. When we got to the marina in Kos last night, I had no idea where to stay. I went into the marina supermarket and the man running it called a place for me and got the owner, Alexi, to pick me up from the pier. I can't believe how nice the people here are! So different from Rodos... er, rather Rodos Palace. Tony in Rodos was super kind.

Okay, I just finished my application to U of Calgary. I think all my med school applications are in now. I really should go do something with my day though, since I've been on the internet for more than 2 hours now and the day is a-wasting.

Old tales of Petra

Today was my last day with my parents in Rodos. I want to tell you all about everything, but I will start by giving you a post I have been meaning to post for awhile now. I have had to finish this post, and now I am tired and feel I can’t continue with stories from Greece or, as you will see, even with stories from Egypt.
So far this trip has been so amazing. I feel the gods are truly on my side and everything thus far has worked out so nicely.

Tomorrow I am alone again. I am going to hop a ferry to a small Greek island, Tilos, where I can hopefully spend some time reflecting on all that has transpired. I kind of doubt this will result in much public material, but hey, you never know. I won’t have a computer anymore though, so unless there is a good internet café on this remote island (known for bird watching) it seems unlikely that any of you will hear from me until I reach Turkey (which is a new addition to my trip).

Anyway, this piece was started in Dahab either on September 8th or 9th, I’m not too sure now.

Sitting in a beach side restaurant in Dahab, Egypt- it is time for me to attempt to relay my stories.

Friday Sep 3rd, Mego, Huda, and I left for Petra. We drove the 3 hours to Wadi Musa where I had a room booked at the Cleopetra. We arrived and found the place without too much ado. My room was a clean, small room with adjoining bathroom - it was perfect.
Petra was spectacular. I have no words to describe the experience of being there. I will post some pictures, but even these really do not do the experience justice. [edit: actually, you'll have to just look at my facebook album for these photos since I don't have access to them presently]

Walking through the siq, which is a canyon with rock walls on either side, was so moving. When the treasury came into view I felt my heart swell and my eyes fill- it is honestly so awe inspiring. I climbed up many stairs (and rocks) to visit tombs scattered all over. The moment I was separated from Mego and Huda, I met a Bedouin man who gave me a cigarette and we chatted awhile until Mego and Huda found me (to save me?). Later, I went exploring again on my own. I think that experiencing this place requires some solitude. The grandeur of the space makes you feel so incredibly small…

Mego, Huda and I decided to climb the stairs up to the monastery on foot, despite the constant appeals to take a donkey. I thought that perhaps this would be a great ordeal, akin to the Grouse Grind [for those of you not familiar, this is a grueling stair climb up Grouse mountain in BC], but really it was not so far. During our climb we were told so many different numbers as to how far it was ah, such a hard sell!

The monastery was astounding. From there I hiked up to the sacrifice point where there was a Bedouin tent set up. There was a young man there who fed me tea and while I sat there with him, Mego and Huda came up. The view was spectacular!

Mego, Huda and I meandered out of Petra just as dusk was approaching. Tired and happy, we grabbed a bite to eat at a nearby hotel and then went to Cleopetra. Mego and Huda also decided to stay for the night, since the drive back to Amman was quite far and it was already dark. We had tea with the owner, Mosleh, who arranged for me to go on a tour of Wadi Rum (a desert) the following day. When I told him that I wished to go to Dahab, he asked me to bring some Jordanian coffee to a hotel owner friend of his in Dahab. I agreed, so we went to the store to pick up the coffee. I said my goodbyes to Mego and Huda, as I would be leaving early the next morning.

Later that night, while I was trying to sleep, amid the sounds of the night streaming in through my window, I was suddenly afraid that I was actually asked to smuggle drugs. I quickly got up and turned on the lights to inspect the “coffee.” It was, indeed, just coffee. Phew.

The next morning I got up early and packed up my stuff. I met these 2 German girls who were to be going on the tour of Wadi Rum with me. We drove to the desert town, Rum Village, where we were met by a Bedouin. He took us to his house to drop off our bags and told us to take a walk up this mountain to a spring and then to come back to his house. We were a little confused by these directions, since we were under the impression we would be doing a jeep tour. Also, we had all been to Petra the day before, so we were quite exhausted and looking forward to sitting in a jeep passively. Alas, we did the hike, since it seemed we really had no other choice. It was incredibly hot already, and so we reticently climbed up the mountain. We were pleasantly surprised to see that there was a nice spring up there, where we sat and laughed and got to know each other a bit better.

While we were making our way back into the town, we were met by another man, our guide, Audi. It would appear that we had taken a little too long on our hike, so he had come to meet us.

Audi took us in the jeep to see where the camels get water and some inscriptions. The inscriptions did not look very old, so [privately] I thought that perhaps this was actually just a scam. I was not overly impressed. Then he took us to this siq where hiked through and then climbed up further and further into the siq. I was completely terrified, luckily, the other 2 German girls, Louisa and Tami seemed equally scared so I did not feel so ridiculous in my trepidation. The rock climbing really brought us close together and I made fast friends with the 2 girls.

We saw many other sites that day, including hiking up a huge red sand dune, which was absolutely beautiful and so serene. That night we all slept outside under the desert sky. The stars were mesmerizing and I had a hard time sleeping lest I miss some of the changes in the night. That, and also because there were desert foxes noisily fighting and playing all night long.

The day had been so great, I decided to stay another night. Louisa and Tami left to go to Israel and I went into town to meet some of Audi’s family. At his family’s home I hung out with all these children. I let them listen to my ipod, while I sipped tea and napped in their home. Audi went to go get some supplies and I had lunch with his cousin and his wife.

That night, while I was watching the sunset with another group of tourists I got the phone call from my mother, which I mentioned in an earlier post. Originally I had decided that I would head to Egypt the next day, but upon hearing the news, I felt like I was not prepared to deal with the chaos which I knew Egypt would entail. I decided to stay one more night to collect myself. Also, when your family is so far away, it felt especially nice to spend time with someone else’s family. After all, family is family.

So my last full day in Wadi Rum I helped Audi give a quick tour to this girl, Fiona, from Australia. It was super fun! Then I spend some more time with the kids dancing and generally being silly.

Finally, on Tuesday the 7th of September, 2 days after I was supposed to go, I made my way to Aqaba to catch the ferry to Egypt.

I’m afraid I’ll have to leave it at that, because I cannot possibly regale you with all that has happened. Egypt will have to be its own chapter, when I have some more time and access to internet.

last night in egypt

i am sitting in the hotel lobby in luxor. i have to leave in a few moments, but i thought i would write a quick blog to let you all know that, not only am i alive, i am well!

today i went to the valley of the kings with my traveling partner, for the last week, Umit. we have been the best of travel companions, i am so fortunate to have met him. we have traversed this crazy land with many adventures and luckily, we both have been seeking the true egyptian experience. for instance, when we arrived in luxor yesterday, we took a local minibus to kartan temple. it cost us only 50 piastres, which is about... um maybe 10 cents. normally, tourists take taxis, which would have been about $2. not that it's a lot of money, but this way we get to sit with realy egyptians and feel what their life is like. it's been so incredible.

of course, i am not egyptian, and the men can smell me coming. today i had a young boy of about 12 try to sell me a scarf while pressing his boner into my back... shudder. so gross.

i am off to greece tomorrow. i really can't wait. i am meeting tristan, and then we are going over to see my parents in rodos. so exciting! i am ready to get out of this hot, chaotic, incessant egypt.

love to everyone! i promise i will write a better post later, with pictures!!