Namaste,
I think it's starting to kick in that I am in India...maybe not fully but it is definitely kicking in. When I sit in the studio listening to my amazing teachers talk I look out the windows at the beautiful landscape and think... WOW! Do you realize where you are? How long you planned this and looked at this place and the pictures on the internet. Can you believe you're actually got here? I'm a little mind blown about the situation.
It took almost 9 hours for me to get here. The bus was on time but it fell behind in travel time due to bad roads and traffic - which to me, if they know this because it's always chaotic, they should tell you 7 hours instead of 6. However I quite enjoyed the journey...I actually really like bus rides. I pop in my music and look out the window and watch the scenery whiz by me and just take the time to think and not really talk to others...even if I am with someone; which I was - I was with one of the workers from the hostel (thank goodness) so it made my life easier and not as stressful. I was already a bit stressed about being late and then getting myself to the ashram. Badu had been in contact with the ashram and told me not to worry he had made sure they were coming to get me at a meeting point. I watched the organized chaos rush by me for the whole 7 hour journey, I watched as men worked in run down garages, children play on dirty pavement. I saw long, run down concrete buildings with 5 doors along the front...some of them opening into what looked like a concrete room and a bed. More cows, tuk tuks, traffic and so much more ...it's hard to explain. I tried to wrap my brain around everything but even after 7 hours of watching all of this and taking it all in I still can't make sense of any of it. The horn of the bus was another thing...I smiled every time the driver used it and in India, they don't use their blinkers, the lines on the roads and they don't have many traffic lights so they just constantly use their horns which just becomes background noise after awhile but the buses horn was something else. Have you ever heard the horn on a clown car? That's the best way I can explain it lol...it totally added to the senseless organized chaos surrounding us.
We arrived at the bus terminal just after 8 and we took a tuk tuk to...well I honestly don't know where but Badu knew where we were going. The traffic seems just as bad or possibly even worse. For those of you that don't know what a tuk tuk is its a three wheeler with a small cabin on it ...they are motorized but don't go as fast as cars and wouldn't say they are the safest form of transportation.
I was so glad Badu was with me. I was a bit stressed when we were waiting at the side of the road by a bridge. People coming up to us and staring at me, I was still just getting my feet wet here and as mentioned earlier wasn't sure how to take everything yet. The ashram kept calling saying they were sending someone which made me extremely happy, until I saw was my mode of transportation was. A fucking two wheeler...better known as a motorbike! Are you kidding me?!? I don't want to die before I even arrive to the ashram. Me, my 80 litre backpack, my computer backpack and my purse got as comfortable as we could on the bike and we were off (after I thank Badu of course). We weaved in and out of traffic and people, we zoomed around corners, up a hill, past cows and dogs over broken road...IT WAS FUCKING FUN AS HELL!!! I actually felt more safe on the bike than I did with any other transportation.
It was strange when I walked in. I was told to sit on the couch by someone who was clearly a teacher of the ahsram - and has become one of my favourites. "Sit here and relax." Was all he said. "Drink some water." They brought me a stainless steel cup filled with water. "Just relax." He repeated. " I am totally relaxed." was my response but I clearly wasn't. He had an odd, calm smile on his face and he just kept staring at me. "He asked if I was hungry." "Very." He took me to a big outside area that was covered with a corrugated roof surround by netting (against bugs) and told me to sit (pretty much in the dark) while he prepared me tea, an apple and toast with jam - the jam here is awesome!
The ashram is in an old hotel and it hasn't been updated so it's much different than what it looks like in the nicely filtered pictures on their website. The room was much smaller and not as bright as it looked online, and the doors have these huge bolts on them which stick if you don't pull strong enough and they make a huge squeaking noise when you are locking and unlocking. It is so loud I can actually here when the girls on either side of my room are leaving or coming back. I wouldn't say it's run down, in fact in the past 11 days it's actually become home to me and I love getting into my bed at the end of the night and snuggling in or just talking with my roommate...who is awesome. She is Indian so she goes over things from philosophy class that I may not have understood and explains Indian history and understands Sanskrit which we are learning...it's not easy.
After two days of being here it already felt like we had been here a few weeks. We all bonded so well and we had already taken in so much information it felt like I had been in class for 11 days not 2.
The course is great...it's intense, there is a lot of information and the Sanskrit is challenging but I am learning so much. We have a 13 hour day. Our first class starts at 6:15am, Hatha Yoga - which is what I am very keen on and one of the main reasons I chose this school - which is getting much more intense and giving us a challenging work out first thing in the morning. Our Ashtanga Vinyasa class is very challenging and is pushing me physically. Our alignment class is also challenging...doing a pose properly is extremely challenging and makes them that much more effective but definitely not as relaxing as I thought many of them were until now. This class is working me hard and so is the teacher. He is fantastic, inspiring, smart, brilliant, worldly and caring. When he talks we surround him and look at him like he is Santa Claus lol we all like him so much. He was adjusting/aligning me today and tears all of a sudden filled my eyes. These weren't tears out of pain, or frustration but just from working my ass off, learning what I'm learning, realizing where I am, pushing myself, improving myself mentally and physically and really just the true love I feel for being able to train with such an incredible person. I have the biggest smile on my face when I see him or when I am in his class. He also gives us the chance to work in groups and correct, align and teach each other which is fantastic and made me realize that I could do this. I wasn't sure I would want to teach yoga, I was taking it to have a deeper meaning in it and have a better personal practice but I have realized that I really enjoy teaching others and that I am good at it too. My friend told me that she thinks I am going to be a really good teacher and that she is learning from me.
Everyone in my class is great and we all bonded very quickly though I have really bonded with Julie (from Norway) we pretty much stick together for everything which includes shopping, eating, sitting next to each other in theory classes, studying sessions at the cafe - there is an awesome cafe on a rooftop the next street over in yoga village (which is where we live) and it's made out of bamboo - and early morning practices. Well, we have tried early morning practices but the first morning I was late and today Julie slept in so I practiced by myself at 5:30am...back strengthening. Early yes but we really don't have a lot of time to practice so early morning is the best time.
Sunday which was our day off her, Me and Ellen (a Canadian) walked around all day shopping - I did most of the shopping, wandering the streets and having a fabulously delicious lunch at the Beetles Cafe...yes the band...they came to Rishikesh back in the day and stayed at an ashram so this cafe is in honour of that. It has an amazing view over looking The Ganga...not The Gangee, The Ganga. It's literally a 5 minute walk from the ashram. It's pretty awesome here! Small little streets filled with shops and cafe's...you can literally buy everything here, clothes...amazing clothes, jewelry, food, vitamins, yogic instruments, bags, rugs, pillows, yoga mats and props...it is endless and cheap...it's easy for me to spend...but I have become really good at bartering. I bought this bag/purse - no I didn't need another one but it said my name when I saw it so I figured it wanted to come live with me - it was originally 2,500 rupees so about $45. I talked him down to 800 rupees so around $18. It had a flaw so he had knocked it down to 1,500 rupees but when he opened it the lining was ripped badly, he dropped it down to 100 but I said no way less so he did and I bought and love it very much.
Day by day it's sinking in more and more that I am here. The more information I get, the deeper my friendships become and the more sore by body becomes sore I am realizing where I am how far I have traveled and the changes I have gone through and am still going through being here.
Physically even though I am sore as hell and can barely move my arms, my back is feeling straighter and more opened in the shoulders, I am feeling healthy and clean...I have actually become a vegetarian as they put us on an ayurvedic diet. Meet is banned here and so is alcohol so even when we are finished the course and stay we don't have access to these things and to be honest I'm a little afraid to get sick from eating meat and I really don't miss it as the food here is so good and filling. Plus, the cows are really nice. Remember I said there are random cows in India, well here they are everywhere they even cause traffic jams on the bridges here. They are just as friendly and loving as dogs, we make friends with them...well, Julie does, I tell her she is an animal whisperer. She pets every animal she sees and then they follow her, and me, I get to watch the bonding and then accidentally step in a big pile of cow poop!
If I have learned anything, its not just the physical classes and mental effect of yoga, it is actually a lifestyle, there is so much more to it than that. We can heal ourselves, with alignment, adjustment, meditation, and eating techniques...just because you don't have time to go to a class it doesn't mean you don't have time for yoga because it's so much more than that and unfortunately Western Yoga is different than Yoga here but I am hoping to spread some of my knowledge and experience elsewhere. For now though, I am going to sleep, I am extremely sore and tired and tomorrow we are leaving here at 4am to go to a temple on the mountain for sunrise. Until next time everyone. Shanti (peace).
- My Beautiful Life -
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