Traveling

No update- just a little Rishikesh.

Well, India.
What can I say really?
I have been here almost a month and the ups and the downs, well there are just too many things to say. I promise I will update you all very soon, but just a short blog for now.
I am staying in Rishikesh, a bit North of actually, which is North West India. I am North of Delhi- on the West side of Nepal- sorta.
I'm going to be staying here for at least 2 weeks- I really need it cause we have been speed traveling for about 2 and 1/2 weeks before getting here- I really need the relaxation and a place to enjoy breakfast every morning, instead of the crisps and bisquits after overnight trains (2 in a row! 3 trains in 3 days-)
So Rishikesh is a type of Yoga capitol. The Beatles apparently came here (and had all their money stolen) sometime in the past. It's a quiet little place, with many guest houses and massage places and yoga ashrams and meditation courses. I promise not to become too wonky, I just want to try it out. But believe me, there are some crazy people around here!
So this morning, after an hour and a half of yoga, I walked out of my guest houses' steep stairs turned left, wove my way past a couple of cows, dodged a man completely painted red who was insistant on Bindi-ing (putting the red paint on peoples' forheads) everyone walking past and walked across the bridge to the German bakery for my hot lemon ginger honey tea. The bridge is quite crazy actually cause there are a million monkeys that just play around on it all day. They steal people's scarves and food- you have to hide every thing before you go past. I have learned that monkeys are actually not cute little creatures- they are something close to rats. (For me anyhow, I don't like them). So there are 2 ways of traffic on the bridge and while waiting for my turn to go around the cow that's just hanging out, I realise Iam standing behind a monkey, who is also waiting his turn. This placeis crazy.
So, I have yoga class every morning from 9-10:30 and then potentially from 4:30-6. Fat chance in the 2 nd one but I will definitely try. We are getting up at 6am Monday morning to take an hour and a half jeep ride to hopefully get a glimpse of the Himalayas- we tried in Darjeeling- and sorta got a tiny peak, but hopefully the West will be better to us than the East. All those stories to come I promise.
On the 9th, I have checked myself into an ashram. The guru is a woman, which I really an excited for, because there are not that many women gurus. I will be doing yoga twice a day, meditation and will have philosophical lectures every night for a week. I will not be allowed to talk or make any noise until after lunch at 2pm. It entails way more than this, but I promise I will tell you all about it after I leave. As long as I do leave ;)
Don't worry- I'm only doing it for the certificate at the end. Maybe I'll open my own ashram in Montreal- I'm sure that could work. The West coast might be more lucrative though...
So that's me. What are you guys doing? email me and catch me up- Remember I go away on the 9th. :)

posted by jjoollee @ 7:34 AM