Yoga chicks fly the coop ----------> A Journey to India

Longest day

2012-01-17T03:26:00.001-05:00

After 3 wonderful weeks in India we are heading home. Today we went to Ellora caves and then we headed to the airport. Our first flight was at 8:15 pm to Mumbai. Our next leg is at 3:05 am from Mumbai to Paris, then a two hour layover in Paris, each flight is over 9 hours. We are trying to maintain the relaxed demeanor that we have achieved. So we are reminiscing on all the highlights.

One of the things that sticks in our minds most is one of the beach vendors saying "Promise you come back? Promise". We do hope to come back some day. Taking with us all the knowledge we gained in the meantime, back to the coop.

Sunrise in Pune, sunset in Aurangabad

2012-01-15T10:40:00.001-05:00

From pollution to pure air we went. Left at 5 am and luckily beat the traffic so our trip was only 4 hours. Checked into hotel early and then drove another 2 hours to the caves of Ajunta. The Ajunta caves were built by Buddhist monks who had to flee from the Brahmans to avoid persecution. The caves have paintings and carvings. There were over 26 caves. The 26th cave has a reclining Buddha it's very special.

The process of getting to the caves is interesting. Our guide described the first part as a shopping maul. We were greeted by vendors who told us their name and stall number for when we were done at the caves. We met some silver monkeys while waiting for the bus. Thank goodness we had a guide, it was like having a fast past at Disney World. We got on the bus to go up to the caves where we were greeted by more people selling their wares. It's very hard to convince them you are not interested.

Now to the actual cave experience. The pictures don't really do it justice. The energy was amazing. At one point Jean and Maria went into a monks carved out cell and chanted Om with a Tibetan woman. It was a priceless moment. There were many Tibetan people, they prayed to every Buddha there, and there were a lot! We had a wonderful porter who watched our shoes and guided us down to the bottom. We gave him twice what he asked ($8).then back on the bus, the smells were a bit overwhelming. We had a lunch/dinner at a roadside restaurant that our guide assured us had fresh food. It was probably the best chai we had on the trip. The food was excellent too.

Today is our last day. We're headed to the Ellora Caves. We will have a little time to freshen up and write one last time before we start heading home. Namaste.

Pune with a perfect guide

2012-01-14T08:36:00.001-05:00

Today we were blessed with our first female guide. She was so knowledgeable and had so much information to share our brains are full.

We were taught about the customs of what you do at the temples. We learned about the offerings and how you share the blessed offerings with the poor. We learned about Indian traditions in marriage. We had a traditional Thali lunch where we ate with our right hand only. We went through the vegetable market and tasted some local fruit and vegetables. We climbed 108 steps to the Parvati Temple where we had a panoramic view of the city. We met children who wanted to take their picture with us. We went to a local market called Lakshmi road. Tina and Maria took a rikshaw to a hidden bronze market where they saw the oldest temple in Pune, so Maria could get a Patanjali statue. (Gail had a blister and since only 3 people fit in a rikshaw she didn't mind staying behind in the van). We're eating an early dinner so we can get up at 5 am to head to Arungabad to the caves. Two more nights in a hotel before we are heading home! Namaste

We are in awe

2012-01-13T10:05:00.001-05:00

We visited the Iyengar Institute today. We did not get to take a class, but we knew this in advance, as you need to book years ahead of time. We spent some time in the asana room, we could feel the energy in our feet. We spent some time talking to Prashant Iyengar, and then we went to lunch with Jean's teacher Joan White. We came back to the institute after lunch with the hope of meeting Guruji B.K.S. Iyengar who sits in the library after 2:30 pm. We waited for a bit, but no Guruji. Then we came upstairs and Maria just knew he was coming. About 10 minutes later he arrived. We were in awe. We greeted him and then went down to the library to pay our respects. Our trip is complete. The fact that we got to meet him in this lifetime, words cannot express the feeling.

Later in the day we got mendhi(henna tattoos) to commemorate our trip. Sightseeing tomorrow. Namaste.

Yoga chicks fly North

2012-01-12T11:58:00.001-05:00

Today was our migration day. We knew the day would come when we'd have to leave the lush land of Kerala for the big city life of Pune. We are looking forward to our time in Pune.

This morning before we left for the airport we went down to the beach for one last dose of the Arabian Sea. We had the wonderful fortune of experiencing the fishing nets being brought in by what seemed like almost every man in the area (except of course for the ones who were peddling their wares). It was quite an energy. From the men who were on the boats, the men who were swimming with the nets, the men who were shooing away the birds and the men pulling in the nets, you could really feel the immense importance of this task. We were in awe.

Flat Stanley (Jean's adopted son) came out of seclusion to spend some time with the fruit vendor on the beach.

The flight to Mumbai was uneventful and we are on the bus on our way to Pune. Stuck in big city traffic. What a difference from Kerala.

Arrived in our hotel safely. We are pleasantly surprised that we have a 5 star hotel that has all the western amenities amongst a city that runs the gamut from deep poverty to luxury. At this point in the trip it's greatly appreciated!

In the pictures below you will see our day, which also include Gail demonstrating the true healing powers of Kerala as she was able to bring her legs to 90 degrees after months of difficulty from her herniated disc, (we all healed in Kerala, Maria's hip is feeling fantastic, Tina's neck isn't stiff and Jean's shoulder and knee are feeling great! ). Our rupees laid out, which equals about $75, even though it seems like a lot of money. Airport pictures where Gail's luggage came late and a local Pune man.

Shiny, polished and flattened

2012-01-11T11:06:00.001-05:00

This title refers to our Ayurvedic treatments today. Tina, Gail and Maria had a massage where they hung from a rope and used their feet, Jean stuck with the old standby, foot and leg massage. The experience of Ayurveda here is not like the US. A lot of oil is involved. From the crown of the head to every last crevice of the body.

We did very little today. It was a rest, relax, replenish day. Tomorrow we are off to Pune. It's a long travel day.

Of course what day would be complete without our helping the local economy? Gail had pillow cases made by the local tailor for a very, very reasonable price. Maria bought a beautiful tourmaline necklace from a wonderful vendor named Kumar who wants to marry for love(he's 26). Tina and Maria had a personal photo shoot with the head gardener here. It was a hazy lazy day. We did however manage to pack up and re-distribute our bags so that each one weighs less than 20 kg (the required domestic weight here, which is a problem when you start 24 kg at the beginning of your trip).

After being polished and flattened our auras look like the pictures below.

Way in, way out

2012-01-10T07:26:00.001-05:00

Tina and Maria started their day with yoga, Gail and Jean slept in since the full moon energy made it hard to sleep last night, although Tina and Maria are to be commended for getting up since they had some kind of animal scurrying around in their rooftop all night. Today we ventured beyond the grounds of our hotel into Trivandrum. We visited the Puthen Maliga Palace. It took over a thousand years to build and the raj only lived in it for one year. He died from natural causes at the age of 33, the palace closed for 150 years until they opened it to the public in 1991. It was considered to have bad feng shui. Next to the palace was the temple which we were only allowed to view from the outside since we were not locals.

On our way back we stopped at the spice market to buy banana chips, potato chips, coconut oil, saffron, tea and vanilla. All things we should have bought more of at the spice plantation in retrospect (except the chips, they were making them fresh right there, who could resist?).

The next part of our story turns out to be fairly typical, but not something you want to experience while you are here. Our driver hit a pedestrian who ran across the road unexpectedly. The way things work here is the village people (not the musical group), surround the driver and accuse him of driving recklessly. Thank goodness the police came and handled it in a way that was favorable to the driver. We were fearful that a riot could have occurred, and we did lock our doors and call our local contact just to be sure. Now that we got that experience out of the way, we don't have to revisit it.

A quiet evening at our hotel and Ayurveda tomorrow! Namaste

Yeah,yeah,yeah (our new phrase,picked up from the locals)

2012-01-09T11:11:00.001-05:00

Now picture us moving our heads from side to side. We're still perfecting that action. Today was a travel recovery day. Pool, beach and supporting the local economy ($ goes a long way).

We made appointments for our Ayurvedic treatments (they squeezed us in), so we can get polished and flattened(local terminology).

Despite what sounds like a relaxing day we are heading to bed early so we can get up for our 7 am class with the yoga master.

Tomorrow we're off to see the palace, the temple and the museum. Namaste

From Alleppy to Kovallam we go!

2012-01-08T08:53:00.001-05:00

Our experience on the houseboat was quite special. We had a master chef, and a wonderful crew. The boat was really comfortable with two air-conditioned bedrooms each with their own bathroom. The peace and serenity of being so close to nature was really incredible There was a mystical quality of the morning and evening prayers in the background. Everyone lives so close to nature. They bathe, clean clothes, cook with the water from the river, go from one side to the other. There are rice paddys on each side and you learn the process they go through letting water in and out. You see how the workings of everyday life goes on here. We felt so grateful to have this glimpse.

When we left, our four hour car ride was an interesting transition, one town flowed into the next, getting more built up and modern until we reached our cliff resort hotel overlooking the Arabian Sea. Yet another vibe exists here. Equally as special. We are hoping for more Ayurveda here, meeting the doctor in the morning to see if they can fit us in!

Why not and R-E-L-A-XXXXXX

2012-01-06T11:27:00.001-05:00

From the moment we arrived at Coconut Lagoon (by boat), we were relaxed. We were greeted with flowers and fresh coconut water in the coconut. Rooms weren't ready so we made ourselves familiar with the property and booked our Ayurvedic treatments. We had a wonderful lunch and then moved into our bungalows with beautiful outdoor shower and bathroom. We had Ayurvedic treatments by the tiniest women. They were still quite powerful despite their size. Hung out in the hammocks and watched a glorious sunset. Dinner with a beautiful buffet and live classical Indian music. Off to bed, so we can get up early for yoga.

So that's where relax... Comes from, it was a lovely fundamental class with the sweetest teacher who sing songed us into every pose, and while in the US it would be annoying it was perfect here. Bird watched, butterfly watched, watched dosas being made, pool time, more Ayurveda and sunset cruise. Dinner with our favorite waiter Febin (whose answer to every request was "why not?") and now our post before we are I unreachable because we will be on a houseboat tomorrow night. (oh and btw Maria is better!)So until next time, namaste

We are not untouchable

2012-01-04T12:04:00.001-05:00

Unfortunately Maria had a stomach thing today and Jean although not as bad as Maria was not 100% so they both stayed back today while Tina and Gail made their way into Fort Cochin. Jean played nursemaid(and a fine one she was). First before we left we went to the pharmacy where for under $3 we got medication without a prescription for Maria.(who is on the mend now). Anyway, a quick overview of the day minus two... We visited a church where the Portuguese explorer Vasco DeGama was buried(but later taken back to Portugal) the church was built from mud, sand and egg whites! It's still standing! Then we visited the Chinese fishing nets which was a gift from the Chinese and they are still used today. We also saw a palace that had the most exquisite frescos of the story of the Raminyana(which is an ancient Sanskrit epic). We only got to see the Jewish temple from the outside because it closes in the middle of the day and our guide did not realize it would have been a priority. The area that it was in is called Jew town, but it's not considered derogatory. The Jews came there from Israel a long time ago and it was quite amazing the community they had there. Many years later they went back to Israel and gave the property to their friends. Anyway, after a bit of shopping (first we were given tea and treated like royalty as though we had deep pockets, and although the 500 year old ganesh statue was calling our name, and the cashmere carpet was divine on the feet) we bought much less lavish items We headed back to join the others. This evening Jean came with us to a kathakali dance performance. It was fantastic! We were only sorry Maria didn't come but she was resting up for our trip to Coconut Lagoon tomorrow. We may not have Internet for a few days as we don't know if it exists there and from there we will be on a houseboat for a night in the backwaters. So if you don't hear from us you know why! Namaste

Goa, going gone...to Cochin

2012-01-03T12:21:00.001-05:00

Before we say farewell to Goa we will recap our day... 7 am mantras in the Arabian Sea, on to Anjuna with Simon our wonderful driver who safely escorted us to our destination, stopping at many ATMs along the way, all out of cash! Our first stop was the Crystal vendor who was located across the way from the German Bakery. He mined his own gems, indigenous to the area. Needless to say our bags are a little heavier (more about that later!). We then moved on to the bakery which we arrived at by 12:30 and didn't leave until 4! We were stuck in a time warp. The energy was unbelievable. We met an interesting gentleman named Paul who told us his story. Off to Yoga Magic (thanks Sara), which eluded us for 40 minutes causing the three yoga teachers to be late for class (Jean stayed behind to enjoy the Arabian Sea). Thankfully it was pranayama and restorative! Just what the doctor ordered. Afterwards we had a tour of the facilities and enjoyed our lassies. After prying ourselves away we took our lives in the hands of Simon who managed to navigate us back to the hotel.(if you know anything about India's roads at night, they are particularly treacherous). We joined Jean for dinner and off to sleep because we were waking up for a 5:30 am pick up.

Off to the airport we go! We thought all was well, our guide was so helpful, but then... Our luggage weighed too much! So by the skin of our teeth and many re- packings later we made the plane (they actually held the plane for us, that would never happen in NY), thank you Kingfisher Airways. We connected in Bangalore where we got on that plane with little issue and are writing you now from our hotel in Cochin. Together we made the executive decision to ship our excess baggage home! We spent three hours in DHL. We had to write a manifest of each item! In 4-5 days a big yellow box will arrive at Om Sweet Om with our stuff! We're off to bed, sightseeing in Cochin tomorrow! Namaste

Happy New Year from India

2011-12-31T15:26:00.001-05:00

As you read this, you haven't even started your celebrations and we are getting ready for bed! It's been 2012 for almost 2 hours. We had a very busy day touring. We saw 1 temple, 4 churches, a spice plantation and we rode elephants, not to mention we went to the market :) we wanted to wish you all a happy, healthy, joyful new year. Namaste

Everything goes in Goa

2011-12-30T13:01:00.001-05:00

The beach near our hotel is beautiful. It's flanked by various huts and shacks and a couple of actual buildings. We spent some time recovering from our travels today. We also met some local culture. Our favorite was a young boy of twelve, who while on vacation this week is hard at work luring the tourists to his sisters "shop". We were blown away by his salesmanship, and also the times that he forgot and was having fun with us building structures in the sand and singing. Beautiful sunset today, just don't have it downloaded to iPad to share, so you'll have to catch it another day! Namaste

Paris to Mumbai

2011-12-29T23:36:00.001-05:00

Before you even set down in India, you get an overwhelming feeling about the people. I(Gail) spent over an hour standing at the back of the plane chatting with many native Indians. What struck me most was how warm everyone is. Their hearts are so open. We have just arrived in Goa, waiting for our rooms to be ready. Will post more soon!

Au revoir Paris!

2011-12-29T03:36:00.001-05:00

It's been a long night and with few hours sleep we were off to the airport at 7 am! We'll be speaking to you tomorrow from Goa, India...namaste

Paris in 36 hours

2011-12-28T19:16:00.001-05:00

The New York Times has nothing on us! 10 places visited just today! Starting with Notre Dame, ending with Fondue, Musee D'orsay and Eiffel Tower in between! Off to India tomorrow, we travel all day so you may not hear from us for 24 hours! Til next time, namaste

Paris day 1

2011-12-27T13:59:00.001-05:00

Not that you're all interested in our trip to Paris, but we'll share a few pictures from our day! It's been a long one! No sleep, lots of sightseeing and eating.

Day 1

2011-12-26T15:55:00.001-05:00

Here we are at JFK ready to embark on our journey!

Two days to go!

2011-12-24T06:40:00.001-05:00

When planning a trip for almost a year, one thinks it's a long way off, until one day you wake up, and amongst all the busy-ness we call our lives the day is almost here. All the planning, all the saving, all the making space in our everyday lives...so this dream trip can come to life... So what I'm trying to say is, we are all packed! Everyone managed to keep it under 50 lbs a bag! It's still Xmas eve and day to go! If you're Jewish enjoy the movies and Chinese food, if you celebrate Xmas, have a very happy holiday and if you celebrate neither, well...happy everyday! Namaste everyone.

2011-12-04T18:02:00.001-05:00

This was us at our favorite restaurant Mediterranean Marketplace this summer, with our map of India, finalizing our itinerary (who knew it was such a process!)

3 weeks tomorrow!

2011-12-04T17:46:00.001-05:00

Friday we went to Queens to grab some Indian food at Sri Chimnoy's disciples' restaurant, Annam Brahman. The food there is great, the chai even better! We brought with us the latest addition to our trip, Flat Stanley. He is an Om Sweet Om student's son's school project, he will be travelling with us to Paris and India! We also bought a few tunics so we have some local more traditional clothing! Getting excited!

32 More days!

2011-11-24T11:38:00.000-05:00

Thanksgiving, and boy do I feel gratitude today! I cannot believe we leave for India in a little over a month! It's been a long time planning. Everyone has gotten their shots, got their Malaria pills, and are busy getting all the necessities for the trip! We can't wait! Yet, so much is going on between now and then, so trying to stay present every day!

First post

2011-10-23T17:49:00.001-04:00

64 days until we leave! So much to do now!