Tina's wanderings around the world

I got up early (as is the usual these days), got my pack on, and walked on down to the bus station to catch a bus to Pokhara. There was a long line of buses, mostly not labeled, and a helpful wandering vendor pointed me in the right direction. I bartered for a cup of fresh masala tea (15 rupees which is like 15 cents—not bad) and baked goods then sipped away at the hot deliciousness while watching the constant stream of travelers file through.    It was a mostly uneventful eight hours. Although I was seated next to a very large man that kept spilling over into my space. I did the usual wiggling around and trying to slightly forcefully exert presence over my territory by pushing my left leg and arm up against his spilling. That didn’t really work. Then, stroke of brilliance, I realized the armrest wasn’t down. That seemed to draw his awareness to the situation and it was mostly okay for the rest of the trip. Aside from when he would fall asleep and creep over, which wasn’t i...

  Yesterday I made the transition from Ananda back to the city. I was ready to go, though I know I’ll miss the yoga schedule. Also, surprisingly, I got really emotional when I said goodbye to the three other students there (the German ladies came back). I almost started crying. It was like the end of camp, where you’ve just made a bunch of new friends, learned something new about yourself, then get sad to say goodbye to it at the end. But. The transition was good, and while I had been worried all week about what I would do when I was done at the yoga center, it all fell into place starting off with the taxi driver who didn’t try to rip me off and knew exactly where I was going. Score. Then my hotel booked me in for a tour to see the temples around the city for a good price. Score again. Then I sat for a while online on the rooftop of my hotel which was gorgeous with its bright potted flowers and prayer flags and strong wi-fi. Then on my way back to my room, found...

The book I’ve been reading this week has illuminated the broader world of yoga that I really didn’t know existed. The book is pretty awesome, actually, it’s called “Practical Yoga Psychology” written by Dr Rishi Vivekananda, though I think that’s his yogic name. His Christian name is Brian Thompson and he’s both a physician and a psychiatrist and has spent his professional life integrating the techniques of yoga with Western bodies of knowledge dealing with the mind, body and healing. He’s spent quite a lot of his time between Australia and the US, and I feel like his credentials are trustworthy. His introduction to yoga often refers to Western forms of medicine, psychiatry and science; into areas that most readers probably already have a basic foundation.    So I'm going to do a bit of a summary to help me remember what I've learned. (Any nieces and nephews not down with the yoga explanation, tune out now!) Here's an overview of the parts that have stood out for me. ...

Things are now becoming routine. The constant cups of tea. The musty-smelling room. The spiderweb highways that adorn the trees all around the center including right outside my window.  Not sure if you can actually see the huge spider in the first picture and the highway in the second...they're ALL over in the trees here, it totally freaked me out my first two days. I think I've mostly made peace with the spiders and mosquitoes here and I've been free from scares. Knock on wood. The long breaks in between classes. The very quiet lifestyle that seems to define this center. Aside from the constant hocking and nasal and throat cleansing. The neti pots have been getting good use every morning. Watch where you step. I'm getting used to the views. This is the viewpoint from where I sit in my plastic chair and read during the day when I'm not in class. Not a bad view. The Himalayas are hiding behind those clouds and I'm looking forward to actuall...

Swabiman, our resident care person who does all of the cooking and cleaning around this place--and with such a kind soul--made me some black tea the other day that was delicious. At my request, he just let me in on his secrets and I'm going to write them here so I don't forget. This is for one magnificent cup: Water (of course) Small amount of black tea Sugar to taste 4 peppercorns ground (I might reduce this number--it's pretty spicy!) A thumb-sized piece of ginger beat to a pulp with a pestle and mortar A tiny amount of instant coffee Strange, but voila! A tasty new tea. He also showed me what he makes everyday for our herbal tea--ginger and cinnamon leaves, which grow on the tree right outside my window. I have a cinnamon tree out my window!

Day 1 After bartering with a taxi driver in Thamel, I agreed on a slightly inflated price and set out to the Ananda Yoga Center . There are several yoga/meditation retreat centers in Kathmandu and after doing a search online I found two centers that combined yoga and meditation into a comprehensive daily schedule that seemed like it would be up my alley. After emailing one about price (and getting an extremely acceptable answer), I decided on Ananda Yoga Center. It’s outside the center of Kathmandu, a few kilometers down a bumpy dirt road off of the main ring road that surrounds the city. The cab driver drove more recklessly than needed and despite having called for directions before we left , hehad to call again. But we arrived, safe and sound.    As this is prime trekking season, I assumed the yoga center would be busy but I found that I was among only three other yoga students. There’s Giuzi, an Italian lady taking a break from her adopted city of...