This is why I don't make plans ahead of time....
I was originally thinking that I would come up to Rishikesh for a few days to escape the pollution and craziness of the city, and then continue on my sight seeing journey around India.
But then, somehow, I ended up signing up for two weeks of meditation and yoga and an ashram here! It actually made a lot of sense... I much prefer staying in one place for along time instead of bouncing all around for a day or two in each place, even if that means I see less stuff... plus, I figured that I would probably never in my life have such an easy opportunity to spend two weeks studying yoga in the yoga capital of the world. And considering that I don't even have a ticket out of India yet, it's not like I can't simply just continue with my original plan two weeks later, right? (Although at that point, it might be getting close to Monsoon season down south... hmmm...)
We start tomorrow. The daily routine starts with meditation at 5:00 am, followed by two hours of yoga before breakfast. After breakfast is a lecture or something like that, followed by lunch, then free time for a few hours (I anticipate spending most of my free time napping) Then we have afternoon meditation and another yoga session before dinner, with music or something after dinner, and in bed by 9-ish.
I have never done a minute of yoga before in my life (neither has Michele, so at least I won't be the only one). Michele's cousin Trammy is also with us, and she has some yoga experience...
Anyways, I expect to be very sore for much of the next two weeks, but I'm looking forward to an amazing experience!
Monday, February 28, 2011
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Trivia: What do this post and the Beatles' White Album have in common?
Answer: Both were written in Rishikesh! (Ok, so not all of the White Album was written here, but many of the songs were composed while the Beatles were staying a meditation center in Rishikesh)
Rishikesh is in the foothills of the Himalayas, with fresh clean winds blowing down from the mountains and a cool and sparkling CLEAN Ganges flowing through town. The area is very holy to Hindus, and the town is full of shrines and temples to the myriad Hindu gods. It is also "the yoga capital of the world" and is hosting the International Yoga Festival next week. And finally, it is a gateway to lots of adventure type activities, the most popular being white water rafting on the Ganges. The result is a strange mix of tourists including older Indians coming for the shrines, younger Indians coming for the adventures, and foreigners coming for the yoga. Oh, also the entire town is both alcohol-free and vegetarian...
So why am I here, you are asking? Good question! I am here because my old bike partner Michele is staying here for a month to do yoga! SO I decided to come visit for just a few days. I also came because after Delhi, I desperately needed to get somewhere where I could breathe the fresh clean air.
Delhi was a mad house, Rishikesh is still kind of a mad house, but in comparison to Delhi, it feels like the most laid back out of the way place you can imagine. We took a hike today up to a waterfall and for the first time since coming to India, there was no one else around! (The modern art museum was pretty close to empty, but still not quite) The only other thing around was this white dog that decided to follow us for a few hours... didn't bark or beg for food or really pay attention to us in any way, it was just there walking along doing its own thing... It was nice dog (not like that monkey that almost jumped out at me... bad monkey!!) Other awesome and relaxing things included sitting on the rock and soaking our tired feet in the Ganges, reading a book in a cafe overlooking the river, and sitting in a restaurant with some Indians watching the India-England World Cup game (cricket). You hear a lot about Indians going crazy over cricket, but this was actually kind of dull, in a nice way. Maybe it's because Rishikesh is a dry town... maybe going to a bar in Delhi during the game would be much crazier... anyways, it was a long game, so it's still going on actually, but when we left India was looking pretty strong (36 overs with only 1 out! (yes, I've been learning some of the rules of cricket)) and I think England will have a long way to go to catch up.
Not sure how long I'm going to stay here in Rishikesh. It's a really nice place, but for someone who is not Hindu and not taking a long Yoga course, there isn't mush else to do... Might stick around a few days and just sit by the river and read. That sounds nice. :)
Answer: Both were written in Rishikesh! (Ok, so not all of the White Album was written here, but many of the songs were composed while the Beatles were staying a meditation center in Rishikesh)
Rishikesh is in the foothills of the Himalayas, with fresh clean winds blowing down from the mountains and a cool and sparkling CLEAN Ganges flowing through town. The area is very holy to Hindus, and the town is full of shrines and temples to the myriad Hindu gods. It is also "the yoga capital of the world" and is hosting the International Yoga Festival next week. And finally, it is a gateway to lots of adventure type activities, the most popular being white water rafting on the Ganges. The result is a strange mix of tourists including older Indians coming for the shrines, younger Indians coming for the adventures, and foreigners coming for the yoga. Oh, also the entire town is both alcohol-free and vegetarian...
So why am I here, you are asking? Good question! I am here because my old bike partner Michele is staying here for a month to do yoga! SO I decided to come visit for just a few days. I also came because after Delhi, I desperately needed to get somewhere where I could breathe the fresh clean air.
Delhi was a mad house, Rishikesh is still kind of a mad house, but in comparison to Delhi, it feels like the most laid back out of the way place you can imagine. We took a hike today up to a waterfall and for the first time since coming to India, there was no one else around! (The modern art museum was pretty close to empty, but still not quite) The only other thing around was this white dog that decided to follow us for a few hours... didn't bark or beg for food or really pay attention to us in any way, it was just there walking along doing its own thing... It was nice dog (not like that monkey that almost jumped out at me... bad monkey!!) Other awesome and relaxing things included sitting on the rock and soaking our tired feet in the Ganges, reading a book in a cafe overlooking the river, and sitting in a restaurant with some Indians watching the India-England World Cup game (cricket). You hear a lot about Indians going crazy over cricket, but this was actually kind of dull, in a nice way. Maybe it's because Rishikesh is a dry town... maybe going to a bar in Delhi during the game would be much crazier... anyways, it was a long game, so it's still going on actually, but when we left India was looking pretty strong (36 overs with only 1 out! (yes, I've been learning some of the rules of cricket)) and I think England will have a long way to go to catch up.
Not sure how long I'm going to stay here in Rishikesh. It's a really nice place, but for someone who is not Hindu and not taking a long Yoga course, there isn't mush else to do... Might stick around a few days and just sit by the river and read. That sounds nice. :)
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Pictures!
After my last post yesterday evening, I went and had dinner on a rooftop restaurant with an amazing view of the Taj Mahal. Getting above the chaos of the street, combined with a lovely sunset, and hearing the call to prayer spring up from various mosques around the area like a chorus was actually a very peaceful and serene setting. It made me happy. ;)
Here are some pictures!
Ring of Fire!!!
Typical Street Scene
The Taj Mahal!
The Beautiful Lotus Temple
Giant Sundial!
Here are some pictures!
Ring of Fire!!!
Typical Street Scene
The Taj Mahal!
The Beautiful Lotus Temple
Giant Sundial!
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Agra and the Taj Mahal
This country continues to be quite overwhelming...
I took a train to Agra (to see the Taj Mahal!!) The train was scheduled to depart from Delhi at 5:40pm and arrive in Agra just before 10:00 pm, giving me just the right amount of time to get to my hotel and go to bed in order to get up really early in the morning to beat the tourist crowds at the Taj. As luck would have it, the train was rescheduled for 8:00pm, didn't actually leave until 8:30, and then took about 6 hours instead of the 4 hours it was supposed to take, which put me in Agra around 2:30am. By this time, everyone at the hotel was of course asleep, and I was locked out without a room! Calling the hotel in the attempt to wake up a sleeping receptionist was not successful, so I spent the next 20 mintutes or so wandering through the narrow streets of the bazaars of the Taj Ganj looking for any hotel that might be open. Of course I didn't find any, so I went back to my original hotel with the thought of sitting on the stoop waiting for it to open. It was around 3am by this time, and I figured I wouldn't have to wait any longer than 6:00am. Fortunately, this time I heard someone inside coughing, so I knocked really had (which in retrospect I should have done in the first place instead of calling...) until someone came to let me! Went to bed around 3:30, and by the time I woke u I didn't get to the Taj until 10:30 or so, by which point it was of course completely packed with tourists. Oh well.
I feel like there is a lot to say about India... but I can't quite put it into words yet. It is crowded and loud and dusty and there is garbage everywhere... but mostly what I notice is the noise... Or rather, I didn't notice that the noise was the main problem until I went to the Modern Art Museum in Delhi yesterday. Great museum! And, for reasons that I can't comprehend, it was almost entirely empty. I can't quite figure out why such a great museum in a city with SO MANY PEOPLE should be this empty. It wasn't cost, or location... much of the museum is fairly new, a year or two old so perhaps people don' know about it, but I suspect there is some other factor at work. Something else about the culture. Not to say that they don't appreciate art, but that the way they interact with art perhaps doesn't fit into the western idea of a museum? Anyways, I digress, because I was supposed to be talking about the noise. Inside the museum was so quiet that I find myself wandering around for a good half an hour and not even looking at the art. I was to busy enjoying the silence!
I don't know how much of what I've seen will apply to other cities and areas. I have only been to Delhi (one of the largest and densely populated cities in the world) and Agra (full of people because of the Taj Mahal) I hope to find some towns or cities that are quieter and more relaxed than I have seen so far...
(once again, sorry for the lack of pictures. I return to Delhi tomorrow, where my computer is, so I can hopefully post pictures then)
I took a train to Agra (to see the Taj Mahal!!) The train was scheduled to depart from Delhi at 5:40pm and arrive in Agra just before 10:00 pm, giving me just the right amount of time to get to my hotel and go to bed in order to get up really early in the morning to beat the tourist crowds at the Taj. As luck would have it, the train was rescheduled for 8:00pm, didn't actually leave until 8:30, and then took about 6 hours instead of the 4 hours it was supposed to take, which put me in Agra around 2:30am. By this time, everyone at the hotel was of course asleep, and I was locked out without a room! Calling the hotel in the attempt to wake up a sleeping receptionist was not successful, so I spent the next 20 mintutes or so wandering through the narrow streets of the bazaars of the Taj Ganj looking for any hotel that might be open. Of course I didn't find any, so I went back to my original hotel with the thought of sitting on the stoop waiting for it to open. It was around 3am by this time, and I figured I wouldn't have to wait any longer than 6:00am. Fortunately, this time I heard someone inside coughing, so I knocked really had (which in retrospect I should have done in the first place instead of calling...) until someone came to let me! Went to bed around 3:30, and by the time I woke u I didn't get to the Taj until 10:30 or so, by which point it was of course completely packed with tourists. Oh well.
I feel like there is a lot to say about India... but I can't quite put it into words yet. It is crowded and loud and dusty and there is garbage everywhere... but mostly what I notice is the noise... Or rather, I didn't notice that the noise was the main problem until I went to the Modern Art Museum in Delhi yesterday. Great museum! And, for reasons that I can't comprehend, it was almost entirely empty. I can't quite figure out why such a great museum in a city with SO MANY PEOPLE should be this empty. It wasn't cost, or location... much of the museum is fairly new, a year or two old so perhaps people don' know about it, but I suspect there is some other factor at work. Something else about the culture. Not to say that they don't appreciate art, but that the way they interact with art perhaps doesn't fit into the western idea of a museum? Anyways, I digress, because I was supposed to be talking about the noise. Inside the museum was so quiet that I find myself wandering around for a good half an hour and not even looking at the art. I was to busy enjoying the silence!
I don't know how much of what I've seen will apply to other cities and areas. I have only been to Delhi (one of the largest and densely populated cities in the world) and Agra (full of people because of the Taj Mahal) I hope to find some towns or cities that are quieter and more relaxed than I have seen so far...
(once again, sorry for the lack of pictures. I return to Delhi tomorrow, where my computer is, so I can hopefully post pictures then)
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Motorbike Adventures
Today I experienced Delhi on the back of a motorbike for the first time. The fact that you are reading this means I survived to tell the tale.
I must admit that the first few minutes were completely terrifying. I was clinging onto Sarit for dear life! It didn't take long, though, to move from clinging onto to Sarit to clinging on to the handles on the back of the bike, yet still I was pretty terrified. After only 10 minutes or so, however, I had gone from white knuckles, to gently gripping with both hands, to having only one hand, to finally not holding on at all and just enjoying the ride! It was quite fun, actually, to watch Delhi go by and I didn't even mind that Sarit got lost a couple of times, because it just gave me more time to enjoy the ride.
It turns out that motorbikes are quite convenient. They are small enough to weave through cars in heavy traffic, yet large enough to carry a family of four (father driving the bike with one child in front of him, while the wife sits side-saddle on the back with the youngest child on her lap). They are fast enough to get you where you need to go, but easy enough to park wherever you are. By the afternoon, after visiting the Lotus Temple (more later) and the tomb of one of the Mughal emperors, I got to thinking about why motorbikes, with all their conveniences, are not more common in the United States.... and then it started raining. Oh. That's why. On the way back from the tomb, the thunder and lightning that had been threatening us in the afternoon finally unleashed the rain and within a minute, we were both completely soaked. Scores of motorbikers were huddled under overpasses, or at bus stops, or anywhere they could find a place out of the rain. Sarit and I decided to brave the weather and continue on through the rain and puddles. And I thought it was scary riding in the morning.... As long as you don't think about the fact that you are traveling at 45mph in the pouring rain, inches from other cars, with nothing to protect you but a helmet, and nothing but your own two hands to keep you on the bike, it was actually pretty fun!
Ok, so the Lotus Temple, for those of you who don't know, is a temple of the Baha'i. There are only seven Baha'i temples in the world, and the Lotus Temple is the largest, and by far the most amazing. Again, I am sorry that I don't have pictures. It is too late right now for me to deal with pictures. I promise I will have a whole bunch soon! Anyways, for now, simply do a google image search for 'Lotus temple', and you will see how amazing this building is! The only Baha'i temple in North America happens to be within walking distance of Northwestern University, so I have been to that one, and learned about the others, including the lotus temple, so I have been looking forward to seeing the Lotus Temple for some time. I knew it was in India, but hadn't realized it was in Delhi until we drove by it on the way back from the airport. Definitely the coolest thing I have seen in India so far!
I must admit that the first few minutes were completely terrifying. I was clinging onto Sarit for dear life! It didn't take long, though, to move from clinging onto to Sarit to clinging on to the handles on the back of the bike, yet still I was pretty terrified. After only 10 minutes or so, however, I had gone from white knuckles, to gently gripping with both hands, to having only one hand, to finally not holding on at all and just enjoying the ride! It was quite fun, actually, to watch Delhi go by and I didn't even mind that Sarit got lost a couple of times, because it just gave me more time to enjoy the ride.
It turns out that motorbikes are quite convenient. They are small enough to weave through cars in heavy traffic, yet large enough to carry a family of four (father driving the bike with one child in front of him, while the wife sits side-saddle on the back with the youngest child on her lap). They are fast enough to get you where you need to go, but easy enough to park wherever you are. By the afternoon, after visiting the Lotus Temple (more later) and the tomb of one of the Mughal emperors, I got to thinking about why motorbikes, with all their conveniences, are not more common in the United States.... and then it started raining. Oh. That's why. On the way back from the tomb, the thunder and lightning that had been threatening us in the afternoon finally unleashed the rain and within a minute, we were both completely soaked. Scores of motorbikers were huddled under overpasses, or at bus stops, or anywhere they could find a place out of the rain. Sarit and I decided to brave the weather and continue on through the rain and puddles. And I thought it was scary riding in the morning.... As long as you don't think about the fact that you are traveling at 45mph in the pouring rain, inches from other cars, with nothing to protect you but a helmet, and nothing but your own two hands to keep you on the bike, it was actually pretty fun!
Ok, so the Lotus Temple, for those of you who don't know, is a temple of the Baha'i. There are only seven Baha'i temples in the world, and the Lotus Temple is the largest, and by far the most amazing. Again, I am sorry that I don't have pictures. It is too late right now for me to deal with pictures. I promise I will have a whole bunch soon! Anyways, for now, simply do a google image search for 'Lotus temple', and you will see how amazing this building is! The only Baha'i temple in North America happens to be within walking distance of Northwestern University, so I have been to that one, and learned about the others, including the lotus temple, so I have been looking forward to seeing the Lotus Temple for some time. I knew it was in India, but hadn't realized it was in Delhi until we drove by it on the way back from the airport. Definitely the coolest thing I have seen in India so far!
Saturday, February 19, 2011
India: First Impressions
Due to popular demand, I have decided to do some blogging about my travels in India and China. Sadly, these travels are not on a bicycle. Also, I will not be wearing any bow ties while on the trip. So the title of this blog doesn't really make any sense for this, but I figured it was easier to just post back here rather than setting up a whole new blog, so deal with it.
So... INDIA!
I have been in India for two full days now. At the moment I am staying with my friend Sarit (who I met while studying in Switzerland all those years ago) and his family (his mom keeps me full with delicious indian food!) on the outskirts of New Delhi. Since he has been working the past two days, I have spent most of those days wandering around Delhi on my own.
My first day was pretty crazy. I may have made a mistake in going to Old Delhi on my first day here... but hey, it's better to just dive right in to the deep end, right? The winding bazaar of Old Delhi is one of the most intense places I have ever been. The narrow streets, with even narrower streets off of them, are filled to the brim with people selling, buying, walking, biking, motor-scootering, carrying, cooking, eating, and even pissing (I think it's safe to say that I've seen more public urination in the past two days than in the rest of my life combined...) I was very tempted by all the delicious looking breads and curries and things being cooked, but decided that it would be silly to get violently ill on my first day, and that I should probably let my stomach get used to local food in a more gradual way than diving into street food in the Old Delhi bazaar.
In the middle of Old Delhi is Jama Masjid, the largest Mosque in India. Apparently it can hold around 25,000 people. I did not get a chance to actually go in, due to the fact that it was prayer time, and visitors are not allowed during prayer time. I did, however, get to hear the call for prayer, and sit for half an hour and watch a constant stream of people pour out of the streets of Old Delhi and enter the mosque. I will try to return some other time when I can actually go inside...
My second day was much more relaxed than the first. The craziness that is Old Delhi certainly does not reach the same magnitude in the rest of the city. Much of today was, in fact, quite calm and peaceful. I spent the morning wandering around Jantar Mantar, which is a bunch of structures made in the 17th century, or so, designed for astronomical observations. I can't really describe all of it. I have pictures, but don't have a chance to upload them right now. I'll just let you know that the center piece of the site is a sun dial that is 70 feet tall! One of the most exciting things about this site is learning that there is a similar site in Jaipur which is even bigger!!! I'm really excited to see that one.
After wandering and napping around Jantar Mantar, I continued to wander around New Delhi and stumbled upon the Indira Gandhi Center for the Arts, which was having some sort of cultural festival of some sort. I don't really know what it was about, but there were lots of performers dancing and singing and doing cool things. Plus there was a food court. So I spent the afternoon watching and listening and eating! Awesome!
My first impression of India is confusion. I don't get it. There are people on the side of the street selling individually wrapped candy. And I'm not talking about a sidewalk vendor in the middle of the city. I mean on a road in the suburbs. These vendors aren't on a side walk, or anything, just on the side of the road. As far as I can tell, they rely on customers stopping on their bikes, or cars, or motorscooters, or whatever their riding, just to spend a few rupees on a candy or two. Do they really get enough business for that? And it's not just candy. You can stop and get some fruit here, or a calling card there, or even get a shave and a haircut!
There's also a strange discrepancy in safety issues. Take, for instance, getting on the Metro. Entering the station requires walking through a metal detector, getting pat down from security officer, and putting any bags through a scanner. Many buildings or tourist sites require the same. I had at least 5 pat-downs yesterday. Clearly they are concerned about safety.... but compare that to the traffic! I hesitate to even call it 'traffic' since to me, that would imply some level of order. Lines on the roads are either absent or completely ignored. Even driving on the correct side of the road seems to be merely a suggestion. The roads are filled with a mix of cars, rickshaws, bicycles, motorscooters, and pedestrians all seemingly going in different directions. It seems to defy the laws of physics, but somehow I have not seen a single accident or even an instance of one person/car even slightly bumping another. I really don't know how it works.
Ok, that's enough for now. More to follow later in the week!
Also, hopefully i will have some pictures next time!
So... INDIA!
I have been in India for two full days now. At the moment I am staying with my friend Sarit (who I met while studying in Switzerland all those years ago) and his family (his mom keeps me full with delicious indian food!) on the outskirts of New Delhi. Since he has been working the past two days, I have spent most of those days wandering around Delhi on my own.
My first day was pretty crazy. I may have made a mistake in going to Old Delhi on my first day here... but hey, it's better to just dive right in to the deep end, right? The winding bazaar of Old Delhi is one of the most intense places I have ever been. The narrow streets, with even narrower streets off of them, are filled to the brim with people selling, buying, walking, biking, motor-scootering, carrying, cooking, eating, and even pissing (I think it's safe to say that I've seen more public urination in the past two days than in the rest of my life combined...) I was very tempted by all the delicious looking breads and curries and things being cooked, but decided that it would be silly to get violently ill on my first day, and that I should probably let my stomach get used to local food in a more gradual way than diving into street food in the Old Delhi bazaar.
In the middle of Old Delhi is Jama Masjid, the largest Mosque in India. Apparently it can hold around 25,000 people. I did not get a chance to actually go in, due to the fact that it was prayer time, and visitors are not allowed during prayer time. I did, however, get to hear the call for prayer, and sit for half an hour and watch a constant stream of people pour out of the streets of Old Delhi and enter the mosque. I will try to return some other time when I can actually go inside...
My second day was much more relaxed than the first. The craziness that is Old Delhi certainly does not reach the same magnitude in the rest of the city. Much of today was, in fact, quite calm and peaceful. I spent the morning wandering around Jantar Mantar, which is a bunch of structures made in the 17th century, or so, designed for astronomical observations. I can't really describe all of it. I have pictures, but don't have a chance to upload them right now. I'll just let you know that the center piece of the site is a sun dial that is 70 feet tall! One of the most exciting things about this site is learning that there is a similar site in Jaipur which is even bigger!!! I'm really excited to see that one.
After wandering and napping around Jantar Mantar, I continued to wander around New Delhi and stumbled upon the Indira Gandhi Center for the Arts, which was having some sort of cultural festival of some sort. I don't really know what it was about, but there were lots of performers dancing and singing and doing cool things. Plus there was a food court. So I spent the afternoon watching and listening and eating! Awesome!
My first impression of India is confusion. I don't get it. There are people on the side of the street selling individually wrapped candy. And I'm not talking about a sidewalk vendor in the middle of the city. I mean on a road in the suburbs. These vendors aren't on a side walk, or anything, just on the side of the road. As far as I can tell, they rely on customers stopping on their bikes, or cars, or motorscooters, or whatever their riding, just to spend a few rupees on a candy or two. Do they really get enough business for that? And it's not just candy. You can stop and get some fruit here, or a calling card there, or even get a shave and a haircut!
There's also a strange discrepancy in safety issues. Take, for instance, getting on the Metro. Entering the station requires walking through a metal detector, getting pat down from security officer, and putting any bags through a scanner. Many buildings or tourist sites require the same. I had at least 5 pat-downs yesterday. Clearly they are concerned about safety.... but compare that to the traffic! I hesitate to even call it 'traffic' since to me, that would imply some level of order. Lines on the roads are either absent or completely ignored. Even driving on the correct side of the road seems to be merely a suggestion. The roads are filled with a mix of cars, rickshaws, bicycles, motorscooters, and pedestrians all seemingly going in different directions. It seems to defy the laws of physics, but somehow I have not seen a single accident or even an instance of one person/car even slightly bumping another. I really don't know how it works.
Ok, that's enough for now. More to follow later in the week!
Also, hopefully i will have some pictures next time!
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