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 Hi ! Sorry Guys, again time has passed since my last message. Maybe it’s better because the first impressions are not always the right ones.
So, finally I am in Mysore now, since last Wednesday. I feel more comfortable now after some days . I knew already that it could take time to get used and familiar with a new place.Some people can be very useful and know how to become quickly necessary to you. Ganesh ( who booked the taxi for me) is one of those persons. The taxi was there, right on time at the new airport of Bangalore (my God!, it’s amazing to see such an airport in this country! Are we still in India?). I was a bit worried because I didn’t know where I would sleep in Mysore, but Ganesh had already found a room for me when I arrived to his café . He told me to check it and to take if I liked it. In half am hour the deal was done ( I didn’t want to look for this all the day, as I was tired from the trip and the detox).
So, I stay in a family house, like most of the students here. You have to register for at least 1 month at the AYRI ( Ashtanga Yoga Research Institute of Pattabhi Jois ; sorry to be so precise for those who are already familiar with Ashtanga and Mysore, but some of you don’t know so much about it maybe) and it’s better and easier to choose this alternative. It seems that there are plenty of rooms to rent all the time and it was no need to be worried . It’s 10 mn on foot from the Shala ( the yoga studio), in this quiet, green and residential area named Gokulam. Another student, Hayley rent the other room. It’s quiet comfortable ( I have a terrace ). The hostess is just a bit curious about what I am doing, cooking, where I am going, asking questions all the time. It bothered me at first, but now I get used to be treated as a child for a while. I think, she ‘s just bored with her life maybe and very curious. As for her husband, he doesn’t care about me , except the first day, when he had to take the money for my rent.
After unpacking my luggage , I went for lunch at Ganesh and Anu’s café. The food is so good here ( I got addicted to it) : healthy, non fatty, various…(perfect with the good health of the yoga students that we are!). And those smoothies ! (frozen banana or mango mixed with yoghourt and nuts …(You were right Maya). Anu ( Ganesh’s wife) is giving cooking class by the way ; I booked for this Thursday !
After a nap, it was the time to go to ATM to take the money to register at the AYRI. The AYRI is one of these big and comfortable houses which stand in Gokulam. I saw the studio who seemed to be spacious, but not anymore the next day with more than 60 students. I am not going to give all the details I gave in the French version, but I can say that I have had a strange and uncomfortable feeling as I was sitting in the office : Sharath( the grand son of Pattabhi Jois) who is running the Shala with the help of his mother Sarasvati , had an authoritarian voice and just a few words : “ Did you send you registration form already ? When ? How long you will stay ? 275000 roupies. Give it to me, I am going to check”. And then, I could here the sound of the machine checking the notes…In the same time I was looking at Pattabhi Jois who was there, blurred eye ( 93 years old now), wearing gold rings and necklace and I was thinking about all the students who are coming every day, register here, for 1 to 6 months…All this money,$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$...In their country, known for his poverty, do they help poor people ? In fact, I learned that they do, a bit...
After paying, Sharath just said to me that I had to come the next morning at 8.00 am ( which is quiet late ; I am not used to practice so late)and that I would be the last student. I can say that I have been very hesitant before register. I would have preferred to have a class with more attention ( I knew from Maya, that I shouldn’t expect to much from them) and adjustment, with explanation maybe. But as Maya said, I shouldn’t miss the opportunity to learn there and to enjoy my time here. What I do, every day : I take all the positive aspects to be there.The practice starts at 4.30 am for some of the students and then it goes on until 9 or 9.30. Despite this, it was really crowded when I arrived at 8.00 am. As I didn’t know how it worked, I started to wait, sitting in the hall, with other students. From the door open, you can see students practicing : it's nice to look at them, some are so flexible and light as they were flying in the air, moving on this "thread of air" due to their nice Ujjayi breath...and in the same time you could hear the sharp voice of Sharath or Sarasvati, saying : "One more!!" which made me think : " How it would be to be at the army?"( sorry Maya, I know you are very devoted and don' be mistaken on my irony sometimes, but I just want to give a touch of humor in this very serious practice which I fully respect by the way). After half an hour, I asked myself how I should know when I had to go ( Sharath said that I would be the last, but the last of what ? Of the 8.00 am group or the last of all the students ?)Then, I asked to the Japanese , beside me. He was at 8.30. Obviously, I had passed my turn and now I was late. So after the next "One more!"( which is said when one student has finished his practice and leaves), I entered. It was so crowded : I had no place to extend my legs or arms as it is required on some postures, and so hot. I sweated like never. Sarasvati adjusted me once (better than nothing!). They didn't stop me ( normally in Ashtanga, the teacher must stop you when you don't do properly one posture of the series. Until you don't do it well, he won't add another.) So, I stopped myself at Marichyasana C and did the closing sequence. Now I know which students are at 8.00am and I am not late anymore.
On Friday it was the led class ( you practice on the instructions and rhythm of the teacher). Two times for this : 4.30 or 6.00 am. I had to come at 6.00. Again it was crowded, even if I arrived 15 mn before. You enter in the shala already heated and wet by the sweat of the previous practitioners and then you have to be very quick to put your mat on the floor, believe me! In this class, you stop yourself when you can't go any further more, and wait for the closing sequence. Then you can look at the following postures of the series applied by more advanced students : some are very impressive, but it's obvious also that it's tough for those who are still fighting with themselves...
After 5 days, I can say that it is very nice to practice in such an atmosphere, even if it is crowded and if you don't get so much adjustments. Students from all over the world, gathered in the same room, practicing with devotion : it brings a powerful energy and another dimension to your practice, definitely. I had a lot of aches the first 2 days ( because my muscles were weak after the detox I guess). Now, just my knees keep on suffering. But it's the same for everybody there. I should eat ghee...
After this practice you don't do so much in the day. When you go out of the shala, it seems to be a tradition to drink a coconut. One coconut seller is there, keeps on opening coconuts for at least 4 hours I guess( from 6 to 10). Every student who goes out would take one for 10 roupies. This guy does good business : in the morning in front of the shala, and then all the day, students go to his coconut stand...
Then it's time for breakfast at Om Café or Santosha.Then a nap or internet, and then lunch to Anu's. I met very nice people, I went already to Mysore Palace, to the Bird Sanctuary... I will tell more about all this later, I am tired now : I have spend more than 2 hours to write this!)
See you guys. One last thing : I enjoy my time here, more and more every day.
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Publié à 06:33, le 29/07/2008 dans Trip in India, summer 2008(english version), Mysore
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 Sorry, I have been very lazy, and specially to write an article in English. I confess it. But I have been busy...Not so much finally, it's just that my friend Boualem joined me here for these last 2 weeks(that was not planed !). Actually we did spend a lot of time on internet and that's why so long time passed without news : he helped me to open a travel blog which takes a lot of time, believe me( do you know how fast are computers! here!). Sometimes I was not patient enough to wait for downloading and resize the pictures and I wanted to stop it. But he insisted, and finally it is there and I hope I will become easier for me after a while. Please, be indulgent, it's just a start. I will try to do my best also to write in both languages. ( you can click " Trip in India, English version" for it and on "album photos" to see some of them). As I don't write articles in the same time, or my vocabulary is not sufficient for the same descriptions, I skip a lot in English version, sorry. For the moment only the articles are in English. After the Ashram guest house we left to a complete different place ( with no rules this time!). We stayed in a house of colonial type, belonging to a French Indian lady, Jackie. She is renting rooms, adjacent to her house with a huge veranda always opened on a wonderful and luxuriant garden : cashew nut and mango trees, hibiscus...( sorry guys, I wrote a better description of this place, of flowers and trees, but can't do it in English, i don't know the names. An advice : learn French and read it ! or look at the pictures). It's an old family house. Today Jackie exports colonial type furniture with her husband Bala. All the house is full of these furniture, so beautiful, smelling the past, among bronzes of Indian gods (Ganesh, Shiva, Parvati..), old porcelain dishes, a painting of the General de Gaulle...all these make a charming and pleasant atmosphere...All the rooms are decorated nicely, all independent. And Jackie is such a nice person, very friendly. Finally, we were so well there that we decided to stay for all the 12 days of Boualem's holidays. What did we do? Not much than I did before : we rented scooters, visited Pondi, went to Auroville, the beach ( in Aurobeach : again an amazing place in a garden of even : see the pictures), having smoothies, dosas and iddlies, sizzlers, fruit salads again and again, having an "ayurvedic massage" : Ah, let me focus a bit on this "ayurvedic massage"!! I have received ayurvedic massage before, and nice ones. I also took a short trainee in this subject 4 years ago here. So, I learned that there are some precise lines on the body where you have to put pressure, there is an order to do it, it takes at least 1 hour and a half... + the magic hands of Neren, at Cihangir Yoga, I could say that I had some elements of comparison. Anyway we wanted to try, and to trust the place with a very nice and good looking sign : " Ayurvedic Kerala clinic and center, ..." and bla bla ( even if i am used to this, they are so good to impress you...!).The office looked nice and trusting. Unfortunately, it was just the office. As I came into the massage room, I started to be suspicious : very dark ( better, like this you don't pay so much attention to the dirt around you!). Then I had to wear a kind of knickers, very open on the sides ( we say "string" in French but it might not be same in English ): actually, it took me some time to understand what it was, how to fix it : and then I understood that it looked like the ancestor of the "string" as we know it today , with a big advantage : it can be suitable for all kind of size ( more for big size I could say!). Then, the massage women, who first looked at the clock on the wall(good start), started to coat me with a thick and smelly oil ( so much that I was almost slipping of the massage table). And for 45 minutes, she didn't give me a massage but just spread the oil with weak and rough hands and with same circular movements, more annoying than relaxing. I didn't want to compare, but Neren, if you read this, believe me, I have been thinking of you a lot for 45 min , and I swear that any satisfaction sound went out of my mouth! It's the first time that I have one massage and that I expect that it ends quickly. So, no need to precise that this girl has never eared about "energetic lines of the body"...After this wonderful and relaxing moment , I had to take a shower : another experience!What is the color of the bath ? It used to be white. Oh, you offer an opened soap and shampoo! It's so kind of you!" The flow of the water is slow , but i can manage with this, no pbme. The siphon is blocked ? No pbme. Oh, but what are this small black things swimming around my feet ? Insects : cockroaches ! Ok, then it is more challenging : hanging the shower pipe on one hand, rub your body with the other and jump on one feet to another to avoid these pleasant cockroaches best swimmers than dolphins ! Result? I couldn't succeed in taking out this oil, I was more relaxed before I arrived and of course it has been the same experience for my friend who was happy as me! Never trust the sign, and go to a place that somebody you trust has recommended to you. How I could have forget that. Now Boualem has gone, it was 5 days ago. Again, I moved back to the ashram guest house and restarted a detox ( i had done only 3 days and then stop as my friend was arriving). I have been practicing Ashtanga since I arrived on every terrace I could find and I feel very good, fresh now. This night I go to Chennai to catch my flight to Bangalore and then to Mysore. I had many addresses ( thanks to Maya and David's friend : Tom. Thank you guys ). But I got in contact with only one :Ganesh, from Anu's cafe. He said that everything is full now because of the birthday of Guruji which was on the 18th. So, I will leave my bags to his place and seek for an hotel at first and then I hope to find a room to rent for one month. I hope to register in the afternoon at the AYRI, and start on the 24th the practice. I will give you more news from there now
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Publié à 03:19, le 22/07/2008 dans Trip in India, summer 2008(english version), Pondichéry
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Hi guys!
Finally I arrived safe in India with this Air arabia company : no problem at all except that I had to wait 14 hours in Sharjah full of locals with small hats and barb. They were lying on one floor covered with a carpet. I slept there, surrounded by them, on my yoga mat to kill time : it was the only place to sleep, anyway and they didn't disturb me at all, they didn't even give me a look I think !
I am in Pondichery since Tuesday. It is very hot and it takes time to get used to. I feel better today, then again it rained yesterday which cleaned the sky and refreshed the air a bit. Today the weather is nice with wind.
It's good to start with Pondichery : this place is completely out of the time, it's not even India here, especially in what they call here the “the white city” (after crossing the canal to the beach side. Before this, is “the black city” and here it's still India, believe me!). Most of the buildings in the white area belong to Sri Aurobindo's ashram, so they maintain everything in order : streets are large, clean and quiet (it's quiet unusual for those who know India). There are trees, flowers everywhere, it smells of incense or jasmine all around. And also many things around belong to the past , to the time of colonialism (french one) like names of streets : “Rue Debussy, Rue de Suffren, Rue Dumas…”, houses and furniture are in colonial style, policemen wearing the uniform of this time, people cycling almost 80 years old bicycles (I have also one, a little heavy and slow but it's ok)…So, here it's the right place to take rest, which i do! Yoga in the morning, on the teras of the guest house( for the sun rise in front of the beach, with coconut trees and already the smells of curries, spices coming out from the small huts down in the street… : I feel sorry to say that i don't miss cihangir yoga studio after this !) and then breakfast of local and seasonal fruits : papaya, mango, watermelon, chikku, jackfruit…and then detox with mud, anema, massage,steam bath and then beach, reading, lunch, nap, juices, visit to my friends, cycling slowly in the city under the shadow of these huge cashewnut trees and then yoga again…yes nothing more, just cool and enjoying activities…
After 2 years without visiting this country, now I am full opened to be filled again by the various smells, colours, energies of this Mother India. I appreciate every moment as much as I can.
So, as you see, I have quiet a hard time now !
I leave you now, it 's time for dinner and to have a masala dosa or an utthappam and a mango lassi…
take care.
Kisses,
Flo
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Publié à 01:47, le 5/07/2008 dans Trip in India, summer 2008(english version), Pondichéry
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