The weather has improved and we are getting a lot of nice sunny days now. Having the scooter and good weather has banished the home sickness away and we are now venturing out to the wider areas of Mysore.

We visited the Devaraja Market in the centre of Mysore. This market is huge and colourful. Here we found the locals selling incense, perfumed oils, deities and rows of colourful vegetables and flowers. They are not shy about trying to get a sale. We found a young man selling incense and perfumed oils. Once he heard where we were from he started speaking to us in Irish…Yes Gaelic. He had a contact in Ireland he shipped incense to and he taught him a few lines. He had the gift of the gab and we left his stall with bags of incense and lotus oil aftershave for Martin….he promised him it was better than Hugo Boss!

 We passed rows and rows of flower sellers. Flowers are a huge part of Indian culture. Flowers or fruit are brought to Temples for Puja or used in Pujas at home. In my landladys house and in most Hindu homes you will see a home shrine (what we might call an altar) or mandir. Here a Puja is performed daily - usually in the morning, but also in the afternoon or evening - generally by the head of the house. They light a lamp or candle and offer a flower at the Lord’s holy feet. The essential and indispensible part of any puja is devotion. This space is meticulously cared for, kept immaculate and elaborately decorated to look like a small temple.

With it being the 3rd week of a 6 day per week yoga practice, we are also feeling like resting more and with the sunny days here we have discovered the pool at the Regalis Hotel. This is where the yogis hang out at the pool and have a swim. This is fast becoming our favourite way to pass a few hours.

Week 4

The time is now going too fast and we are relishing the daily practice under Sharath’s guidance. Sharath is more relaxed and gets funnier each day. I noticed a few days in a row he would run out of the room to the front of the shala and I’d hear a horn beeping. Eventually I copped on that it was the school bus passing with his 2 kids on board. The driver  beeps at the top of the road and if Sharath is paying attention to this he tears out of the room and catches it just as it passes the door and waves to the kids. He comes in smiling or muttering if he messed up the timings.

At the last conference before we leave Sharath’s son Sambav was there. He is about 7 years of age and clearly adores his Dad. He vied for his dad’s attention but Sharath had about 200 people waiting for conference. To keep him busy, he gave Sambav the job of bringing the microphone to whoever asked a question. He tried to stay focused on this task but it was clear he just wanted to hang out with Dad. It was sweet to witness the relationship between them. It was also one of the better conferences of the month with Sharath telling stories of how he first started yoga (as a child) and when he really began to enjoy it (as an adult). He was not really interested in the first few early years but his interest grew in time until he was planning his day around his practice and thinking about his practice for the next day. He talked about the time he spent with his grandparents and how in Pattabhi’s later years it was decided Sharath needed to offer his support to Guruji. His grandfather was his teacher and now Sharath honours his grandfather with his devotion and dedication.

 We are more relaxed with the Indian way of life and are getting an understanding of their culture and history. We visited the famous Chamundi Hill, 13kms from Mysore, and 3500ft above sea level. At the top of this hill is the famous Chamundi Temple. We had planned on climbing the 1000 steps to the top but the day was really hot and Martin had a cold so we scootered up to the top.

The friendships we have made deepen and talk turns to who is leaving and when. Some are here for 3 months and are staying on until end of January. Some are leaving around the same time as us and a goodbye dinner in the Green Hotel is planned for our last Saturday night. We sit outside with about 20 of us at the table. It’s a good day.

With only a few days left we start to notice the newbies arriving in town. Registration for the month of December begins. My friends Karen and Earl from our days in San Francisco are here! We have a great reunion with them and it’s great to be able to help them find their feet. We look at their accommodation and do a bit of looking for ourselves for next year maybe. We go out for dinner and make plans for breakfast. We want to stay…..but we are also excited to go home. It’s been an amazing trip and how lucky are we to be here. Good bye Mother India…..

Week 2

So the second week has been less eventful, and we are in the swing of things here. We don’t even notice the cows anymore !!

Tried most of the cafes and restaurants recommended by the yogis …. I took a cookery class at Anu’s café (one of our regular and favourite places to eat) where she taught us how to make Sweet Pumpkin, Dal, Coleslaw with peanut sauce, Chocolate Semolina Pudding and Masala Chai. Anu went through all the spices and their various health benefits. She also used a variety of legumes in the dal. We got a lesson in  the 3 types of Indian pulses: the whole pulse, split pulse and split pulse with skin removed. She used Urad Dal (Black lentils) Masoor Dal ( red lentils) and Whole Mung (green lentils)  – which she cooked in a good old fashioned pressure cooker which hissed and hooted for 40 minutes while Anu made chai. It brought back memories of childhood with the pressure cooker always cooking or over cooking bacon, cabbage and spuds! We sipped our chai while she got on with the pumpkin and sauce for the dahl. Her fresh curry leaves looked like a living branch she just pulled off a tree and I wondered about the ones I drive around Galway trying to find on a Saturday afternoon sometimes. They always look a little worse for wear. She was easy on the turmeric and heavy on the salt. The salt brings out the flavour of the spices. By the time she had it all ready we were starving. She had rice and chapatis to add to it all and everything was laid out in the middle of the table. We dug in and it was the biggest lunch I've had so far. I left with full belly and more friends from around the globe.

This 2nd week was also Dewali festival (Festival of lights) which is one of Indians oldest and biggest festivals. It is 5 days of bangers and fireworks, all day and night, just to add to the already existing symphony of non-stop car horn honking, dogs barking and neighbours shouting at the kids. Perfect for an early night with yoga at 6am the next morning. Luke and Sonja bought an enormous bag of fireworks and we literally had a blast letting them off on our roof with Andrew, Eva and our landlady and her son.

By the end of the 2nd week we reached a bit of a lull and I'm not afraid to admit I suffered a bit of home sickness. A month is a long time to be so far from home and I yearned for my home and knowing the kids were nearby. It seems to be not just us that are finding the challenges of India beginning to push some buttons.  Others we talk to are battling missing their young kids, partners, fast Wi-Fi and Home. We complain to each other and then try to keep the other positive and not ruin the last 2 weeks. These feelings pass and as much as I'm looking forward to coming home I'm also knowing how lucky we are to be here together and we may not get the chance again.

From a yoga point of view, it is incredible to be here with so many other people who practice Ashtanga Yoga so seriously. Sharath is an amazing teacher and is doing a great job of managing the volume of people showing up every day to roll out their mats. He watches and knows what each person is  doing and gives help if you need it or asks the adjusters to help if someone needs it. I have never witnessed such a variety of levels of practice in one space. The energy of this group is something I feel is very special and will keep with me once I'm back home with my yoga mat on the living room floor  most days. It is also an energy that I'm looking forward to sharing with my students .

Today we (well when I say “we” I mean Martin!) jumped another hurdle and rented a scooter! Shiva (aka “the man”) was definitely not giving us a scooter lightly. He was worried about us in the crazy Indian traffic. Martin had to “take lesson” and call back many times before Shiva was satisfied he was up to the task!  So watch out Mysore we have wheels!

The weather has been unseasonably wet! Tail end of monsoon season unfortunately. It makes laundry a challenge! We mostly hand wash everything daily in big bucket and hang it out. We have a washing machine but it's quicker to get the yoga gear done after practice. Dryers are not common here. It does make you appreciate all the modern conveniences we have at home.

So as of today we have been here 1 week. What a week it's been. We arrived last Friday, after 20 hours of travelling, into Bangalore airport and a taxi waiting to bring us to Mysore. Within minutes, we were in the thick of the renowned Indian traffic and unbelievable road chaos all around us. It was a shock to our already frayed nerves. we looked at each other and said "What the hell are we doing here". Four and a half hours of continouos car horn honking, overloaded trucks and buses all around us, cows everywhere, and general mayhem, we got to our apatrment in Gokulum, Mysore. 

After a quick nap, we headed out to find some food with a long list of recommendations, from the Ashtanga community mysore facebook page. We headed to Anu's Cafe, a short walk from our apartment, and were welcomed by the lovely Harish the waiter. We took a place at a low table sitting on floor cushions, sharing the table with others. Harish brought us an array of different delicious dishes - Dahl, salads, chapattis, curries, and deserts - I'm in heaven, things are looking up !!!

Saturday was busy with a long list of things to do - change our money to Rupees, register at the yoga shala, get food from supermarket, get SIM cards and other mundane things. We first headed out for breakfast, and soon found ourselves sharaing a table again with others who just got there. Some were newbies like us and some were on their eigth or ninth trip. We got some tips and advice and then headed out to find Shiva, AKA "the man". He is a local guy who organises all sorts of things for yoga students like Foreign exchange, Scooter rental, apartments and god knows what else. We bumped into our teachers Luke and Sonja at Shiva's and were so happy to see their familiar faces. We got lots and lots of Rupees and headed to KPJAYI (K. Pattabi Jois Ashtanga Yoga Institute) to register.

There was a long line and a great buzz. It was exciting to be in the Shala. There were two lines, one for Saraswathi who is Pattabhi Jois's daughter( She is 72 and still teaching!) and one for Sharath. It took a couple of hours to get to top of the line. Sharath had people come into the office in pairs and we had a quick chat and got our ID cards and a start time of 6.30 am for led class and 8.00 am for mysore. We have 2 led classes a week on Saturdays and Mondays with the other days being Mysore style. We have Sundays off.

We were in! We headed off for a great Indian feast and enjoyed our sleep in Sunday.

Monday was led class and we walked to Shala for about 6am. The crowd was already gathering outside. Sharath was leading the 4.30am class and we could hear him through the open windows. We could see the feet up in the air in headstand and his count seemed slow. We were nervous and excited. Once we went into the shala is was difficult to find a mat space. We were all close together. Class was great and Sharath has a nice sense of humour. There are all levels in the class and the atmosphere is energetic but light. If you are having difficulty with a pose he stops you. you continue again for the closing sequence. Uplithi (lift up at the end) went on forever it seemed. Savasana was quick!

Outside the shala, the local coconut man had set up his stall. This was our first fresh coconut water. He gets a machette and chops off the head of the coconut and sticks a straw inside. Very nice. It has become a ritual now after class. People chat outside for a while and head off for breakfast or a nap. Our days are spent eating, napping, washing, hanging out the wash, reading, meeting friends for lunch, and making plans to eat or cook dinner. It's very easy to meet new people. We chat to our landlady who has planted a beautiful garden all around her house. She is telling me about her life and the various Indian traditions and religons.

Today we had conference after class with Sharath. He explained about how Ashtanga Yoga meaning 8 limbs is not just about the asanas. He talked about how important it to learn to control our breath which in turn calms our mind and gives us steadyness in body and mind. He said this can take a long time.

Tomorrow is a rest day and is very welcome.