almost a yogi?!!!

Hey all from India!....Its the beginning of the 4Th and last week of the course and the weather here has taken a turn from super hot, dry heat to intensely hot, humid heat...which translates into sweating profusely all the time, making yoga a bit more of a challenge. You find yourself having to compensate for being 'slippery' .....its much like doing hot yoga except twice as bad!!!...

I am sad to admit that I'm ready for the course to be over....part of it stemming from the itch to get travelling and moving....and the other part ready to not have yoga feel like work and more like a passion again. When each day consists of eating, sleeping, dreaming, breathing, living, doing, being and discussing yoga, it can get a bit overwhelming. And because the schedule is so intense, it really has left no energy or opportunity for any other stimulus to enter, which I think has caused a lack of balance... and in turn, left me feeling like I really have no control over what is happening!... But aside from that, is still been a crazy beautiful experience so far and am excited to have had this opportunity to grow and expand in numerous directions!...

On the lighter side of things, and in the wonderful randomness of life, my friend Dominic, from Toronto, happens to be here right now!..And since we have the same time frame and both have no exact plan, we are going to do some travelling together...which works out well, as I was a bit apprehensive travelling as a single female and its always nice to have someone to share adventures with!... Its is funny though, how we sometimes get so caught up in our own lives that we couldn't find the time to grab a beer in Toronto but manage to meet up in a completely different continent...always interesting!

What else?...my tan is starting to look like perfection and the six pack isn't far behind ( lol, I wish!)...my favourite new Indian dish is palak paneer, which is creamed spinach with spices and a cheese that is similar to tofu......so so good....I have also acquired a small obsession with fresh coconut water and has become part of my daily routine!.....

I also may have discovered that papaya is a natural diuretic and does a really grand job 'cleaning you out'........word of advice, if you ever find yourself inclined to eat an entire papaya the size of a football in one sitting, make sure you are near a bathroom!!...( not that I would know, of course =0 ) ...............

Officially, I have entered the world of Indian technology and bought a SIM card for my cell....its a bit weird but does make life much more convenient...and last but not least, I have obtained the first, (of many I am sure) war wound of my travels....Synpopsis..while walking merrily down a street in Arambol, in a state of complete oblivion, a van came hurtling towards me with no intent of stopping...so without much a choice, I frantically jump out of the way and promptly into an exhaust pipe of a freshly parked motorcycle, searing the outside of my leg! Not exactly the souvenir I was hoping for!....Luckily for me, the doctors 'office' and i use that word loosely, was just down the street. The sign said "Ayurvedic Medicine" and consists of a blanket, wedged between 2 clothing stores, selling the exact same thing, all of which are sharing the space with a couple of those scared cows!...After an examination, he mixed together a bunch of powders, from the 50 or so jars he had, into a paste and slathered it on my leg....imagine my surprise when it smelt like curry ....lol...however, after the initial stinging and beyond the smell, my entire burn formed a massive blister in about 3 mins, which slightly resembled a tumor...not convinced if that was a good or bad thing, but happy to report I am still alive!!....

Off to class....and more studying....super busy last week........and can't believe is febuary already!

Hope everyone is surviving the ice age over there.......heard the snow hasn't stopped...keep warm and I will try to send some heat your way!!!

namaste xx

Lovin' life!

Mandrem beach



yoga practice in the shala

men pulling in the net full of sardines >

So, its a beautiful sunday morning here in Goa, and I just finished my first coffee in 18 days....I am satisfied to say that I acutally haven't missed it at all....who knew?!>...We are starting week 3 of the course today and I have managed to survive so far without to many damages to report! Time here seems to be passing at a warp speed and before I know it this is part of my trip is going to be over =(... More so, its funny how during the first week, the idea of spending 2 hours a day meditating and 4-5 hours a day practicing asanas seemed ridiculously absurd and even unmanageable.... but I am slowly finding that now a 2 1/2 yoga class is just not long enough... Sounds crazy, but I keep on wanting more! Yoga has definitely taken on a completely different meaning here for me. It occupies a space that is way beyond the physical aspect and that space is so different then the primary reason that most people in the west are drawn to it.........to look good!.....

"Yoga is the practice of the mind. Its just using the body as a means to get to it"......

But its hasn't been all work and no play....Friday started off with an early morning boat ride to hopefully catch a glimpse of some dolphins.....and we were in luck. It was remarkable and in the stillness of moment, you realize that all the elements of mother nature were working together in a harmonious balance. A fresh breeze of the crisp morning, the calm, glassy, clear ocean, the sunrise over the beach bringing with it every brilliant shade of red possible and the numerous pods of dolphins dancing gracefully for us as we watched....magic!

Saturday was spent in Arambol doing some 'retail therapy' Indian style. Which really isn't therapy at all...perhaps I would relate it more to a mild form of torture! Between the constant harassment of being asked to look, the energy it takes to haggle every single price and the 35 degree sun beating down on you, its completely wearying...although i am sure none of you have any sympathy!..Luckily its all about balance, so we headed for a Tibetan massage to relax us and engage our parasympathetic nervous system!....if you every get a chance to have a Tibetan massage, I completely recommend it!..... my masseuse had the strongest hands I have ever experianced, but his touch was beyond gentle. They use the energy that is created by rubbing their hands together to warm up the muscles and work along the meridians of the body...its so different then any other type of massage. They were very much artists and it was actually very sensual ( am I allowed to say that?!! lol) and this for 600 rupees which is about $15....life is good! =)

That's about the extent of my adventures here....off to have some breakfast and beach time before a yoga class!...

Hope this finds everyone well!

Namaste

Trying to find my zen but pretty sure its hiding...

So...we just finished day 5 of the 30 day yoga teacher training course and I have realized that when they said 'intensive', they actually meant INTENSIVE!....Its by far one of the hardest things I have took on so far. The challenges are seemingly huge and not just physically, but mentally and emotionally as well. Guess that's what happens when you are forced to spend time with just yourself!. So for all that care..here is a day in the life of tamara at the moment....
5:30am get up and momentarily question my insanity
6:00 -8:00 am sitting meditation and breathing exercises
8:00 - 10:00am yoga class
10- 11 breakfast
11-2 lectures, anatomy, yoga sutras etc
2-4 a most delicious swim in the ocean and homework
4-7 another yoga class
7 dinner and homework
and by the blissful hour of 10, after questioning my insanity again, I am snoring like a baby!

Interestingly enough, I am having the most difficultly letting go of the 'ego', since everything we do in western society seems to revolve around that. Its embracing the idea of 'being' as opposed to doing and achieving. And beyond that, gaining any sort of control over my mind is starting to sound like an unreasonable request. It most definitely does not want to shut up and every morning during meditation it politely tells me to f*&k off!!! And it constantly out smarts me...just when I feel like I am on the verge of gaining control, it starts wandering and finding the most obscure thoughts possible.....like your grade 5 gym teacher, or a really great dinner you had 7 years ago or the line in that meatloaf song " I would do anything for love, but I won't do that".....what exactly won't he do?..( that's for all the duke ladies!!)...and so on.....and on...

The weather here is amazing and in an incredible...the school is in Mandrem beach, northern Goa.....a balmy 28 above by about 10am...the accommodations are rather 'organic' and I am sharing with 2 lovely gurls, about 1000 mosquito's and 2 frogs, which have taken residence on the bathroom toilet seat but only at 3am when there is no electricity and you are unaware of there presence!.....

Everything is better then I could have imagined and can't believe its already been a week...time is gonna fly...but then again as you get older it feels like it always does.....off to get a massage and watch the sunset....no complaints!!

Hope everyone is beautiful, happy and smiling where ever you may be!!!
Namaste

a quick note!

Hey all! So I decided to enter the world of blogging for this trip...hopefully you, the blog reader, will find it entertaining or at the very least, slightly amusing! Travelling by yourself is something everyone should do, the challenge involved is huge but equally rewarding...so for me, this blog is a way to share what I am seeing and experiencing with all of you way over there....enjoy!
I also wanted to say thanks to everyone who sent me off with huge hugs!..I love you all...and feel incredibly luck to have been able to surround myself with you on a daily basis....
xx

the joys of travelling..=)

Hey all!.....I finally arrived in India Monday morning...only 24hours later then planned...my flight from Toronto to JFK was late, due to everything possible that could have went wrong.. mechanical difficulties, late pilot, to much traffic in Toronto to take off and too much traffic at JFK to land....and so, as it went, I missed my flight to Mumbai...not a great start one would think!
But after a 'magical' night at the comfort inn, a good stint in the airport bar with my new friend from Venice, a rescheduled flight, a few scotch on the rocks with the passenger sitting on my left and 15hours, I finally arrived...=) In Mumbai...then it was 4 hours at the airport, another flight and a 2 hour taxi ride and then....officially I could say I arrived!...

Its true what they say about India...how you smell it before you see it....Wasn't sure if I believed the actual possibility of it, but its absolutely true. The air is sweet and pungent and heavy with the labour of more then 1 billion people breathing everyday...its so different that I am sure no other place can claim it and that first breath carried the promise of new ideas and adventures!..I do feel oddly comfortable in this part of the world...like I have been here before...maybe I have?!