Soooo....the last few days in India were interesting, as I would have expected nothing less from the country at this point. I parted ways with Dominic and headed south to stay in an ashram for 4 days before I left for Australia. The location of the ashram was visually stunning...perched on the edge of a crystal clear fresh water lake surrounded by lush vegetation and rolling hills. However, the experiance I had while there was not quite what I had expected, and ended up feeling like I had stumbled upon a cult of yogis, and swamis who had renounced the outside world for their version of reality. Not that I am one to judge what reality is or isn't but it was more then a bit bizarre and the only saving grace seemed to be the yoga classes everyday. I have always had a hard time understanding organized religion and this was just that...it had nothing to do with spirituality and self exploration and was all about worshipping the gurus and kissing the feet of the swamis! It turned out to be a bit to full on.......and although was happy to experiance it, was just as happy to move on after those 4 days!

And with that, after 2 months, I said good bye to India.... Its been bittersweet and have yet to determine if I will be on the side of the people who love India, or hate it. There is so much beauty in that country, it sometimes blows your mind. The values, the essence of the culture, and just the simple being of it can in some instances leave you feeling incredible. But the other side of the country is unbelievably exhausting and it sometimes felt as if it was doing everything in its power to literally drain you of all your energy. It was a constant struggle between the intimate fervor of embracing the moment and the never ending confrontation of aversion. It was a captivating and engaging encounter with their culture, a moment in my travels that I am not soon to forget............=)