Road To Mysore

I'm too jetlagged and tired to look excited but deep down inside I am. The plane would have arrived in time but when we got to Bangalore the pilot was told to circle around for about 30 minutes. By the time we landed another plane landed at the same time. I think we got out of the plane around 10:30PM. This airport was not designed to handle too flights landing at the same time. They are doing a lot of renovations so it took us a long time to clear immigration and get our luggage. We finally go out of the terminal but couldn't find our driver. I had to find a phone and called Shiva. Shiva called our driver and he finally found us. We got out of the airport at around midnight. The ride to Mysore was nice and smooth. This highway is getting better each time. It took us only 3 hours to get to Mysore.

It was around 3AM when Shobha and Robin let us in the house. Shobha made sure the apartment was clean and that we had clean sheets. I tried to settledown as soon as I could but with the major change of weather my nose bleeding kicked in. This is the result of taking Flonase about 15 to 20 years ago. I spent most the morning trying to control it...fuck those drug companies. I have to deals with this nose bleeding for the rest of my life. The sad thing is, I was taking it in the Philippines even before they were using it in the US. They gave us free samples and we were the guinie pigs. I was able to get it undercontrol around 4:30AM so I decided to freshen up and take a shower. Vincent couldn't fall asleep so he asked me if I wanted to head to practice instead...what the hell. We decided not to wake Shannon up but she later gave us a hard time for not waking her up.

We got to the shala around 5:15AM. We didn't have the whole amount to register so we were going to ask Guruji if we can register in the afternoon or just pay a deposit. We walked in the office and we first talked to Sharath. He said we can practice and register later. It was the first class since the tour so it was a led class. I want hoping to do a Mysore class because I was going to do a short version of the practice. I did a short version anyhow. I asked Saraswati, if I could head to the back room after Mari C. My body is still in chaos...between the jetlag, nose bleeding and the heat, I needed to just rest. I must have passed out in the back room because I woke up at around the time the class was almost finished. I can tell I'm going to struggle in the next 3 months. I don't do well in this type of weather without airconditioning. What the hell was I thinking when I decided to come at this time of the year. The good thing though about the first day was that I probably knew half of the people from my prior trips. There was easily around 55 in class today. I'm almost sure we'll hit 100 before the end of this week.

After practice, I hung outside the shala with the two Marys (from London & New York), Satu & Trish from the Shakti, Heather, Bindu, Scott from LA and a lot of other people. It was nice seeing everybody. It seems like yesterday. Vincent keeps reminding me that in my case, it was yesterday. We hung out at the chai stand after and then we headed home to see what Shannon was up to. Shobha made breakfast for us while Robin hung out with us.

After breakfast, I took another shower and a quick nap. I have a shitload of things to do to get all settled. First on the list is to get my scooter which Shiva rented out to somebody else and then get money to register this afternoon. Gotta go...more update later.

I've had a couple of good nights sleep so I'm not feeling as crabby as when I first arrived. I think I've gotten my nose bleeding under control and my body is slowly adjusting to the heat. Yesterday, I prayed really hard for rain. My prayers were answered. It rained hard enough last night to make the air feel a little cooler. I've seriously thought about installing an airconditioner in my room but I may suck it up on this trip. A little sacrifice may be good for me.

I woke up really early yesterday morning after sleeping around 8PM the night before. At around 3AM, I starting cleaning my room and unpacking. I still have a lot more unpacking to do. Vincent and Shannon woke up early too and we just chatted and hung around until is was ready to head for practice. It's only been a few days but I feel that this trip is already a very special trip. I am very lucky to have both Vincent and Shannon with me on this trip. I have the luxury of being a total snob and not have to meet anyone else. Last year, I did not connect with any of the LA crew and it took sometime for me to connect with other people. I spent a lot of time alone in the first two months. This year, I already have a handful of very close friends and we already have plans on doing a lot of things together. I think Mark and Catherine arrive today...cooool.

Yesterday mornings practice was great. I had enough sleep so I got through the whole class. It's really warm in the room so I was dripping all over the my mat. There were probably only 50 students that day. Guruji came down the stage twice to help me and my neighbors out. Sharath was in the room but did not assist much. At some point during the class, he left the room. Guruji is a different person when he has total control of the room...he comes alive. He tends to slack when he knows that Sharath is there to help him. I have no regrets about being here even without Sharath. We all love Sharath and one day we'll be practicing with him but my teachers have always reminded me that at the end day, Guruji is our teacher.

I dropped by the chai stand after practice to hang out with the two Marys. I still have slight headaches from the caffiene withdrawals so I avoided having chai and got some Horlicks (chocolate milk) instead. I think I'll wait till I'm in Gokul Chats before I have my first chai here. I know I'll get addicted again to chai in the next 3 months so I'm taking my time before I completely surrender to it.

After the chai stand, the two Marys joined Shannon and Vincent for their first "Art of Jackfruit" ceremony. I asked Robin to get me a whole jackfruit since they are in season. This is without question, one of my favorite friuts. The only way to taste it's glory is opening it yourself and eating it the moment it is opened. Stay away from the already peeled ones along the road...nasty. I think I got Shannon hooked. She not only enjoyed the fruit but the process of opening and peeling it. The rest of the grouped liked it too but won't be going out of there way to get it. After our pre-breakfast appetizer, we headed to Tina's for breakfast...yes, fenugreek rotis, tomatoe chutney and badam milk...only at Tina's.

The rest of the day, I stayed home. It's so freaking hot outside that I will probably end up staying home everyday from 10AM to 4PM. Hopefully, it will start raining consistently in the next few weeks and cool down a bit. In the meantime, I'm happy staying home and chilling.

Shobha prepared lunch for us since we found out she'll be leaving for a one month Northern India tour. I told her that I bragged to Vincent and Shannon about her cooking and convinced her to cook for us. We're a little bummed that she'll be gone for a month because she always prepares breakfast for us. She assured us though that she would cook for us when she returns.

Yes, this is all we do in Mysore...practice yoga, drink coconut water, drink chai, eat, have breakfast, eat again, take naps, have lunch, hangout, eat again and then do it all over again the following day...what a difficult life.

At around 5PM, I met up with Crazy Russell at the Southern Star. We were suppose to go to his office in Saraswatipuram and meet some of the people. It started raining when I arrived so we got stuck at the Southern Star. I am seriously considering working here so much of our initial conversation had to do with his business. The more I learned about what's going on here, the more excited I am. I want to be a part of this thing. I still have a lot of questions though and I'm still unsure on how I'm going to fit in. These questions will be answered in the next few weeks.

It was great to hangout with Russell and I can see he is happier now. He has a lot of good things going in his life and I'm happy for him. Unfortunately for Russell fans like me, he won't be blogging much because he's so busy with this new business entity. This is an exciting time for him and I'm really happy for him.

It's almost 4AM now and I've been awake for the past two hours or so. My sleep pattern is a little screwy at the moment. I can't complain because I'm getting good sleep but just at weird times of the day. I passed out around 8PM last night and woke up around 1:30AM. I'm proud to say that I got my WIFI router working yesterday. For someone who is electronically handicapped like me, that is a big accomplishment.

I think this trip is going to shake up my life. I'm still not sure in what way or how. I just feel it. I think I'm going to be making a lot of life changing decisions in the next few months. I'm excited about all this but also apprehensive. I'm constantly shaking up my life but sometimes I feel I could use some stability. I have a lot of good options and I can't complain. I wonder where I'm heading next. I wonder what life has in store for me. These are my questions.

I just woke up...it's midnight. I fell asleep at arond 4PM...dumb ass. My whole sleeping pattern at the moment is all messed up. Since getting here, I've been sleeping at around 8PM and waking up at 2AM. I told myself yesterday that I should sleep at around 9PM so I could wake up at 3AM instead. I missed my goal by 5 hours. The weather is really messing us up too. It's so hot that we end up staying indoors and taking naps. All of our sleeping patterns at the moment is messed up. Vincent is sleeping 3 times a day, while Shannon is barely sleeping. Shannon moved out the other night but comes over around 2AM because she's awake at that time and she knows I'll be awake too. She did get some good sleep the other night though. Vincent on the other hand is turning into a sleep addict with a nap in the morning and another one in the afternoon.

I prayed for it to rain again yesterday so it rained again last night. I forgot to bring in my Mysore rug so it's probably wet again. I hate practicing without a rug. I should have figured that the Rain God would listen to me again and brought in my rug...oh well. It's getting a little cooler than when we first arrived. Installing an air conditioner in my room is no longer an option. I did seriously think about it for a few days.

Practice yesterday was great. I feel like I'm slowly getting back my stamina. I've been getting a lot of help from Guruji lately. Don't ask me which posture, I'm not a teacher and don't really want to bother to remember their names. I know a few names but for the most part I don't really care. Sharath has been at the shala everyday but is not adjusting as much. He does still control the floor by telling people when to stop or where to go. I'm glad his there because he controls the floor better. Guruji is looking really good. He is looking younger and more alive than when I first practiced with him in 2004. Saraswati has been there for me everyday on my Maris. Since putting on the extra weight during tax season, binding is a little harder. I can still bind without help but it's easier to bind with help.

Yesterday, my dentist starting working on my root canal. Yes, I have terrible teeth. I wasn't sure which dentist I should go to but K recommended "Orange Gate Geetha's" son in law. Her husband and daughter are also dentist but K tried the son in law and was happy with the work done. For those of you who don't know who I'm talking about, Geetha is a lady who cooks for yoga students, up the street from the shala. There used to be another Geetha who cooked for us across from the shala. We called her "Garage Gate Geetha" because she had tables in the garage. Anyway, the first session went well and I he placed a temporary filing. I see him again on Monday. I knew I had a cavity about a month ago but decided to wait till I got to India. That's what happens when you become unemployed...no medical and dental insurance.

After the dentist, I hung out with my Kashmiri friend at the Kashmir Palace. They were bummed that I'm not heading to Srinagar this year. I planned the whole damn thing and now I'm not going. Mudashire said that "Kashmir will always be there and he will always be here and when your ready to go, I will bring you." I think I'll go next year.

At around noon, I met up with Shannon and Vincent for lunch at the 3 Sisters...love their food and that saffron lassi. The food was great as usual and we just hung out with Harini...she loves to talk and joke around. After that I showed Vincent and Shannon where Fabindia was and I headed home.

This is where I made the big mistake. I had been in the city all morning and part of the afternoon. It was hot and I was tired. I took a nice shower and was feeling really good. I went to my room and laid in bed. I was supposed to go to chanting at 4:30PM but I no longer wanted head back to the city. This is when I passed out. I thought I would wake up an hour or two later, not 8 hours later...oh well. I guess I'm up until pratice at 5AM.

We were having breakfast a few days ago when someone approached my friend about a class she was taking in the city. I think my friend was caught by surprised. She ended up agreeing to meeting this person later that afternoon and showing him how to get there. I just sat there thinking, "what the hell are you doing?" After that person left, I asked my friend, "what the hell were you thinking?" She responded, "I don't know."

I must be pretty jaded but after being here for more than 9 months, I've learned not to be too helpful to strangers. I've been burned too many times. Later that afternoon, my friend went to the CS to meet that person before heading to the city. The bastard never showed up. For some reason, I knew this would happen. There are a lot of flaky yoga students who come here and expect other people to help them whenever they want. Another friend who was at breakfast that day saw that same person shopping in the city. He couldn't help but think, "weren't you supposed to meeting X at the CS."

The following morning at practice, that bastard didn't even bother to apologize to my friend for not showing up. This partially explains why people who have been here for someone have become snobs. For some reason, this place tends to attract a lot of flaky and sometimes crazy people. This practice can also bring out the worst of people. I think it's because issues tend to come up to the surface when we practice daily. It's like a bomb ready to explode. I already have my shit to deal with, the last thing I want to deal with is other people's shit.

Today was our first Mysore practice. This title is how some of my friends described Guruji today. It's hard to beleive this man who is turning 91 in a few months still has so much energy. He was all over the room helping out everyone. The energy was amazing and I had a great practice. I couldn't help but think how lucky I was be here. I wish I can have half his energy when I turn 90. I think that's why I practice. I don't want to be a miserable old man one day. I want to be "on fire" at that age. I refuse to age the way I'm "suppose to".

Looking back at all the stress I've been through this last tax season...it's been worth it.

Our sleeping pattern is no longer messed up. Vincent is no longer a sleep addict and Shannon is no longer an insomiac. I've settled into waking up at 3AM. I think I'll stick to that waking hour. Other than that, life is good and I can't complain. I'm doing exactly what I want to do. It's also slowly getting slightly cooler so I don't feel like I'm dying anymore.

In the middle of practice this morning, I lost my driste. Saraswati was standing right beside me and she said, "Tired?" I didn't realize she was there. I smiled at her and said, "Little tired." I hate it when that happens. K use to always catch me too when I would pause in my practice and she would remind me to keep moving. Losing my driste is one of my bad habits I'm still trying to break. I had a full on practice yesterday and a full day too so I was dragging my butt through practice today. I feel like taking a nap now but that always affects the quality of my sleep at night.

Yesterday we had breakfast at Gokul Chats. I decided to surrender to the Chats and I had a large masala chai...second best chai in Gokulam. I also had a masala dosa and queserie bath to go with the chai. I'm not big on India breakfast but I just wanted to hangout at Gokul Chats. It's one of those places you have to go to. I have had a lot of great memories there. It's a Mysore institution like Tina's, 3 Sisters or Sandia's.

After breakfast I had to rush to the city for my second root canal session...I hate dentist. It went well but after the session he reminded me that I shouldn't chew for an hour because the temporary filling had not set in. I had a relatively light breakfast so I was starving after my dental appointment. I headed to Mohan Banda for some ice cream just to get be through until my filling set in and in time for lunch at Geetha's.

Later that afternoon, we all gathered at my place to watch the "Guru" movie. I've been wanting to watch that movie for sometime now. A few of my friends had told me that I was in it for about 2 or 3 seconds. I have refused to buy the DVD for personal reasons and maybe one day I'll get over it. I did see myself in it but I couldn't figure out how my friends could recognize me in it. I'm practicing at a distant and you could barely see my face. It must be that "well rounded" body I have. There are not very many here in the shala...ha ha ha!!! I'm going to pass on giving my opinion on that movie since I have personal feelings towards it. I'm going to pretend to take the high road and plead the fifth.

After the movie, we headed to Jayashree's chanting class. Shannon and I had to force Vincent. He wanted to take another nap and fall back to his old ways. He did eventually come with us without a fight. It was my first class with Jayashree since leaving last December. I wasn't sure how much I would remember. I was pleasantly surprised with myself. It felt like I had never left. For starters, I had never really bothered memorizing any of the padas. I was more concerned about pronouncing them. I hate memory work so I'm quite happy just reading it. I think Jayashree was pleased to hear I had not forgotten how to chant because she did make a positive comment. I wasn't sure how Vincent and Shannon felt towards it since the first class can be very intense. They did end up paying for the month so I guess they liked it. I don't know if anyone of us in the LA shala really enjoy the chanting. I think it's K's strong influence on us or her persuasive ways. She's not even here but I feel like if I don't do it, I would hear it from her. I'm still now sure why I chant. I'm sure one day in this lifetime I'll figure it out.

We had a strong storm about 3 days ago...maybe 4 and it knocked out my internet connection. It sucks not to have internet at home. We called the Airtel guy a couple of days ago and he said that since all the lights were on in the modem, there is something wrong with my WIFI router. I checked my diagnostics in my computer and it says that there is something wrong with the internet connection. So I tried to connect the modem directly to my laptop but it still didn't work. We tried to call the Airtel guy again but now his not answering his phone. I don't know when I'm going to get wired again but it's annoying the hell out of me. I have a bad habit of checking my mail at 3AM everyday. So now what do I do without internet...help!!! I have such a diffucult life...just kidding. Hopefully I can get everything fixed in the next few days. If not, I'm going to end up coming to the Reliance Webworld everyday. I'd rather be home but I really like the a/c here. It's been raining lately but it's still hot.

I took Tina's class last Wednesday. She taught use how to make dal malkhani, fried okra and rotis. I don't think I'll be making rotis or fried okra but I will try out the dal sometime next week. I really need to learn how to shut my mouth. I try but sometimes words just come out by itself. One of the participants, came up and tried to make a roti. I couldn't help but notice how awkward she was rolling the dough. The next thing I knew, I blurted out..."you don't spend much time in the kitchen do you?" I got a good laugh from the rest of the class but a funny stare from that person. I wanted to take back what I said but it was too late...oh well. She's still talking to me so I guess it wasn't that bad.

During lunch, I asked Tina why I haven't gotten very good jackfruit lately. She said that a lot of the jackfruit trees have been sickly resulting in not a very good harvest. I ended up explaining to the class how to eat jackfruit. I also told Tina the many ways we can cook it too. I continued to tell them how to make "turon", which is a piece of jackfruit sandwiched in two slices of cooking bananas, wrapped in spring roll wrapper and then deep fried. I must talk too much because I ended up explaining the different ways to cook bananas. Tina asked me to show her how to cook the bananas that day. Since they, I'm been in a mad dash finding good cooking bananas. Unfortunately the cooking bananas here is different from the ones we use in the Philippines so I'm not sure how they will come out. I presently have this obsession of cooking fried bananas but I can't find the bananas I need.

I had my third root canal session yesterday. My dentist schedules it at 10:30AM so by the time I get out of his office, it's really hot. After my dentist appointment, I hung out with my Kashmiri friends at their store...Kashmir Art Palace. They normally serve me chai but I opted for a cold soda instead. It was around noon when the power went out. The next thing I knew, my sweat was pouring down. I told them I had to leave because it was too hot. They told me to sit down and that they would turn on the generator just for me. I felt a little awkward but they insisted it was not a problem. I really enjoy hanging out with them because they don't really care if you buy anything. They just enjoy the company. At around 1PM, Vincent and Shannon showed up and we headed to Sandia's for lunch.

Today is a moonday. Not doing much yoga-wise but a lot of things happening. I hope my day turns out well. I have a lot to look forward to today...crossfingers.

The Airtel guy finally came over yesterday and fixed the line. There was nothing wrong with my WIFI router. It was the internet line after all. I actually knew that but the Airtel guy kept saying it was my router...oh well, at least I have internet again.

It's been great to have two days rest from the practice. I have dinner at M & C's last night. They prepared a really good pasta dish...yummm. I'm still enjoying the India food but at some point, I'm going to want some variety. It was nice to hangout with M & C and M's teacher last night. I ended up getting home at around 11PM. I got home to a power failure. The power has been going on and off lately so it sucks. I hate sleeping without the fan. Luckily, the power went on right before I was ready to fall asleep. I'm seriously thinking about not coming to Mysore on these months in the future.

I made breakfast this morning. I was a little disappointed one of my friends did not show up...oh well, life goes on. It was a good breakfast anyhow and everybody enjoyed it. Headed to the Shakti later that morning to get a Thai massage from Satu. She needs to do a number of massages before she can take the advance Thai massage class of Enzo. I was kind enough to let her use my body. I told Satu not to worry about me because I normally fall asleep when I get bodywork. Trish over heard me say that and said, "OMG, we can take advantage of you." I told Trish, "OMG, I didn't know you had those fantasies." We had a good laugh at her Fruedian slip. Satu gave me a good massage and as usual, I just passed out.

Later that afternoon, I met up with Satu and Trish again and we headed to the river with Mark and Catherine. It's not difficult for anyone to convince me to scooter to the river. I love to drive in the countryside and there are some really nice places to hangout in the river. We found a shaded spot with huge rocks. The rocks were warm and smooth. It was really comfortable hangout out there. I could have easily fell asleep. We head back to Gokulam when the sun started to set. I really enjoy riding through the lush dark green rice fields as the sun sets. It's is such a peaceful ride...cool wind in my hair. It was a lovely afternoon and hopefully we'll have more of them.

I am now less inclined on coming back to Mysore at this time of the year. We've been having daily power failures these past two weeks. This has screwed up my internet connection again. I haven't had any internet connection since my blog entry. The loss of internet is a little inconvient. It's the power failures, especially at nights is what I don't particularly like. I don't sleep when it's hot...complain, complain, complain.

Sharath returned to the shala last Monday. It is always nice to have him in the shala. He controls the room better and people tend to listen to him more. He is very firm in his instructions. Shradaa (Sharath's daughter) also returned to the shala floor. My future teacher even assisted me in pachimotanasana. It was strange having her little hands push on my back.

It's been really hot in the shala the past two days. I've been sweating buckets and feeling very dehydrated after practice. Since Sharath has been gone the past week, the 5AM class is absolutely full when the door opens. There is always a mad dash for mat space at 5AM...this normally doesn't happen. On Monday there were a handful of people practicing on the stage and one person in the lobby. I was expecting Sharath to tell some people to come later but that hasn't happened. A few people have figured it out and decided not to fight the 5AM mad rush.

It rained really hard last night and most of the night...thank God. It brought in some cool air today. The shala didn't feel like a sauna this morning. It was just right. It even continued to rain while we were practicing and stop when we were done. The rest of the day was nice and pleasant but there was another power failure when we got back from practice. The LA crew decided to head to Gokul Chats for breakfast early hoping that the power would return after breakfast. Stanley from Singapore joined us.

I'm a little worried about Shannon these days. I think she's addicted to the "paan". Don't ask me what it is. It's this leaf with all kinds of stuff in it. Everytime we're at the Chats, she has to have one. None of us in the table is remotely interested in it. She on the other hand swears by it. She absolutely loves it. I'm told it can be addicting.

I finally tried out the fried bananas last Sunday. It turned out really well. We had breakfast at my place and we served fruits salad, pancakes and phay-phay (bananas cut like a fan, dipped in battered, fried and covered with sugar...yummmm). Everybody was full after the pancakes but they still managed to finish the fried bananas.

Yesterday, I tried the other type of fried bananas...it crashed and burned. It did not come out the way I expected it to. I attempted to make the "turon" but the type of bananas was not suited to the way it was cooked. I finally found the spring roll wrapper at Nilgiris but it did not roll properly. I'm not sure if it was the wrapper or the wrappee who screwed up but it was a disaster. Vincent told me not to quit my day job and stick to the first type of fried banana. It was actually easier to make and tasted better. I think the "turon" taste better but I just screwed it up...oh well. I guess I'm going to stick to the first type.

Robin asked us to stay home yesterday and wait for the internet guy. We've been off-line again for the past 3 or 4 days. He wanted us to be there to talk to the guy and have our laptops configured. So here I was again on a Thursday afternoon hanging out in my living room with Shannon and Vincent. This is probably the theme of my third Mysore visit..."hanging with Shannon and Vincent". It was only less than 2 years ago when they were both strangers to me. Now, I'm know more about them then I wish to discuss. Shannon is definitely the crazier of the two and I'm the extreme opposite of her craziness. Vincent is crazy too but keeps me from strangling Shannon. Shannon has described me as " a piece of work". ..still not sure exactly what that means. Vincent on the other hand is without question the "diva".

Later that afternoon the internet guy arrived. He finally determined that our modem was messed up. He replaced our modem and reconfigured our laptops. It was great to have our internet up and running again...this seems to be my biggest problem in life...ohhh, what a difficult life...just kidding.

It was almost 4 and we had to decide on whether to go to chanting class or not. It seem like it was going to rain so we decided to stay in. Shannon and Vincent decided to finish the "Kal Ho Na Ho" movie instead. We made the right choice because an hour later it started to rain and it rained hard. The storm was much more than we expected. I've been praying for rain the past few weeks. I got more than I bargained for. The storm hit hard and the wind was whirling through the city. The thing about asking for something from the universe is that we have to give up something else. I was hoping that the universe would take 10 pounds or more of my bodyfat but instead it took the electricity instead...oh well. The power went out at around 5PM and here I was in the middle my dimly lit living room with Shannon and Vincent...oh well again, worst things can happen. So the next 2 to 3 hours was spent chatting with those two. I know more about them then maybe I wish to know and vis-versa...ha ha ha!!! I'm surprised we haven't killed each other yet.

We decided to call it a night at around 8PM and I got to bed around 9PM. The good thing about the rain last night was it brought with it a cool breeze. There has been a sudden shift of temperature these past few days. Hopefully it will stay that way. It rained all night and through the morning.

I got up a little later then I wanted to. It's hard to get out of bed when it's pitch dark. The electricity always goes down when there's a storm. This particular storm took down a lot of electrical posts. I'm bracing for the worst and expect there not to be any electricity for a few days. Strange, now that I got my internet back and running, I have no power...that's not good.

We had only one led class this morning. I have expected more people to come but it's relatively quiet at the shala. There was only one person on stage and we were pretty comfortable. A handful of people I know were on ladies holiday so that partially explains it. Oh, that's another thing about Mysore. Everybody knows when you're holiday. The class was good but my body was feeling tired...I'm ready for a day off...wooohooo!!! it's Friday;)

Yesterday, M, C and I went for a countryside ride. I got a tip from one of the older students about this resort about an hour away from Mysore. It is in the middle of nowhere. A place where the air is fresh and away from all the buzzle of Mysore. He gave me a general idea on where it was and a few landmarks...it was like a treasure hunt. We left around 4PM when it was slightly cooler. We wiggled our way through KRS Road and passed the bird sanctuary. A one point we cross the railroad tracks and hit the Mysore-Bangalore highway. There must have been something wrong because we were supposed to be in the middle of nowhere...no traffic, no highways and no people. We kept turning back and forth hoping to find one of the landmarks. We eventually decided to get on the highway and head towards Bangalore. We found a resort sign and decided to follow it. We ended up in a resort/restaurant along a river. It was a nice little resort along the river with tables under the trees. To the right was a nice scenic view of the river but the highway on the left...too close and noisy. I know this was not the place because we were expecting to find a scenic quiet place. It was scenic but not quiet. Anyway, we decided to stop and get some drinks. We decided it would be a good place to have lunch one day but this was the spot I was looking for.

As we headed out of the resort, we saw one of our landmarks...great. We headed towards it and took the first left. We end up in the center or town of Sri Rangapatnam. We found a huge temple and was going to check it out. There was too much traffic and I felt like I've been templed-out. The purpose of the ride in the first place was to get away from civilization. Getting in the middle of chaos was not what I was looking for. It was getting late so we decided to head home. We didn't find what we were looking for but it was a fun ride.

Today was the first conference since the shala reopened. I had a bad feeling about this conference. The are not very many senior students at the moment and the new and not so new student rarely ask any questions. If they do, they're normally not very good ones. We all gathered at the shala around 4:15PM and Guruji sat on his chair around 4:30PM. There's the usual 5 minutes of silence as Guruji looks around the room waiting for someone to ask a question.

Finally he breaks the silence and says, "Many new students". Translation is something like..."Where are the old students?" This is never a good sign because then he starts his talk about taking practice. It's the same talk whenever no one asks a question. It starts with..."Ashtanga yoga is a very very old method...5,000 years...6,000 years old....This method very little theory, 99 percent practice...must practice correctly...8 step practice...etc..." The talk was about 12 to 15 minutes long which ends with, "Thank you very much." Then there's silence again for about 3 minutes...no questions Sharath breaks the silence by telling the student to write down any question they want to ask next week...no foolish questions.

I have been to many conferences and I have gotten a lot from these conferences but today's was not one of my favorite one. Hopefully next week someone will come up with a good question. No, it's not going to come from me. I'm not the cerebral type of ashtangi so I'm not one who would ask a good question. Please, someone step-up next week.

After conference I hung out with the Finns. For 3 of them, it was their first trip and they were already planning their next trip. They're staying for only one month this time but hope to stay longer next time. One of them said that he was here for the first time in 2003. He hadn't been back since and when he came across my blog he knew it was time to return. I don't know exactly which entry he was talking about but in our conversation I had said that after the first week on my first trip, I knew that I was coming back every year for at least 3 months. I knew then as I know now that there is no other place I would rather practice...Guruji is my teacher and everybody else who teaches this practice is only an extension of Guruji. To many, this might sound foolish but it was N who has always reminded me that, "I am not your teacher. I am only an extension of Guruji."

I remember reading all the Mysore blogs(Russell, Alan Little, Bit by Bit, Anne's, to name a few) before my first trip. I was scared to go to Mysore then but these blogs inspired me to come anyway. This was the first time someone has told me that my blog inspired them to return. It was nice to hear that. I know I say a lot of foolish things but once in a while I may say something good...ha ha ha!!!

Time is flying by pretty quickly. Next week we're going to hit our first month. I hate to think about it but I could be back in LA pretty soon. Shannon is already planning her next trip and Vincent is determine not to wait too long before his next trip. I'm a little indifferent about returning too soon because I'm going to be broke when I return to LA.

Yesterday's practice was not that great for me. I was really tired and I couldn't keep my mind still. I kept thinking about catching the second half of the NBA Eastern Finals game...big Miami fan. For the second time on this trip Saraswati asked me if I was tired. I must have been moving slowly and didn't wait for my Mari C adjustment. I just smiled and said, "little tired."

I rushed home after practice and caught the second half. Yes, Miami won Game 1...woohoo!!! Game 2 is tomorrow morning at 5:30 and since it's a moonday I get to see the whole game. I've been a Miami fan since I moved to the Fort Lauderdale area in 1995 (Heat, Hurricanes and of course the Dolphins). The Heat broke my heart last year when they lost to Detroit. Hopefully that will change this year.

There was only one led practice this morning so it was a full house... mat to mat. It was so full that there were a couple of people practicing in the men's bathroon. One of my friends was complaining that another her neighbor kept hitting her. It can get really tight during lead classes and it's important to be more concious about where you neighbors are. Apparently she was hit about 5 times which irritated her. I told her she should have just "whacked the bitch". That's a quick way to get someone's attention. It's a shame that there are a handful of people here who are so clueless and inconsiderate. Most of the older students are very aware of where their neighbors are during practice and would adjust according to avoid any kind of collison or would apologize for hitting somebody. The weird thing too is she never hit the person on her other side. I think that's the reason why most people like to stay in the same mat space everyday during a Mysore class. You want to make sure you practice beside the same people everyday. You create some sort of understanding and awareness between neighbors. You give them space when they need it and make sure this practice does not become a contact sport. For the most part your neighbor would extend the same courtesy. I hope those two don't get to practice beside each other again coz we could have a cat fight on our hands. That could be fun though.

Summer is over and the monsoon season has arrived. It’s been raining and off everyday for the past 5 or 6 days. It’s much cooler now so you won’t be hearing me complain about the heat. So maybe mid-May is not a very bad time to be here after all. Some say that the monsoon season has arrived early this year. I still think that the months from October to December are the best time of the year to be here. It doesn’t rain as much and it’s much cooler. I’ve already converted one of my spare rooms into a laundry room and ran lines across the room to hang my clothes. Hopefully the sun will come out occasionally.

I’m looking forward to being in chanting class today with Jayashree and Narasima (not sure how that’s spelled). I was really inspired by class last Thursday. On most days we chant for an hour and a half but sometimes we get to ask Narasima questions. I am always in awe when I listen to him speaking. I have yet to meet anyone who understands the sutras or yoga philosophy the why he does. He is very humble and explains very concisely. He started out by explaining the 18th sutra of the first padah. Then he continued to explain the whole guru-student relationship in detail. I wish I could explain it the way he did and do any justice. He made me understand more about my relationship with Guruji and why not everybody would have a connection with him. He said that this relationship has already been established in a prior life and if the student does not learn everything in this life the guru has to return in the next life to finish what he started. The guru cannot rest until the student learns everything he needs to know from the guru. He continued to say that those who do not connect with Guruji are still looking for there own guru. He also explained the pitfalls of jumping from one guru to another.

I have always had doubts about the decisions I’ve made in the past 3 years. I know that deep in my heart I’m where I have to be but my mind can’t make any sense of it. There are still doubts about my chosen path but he made me understand why I’m here and why I chant. When I first went chanting last year, it was only because K convinced me. She once said, “How are you going to progress in your practice if your not going to the Sanskrit chanting class? I would just roll my eyes and head to class in fear of K. Someone once said, “I always hated it when K would correct me but I always knew she was right. I’m glad I listened to K.

I had lunch with Russell last Friday. It’s only been the second time I’ve seen him since I arrived. He’s very busy with his Mysore office so I didn’t want to impose myself. He leaves tomorrow so I insisted that I see him before he leaves. Vincent joined us for lunch, which made it very interesting. He asked questions I never dared ask or won’t even consider asking. Russell’s life is definitely more exciting than mine…nuff said.

After lunch I followed Russell to Saraswatipuram to see his office. I met his employees and then met with him in the conference room. He told me more about the operations of the office and in which direction his company is going. Then we talked about the possibilities of me working for him in Mysore. I don’t want to get too excited but the possibilities could be endless. He definitely has a vision and hopefully I can contribute to that vision…cross your fingers.