Corbett National Park: December 5 - 6, 2011

We went on a full day wildlife safari through the park. There are supposed to be tigers within the park but we didn’t see any. I would imagine not too many people see them other than park staff. We did see however, different types of deer and monkeys. We also saw a few wild elephants surrounded by the beauty that is nature. 

Rishikesh: December 1 - 4 2011

the view

A sari drying

Rishikesh is absolutely beautiful. We arrived in the middle of the night of December 1^st. We did not know what to expect when we awoke in the morning. The view from our room was STUNNING. The sun was shining and the mist lifted to reveal its secret; the River Ganga, finally it was time for me to formally meet Ma Ganga or Mother Ganges. All of India flows through her waters; she is a gift from the gods, purifying the mighty sub-continent. We headed out into this near perfect day to her banks, with rafting gear in tow. The whole day was very surreal and spiritual almost. 

Her banks are just as diverse as the country, from skyward trees to sandy beaches, or giant smooth river rocks. Steps from temples and yoga ashrams led down to her shores. I saw people bathing, washing their clothes, meditating, or just splashing around.  We stopped at a high rock, where it seems that most of the rafting companies stop, so that we could jump of it. At first I did not want to jump, but after some internal deliberation I did it, and I’m so glad I did. Most of our rafting was smooth; we did get into a few rapids where we were knocked around a little. We returned to our hotel soaking wet and spent the rest of the day relaxing and taking photos by the banks. The next day a few others and I decided to visit a temple on the top of a mountain… by cable car!

The view was nice and the ride was fun. When we got off the cable car there was still some more walking to do. The pathway was lined with beggars, children selling CDs and men selling food and jewellery. We took off our shoes and left them with an attendant so we could proceed to the temple.  There was a relatively small shrine and a few people in progress of their seven cycles around the shrine. We made our way back to the rope way, retrieved our shoes and headed back to the guest house. Tomorrow we go to Corbett National Park.

Goa: November 28 - 30 2011

Fort Aguada

We arrived mid day on the 28th in Panaji (pronounced Panjim) and proceeded north to our hotel in Arpora near Baga Beach. We had the day to ourselves, which I spent relaxing and a little exploring of the area. The next day we went to a few beaches (Anjuna, Vagator and Calangute), did a little shopping in Calangute and visited Fort Aguada.

On the 30^th our day consisted of morning sightseeing of Panagi, the capital city of Goa. We went to Dona Paula pier where the story goes, hundreds of years ago a prominent politicians’ daughter, named Dona Paula and her love committed suicide because their relationship was not socially acceptable. Goa’s own Romeo and Juliet… The rest of the day was spent relaxing and exploring the surrounding area. Goa is beautiful and I’m so happy I will be back here in a months’ time!

View off Dona Paula Pier

Mysore: November 25 - 27 2011

We arrived in Mysore on the 25 in the late evening. On the 26th we went to a wax museum, experienced a Hindu pilgrimage up the 1180 steps of Chamundi Hill to be greeted by a golden temple. It is said that the Goddess Chamundeswari killed the demon Mahishasura in a fierce battle that lasted several days. Next stop was the Saint Philomena’s Roman Catholic Church, the third largest in India. We also visited a palace that was converted into a hotel and the Brindavan Gardens which are along the river Kaveri; we even took a boat ride. The day ended at a jungle themed restaurant in the hotel. The next day we went to the Mysore Palace. It is a beautiful palace that was rebuilt in the early 1900's due to a fire that destroyed everything except the temple. It was rebuilt to ensure it would never burn again by integrating cast iron columns and stone floors and staircases instead of the usual wood. Elaborate glass skylights are present throughout the entire palace with mandalas and peacock motifs. Detailed Hindu Myths are painted onto the ceilings, contrasted by the intricate designs of the floors. The two headed eagle, elephants and lions are recurring images in doors, railings and on columns. The entire time I walked through I tried to imagine this palace as a home, the sheer size and extravagance of it made it extremely difficult. As we exited and retrieved our shoes we saw the full frontal view, took some pictures and made our way to the Mysore Zoo. We saw giraffes, monkeys, chimps, gorillas, elephants, lions, tigers and bears oh my!

We left in the evening for an overnight bus ride to Goa.

Last Few Nights in Kodaikanal

On Friday I will be leaving Kodai for my month long round trip of India! It is a bitter sweet moment. On one hand I'm very excited to get off this mountain and see India, but on the other I will miss the friends I've made and the familiar streets and faces. Kodaikanal quickly became my normal, comfortable in a way. I don't think I will ever forget this strange, exciting, exhausting and fulfilling experience. This hill station will forever hold a place in my heart somewhere between "that was awesome!" and "ya, that was...interesting to say the least". Looking back on it, my time here went by very fast, but present moments always felt longer than they were. I can't recall how many times I thought it had been half an hour or so and it ended up being only five minutes.

I've done life changing things, met inspiring people and seen spectacular landscapes, but I've also been bored and frustrated at times.
I've done some amazing stuff here including the KIS Green Team by planting (and pulling out) trees, worked with the Vattakanal Conservation Trust and the Palni Hills Conservation Centre, been to orphanages and old age homes, a rehabilitation centre, I've experienced an intentional community, learned (a little) Tamil/Hindi, taught English, an expert instant noodle maker, a semi successful bargainer and most importantly I was a learner. I've learned a lot here, not only about Indian culture, but also about Indian food, customs and beliefs. I learned a little more about myself and the ever changing world I live in and actively participate in. The main thing I will take from this journey is patience and trust in myself and the world. It has also greatly reinforced my mantra that everything happens for a reason. Everything is interconnected, nothing can exist independently, not even events; every action really does have an equal and opposite reaction.

What will I do next?
Mysore --> Goa --> Rishikesh --> Corbett National Park --> Delhi --> Agra --> Jaipur --> Hydrabad --> Chennai -->Goa (again)

Due to the uncertainty of internet connection during my travels I do not know when my next post will be. As usual I will be keeping a journal, documenting everything I do and see. Until then...
Goodbye Kodai, Hello India!

Dolphin's Nose

Ellie, Vanessa and me just hanging out

Ghandi Statue, Pondicherry

Ellie, me, Layla and Pooja on Independence  Day

Me and Dhanishta on Elliot Beach, Chennai

Woman at Mercy Home

Auroville Canyon System

Christmas in Kodai

Yes, I know, it's November, but we decided to celebrate Christmas early. Tonight we had a banquet with amazing food, candlelit tables and Christmas carols softly blending into the background. Of course it doesn't at all feel like Christmas but it was a nice opportunity to see everyone together one last time before we leave. In the coming days will be pandemonium as exams finish, people get packed and ready to head home for a well deserved holiday.

C.S.I Rehabilitation School

  

Today I visited the C.S.I Rehabilitation Center where they educate children who have learning disabilities, are intellectually disabled, have cerebral palsy, down syndrome or are blind or deaf. To assist older students they learn practical work skills such as paper bag making, recyclable plates and eco-friendly cups. These projects help generate funds for the center which helps them provide even more for their students

Machine the presses layers of paper and leaves to make plates

After Being Pressed

Final Product

Grassland Restoration

With the Green Team we headed to one of Kodai's marshes, were most of the fresh water is filtered naturally. At first we all thought we would be planting various grasses, as the name would suggest but we ended up removing saplings. That's right, the Green Team was removing trees. The trees we pulled out were the invasive acacia from Australia, which suck up thousands of liters of water out of the ground. By removing the saplings we made a tiny difference on the future of the marsh. Due to fact that nearly all the trees in that area are acacia there are very few animals that can live in this "desert forest". None of the species are native so they cannot support the local fauna. The VCT (Vattakanal Conservation Trust) is working very hard in removing the invasive trees to make room for indigenous grasses and trees. If only the cows would let them! In a country where cows have the right of way everywhere it is hard to keep them away from the young saplings and newly planted grasses. Hopefully they can bring the Indian government on to the scene in order to get some needed funds (fences, man power)...
Bob and Tanya are the founders of VCT, originally from the UK they moved to India and have now been working in the Palni hills for the past 25 years. Check out their website: http://www.vattakanalconservationtrust.org/



It wasn't all tree pulling though, we had lots of fun. We even saw a stick bug! I have never seen one in person, it was amazing how much it looked like a stick. One person did not believe us and was convinced it was a stick, until it started moving!



There was also lots of cool fungi.

Video

Check out the video I made about the Eco-Watch Field Trip to Auroville/Sadhana Forest
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wzo9ElQZVzI

Ooty

On Wednesday all four basketball teams from KIS traveled 7 hours to Ooty, another hill station. Both girls teams made it to the semi finals but unfortunately we didn't make it into the finals. We played hard and gave it our all, but the other teams played harder, proving it by winning. We had a fun time, bonding with each other and getting to know some girls on other teams.
This tournament followed Kodai's own basketball tournament, Kodai open where the Super Senior team placed second.
I really enjoyed both tournaments and our weeks of practice. Even though some days it was cold, or rainy, or I was sore, I went for an hour and a half and always felt better afterwards. It was a great experience thanks to the entire team and our great coaches Beth and Linnea.

RC School

On Saturday I woke up late at around 9:15, SoEx starts at 9... So I quickly get ready thinking I will go down to the green house to see if the green team is there and if not my plan was to go back to sleep. I walk to the gate and there is a group of students waiting for a bus to go to the RC School, I decided to join them since I had never been. This turned out to be one of the best decisions I've ever made [if only I had remembered my camera :(...]. Regardless, I had such an amazing time. When we got there we were enthusiastically greeted by a swarm of boys. I immediately dropped the soccer ball and followed them to the field. We tried to make teams but we just ended up kicking the ball anywhere and to anyone; it was absolute chaos. After about ten minutes we rounded them up and started playing games that helped them learn English. We passed the ball around and asked a question which they needed to answer in the correct form of English. They already had some good English skills, so it was more working on sentence structure and grammar through conversation. I feel this way of teaching helps them practically apply their skills instead of just memorizing it and writing it on paper. We also kicked the ball around saying different fruits/vegetables/animals/places as we passed it around. They were getting really into it and every time we wanted to change the game they didn't want to. Eventually the older boys came to the school and kind of took over the field forcing us up near the chapel. We played games like monkey in the middle and cricket. One boy kept asking me for my watch, so I decided to draw a watch on him. I ended up drawing watches on several boys; they were all so eager to have purple watches drawn on them with my name underneath.
Then out of nowhere Bryan Plymale and his wife Isabella showed up with two of her spanish students to sing songs on the guitar. As soon as the kids saw the guitar they dropped everything and ran towards Matthew and Valentino, following them into the main classroom. Even though they did not understand the words they were genuinely enjoying the music, they were clapping and dancing. They started singing a song that they wrote in english and got the kids to sing the chorus which was just no no no no no, over and over again. They made a dance to it and even when we were about to leave they were still singing it! It was obvious they didn't want us to leave because they were hanging off the car and they held on even as we started to move. We eventually got them off and headed back for Kodai, laughing and singing on the way back. This was definitely a very memorable experience. Now all I have to do is track down people who took a few photographs so I can share them.

Eco Watch Reflection

Eco Watch Field Trip

This field trip opened my eyes to what is happening on an environmental, ecological and a people scale. Being exposed to Auroville and Sadhana Forest, seeing how intentional living thrives within eco communities was incredible. Just to see how these communities operate on both a small scale (Sadhana) and a larger scale (Auroville) shows that with determination intentional living can work and thrive. It really allows for the opportunity to dispel a lot of the misconceptions that shroud intentional communities; which are most often associated with cults. This field trip also offered the students a chance to live in a way that they probably never have, a simpler way of living, one with less distractions. In Auroville we saw where the food grows, the preferred method of transportation, where the water is collected, how and why they use the sun. We were thrust into the grass roots level that pertains to our very survival. this was a place where they are not detached from the basics; compared to the west, where most kids would tell you that food comes from a grocery store , not even aware of what a farm is, or even what it takes to grow those “french fries” that they had for lunch. Hopefully students started asking these questions in regards to their lives back home.

Where does my food come from? Was it locally grown or flown half way around the world? How was it grown? Pesticides?

Can I walk or bike to where I need to go? Can I take public transit if it is available to me? (you find you might just like it).

How is my water collected? Is it sustainable? Is my region over extracting our water sources? Do I really need as much water as I’m using?

What about my energy? Does my country burn coal, use nuclear power or any renewable resources like wind or solar? Do I use more than I need?

I think the biggest one is can I do anything about it? Can I be a part of this change of our current paradigm? What can I DO?

The people asking these questions, but more importantly the people who are actually DOING what they can will be the ones to change the world.

During this trip I gained a lot of insight about myself but I also learned some invaluable information about water conservation and its application, solar energy, sustainable, organic farming, permaculture and our own ecological footprint. It allowed all participants the opportunity to look within themselves and evaluate what they do in their lives that has direct and indirect influences on the fragile (yet resilient) planet we reside on. It forced us to analyze how much water we use (or over-use), especially for simple things like brushing our teeth, washing our hands, bathing and even using the toilet. Little things we take for granted here in Kodai and back home were luxuries for the week. Living without electricity in Sadhana Forest proved difficult for some students at the beginning, but in the end we all adapted.  Sometimes we all get so used to retreating to our own illuminated spaces in the evenings after dinner, or even before dinner. We consciously exclude ourselves from our own community gatherings, whether it is with family at home, or in dorm with our friends.  At Sadhana they had the concept of gathering with the light so that all community members would be in the same place socializing and have a sense of family, of community.  Instead of encouraging the formation of small groups they support the formation of one big family. One Love, One Heart, One Earth, One Family.

 This time is our time and we have the choice to go down a path that will harm and destroy our planet or we can go down the path of sustainability and environmental consciousness; being able to recognize that everything is connected, nothing can exist independently.  Our planet is one giant organism, and her health is dependent on what we chose to do now, in our lifetime. Not your grandkids, or your great grandkids but you and your children. The future is now. What are you going to do about it?

Deepavali

"Deepavali or Diwali, popularly known as the "festival of lights," is a festival celebrated between mid-October and mid-November for different reasons. For Hindus, Diwali is one of the most important festivals of the year and is celebrated in families by performing traditional activities together in their homes. For Jains, Diwali marks the attainment of moksha or nirvana by Mahavira in 527 BC.

Deepavali is an official holiday in India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Mauritius, Guyana, Trinidad & Tobago, Suriname, Malaysia, Singapore and Fiji.

The name "Diwali" is a contraction of "Deepavali" (Sanskrit: दीपावली Dīpāvalī), which translates into "row of lamps". Diwali involves the lighting of small clay lamps (diyas or dīpas) in Sanskrit: दीप) filled with oil to signify the triumph of good over evil. During Diwali, all the celebrants wear new clothes and share sweets and snacks with family members and friends.

The festival starts with Dhanteras on which most Indian business communities begin their financial year. The second day of the festival, Naraka Chaturdasi, marks the vanquishing of the demon Naraka by Lord Krishna and his wife Satyabhama. Amavasya, the third day of Deepawali, marks the worship of Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth in her most benevolent mood, fulfilling the wishes of her devotees. Amavasya also tells the story of Lord Vishnu, who in his dwarf incarnation vanquished the Bali, and banished him to Patala. It is on the fourth day of Deepawali, Kartika Shudda Padyami, that Bali went to patala and took the reins of his new kingdom in there. The fifth day is referred to as Yama Dvitiya (also called Bhai Dooj), and on this day sisters invite their brothers to their homes.

While the story behind Deepavali and the manner of celebration varies from region to region (festive fireworks, worship, lights, sharing of sweets), the essence is the same – to rejoice in the Inner Light (Atman) or the underlying Reality of all things (Brahman)." (Wikipedia)

Today we had a shortened schedule in order to prepare for the evening festivities which consisted of a fireworks show, sweets and a Bollywood themed dance. It was a nice nice break from routine, to get out for the evening and hang out with friends.

Last day of Field Trip

I know this is a long time coming but the internet here has been very finicky lately, so finally I have been able to access the internet to do my final entry from the Eco-Watch field trip.

Last day was quite uneventful, after we left Sadhana Forest we went to Pondicherry for the day. We walked around for a few hours, had dinner at a French-Indian seafood restaurant and then made our way to the train station. The train was an hour late, which was frustrating because all I wanted to do was sleep. I was so tired when the train arrived at Kodai Road that I almost forgot my journal, I actually got off the train, only to realize that I left it where I was sitting. Luckily I had the time to get back on the train.
The drive up the mountain wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. I slept most of the way up and it felt like a 1 hour drive instead of a three hour drive! And I didn't get sick once, it's a new record.

Sadhana Forest Day 5

The Main Hut

Our one and only full day at Sadhana Forest. We woke up at 5:45 by two volunteers playing the drums, it was a very peaceful way to wake up. We were up and out in front of the main hut by 6:15 for the morning circle. We stood in a giant circle, held hands, sang songs and listened to the morning announcements. We headed out to the forest to start the first work session planting trees and bunding. They plant the trees right before monsoon so that they can get the most amount of water to ensure a good start.
Since there were a lot of us we split into groups, one group planted trees while my group did the bunding. Which consists of making piles of dirt in a row so it can catch rain water before it washes off and into the ocean. Just one of their water conservation steps.

At around 8am we went to the main hut for breakfast where we also signed up for second work. I went to Children's Land, which is Sadhana's playground. Some local kids from Apres School came over and we drew pictures of what they would like to see in Children's Land. Most of them ended up drawing random things which had nothing to do with the playground but at they had fun. One girl, however, suggested they put something up where all the kids who visit could write their names. Everyone thought that was a great idea and hopefully they can implement it.
Once again the kids took my camera and went off taking pictures (just like the kids at Bethania did). I didn't mind, they took some crazy pictures... Like this one...

Yoga

Once the kids left we went back for lunch and then it was free time. I just went on my computer, checked emails, charged my camera, everything I needed electricity for really. They are completely off the grid, even their wifi is supported by solar power. At 4 pm one of the volunteers led a yoga class for about an hour and a half, it could have been hot yoga it was so hot out.

Dream Catchers 

We had dinner which was followed by a "Non Talent Show". My friend and I sang Hallelujah. A few people sang songs, played guitar, drums and one even played the didgeridoo and Yorit, one of the founder's of Sadhana, played the accordion. There were two hula hoop performances which were really good and a dance performance by one of Bryan's friends. The rest of the evening was filled with laughs and some great conversations. Too bad tomorrow is our last day.

Auroville/Sadhana Forest Day 4

Inside Meditation Chamber

Inside the Matrimandir

Lotus Pond

This morning I was lucky enough to go to the Matrimandir (Temple of the Mother) for a 45 minute meditation. Before you entered you had to take your shoes off and before you went up to the main chamber you were provided with white socks. We walked up the ramp inside the dome toward the meditation chamber. It was very cool inside. It was an all white room with pillars and white cushions surrounding the outside wall as well as in between the pillars. In the middle there was a crystal sphere with a single skylight above it, allowing the only light in the space to enter. I felt very relaxed and was pleased at how easy I slipped into a deep meditation, even as people entered I did not lose my focus. The rest of the day I was running off the immense energy I got from my meditation. Underneath the  Matrimandir was a lotus pond.

I've always felt that I needed a quiet meditation space for myself back home and this has inspired me to build one back home that will be cool in the summers and warm in the winters. How I am going to do this is uncertain, but somehow I will figure it out.
(I did not take any of these photos, because photography was not allowed, I got these images off Google).

After the Tour we rushed back to the Centre Guest House and headed down to our next stop, Sadhana Forest. Sadhana is an intentional community focusing on reforestation and water conservation. When we arrived we immediately went to the main hut and joined everyone for lunch. They are a vegan community, I can't tell you how amazing it felt to eat a vegan meal again. I have surprisingly missed being a vegan. Almost all the veg food at the school relies on milk, cheese and butter and it makes me feel heavy. We had this amazing tapioca mash which happened to be their first tapioca harvest of the season. After lunch we got an introduction to Sadhana, what it is all about and what they stand for. As I said their main focuses are reforestation and conservation but they also focus on sustainable, green energy; they are completely OFF THE GRID, organic gardening and composting. They would like to also expand the organic kitchen garden with the hopes of being 75% food sustainable.

The Bathroom

The compost program is very sophisticated, by using food scraps as well as human manure they produce a high quality fertilizer which goes to nourish the growing forest. They have composting toilets and they even use the urine (dilated) to provide the perfect acidity level that pineapple plants love. Everything is included in a cycle so nothing is wasted..All the water they use is immediately put back into the earth, mostly near banana plant which need lots of water. At every hand wash station and at the pool all the water is returned. This one cycle, where everything is used. Who knows, I might also spend some time here in the new year as well.

Learning to Wash our Hands

After the tour we were shown our rooms which were open air, with platforms for mattresses and mosquito nets. All the buildings are wood, palm thatch, coconut rope and local quarried granite. It was surprisingly (relatively) cool at night, with a nice breeze coming in. They provided us with biodegradable shampoo and soap. Since all their water goes back into the ground and eventually the ground water they cannot afford for it to be contaminated with chemicals.



After lunch I headed to a reiki workshop led by a volunteer. She taught us the history of reiki and its benefits. Just another thing I have to learn when I get back home! This time in India has really exposed me to new interests and hobbies.

After dinner we watched a documentary on permaculture called Permaculture: The Food Forest Story. It focused on building a forest that would provide food for generations, plus building a forest in layers. First is ground cover, then small shrubs, then small to medium trees and finally large trees. A very interesting video that is very relevant to this community who are trying to stabilize the forest to a point where little maintenance is needed.
Tomorrow is a 5:45 wake up call, then straight to work in the forest planting trees!