More details about the first 72 hours in India

THE JOURNEY OVER

Really and truly the flights over were not nearly so bad as I was prepared for. The flight to Zurich was timed so that we slept at normal bed time, or sort of sleep, my legs kept falling asleep, more than I did it seems like. In Zurich, we got some great chocolates, an excellent expresso and croissant, but really only had like an 1.5 hour layover. The flight to India was a little longer, but still I slept a good bit. (mom and dad, thanks for the loan of the neckpillows, they were great). They fed us a lot on both flights.

IN MUMBAI.

The first thing I noticed about being in India is just how white I am. In race theory they talk a lot about the invisibility of whiteness, that white people or whomever the dominant group is, don't experience themselves as racially marked because they are the majority. Well, understanding that conceptually is one thing, experiencing the absence of invisibility is quite another. Also, there are not so many women in public, so being a white woman... I stand out. Two white women who look exactly alike really stand out.... There is a separate line in customs for unaccompanied women, so that was nice.... I think I wrote abit about the hotel last blog. It was nice enough, no hot water, Christina has a picture of me trying to take a shower without actually getting in the shower. I think it was good to spend the night in MUMBAI and regroup.

MUMBAI TO PUNE.

Vijay's Taxi picked us up in a Hummer or a close equivalent, which is good, because boy was the water high. People were wading up to their necks in places. We made slow progress, as Sathish the driver says, "problem for small cars, not for big cars, just be careful." Another great line courtesy of him, "Mumbai has too much water." Indeed, The ride took about an hour longer than usual due to the rains, I was pretty carsick. Once we got to Pune, we went to the Hotel Chetak. This is sort of THE gathering ground for Iyengar Yogis and Yoginis. Originally, we were going to stay here, because it was easy to arrange, but Randy was pretty insistent that we not and he arranged the flat for us. The Chetak did take us in for the night which was good, given that Pune in Monsoon season would not be a great place to be homeless. Last night, we sent a request for more info about protocol in India and at the Insitute to Mary and Eddy and Randy,,, ate some good India food and went to bed early (10 and woke up around 4). It is super noisy here. That is the biggest thing I notice besides the whiteness, how noisy and chaotic it is, in this country that developed the practices for inner stillness.

CHETAK to KARISHMA'S FLAT.

After doing some asana this morning, we ate toast and coffee (and some swiss chocolate) in the lobby. We met some nice canadians who hooked us up with the how to survive in pune guide that the BKS Iyengar Society of UK published, walked around trying to find the flat, finally started asking people, which facilitated the process greatly. Karishma's flat is wonderful. It is on the second floor and has nice big open windows. We've arranged for a cook for the month also. After that, we ate Indian food again and almost forgot we were here to do yoga....Just a lovely little vacation in Pune. Luckily, we got our class schedule yesterday as the institute is closed. We have practice times in the morning and then classes in the evening, except for wednesday and saturday when the times are reversed. We have the same schedule which is a relief. I was really amazed at how many questions we were asked at the Institute about who we study with and for how long.

Right now, we are at the Internet cafe, waiting out the rain. boy is it rainy. Reminds me of the days and days of rain in the Happy Valley....

Mary, Eddy, and Randy, answered our pleas for additional information on tipping and class protocol. Randy had some great advice applicable to all life circumstances, "the main thing is just adapt and don't let things bog you down." Or something to that effect.

Well, that's it for now.