Left India with a Bang! What a Train Ride!

Hello there Loves,
Wow Wow Wow, India, a great memory, yet happy to be in Bangkok! My last week in Rishekesh was heaven, getting up and scraping my tongue, cleaning my eyes with an eye cup, cleaning my nose with a neti pot, then with my finger cleaning my teeth with Ganga Salt for getting all the bacteria out-This was my start of my day every day. If I stayed longer in the Yoga course I'd be vomiting by now and maybe even swallowing gauze and eventually doing enemas, who knows, my morning process was already a half hour as it was.

Then there is grabbing my steel cup and heading for chai of all milk with my favorite family and to the beach to chant. This last day was the greatest, I filmed myself chanting and did a whole film of the surrounding mountains with silence and song in the back ground. As well as watching the horses getting loaded up with sand and rocks and stumbling off to carry it to some house they are building. It was a great last morning. I chatted with a beautiful friend from Japan at the Ganga, then off to say good bye to a friend leaving that morning, so nice to get one last hug, as who knows how long it will be for my next hug.

The great thing about staying in a place for weeks at a time is I can start hugging everyone and that's the best!!!! So I did my last things and got on the train at 10:15pm. I slept great on the train the first night!

Have you ever been on a train, stood at the door way, closed your eyes, a voice comes in and says "be the wind", I felt the wind all around me, brushing around me, my hair moving, but becoming the wind, I didn't become. I realized the wind went around me, it didn't go through me, it touched me, but it didn't really feel like it touched me. It was as if it stayed close enough to change my feathers, my hair, my skin, but didn't touch me really. I felt as if I was flying, I was a bird flying, flying high, the wind all around me, carrying me but not really touching me as it stayed a few inches away just holding me. I got caught up in it, feeling it, becoming total with being up in the sky, I could feel the clouds, see the sky all around me and feel the ebb and flow of the wind whipping around me, changing my directions, pushing and pulling, taking me up and down. It was heaven to be there.

I open my eyes to find I'm on a train, there are Indians watching me, who knows if they could feel what I felt but man oh man it felt great. I think I was vibrating. Later I put my Ipod on to listen to some Amae-if you don't have her music you have to get it, she is the most uplifting person I know to get cha out of a bad mood or in an even greater mood, powerful music and I love to sing to her. Well here I was busting out singing to her on the train, which I normally don't do, but something told me to do it. I got a little attention but mostly smiles and approval, which was a sweet. I love it.

I then walked to the door and was listening to some other dance music, singing at the door way, putting my whole body out of the train but my feet and my hands holding the rails and my stomach out to the world, I look out at the landscape of greenery, farm lands, looked up at the sky, saw the shanti shacks the people lived in a they would wave at me as I went by. I'd wave back. It felt so great to be welcomed so lovingly and briefly. I felt like a kid again, playing on the train, waving at strangers, dancing a little gig at the doorway of the train. I just can't stand still with music.

Well I stood there for a long time, at least an hour and then when I went to another door way a man asked for me to dance. I was not sure what to do, the whole thing of dancing on demand, especially since I hadn't really danced, I was more like bebopping around, not REALLY dancing, but they didn't know that. I wiggled my way out of it.

I talked to a man that had fallen in love with a woman but the parents didn't approve as he is Muslim and her Hindu, so sad. It's hard to fall in love and then to have to split because of such reasons.

Well the dancing thing came back to me though, another group of men asked me to dance. I said "you notch" (you dance) one man got up and shook his hips so I did the same and another said "no music". I got my speakers out and he danced for a second. So finally I danced for only 2 minutes for them at their request of western music-Prince was the thing that came up so there I was half the train watching and I danced for them but tried to pull them into the dance but they weren't having it. It was great fun! New experiences left and right in India.

That night was another first experience, I ordered dinner and never got it, very strange. My neighbors I think they thought they were alone in the compartment as they just turned off the lights as I was reading and then woke up at 4:30 or 5am and started talking, turned on the lights and all kinds of craziness!!!! ; ) India, oh India.

And then there was one last lesson India had to give me while I was there, not a very nice one and I feel very stupid because of it. You know how you have these feelings something is going to happen yet you don't know how to stop it or you just don't do anything about it. Well that is what was going on with me. I kept saying "this is the most dangerous part of India make sure your bag is locked up. You have your one bag locked up secure but the one with the most valuable things isn't locked up properly, you should do something about this. It might get taken...." Well all my life of travel I've always locked up my things safely, I've always done everything very safely in travel.

Well I didn't listen to myself and though my bag was locked up it was locked to something that could be cut. It was the last 30-40 minutes of the day and a half train trip. I got my tooth brush out, I brushed my teeth, I went to the toilet, sat down. Something told me get my bag down, I climbed up, did you ever have the feeling like you were looking at something and it wasn't real? I had this feeling before, when my car was stolen, I walked out 18 years ago to my car, walked back inside the house, walked back out to where my car was expecting it would be there, but some how it just wasn't. Well same thing happened, I went up the ladder, came back down, went back up and it was gone, my bag was gone. YIKES!!!

Heart raced, it's gone, it's gone. I knew it, it was gone, it was going to happen.....What to do, acceptance, let it go...heart racing, both Ipods, all the recordings, 3 months of photos, my camera, diary, speakers, prescription glasses and so much more....I felt my belly, yes I had my passport, yes I had my money. That's what's important, I have my documents, I can still leave, no hassles. Now what to do...I looked up and down the train, I let go...it's gone, it's ok.

Then I remembered 2 little girls distracting me at 2 stops back and remembered my friend telling me how quick the kids are at getting things and they do it invisibly, right in front of your face and you don't know.

I was good, well until I ran into the police on the train and then they made a mess of everything. I had to say things over and over again, they weren't listening, it got messy with telling the story and wish I hadn't, as you shouldn't have had to relive this so many times. It made it painful after a bit.

I got to Calcutta and made a report, I won't even tell you how much a crazy mess that was. But I did it and finally left in shock, not sure to be happy to be relieved of the weight and burden of protecting all those electronics or to cry as the loss of photos.

So I have felt both, I'm sad about the photos. But honestly the greatest thing is I ended up in Calcutta, where I could replace a few little things for dirt cheap-like my steel cup I love so much-I know I don't need it, but I love it and I used it quite a bit for all the cleansing stuff and well in India for chai.

I met some great women in the dorm room and that felt good. Calcutta is a city of a million photos and with no camera that was hard, but it was beautiful really to be there. My last day was up and down, mostly good, found what I needed. But the best was I was flying out the next day and my last morning there I just wandered the streets and found a little place that this man said "what do you want" I took it as an invite and sat down for a chai in my cup-divirginizing it. It had to have chai in it before I left India, it just had to!!! And it was a good chai, not as good as Manju's my mamma friend in Rishekesh but it was good. I bought some samosas for the plane ride and walked on.

I found a man cutting hair on the street. Being the hair stylist I am I dropped into deep fascination of how he was cutting the hair and was hypnotized by it all! I was taken in. I loved watching how close he could get with such crazy huge ass scissors, clink clink clink, opening and closing. Then with a straight razor he cleaned up the mans neck and around his ears and then proceeded to shave him with a straight razor. I had to laugh as the Indian men can be so rough with each other, positioning his head here and there and then back there and again there, as the man had moved. It was fascinating to watch the man go around with the shaving cream around his lips with his hands first, so intimate and then with the brush for the the foaming and man the foam that came from it and then he shaved him twice. So clean, simple (looking) and quick, only 30 minutes, all for the great price of 30rs which is less then a dollar.

I bowed in nameste and walked off to see all the street venders open, get and fresh squeezed orange juice and then head back passing the homeless sleeping on the street. Meaning these people had beds on the streets-matresses and frames and sleeping on them. Going in one direction one man was on the matress, coming back it seems to me there was a different man, but I'm not sure on that.

I was heading back to my chai place I had had chai earlier, why there, because he was nice, he had kind eyes and felt like he really cared and said "come back some time" and since I said I would, I did. He didn't really speak english either but he knew those kind words. So I came back, order puri with sambar or sabji-not sure, but all I knew was it was the best puri and sabji I had in ages!!!! He made the puri different from anyone else, a little lighter, yet thicker and less grease, the taste of the sabji was heaven, not too spicy either. With my right hand I ate my last street meal in India. The chai was even better this time. Everyone stared at my steel mug. One as I walked down the street even said "that your mug" and I proudly said "yes", so happy to have one back!!!!

So my cup got devirgindized twice and I had a great meal, watched a great haircut and shave, and watched Calcutta, my favorite big city in India, wake up. I got tons of Hellos and such gorgeous greetings as I walked to and from my hotel. I met the guy I was taking the cab with and off to the airport we went through the thick exhaust that you can cut with a knife, if you can find your knife, no just joking!!! It's not that bad, but I did have to roll up my window as it was palpable and making me a little dry and nauseous. A sign of being ready to go I guess.

I was at the airport, tiny airport really and everything went quickly at first, the people with Jet Airways were so sweet. We got to the place where they scan you and your bag and well, I guess I didn't lose both of my swiss army knives as one was still in my belly pack. And since it was a beautiful gift I couldn't just let them take it. They let me go back down stairs, Jet Airways found my bag, let me put it in my bag and then told me I had to go get it scanned again. YIKES! I was a bit nervous about boarding. But there was no problem, I scanned it, handed it to them and got up stairs in time for a chai 4 times the price of a normal chai and 10 times the price of a chai in Calcutta, crazy! Yet chai in Calcutte is only 2rs.

During the flight I had this great feeling of relief, I realized for the first time I was really happy to be leaving India. I was happy, giggly and excited for this next leg of my trip.

Now in Thailand, I feel so at ease. Firstly you can get everything done in a timely matter, the airport was a real airport with A/C and clean floors. It's all so clean and the big thing-I'd say to my new friend from the plane "listen" he said, it's so quiet. Yes it's so quiet. I didn't realize how loud India had been, all the horns every 5 seconds. Thailand is so quiet, even in the loud areas. We heard one loud horn the whole first day. I got to show him around the city as he only had that night here as he was leaving the next morning. He got a camera and books, etc all in the matter of 2 hours. It was great.

The next day I proceeded, after some thought, to start replacing the things I had stolen, not realizing how much there was but the biggest thing was how replaceable everything was. That was amazing! I almost didn't replace things but I chose to. I got everything basically back within one day except my Ipods. But even with that, one of my friends is giving me his with all my music on it! Shocking how easy it is to just replace everything, especially here in Thailand. Thank goodness it happened then.

This whole thing really left me with a feeling of "trust thy self, listen to yourself and listen to your own advice" as well as let go. I am still sad with losing the photos, email addresses and diary but the good thing is I have my life, my health and no one was harmed. So it's a good lesson.

This morning over a huge bowl of musli, fruit and curd I watched a man start to abuse this dog, I won't go into it, but I was so relieved to get the courage to walk over and tell him to stop, that he was a living being. He didn't like stopping but he did, thank goodness. It's hard to see people harming animals. There were a few people that was grateful that it was stopped, but man I just couldn't handle it any more.

I feel great here in Bangkok, I'll stay an extra day and leave tomorrow. But the greatest thing is I'm wearing my first pair of shorts I have worn in a year or more. What a relief! My legs are happy as it's been so hot and it's the first time I have felt cool in so long. And not to be stared at is nice too.

I will have my prescription glasses back as soon as I walk over and get them, only in hours and only for $79.00. And with red frames I'm very happy with them, they are really nice ones!

Bangkok has changed so much in 6 months since I've been here. It feels more like India with all the homeless, lepers on the street, the locals sucking on and spitting their red stuff they put in their cheek, the constant "tuk tuk" calls. Plus the buildings have totally changed and they are more pushy, but it maybe closer to India but not even close to it's intensity. I have never felt such a difference in leaving a place from 3rd world to almost western, well it is western here. I'm happy I did this transition time in Bangkok and going down to Ko Phangan tomorrow as going straight to Sydney would have been too much shock.

So I'm good, recovering from the incident in India and a little sad but doing well considering all. Lessons being learned around each corner.

So I'm off to the beach tomorrow night, excited to put my feet in the sand and hang in my hammock. And hang out in my shorts and sleeveless tops!!!! As much as I love India I was ready to be in my clothes again, but I can give up these things for short times, but it's nice to be back in my clothes again, it feels like my skin!

Ok loves, I hope you are well. I love hearing from you. I miss you tons and send you tons of hugs. Life is good, all the time-as Michael Beckwith would say! I love it! Happiness is a choice, what will we choose today! I love the quote from AA, not sure if it's exact but something like this "to be unhappy is inevitable to be miserable is a choice". I'd prefer to choose happiness myself, honor all feelings but still choose happiness.

I love and hug you, Nameste, The divine in me honors the divine in you, Heather