photo of paradise beach to keep y'all warm

more wedding pics

This is a pic of the wedding pooja for my cousin- the aftermath of it, anyways :)


Here's me getting "readjusted" at the wedding reception, for the millionth time


Here's me with my cousins, at the reception

happy holidays

A belated Merry Christmas, Happy Kwanza, Happy Chanukah, and Fine Festivus (for the rest of us ;0)) to all of you! hope you’re all enjoying the holiday season wherever you happen to be. i happen to be back in chi-town, relaxing with my mom and dad and assorted relatives here. today my parents and I went for a 3 hour hike (mostly cause we got a bit lost) in the snow-slush of Palos Woods- yes that is a “forest preserve,” Mike. It was fun and starkly beautiful. we caught a glimpse of a family of 9 white-tailed deer prancing by on the way back before our boots soaked through and we hopped in the car home. once home, we finished watching the hilarious “hitchiker’s guide to the galaxy,” which far exceeded my expectations of how much justice a movie could do to adams’ book. “don’t panic,” it’s a good adaptation.

yesterday we had the newlyweds (who are back in Chicago) and our close relatives and neighbor over for Christmas lunch/dinner. my mom made her usual turkey and gravy and mashed potatoes and sweet potatoes and stuffing and pumpkin pie (yes, she makes the exact same meal on thanksgiving and Christmas) and it was delicious, as always. my dad and I also experimented with our own new combination of flavors for salmon- it turned out spectacularly (we marinated it in dill, pinot grigio, lemon, and assorted other flavors then sautéed it, added a layer of walnut-breadcrumb-dill-rosemary-lemon and baked it at high heat. afterward we drizzled on a unique pomengranate-pinot reduction. wow. maybe the best thing I’ve ever cooked… and I’ve cooked a lot.

anywho, the parents and I had decided not to do presents again this year, trying to shift the holiday away from mad dashes to the mall and other forms of unchecked and unpleasant and overrated materialism, but in the end we still exchanged a few small gifts (mom’s favorite was a conspicuously ocular rock which anj and I found in India for her- she’s a bit rock-obsessed). we had a nice day and were happy to sleep (I’ve been staying up til 4 am most nights, due to jet lag and the fact that that’s when I’m most energized).

the last leg of the India trip was good- after the 16 hour bus ride from goa to hyderabad. I managed not to get sick and vomit that time, though, which was an improvement over the last long bus journey. once there, I spent most of my day playing with my little cousins (see pic at right) and talking to my aunt, who gave me a few impromptu cooking lessons which I am excited to try to replicate.

back home I am trying to catch up with family and friends, keep up with my yoga practice (one of my only sources of exercise here, as it’s a bit less exciting to hula hoop in the basement by yourself), get planning for the upcoming Senegal adventure, learn a little French (who invented this language??), and try not to gorge myself on holiday sweets. I also have an endless list of video and other projects that I want to get through before leaving in mid January, but of course I’ll be lucky to get through 2 or 3…

otherwise I’m happy and healthy and typing with gloves on because my hands are freezing off in the windy city- brrrrrrrrrrr. I already miss my sis, who is still in goa, but she is considering visiting me in Senegal at some point- as should all of you!!! p.s. you can check out her travels yourself by following the now-functional link on the sidebar to Anj's blog, enjoy! though don't expect frequent updates ;)

break fast in goa

Some updates: Anj is attempting to make a collapsible fire hula hoop, which is a much bigger project than expected but is possibly close to making it happen (though likely not before I leave). Maybe she will join the Welsh circus and make our parents proud :0). Our flatmates moved out and we are missing them, and maybe looking for a new place to stay, but only half-heartedly.

Anj and I successfully completed a 24 hour fast today, which we ended by eating sweet red watermelon on the beach beneath the stunning full moon. It is amazing how much time there is in a day when you are not constantly thinking about preparing, procuring, and ingesting food (which I guess is my normal state, oops).

We woke up early and walked to a beautiful and somewhat secluded river where people use the mud to make their skin and hair smooth. We slathered it on, laughed at each other’s transformations, and then sprawled out on some large boulders to bake the mud before rinsing off in the cool water. While taking off the mud, Anj noticed that our skin had become like polished river rock. So luxurious! The hike back from the river proved pretty exhausting in the midday sun (which we were trying to avoid) without food, but we made it back to our little flat and slowly recuperated our energy. I finished The Kite Runner, a book that takes place between Afghanistan and America, which was quite interesting. Afterward I attempted some yoga and then meditation (during which I conked out twice, only waking to use the bathroom).

Unfortunately I had taken some ayurvedic herbs to clean out my system that were a bit to potent, and I wound up going from constipation to the opposite in the matter of a few hours. Oy! It was painful but I guess it “cleaned me out.”

Aside from that lovely matter, Anj and I had a relaxing afternoon and topped it off by giving each other foot scrubs and massages. the aforementioned watermelon party topped the evening off.

I am sad to think that only a few days remain here in India, but I am also excited about the holiday season at home (try not to think about the freezing cold, try not to think about the freezing cold…) and planning the next phase of this journey. In another sense, I am less sad because I am sure I will be drawn back here, hopefully sooner rather than belatedly.

Also my stomach and I are looking forward to breakfast tomorrow...

goa sunsets

anj and i are on the fourth day of an intensive 5-day iyengar yoga course (of course she has done a lot of iyengar yoga before, but this is my first true experience with it) in a studio overlooking the beach in arambol, goa. i am definitely feeling the effects of doing 3 hours of aligning poses and inversions and meditation a day. it makes you stand straighter and really bring awareness to your whole body throughout the day. i am feeling very healthy and strong, though i would like to do some ayurvedic cleansing while i am here, to get rid of some of the toxins we naturally build up through our lifestyles.

the beaches and sunsets here are beautiful, and we are meeting so many interesting folks to spend our days with. one friend we met in hampi is staying with us in a shared apartment-like set up, and it has been really incredible how well we get along and enjoy each other's company. people you meet travelling in india generally have an interesting story or twenty to tell.


last wednesday the group of us took a rickshaw down to anjuna, to check out the famed flea market there. we were expecting more people playing music or performing, but it was really just a sprawl of tents with colorful fabrics and every kind of handicraft, jewelry, or trinket you could want to buy. after a few hours we were all exhausted and headed to the beach to watch the sun set and hoop a little.

yesterday we cooked dinner (penne with homemade tomato/pepper/mushroom sauce and feta cheese) with a new friend and had fun checking out his music collection and crazy homemade dj equiptment. he let me play with a vj program that he had (a vj is a person who mixes video, much like a dj) and i realized that i was actually missing working with video so that's probably a good thing.

today we are planning to slather ourselves in mud (supposed to have healing properties), dip in the ocean, and then have a dinner to say goodbye to that same good friend we've been staying with, who is heading back to new york. we have been doing yoga, sharing stories, and just generally bumming around together for over a week and a half now, which is a long time when your time is unstructured and full-on, as it is with travelling.

i have to cut this short, but i am posting many pictures, so make scroll down to see pics from hampi and before and come back to see them from this time. til soon...

beaching south of goa

i have been without a great internet connection (just now it took 8 minutes to load my email), so here are some highlights of the last 2 weeks in india:

my cousin got hitched and the wedding was beautiful and fun and full of ceremonies that we didn't fully get but that was ok because no one understands it all anyway. anj and i got hennaed and wore sarees and tried to be ladylike (i couldn't really walk but i did my best ;0)). the parade to the wedding hall was the best part, in my opinion, which started from the house my dad grew up in (which is now situated on a major road with crazy traffic malls and soon-to-be-imax theatres, if you can imagine it) and went toward the ceremony. basically, the groom's side of the family (us) dances in front of his vehicle (traditionally a horse or elephant but this time a car) while a band leads the whole group from the house to the wedding. it was pretty unreal because we were on the equivalent of a major highway, completely interrupting traffic with our dancing and music and firecrackers. only in india!

after spending some quality time with lots of relatives i don't get to see very often, anj and i and aki took off for hampi, which is between hyderabad and goa. the city was the site of a very powerful hindu empire during the 14th and 15th centuries, but now is a tourist haven because of its wild landscapes. everywhere you look are impressively large and strangely placed boulders, lush banana palms, ornate temples, monkeys and water buffalo, and ruins of the once-great city. the sunset from the top of a nearby hill is amazing.


we spent our mornings there doing yoga on the roof of our guesthouse, from which we could see 2 old temples, 2 hills of boulders, a winding river lined by boulders, and a variety of tropical birds (some bright green). afternoons we would explore one of the historic sites (a huge temple complex famous for its musical columns, the queen's bath, or the royal elephant stables) on foot or by bicycle. cycling through the landscape was really the best part, as giant boulders and strange ruins come out of nowhere, and beautiful, strong village women walk by, easily balancing tiffin boxes (like cylindrical, silver lunch boxes) and machetes on their heads. we were mesmerized by the groups of villagers walking back and forth across the golden fields with their stacks of hay. in no particular hurry, back and forth, peaceful.
one evening we befriended some tibetans who showed us how to make tenthook (sp?), a tibetan noodle soup. we shared it with them on their rooftop, surrounded by boulders, stars, and monkeys.

the next day we went with one of them to monkey temple, across the river from where we were staying. the temple was up on the top of a cliff, and after exploring it, we took our hoop and went with aki and some friends from japan and australia and argentina and taiwan over to some surrounding boulder-plateaus. aki and his friend played the drum and assorted other instruments (including beatboxing) while anj and i took turns dancing with the hoop and teaching people how to use it. it was a gorgeous space overlooking a bizarre landscape of boulders.

after hampi we headed to gokarna by overnight bus, which dropped us off at 4 am in the equivalent of a parking lot (luckily we had befriended 2 other male tourists, so we weren't all alone) with a supposed connection to the town we were trying to reach. as it turned out, i ate dahl at a rest stop on the way and managed to get sick and had already vomited by the time we arrived. so, while anj and our two friends dozed on their packs against a storefront, i spent the next 2 hours trying to make it to the bathroom before vomitting. it was a blast. finally, the store opened up and kicked us out and we found our own transport to Om beach, where i am currently writing this update. it is beautiful and thankfully not too touristy. about an hour's hike or half-hour boat ride is paradise beach, where we spent most of the day yesterday. it is really mellow and has a good variety of folks playing every instrument and juggling and doing their thing on the beach. we are actually heading that way now and will probably spend the night there, so i will wrap this up. a cute gecko is staring at me from the wall. come back for pics soon...