Walk down Chamundi Hill #2

Almost the end of the journey... arriving at a friend of a friend's house... still another couple of km's to the Rikshaw drivers that do not cheat you. (We were warned to avoid the ones located directly below the hill)
As you can see, today I decided to remove my socks, normally they get really dirty (because I leave them on), it would be simpler if I didn't wear socks with my shoes, but I don't like wearing shoes without socks (plus I tend to get blisters without socks), I don't like wearing sandals, and it is a bit time consuming to continually take ones socks off when entering houses... I guess I will put a sock in the whole conversation...

The walk down Chamundi Hill #1

Monkeys @ Chamundi Hill

Well I have to post pictures of the monkeys, I just have to...

Even more pictures @ Chamundi Hill

These pictures are of the building occupied by the Brahma Kumaris (I really wanted to take a picture of the whole building, but with the lens I brought today (50mm on digital camera) that just wasn't (easily) possible)

More Chamundi Hill pictures

The one below was taken with my "Hold camera anyway you like as long as there is no chance of being able to see through the viewfinder or know what it is you are going to take a picture of" technique... I think it came out better than if I had tried... If you are brave enough to click on this one, then please be sure to sit down and hold on to something so that you do not get too dizzy...

Chamundi Hill

I climbed the 1000 steps of Chamundi hill today with a friend, it was very tiring (and even the walk down wasn't much easier, I think the stairs must have been steeper than normal, or I am unfit... one of the two)

Here are the pictures from the walk/climb...

Fourteenth Ashtanga Practice

I woke up to the sound of drilling which was wafting from the general direction of next door, where a building is in its foundational state. This noise is unusual because up until now the activity has mainly been manual labour, not machine labour (although they did bring an excavation/digging machine to clear the ground, a few weeks ago)
I looked out the window and saw a huge drilling machine with an umbilical cable connected to the vehicle parked in the middle of the road. On the side of the vehicle was a sign that stated it was operated by a well-drilling/general drilling company. I took a few pictures and then left as the noise was quite unbearable.

My stomach was feeling queesy so I decided to visit the Kevinn for breakfast. After filling myself with Homemade Muesli; a super vegetarian omelete; and a ginger, lemon and honey drink; I ventured forth to Anu's Internet cafe to print some essays from www.paulgraham.com.

Two things jumped out from the pages:
One was a quote from Trevor Blackwell "Watch people who have money to spend, see what they're spending wasting their time on, cook up a solution, & try selling it to them. It's surprising how small a problem can be & still provide a profitable market for a solution"
The other was from Paul Graham with regard to formulating ideas and asking questions... He basically said to ask questions instead of making statements about what you want to do... his example "Could one make a collaborative, web based spreadsheet"... assertions provide objection, questions invite exploration.

So I am trying to frame ideas more as questions, because I am finding myself objecting to too many of my (fantastic ;) ) ideas...

I left early for Yoga Mandala today so that I could eat lunch there, which consisted of a boiled egg, toast and masala chai (just assume that I am referring to masala chai when I mention chai) (due to the hefty lunch and close time proximity to my Yoga class)

At Yoga I again finished @ Marichyasana D, Sheshadri bound my hands on both sides, but my left side is especially tight, so it was quite a bit more difficult. The tightness was as close to pain as I can imagine, and then he twisted me further! I was very relieved to be released from the asana, and amazingly, I felt really good afterwards!

Since it was so late I decided to eat at the Yoga Mandala cafe; tonight I had a 'Cornish' Pastie with half a carrot soup.

No practice

Today is Yoga Mandala's day off (Mysore style Ashtanga is where you practice six out of seven days; each Shala (and sometimes each teacher within the shala) decides which day is the 'no practice' day, usually Saturday or Sunday.

I woke up late today, very tired. I think the late practice keeps me up (so much energy until about midnight each night).

I went to Tina's for breakfast.

I met some students @ AYRI buying a video. The video is a demonstration of Sharath being lead by Pattabhi Jois in many asanas from each of the Ashtanga series. The documentary was filmed in New York and is about 45 minutes long. From what I hear, it is very inspirational, and only 1000 rupees.

Anu's cafe is closed until November 4th, however they are serving Chai and Chocolate Pies, so lunch today was a Chocolate Pie (I can't keep away from them, they appear quite by magic, I swear).

In the afternoon around 3pm, I received an Ayurvedic massage. The massage left me itching (maybe the oils that are used? I will have to check with a teacher) but very relaxed and calm. There are several positions that I was put into that resembled Yoga asanas. The experience was quite new to me as the only massage I have received was a Western back massage in Florida (which was I hate to say, nothing much to talk about): I will definately sign up for another Ayurvedic massage while I am here.

In the evening I visited Gokul Chats. I ate two Masala Dosas. The dosas are a bit smaller than the ones in Florida, but they are 100% more satisfying, with none of the heavyness I often feel after eating them. There is also none of the ultra hot spicy stuff that is normally served in the US.

Thirteenth Ashtanga Practice

Today for a change, I went to Kevinn for breakfast. I am finding myself eating more and more each day! Maybe it is Mysore or the water (though I drink mineral water so it can't be that), but most probably it is the Ashtanga practice, today I ate the homemade Muesli, mixed fruit smoothie (Banana and papaya), the 'Kevinator' (some thick bread with ghee and honey on top), and Chai!
I stopped at some friends house who are staying next to the AYRI shala. From what I hear, the house is owned by Saraswati (Pattabhi Jois's daughter). There is a nice practice space upstairs (where I understand Saraswati has held classes) and about three rooms for students. The biggest concern with the rooms facing the road is that there is quite a bit of noise made by the students who are leaving practice in the early hours of the morning. The students cross the road to a coconut stand that is conveniently located there (and inconveniently located right next to the window where students sleep).
I chatted with one of the students about practice, about what we are visiting Mysore for, and all the possibilities for practice that are here. We both teach Yoga back @ our respective homes, so it was good to hear the similarities with what we were trying to accomplish, and the difficulty which were encountering deciding which direction to move towards. We ate lunch at Anu's, but today I stuck to the soup and before I had a chance to fill a plate of food, the staff had removed all the food! (actually a very good thing)

In the end, all four of us climbed into a Rikshaw and we went to Yoga Mandala for practice (some of us for the first time, some of us recommending to try Yoga Mandala to those who hadn't tried it before)
I was told of a new way to attempt Kukkutasana, so today I thought I would try it, as according to the picture guide that Yoga Mandala hands out, this asana should be right after lolasana and therefore only two or so asanas more than I normally complete ( http://ashtangayoga.info/asana-vinyasa/primary-series/index.html ) (remember that most people skip handstand, apparently even in the main AYRI shala) of course I was confusing it with Bhuja Pindasana, but I didn't know this at the time.
Well things worked out quite well, but there was no way I was going to rock forward after balancing (I did the first day @ Yoga Mandala, that was enough to tell me I wasn't ready for it!), so this is where I completed my practice (with the usual Padmasana finishing series)

I ate a "Cornish" Pastie at the Yoga Mandala cafe. There is nothing Cornish about this pastie, but it was nevertheless delicious! I also consumed a small bowl of soup which was average to ok, and two glasses of Pineapple juice (very cooling after the practice)

Twelfth Ashtanga Practice

I took another Airborne today.
When a place is good to eat at, it is hard not to make it a daily habit, so today I went to Tina's cafe again!
After I arrived at Tina's, the cats and dogs fell from the sky.
I did manage to get a lift/ride back, so I stopped off at (guess where?) Anu's to use the Internet cafe, have lunch, and more Internet cafe!
Yoga @ Yoga Mandala (I bought six day's worth of classes). I reached Marichyasana D, tried to bind my arms myself, found that I couldn't (I haven't been able to on my own ever), so I waited for someone to help me, no one came (the shala has been busy with AYRI closing), so I stopped the practice here and completed the finishing asanas (Padmasana series)
I am feeling very happy to finish at this point every day, I feel that my body needs to open up, and that Marichyasana D is a gatekeeper asana to the rest of the series.

Started a game of chess with a friend (it is nice to find people who like to play chess, very few back home)

Updates - Pictures added!!!

New post for October 16th (you may need to click on Archives October (right hand side of screen) to re-load rest of blog (older posts are stored in Archives))
Pictures of Gokulum / Green Hotel

Eleventh Ashtanga Practice

Practice (@ 5pm) was very good today (although I was still a bit full from lunch, see below), a lot of strong adjustments (as usual) - I finished my practice @ Marichyasana D (and completed the usual finishing Padmasana asana series)
My hamstring (right leg) is sore, maybe the adjustments they make are too strong...

This morning I took Airborne, bacause of allergies or the start of something else, I am not taking the chance. I used a full pack of mini-tissues, but as usual during the day there were no or very few symptoms.
Todays breakfast was at Tina's (Hi-protein porridge and Chai) - I felt like I needed the warmth of a hot breakfast.
Coffee day coffee houses are aparently becoming popular (they seem very similar to Starbucks) - I went there to meet a friend and then walked to Anu's Internet Cafe for Lunch. I really overate. When visiting Anu's it is as though the normal signals to stop eating are temporarily shut down. Apart from soup and tons of food, I also ate their regular desert and shared a chocolate pie!
Another walk was in order, so we marched through a really nice park to the Yoga Mandala. I did manage one or two stops on the way (I guess I am not as fit as I used to be)


Back in Gokulum, I chatted with another friend about intermediate and advanced series Ashtanga practice and how some people feel it is not necessary to advance beyond Primary series. We concluded that the later series, other than improving the physical bodies flexibility and strength, it also helps to cultivate more awareness of the body as well as unlocking emotional blocks that we may have.

Oh, no dinner was required, I was far too full to eat!

Full Vinyasana

Today I found out that no-one actually completes full vinyasana between each asana as I was doing yesterday. Not even in the AYRI Shala is this done. I guess it used to be done, and I remember discussions on the web about it.
The main thing is, it actually did feel really good to do it! Maybe if it wasn't so tiring I would continue it.

Tenth Ashtanga Practice

Almost extremely strong adjustments today.
I was reading John Scott's Ashtanga book (the seated asanas) and saw that between each side he completes a 'half vinyasana' and between asanas he completes a "full vinyasana".

So today I tried it! Wow! Very tiring! I was too tired to continue after the Marichyasana twists. I completed the Padmasana finishing asanas and finished with a short Savasana.

Ninth Ashtanga Practice

Today my P.M. practice was more of an accurate reflection of my normal practice. I stopped today around Navasana (boat pose) and completed the finishing asanas (just the lotus asanas) and Savasana: I did not feel like repeating yesterday's intense marathon by having Sheshadri rock me around the mat in Gaba Pindasana (http://ashtangayoga.info/asana-vinyasa/primary-series/22b-Gaba-Pindasana.html) once was enough for me :)

Backbending course

I have been hearing about a one month backbending course offered by someone known as "Venkatesh" - Today I found their contact information.
From what I hear, the course starts off very easy and then moves to extremely intense! The poses are held for 20 seconds at a time and most people are very sore in the back for days at a time.
I also heard that the course is really excellent.
I think I will pass for this visit, I need to keep my focus for why I am here... and this will prevent me from sticking with my Ashtanga practice.

It's raining - Shoes are wet

Just after finishing washing the clothes (and getting into the house) I went to Anu's Internet Cafe to send some e-mails. I left my shoes outside (as it is etiquette to do in India) - Soon enough the rain came (so much for the clothes drying) and after some time I left the cafe to venture upstairs for their fabulous lunch.
Upon inspecting my shoes (Goretex waterproof) I found that they were wet. Ha Goretex shoes will not become wet when the owners feet are inside them (as long as they are not completely submersed in water) but when you take them off and leave them out in the rain, the shoes become wet from the inside out!
Squelch, Squelch, Squelch.... There is not much that I dislike more than wet feet...

Locked out!

I told my roommate that I would be going out for breakfast, but then decided to quickly clean some clothes. I left the door open to the area used for washing clothes (between house and stairs leading to the roof) and sat down to hand wash a bucket full of clothing.
It is a shame (in a way) that we are so reliant on machines to wash our clothes. Hand washing can be very engrossing and almost a meditation.
I looked towards the door and found it was closed. I had a bit of a feeling what happened but figured I would work it out in a bit. I continued to wash my clothes.
Close to finishing the wash I decided to check the door. Sure enough it was locked!
Still not panicking I decided I would finish the clothes and off and on knock on the door to try to attract attention.
I finished washing and hanging the clothes but still could not manage to alert my roommate to the situation. I looked at the side of the building and saw it would be fairly easy to climb half way down. I knew that I had the key, maybe I could hang by my hands to the ledge and swing down, or I might be able to attract someones attention. There were people in the lot next door, building a house, but I didn't want to bother them because I knew their English was very bad and it would be hard to explain what was happening.
I climbed to the ledged and looked down. Just as I did, the woman who owns the house turned around (from the gate) and saw me. As you can imagine she was very suprised to see me, and asked me what happened.
It took me several minutes to explain the situation but eventually I was able to drop the key to her and have her open the main house door, walk upstairs and then open the door to the cleaning area!
All was fine, I talked to my roommate and she said she wondered why it was opened (I imagine she thought I had already departed for breakfast) and closed/locked it!

The next morning

After 'completing' the primary series I felt that I would be very sore the next day. This was not the case! I was really feeling fine, with only a slight feeling in the back that I had pushed myself too far. Needless to say, I didn't try to complete Primary Series today!
The main issue was that I had had so much energy after class that I didn't sleep too well, so the morning was a bit sluggish. This is why Ashtanga should be practiced in the A.M.!

Eighth Ashtanga Practice

While AYRI is closed I went to Yoga Mandala to check out their classes. Normally studying at another Ashtanga school is forbidden by AYRI (penalty: you lose the rest of your month's money and get 'kicked out' of the school) but this should be no problem since the main shala is closed (what exactly am I supposed to do for practice, self practice? Nope that is why I am in Mysore - to take classes so hopefully when I return I will be able to self practice, I know that self practice isn't going to happen for me at the moment) and I am studying with Saraswati who did not ask me to sign the AYRI contract that states you can lose your money etc.
So with that out of the way.... the classes are taught by a Mr V.Sheshadri (http://mandala.ashtanga.org/) a student of BNS Iyengar (not to be confused with BKS Iyengar) - (BNS Iyengar studied with Krishnamacharya)
Yoga Mandala itself comprises several rooms, one of which is used for Asana practice. The room seems to hold about 13 students plus the teacher, his son, and an assistant (who is going through the certification program). All three provide very (to extremely) good/powerful adjustments, of which one needs to experience to believe!
From what I can tell 'Sheshadri' (as all the students refer to him) does not stop anyone from skipping asanas that they cannot complete. This does not follow the normal 'Mysore' style of practice (where the teacher will request you to stop your practice and complete the 'finishing' asanas when they feel that you cannot progress further)
When I attend a Yoga class I will follow the 'rules' of the teacher, so with that in mind (and a spirit of 'how far can I go anyway') I stood at the front of the mat and waited for the class to begin.
The first difference I found was that Sheshadri begins the class with a chant that is quite different to the AYRI chant. After the chant is completed the second major difference is that he leads the class through several Sun Salutations counting the Vinyasanas... at some point he either lets his assistant continue for another salutation or two or he says "continue" or something like that (at which point we are all on our own).
To cut a long story short, I skipped a few major asanas (but did manage some asanas I have never before attempted - often with the help of the teacher or assistant) and 'finished' the primary series!

Yoga Mandala Cat

So I went to Yoga Mandala today (to their cafe) and plonked myself down. Within five minutes, the Yoga Mandala Cat came strolling up to me meowing.
Normally I would not touch cats in India since most are strays, and it is pretty dodgy to touch a stray animal, you just do not know what they may have.

Well before I could even ascertain the implications of handling the cat, it jumped onto my lap, and sat down!

Fortunately everything was ok, so it was really really fabulous to be able to be friends with a cat... and amazing just how friendly it is! :)

Shopping

Went to Ashok bookstore, Pharmacy (for Ayurvedic products) and on the way briefly went scarf shopping (basically all for roommate, but I wanted to check out the bookstore, so all was good :) )
There was a pretty good book on Yoga, but it has a lot of duplication with books I already have, on the other hand it is only 250rs and does have information that I do not have in any other books... I decided if it is still there I will buy it next time.
I ordered a book by the same author (I forget) on Pantajali's Sutras which was recommended to me by two people.
I am also thinking seriously about taking a course which uses this book as the main text.

No practice

AYRI is closed until November 3rd.
I have decided to take a day off (normally Sunday would be my day off, but I am switching it to Saturday until AYRI re-opens) from practice. I will resume tomorrow.

Osho Meditation

I figured out that the Osho Meditation I attended was the Nadabrahma Meditation... I just found a really excellent link (official OSHO site by the look of it)
http://www.osho.com/main.cfm?Area=Meditation&Sub1Menu=ActiveMeditation&Sub2Menu=Nadabrahma&Language=English
That's the direct link for the meditation...

Lakshmipuram & The Yoga Mandala

A friend invited me to check out her place of practice, so today I went over to see it:
After breakfast I took a 25 minute trip to Lakshmipuram, another area of Mysore where there are more Yoga studios (Shalas) - The one I visited is Yoga Mandala - the Ashtanga teacher is Mr V.Sheshadri. (http://mandala.ashtanga.org/index.php/sheshadri)
The shala offers many courses (http://mandala.ashtanga.org/courses.php) which sound really excellent. I spoke to Shantala at the front desk, who was very nice and helpful. She provided me with all the course information and prices (now I see I just needed to look it up online, but the chat was really good anyway :) )

I then visited "Aunty's House" for lunch, I can't imagine how people find it on their own, I can't even imagine the instructions one would have to receive to find it... even once you arrive one must walk through a narrow alleyway and enter a house from the side. The mind boggles. After this I went to "The three sisters" for lassi (again a mystery as to how someone would find it). I was assured the lassi was completely safe and no water is used (you do not pay for water so we do not use it) I ordered Papaya Lassi, quite delic. Unfortunately Mango is no longer available (wrong time of year) oh well...

After the lassi, we walked to the Ashok Bookstore (I seem to visit this bookstore twice a week), though other than one time, luckily (I say luckily because it is way too easy/tempting to purchase cheap 100/200rs books) I have kept my money in my pocket.

Seventh Ashtanga Practice

Surya Namaskara B (Sun Salutation B) is still tiring. I spoke to a friend and he said he rarely does all five since Surya Namaskara is just designed to warm the body - now he tells me! But then again I am sorry he did, because I will probably wimp out every time instead of just doing it (like I have been) so that my strength increases.

One more asana today, oblique face one leg West extension posture
http://www.ayri.org/primary-asanas.html
(Tiryangmukhaikapada Paschimatanasana)- for me sitting with my leg behind (like Virasana/Vijrasana aka hero pose) is really easy, but as with all seated forward folds I find this difficult. Saraswati assisted me with the previous pose (basically the same but with the leg in half lotus) wow, the stretch was pretty intense, to the point I had to bend my outstretched knee to lessen the pressure.

After practice and while looking at my reference book (John Scott) I notice that I have consistently missed one of the zillion (4 or 5 to be more accurate) postures during the (abreviated) finishing sequence. It is Padmasana (full Lotus) with the mudra for 25 breaths. Quite important I would say and especially a good rest prior to the Uth Pluthi where you must lift yourself while in Padmasana for 25 breaths. Needless to say I never manage the 25 breaths (except the first time when Saraswati held my knees up... which was still very intense) - I simply hold the asana* as long as I can (counting the breaths), drop to seated and then lift once again, until I reach about 20 breaths in total or until I am too exhausted - which ever comes first...
Savasana is always very nice....

*Interesting enough, Yoga Mula says this isn't really an asana at all, but still very good for you.

People begging

I am normally quite cool when it comes to children begging, but today on the way back to the Yoga Mandala there were about 10 school children (all girls) who followed me for several blocks generally being silly but also begging money. When one of them grabbed my camera I had to protest.
Using all the Hindi I could remember (probably not helpful at all since everyone speaks in the local language which is Kannada, or they speak English, and then maybe Hindi), * , I tried to get rid of them. This really didn't work, they continued to follow me for a while longer, but eventually gave up the chase.

* ok I didn't say every word I know, since saying "food" or "water" to them would only make them think I was going to give them some food or water or money.

Sixth Ashtanga Practice

Still counting...
Today I managed to not only remember all the asanas to complete, but I also remembered to complete them in the right order!
Saraswati let me progress to Half-Lotus bound, seated forward bend (Ardha Baddha Padma Paschimattanasana - Half Bound Lotus West Intense asana) - after class I realized my spine wasn't as long as it could be (in the heat of the moment I allowed my back to round) consequently I did feel a little pull in my lower back, but nothing to cause concern.
It seems that when you study here, the student is as responsible for making sure they have correct alignment as the teacher.

As much as I am happy to progress by another asana, I think I should be deepening the asanas I already know, I realize I have been too easy on myself, especially in downward facing dog (I need to press through the heels to help stretch my hamstrings - good preparation for the seated forward bends) so today I started to do that more.

Tomorrow is the last day of practice before the shala closes. It re-opens on November 3rd, so I have a good opportunity to self-practice.

Fifth Ashtanga Practice

I may just stop writing which # practice I am on, but it is good for me to keep track... hmmm

Todays practice was good, though I am still very tired after the fifth Surya Namaskar B. I did remember the first two poses today, and only managed to switch the leg balancing pose with the half lotus forward fold pose. Saraswati spotted this error (of course after I completed it, so I had to do the correct poses and then the half lotus forward fold again...)
I am jumping ahead a bit... the tricky asanas for me are still the sideways Stretch (Prasarit Padottanasana) especially variation C and do where I must bring my arm behind me (c) or grab the toes (d) *and* forward fold... basically I have to gently ease my head to the floor (easier on the previous variations where the hands are available to do so), almost impossible on c & d variations... so after attempting all four, I had to wait for Saraswati to assist.
Saraswati keeps telling me to fold closer to my body ("not so far out!") and this time (because I do not have the flexibility in my back) I could tell my head/neck was being pressed back... oh well it was only for 5 breaths, probably will not hurt me eh?

Saraswati let me continue to seated asanas today. I am beginning to see a pattern, introduce a few asanas, then allow those to deepen before introducing the next. I was able to complete the seated forward fold (West extension Posture Paschimatanasana) of which there are three variations. I was also told to complete Upward facing posture (East extension posture - Purvatanasana)
http://www.ayri.org/primary-asanas.html
I completed the padmasana series (I really have to make it the tightest (ie really bring the knees in close) padmasana ever to be able to bind.

Tina's Library

Tina's cafe has a library where you can take one book out at a time.
I looked yesterday and there was nothing. Someone commented there is never anything.
Today, I was about to leave and then I saw the library "nah, there is nothing there, I checked yesterday"... hmmm well maybe a quick check...
I walked up to the bookcase and staring me in the face was Osho Meditation The First and Last Freedom.

I grabbed the book and left.

Coincidentally there is a 1hr Osho Meditation today that I am about to go to....

Shala Holiday

It is October 22-November 2nd inclusive. Shala re-opens on November 3rd.

I will have to figure out something to do for Yoga practice. This holiday has arrived so quickly (just had a moon day too) so today was the fourth day of practice only.

My options are: Self Practice (high up there because I can save some money), no practice (low option), Yoga Shala (as mentioned in last post where they allow you to move on without attempting asanas) but there are some political issues if I choose to do this, or there is a one month backbending course that looks interesting. Trouble with this (apart from the politics) is you should not do any other practice at the same time (it is very intense) so 2 weeks of the time this would be so, but the last two would be Ashtanga in the morning and backbending in the afternoon. I was advised this is too insense to do, but we shall see. I do need some backbending to supplement all this forward folding, plus it is good for my lunges and advances my teaching knowledge as well. I understand the course is 12000 rs or so (to be verified)
hmmmm..... any thoughts anyone?

Other Ashtanga Shalas

I spoke to someone the other day about her teacher. She studies in Lakshmipuram at the Yoga shala there. She said her teacher lets people skip asanas if they do not want to do them! This just can't be good (we all know the asanas are designed to build on each other, if you can't complete an asana it is an indication that you should not proceed to the next)
I also agree with another friend that it is about awareness. As you deepen in the practice you become aware of what each asana does and how it effects the next. You appreciate that this is the case and even if you can't tell the effects of the next asana, because you have experienced this in the previous ones, you know it to be so.
Less experienced people may not be aware of this in their bodies and may not listen to the Guru's advice. I think this is one reason it was good in the old days when people would follow the Guru's advice without question. Mind you, if you do that, better find a good Guru.

Ashtanga session

8am practice. My breath is much improved now that the sickness has all but passed. Five Surya Namaskar B's are still tiring for me. I missed the first two poses of Primary series. I don't know what happened, I simply went straight into Triangle. Saraswati didn't notice and I didn't realize until a few hours after class.
Prior to class I have been reading John Scott's Ashtanga book. It is really great, I am just focusing on one or two asanas. I just re-read the information for Surya Namaskar B. I was really running out of breath coming into Warrior I. I now know it is necessary to continue the exhale past downward dog until the arms are lifting for Warrior I, at that moment (just before in fact) the inhale should begin: It made all the difference in todays practice!
Each time I feel the sequence (forget the fact I missed the two asanas today) is becoming smoother, I am remembering better.
I do not know if Saraswati is not seeing me complete some of the asanas or if she does this intentionally, but I end up repeating many asanas (in the 3rd session she actually told me to repeat a whole series of asanas) - it is good though.
Saraswati had me finish at the end of the standing series again today. I am very happy with this because I was actually thinking she was letting me go through the sequence too quickly. I want to savour the journey, really deepen each asana before proceeding too far.

Updates

Added photo to "Arrived in London" dated October 3rd
Added "Mumbai Airport" with Photo - dated October 5th
Added "First Ashtanga Practice" dated October 6th
Added "Sick" dated October 7th
Added "Do you need to go to a hospital?" dated October 10th
Added "Picked up meds." dated October 11th
Added "Mysore Market" dated October 11th
Added "Strange day & Osho Meditation" dated October 12th
Added "E-mail to a friend" dated October 13th

I am slowly catching up on the blog... sorry for the delay.

Street Signs

So here is an example of the street signs in Mysore, this one from the end of the street I live on. A lot of the signs are fading.
Needless to say, unless you can read this, it is necessary to memorize locations/directions.

Last batch of pictures from Gokulum / Green Hotel

Yet more pictures of Gokulum / Green Hotel

More Pictures of Gokulum / Green Hotel

Pictures of Gokulum / Green Hotel