week 6 logs

week 6 photos on flickr
includes Rameshwaram, Dhanushkodi, Neyyar Dam, etc.

Day 36 may 29 friday
Neyyar Dam, lions safari park, steve Irwin crocodile rehabilitation center
Morning satsang, yoga is there, so we do and then have a hearty brunch – jedi is feeling nauseous from major chest congestion, ananya does some pranic healing – jedi feels better and we head for lions safari park – first we go to the silent walk place and try to see agastya mountain, but as usual just the main bits are covered by clouds – so we go to the pavilion and ananya takes her panoramas – we then go for the lion safari in the boat – see 6 of the 8 lions up close.. as much as one can see through a caged bus – then we see magars (crocs) in the steve Irwin place – some deer also. Thrilling.
Bunk the evening satsang and crash.

Day 37 may 30 saturday
Neyyar Dam
Jedi’s chest has gotten worse – bunks classes and goes to see doctor who gives like 5 meds – some to be taken for 6 months! – ananya goes for the classes – on taking meds, jedi starts melting from inside and sneezes the entire day – jedi plays civilization – ananya starts reading bhagavat gita (Sivananda version), again

Day 38 may 31 sunday
Neyyar Dam
Sposed to leave today- while looking at the map to decide route, jedi coughs hard and pulls a shoulder muscle - same as last time – agony – ananya does some healing, feels better but more is needed. Decide to stay for another day- cant ride with thsi shoulder. Jedi gets a good full body ayurvedic massage and rests the day – nikhila comes over to talk, shortly followed by sasi who goes at it for 2.5 hrs. good to hear stuff.

Day 39 jun 1 monday
Neyyar Dam – Kattakada – Nedumangadu – Kolaithupuzha - Sengkottai – 5 falls/courtalam - Tenkasi – Tirunelveli – Tuticorin
NH208, NH7
A280 kms
no yoga session - pack and go to kattakada and buy meds at kottakal arya vaidya – ananya is addicted to chanting gods’ & gurus’ praises and sings bhajans incessantly, also pops dairy milk éclairs incessantly – jedi tries to remember what non-veg tastes like while we eat iddiyappams and peas curry - bhagaoed from scenic bridge side location in Kolaithupuzha by stupid policemen, jedi calls them idiots –Kolaithupuzha is gorgeous with teak, rubber and other plantations. lush place.
Ride road over saddle dam near Kolatupula Dam – eat mangostines at Courtalam 5 Falls, which turned out to be more of a popular bathing destination than culmination of five waterfalls – jedi remembers what mutton tasted like when eating kuska– the end of hills and chill weather. just heat from now on. had managed to escape the heat, but the rains have given dhaga and have to start heading north.
reach beach by old harbour in Tuticorin, dark blue sea, gulls fly around, cricket match is on, moon is up at 5 pm, man is shitting – check in and have mega large dinner



Day 40 jun 2 tuesday
Tuticorin – Vembar – Kilakarai – Rameshwaram – Danuskodi – Rameshwaram
NH49, white roads
212 Kms
take the white coastal roads – Salt fields and fishy smell all the way – mega wind constantly tries to flatten bike - this is the land of the street hawks/Kites/eagles, they’re everywhere, hunting for fish in the sea, or flying in one place –amazing sights of them flying/hovering 10 feet over our heads - also mid-air fights over caught fish- when dropped, other bird swoops and catches before it falls to ground, then fight continues...videocam battery no charge
heat, heat, heat – more sea panoramas from what ananya thinks is the ‘engineering marvel’ Pambam bridge to Rameshwaram, railway line goes over the sea just a few ft above the water and even opens up to let ships through – go beyond Rameshwaram to Dhanushkodi Indian Navy Post, no vehicles beyond this point, take rear plank ride in dune buggy truck till actual Dhanushkodi point (Abdul Kalam's birthplace), beautiful blue-green waters of Palk Bay on one side and Gulf of Mannar on the other, can’t see Adam’s Bridge – Sri Lanka (Talaimannar) is 18 kms from this point - next stop is abandoned Dhanushkodi railway station – village was destroyed in 1964 cyclone and they never built it again. church by sea where a sadhu refuses to let the villagers use his sweet well water but gave to visitors – locals grumbling in background– marine national park board says there are sea cows, whales, turtles and sea leeches (in tamil, though looks like sea cucumber) – return to Rameshwaram and find food and place to stay near the temple. Tomorrow tanjavur.

Day 41 jun 3 Wednesday
Rameshwaram, Oviyur, Muttupet, Point Calimere, Velankanni
NH49, ECR
320 Kms
Get woken up at dawn by the temple prayers. Being one of the holiest places for Hindus on Earth (4th most for vaishnavites it seems; char-damPuri in the east, Rameshwaram in the south, Dwarka in the west, and Badrinath in the north) - this is where Ram built his bridge across the seas. also where ram prayed to shiva to forgive him for killing Ravana (apparently shiva's greatest devotee and also a brahmin) . have breakfast and visit the Ramanathaswamy temple with its world famous 1200 m long pillared corridor.
then go see Ramar Padam- ram sighted the front of ravana palace from here and the back from another spot (to be visited by chance later in the day! near Point Calimere).
We then head up the coast towards Point Calimere - another tip of eastern India. quiet roads with little to no traffic - we spot a board for the John de Britto shrine church at Oviyur. so we turn left.
its a big church as expected with two parts, one old and one new. also school and other things.
local old man tells story - around 330 yrs ago he came frm portugal or italy and set up shop here. king of place had 3 wives - john tells him boss - have only one - one of the queens gets pissed and gets him hacked to pieces. later on his relatives come and make up shrine etc. less than 50 years second big church was made. has fest in july simultaneously with Velankanni- his relatives are still living somewhere and come visit. local also tells me to get haircut.
velankanni? hmm. close by. maybe should visit.
we head upto muttupet and then to Pandi where we turn right and curve to point calimere. when we reach, it looks like a smuggler's beach - assumption reinforced by black Bolero that whizzed behind us into cargo area. anyway beach was dirty and the water murky - after 40 days of green, and blue green and all other shades in between, this sea was a downer. saw sunset again in the east.
we leave and visit the vedam... bird santuary and climb up the watch tower and spot spotted deer and few birds. off season for them. See the other Ramar Padam - Ram saw the back of Ravan's palace from here - how we don't know but he was the ultimate man and 7th reincarnation and all that, so he probably could. ananya bit off the heads of some rajasic tam brahms who said ur not hindu, u shouldnt be here.
head off towards velankanni and reach after dark. do a recce and get disappointed. 6 church like buildings and systems similar to all the temples we have visited. another commercialization of religion.
check and watch india pakistan. jedi has new ritual of heating water for his medicines. have VCR for dinner at Mallu place.



Day 42 jun 4 thursday
Velankanni
Wake up early and have meds. go visit the Shrine and Basilica etc. Each structure has a different purpose - tonsure, meditation, confession, - services in different languages. its a religious center almost similar to all others in India, except its Christian or rather another Amman/Mary. same head shaving, vibhuti (sorry holy oil), hundi, archana /mass (70 inr), candle offereing (300 inr) and so on. But end of day, its a faith center and thats what matters.

The shrine is called Our Lady of Good Health - and only Mary to wear a sari! is said to have given 3 apparitions over the years to 3 diff groups here. Mary birthday FYI is Sept 8. also sivananda's bday! :)
eat breakfast and go back and fall asleep in room till 12. jedi says lets stay in today and rest. watch films on hbo rest of day and laze around. have discussions on how our yogic practices have taken a hit but still retained the veggie diet and the other smaller ones. eat icecream and chocolate.

week 5 logs

Day 29 may 22 Friday
Virudanagar, Madurai
NH7, NH49
52 kms
Jedi’s cold is full blown, not an allergy – those 2 days of riding in the cold rain. We pack our stuff – need to buy tarps. Whole plan of bypassing the rain has failed, though glad that we managed to hide in the hills most of the summer. post breakfast, we go to class and learn more on how to heal using prana, for diff ailments.– also learn distance healing, self healing and other stuff. Complete the course – still lots to learn and tons to practice, but is a good feeling.
On receiving our certificates, we pack and head out to Madurai for the 3 day advanced pranic healing and psychotherapy course. Once on the highway, we see clear weather and long open highways – after a month of riding in the hills at 30 kmph, a bit strange and unsatisfying to ride on the plains highways at 60-70 kmph. Near Madurai, we spot a huge rain cloud and its raining someplace – not someplace, but north and we are heading right towards it. Here and there, we pass around the rain, but as we enter madurai, its really close. We reach the place and call our contact who manages to guide us to the Center we are staying (for free again) just moments before the rains starts pouring heavily. Spend the evenng with the center head Mr. S. R. Ramesh Babu who is a karate teacher and also a pranic healer. Quite cool – heals both our auras which are congested. – feel lighter immediately. Have dinner.
Ramesh’s son is staying back and Jedi talks to him and finds a bundle of DVDs which he spends till 2 am watching and copying some stuff to watch later. Both ananya and jedi miss the Silence days this week.

Day 30 may 23 Saturday
Madurai
Wake up and do our kriyas and asanas – from june 1 should start all the practices – finishing a month on the road for mataozm – almost 3 for jedi – pongal for breakfast - 1st day of advanced pranic healing – learn to heal with colours – in the evening go shopping for ‘tumbler heater’ with Ramesh Babu, who picks up gift watch for his 10th boards super scorer daughter – watch shopman is attracted to jedi’s aura and on learning his name predicts that he is meant for great things and should become an advocate to help people with his powers of counseling/convincing and giving right advice though without proofs currently.

Day 31 may 24 Sunday
Madurai
Idiyappam breakfast at Bharma Ediyappa – steal seats from a baby – 2nd day of advanced pranic healing – more healing practice for serious illnesses like heart disease and cancer – our teacher Uddya is a clairvoyant - Chettinad and Karaikari dosas dinner – Krishna temple visit to hear Ramesh Babu accompany his musician friends on the tabla

Day 32 may 25 Monday
Madurai
Pranic psychotherapy class – learn of the psychological aspects of the chakras and how to improve relationships between people and help people quit smoking among other things – jedi and ananya are keen to start using their new learning, starting with family – Ramesh Babu gives Jedi a prosperity generator - evening shopping for tyre tube and rubbing alcohol (dirty energy cleaner for pranic healers) – looks like no one wants to sell alcohol to us (think it’s the way Jedi looks) – finally get it at a veterinary medicine shop and it’s called Surgical Spirit – pack to leave the next morning. Unsure whether to go to rameshwaram or kanyakumari. To decide in the morning.

Day 33 may 26 Tuesday
Madurai – Kanyakumari
238 kms
NH7
Leave the GMCKS Pranic Healing Centre in Myna Tippakulam, our home for the last 3 days – visit the Tirumalai Naick Palace which is being restored – far grander than what we imagined from outside, with the fattest pillars ever! – only 1/6th of the original palace remains and is being repainted in brilliant colours little by little – the court, theatre and the harem -

Tirumalai Naick Palace photos on Flickr

next stop Meenakshi Amman Temple – Madurai traffic sticks bumper to bumper – buy plastic sheets to rain proof our luggage – the shopkeeper is from Jodhpur – Jedi does some expert parking under very trying traffic conditions – the gopurams are gigantic and crazy colourful - the temple security think we are terrorists from Bangalore and examine Ananya’s swiss knife and camera, also forbidden to use phone inside – thousand pillared hall – Jedi taken by lady perched on peacock – the statues have boobs like orbs – poster showing visualization of emotions – the ceilings are covered with energy generators –
we sneak into the Shiva Temple that loudly forbids non-Hindus from entering, it’s the most crowded part and stifling hot - Meenakshi Amman’s hall has martian green pillars and murals of her doing cool stuff like flaying a sword or watching a dance performance – this is around the tank with the golden lotus that Shiva told us stories about - the temple elephant goes for a shit and nods his head once done – Jedi says it will take weeks to check out the entire temple complex -

Meenakshi Temple photos on Flickr

we set out for Kanya Kumari – mostly smooth highway so we keep zipping down – at a cool stop encounter a tiny orange super swift half snake half lizard – smog over a cement factory looks very hazardous for the people who work there - Ananya and Jedi are stung by the same insect while riding – she on her left ankle and he on his left hand – see the southern ends of the Western Ghats with fluffy cloud icing, Jedi says ‘it looks like a painting’, add to that cranes flying overhead - nearing the cape, windmills for as far as the eye can see (asia’s first largest windmill farm- must be 1000s ) – in Kanyakumari the first guy who approaches us promises a room with a sunrise view so we take it and the room is very much worth it with church and sea view and all – shoot some sunset panoramas on the non-sunset side – watch last year’s emotionally charged premier league final thinking it is this years – Ananya practices distance healing on her aunt and brother

Day 34 may 27 Wednesday
Kanyakumari
Wake up just in time to shoot sunrise from hotel balcony – inaugurate our tripod – Jedi has fever and chest congestion – Ananya does healing for him and her aunt – Aunt calls to inform to check if ananya had done healing as she is feeling much better – Jedi feels better too so we have brunch and take the ferry ride to Vivekananda Rock – the tri-sea is choppy – pay the usual visits to all the buildings on the rock – speculate on how and why Vivekananda came here and what it must have been like for him - do Shoonya meditation in the dhyana mandapam on the rock– check out book shop – super windy – take photos –
next, ferry to Thiruvalluvar statue – pose for photos on his feet – Jedi does headstand between his feet under extreme windy conditions – try to take panoramas of all 3 waters – ferry back – futile DVD shop search – nap – Jedi’s fever is back full force – watch TV, have dinner – more healing on Jedi. Jedi plays facebook mini prank saying reached rock bottom. Jedi keenly watching Aila path and aftermath. During meditation gets idea to visit neyyar dam ashram to buy yoga dvd – idea which by night becomes 3 day stay plan.

Kanyakumari photos on flickr

Day 35 may 28 Thursday
Kanyakumari – Neyyatinkara - Neyyar Dam
100ish kms
NH47
Another dazzling sunrise and we leave. Head to neyyar dam – weather is holding out – quite nice weather actually – the weather guys said 26th – today’s 28th! Good for us.
Jedi gets road rage – why do people overtake on curves? What is the basis of their angle and speed? Divine vision or too much EA Sports F1 in indestructible mode? Chants om 108 times to cool down. At one spot, a chicken truck has smashed into another truck of unknown cargo – chicken feathers and squishy stuff all over road. Jedi feels sorry for kerala- the entire state is one big city – just people, and traffic. Total urbanization. Also gold crazy – the biggest and most hoardings are for gold shops – josco, alukkas, and joyallukas.
Plan to have brunch in kerala but give up after marthandam traffic and stop to eat at Friends Hotel to celebrate the imaginary story based one-stop-all-shop near kaniyakumari (friends and co). eat brunch and ride on to see that we had stopped 50 metres before the border! Give trivandrum a skip and take neyyantikara route to neyyar dam –
Reach the ashram and check in – the yoga vacation batch is almost over, but it doesn’t matter – meet shreya’s sister who is doing work-study here – attend last moments of cooking workshop and eat seera. attend 4 pm yoga and get ass kicked – supper and satsang and crash. Tomorrow is holiday at ashram so not sure if yoga classes would be there.