After spending the morning visiting a Jewish Synagogue in Cochin, we will drive to Munnar.
Known as Kashmir of South India, is snuggled into the lap of such an alluring terrain, Munnar is one of the most beautiful hill stations in Kerala. Munnar – an idyllic destination is located at an altitude of 6000 feet above sea level. Munnar derives its name from the Tamil word ‘munnu’ meaning “three” and ‘aar’ means “River”- spelled as Munnar on combining. The town by itself has little other than the tea plantations and a colonial era CSI Christ Church, built in 1910 AD with some fine stained glass windows. Munnar is the final adventure travel destination. We will trek up the hills and mountain ranges nearby; also visiting Tata Tea Museu, Anamudi: the highest peak of South India.
The name Munnar is believed to mean “three rivers”,[1] referring to the town’s strategic location at the confluence of the Madhurapuzha, Nallathanni and Kundaly rivers. The town has shared a strong cultural link with Tamil Nadu and over 70% of the population of the town being Tamils. [2]
Today I’m arriving in Cochin (sometimes referred to as Kochi.) Originally built by the Portuguese, it has a natural harbour with lagoons and canals and fishing hamlets. One of the three biggest ports on the West Coast, it is also an industrially developed area. The coir industry is of special importance. An excursion by boat through the backwaters is enchanting and we’ll be taking that up in just a few days.
Cochin sightseeing include visit Jew Town, Chinese Fishing nets, St.Francis Church, Fort Kochi, The Dutch cemetery, Santa Cruz Basilica, Matanchery Palace (The Dutch Palace), etc.
I’ll also be attending a Kathakalidance performance show. Stories from epics are presented in this dance-drama. It is a male bastion with female characters also being performed by men. Costumes are colorful and regal with faces painted like masks using natural colors and make-up. A predominant feature of this dance is the intricate facial mime work and eye movements.
Kathakali (Malayalam: കഥകളി, Sanskrit: कथाकेळिः) is a highly stylized classical Indiandance–drama noted for the attractive make-up of characters, elaborate costumes, detailed gestures and well-defined body movements presented in tune with the anchor playback music and complementary percussion. It originated in the country’s present day state of Kerala during the 17th century and has developed over the years with improved looks, refined gestures and added themes besides more ornate singing and precise drumming.
And so, India, our time has finally arrived. I’ve been waiting to meet you for so long. We have planned and plotted as much as we can and as much as I think is necessary. Now we are going to be tangled in each other’s lives for many years to come. I’m ready.
Bring every lesson you have to teach me and every experience you wish for me to have. I will take all of it and understand that this is how it was meant to unfold. You will take care of it all and I will be along for the ride. Let the adventure begin.
(As I don’t know how much time or capacity there will be for checking in online, I may not have any way to update this blog, nor any of my other online hang-outs, for the duration of my trip. Given my very pitta nature, I have written ahead and each day you’ll see where I am and some of my likely activities along with a bit of history about each area I’m visiting. I hope you enjoy it.
As part of my research project for my advanced teacher training at ISHTA, I’m compiling an interactive e-book of my trip and how it affects my yoga practice, my teaching, and my everyday living. That book will be available by the end of the summer, housing all of the pictures, video, and stories that I’ll experience in Incredible India.
I’ll return on May 21st and will be sharing all of the goodness I’ve found across the globe. Until then, be well. Om shanti.)
“What hurts you, blesses you. Darkness is your candle. Your boundaries are your quest.” ~ Rumi
Yoga asks us to find the balance between effort and ease, to seek our edge without going over it. This is the challenge on the mat and the challenge of our lives. We have to dream big to find that edge. We have to play, experiment, and envision a life without boundaries to open ourselves to our true potential.
We don’t know how far we can go until we set out on the greatest adventure we can imagine. Find those boundaries and then seek to transcend them – this is the only rule for extraordinary living. Everything else is up to us.
“You were born with wings. Why prefer to crawl through life?”~ Rumi via MindBodyGreen
For the past few months, I’ve been reading a book of poetry by Rumi. Each day I read a poem right before I go to bed. It’s proving to be a beautiful ritual that closes out each day with grace and peace. Invariably, each poem helps me to appreciate the lessons I’ve learned each day and how they can be used in my life going forward.
If you came over to my apartment, you’d find tiny pictures everywhere that symbolize the idea of leaping. I’ve become rather obsessed with these images. I find that they have so much hope in them. They give me courage as I prepare to make a huge change in my career and by extension, my life. You’ll find most of them on my Photography Pinterest board. There’s one with a quote that reads, “Sometimes you just need to leap and build your wings on the way down.” The line from Rumi above (thanks MindBodyGreen!) made me realize that it should really read “Sometimes you just need to leap and use the wings you’ve already got.”
I already have everything I need to make this jump – experience, purpose, and support – and now I just need the missing ingredient – time – to bring it all together. Lisa, one of the lovely readers of this blog, wrote in a comment on yesterday’s post that she hasn’t yet found the courage to make her leap. The first idea that flooded into my mind was that courage is closer than she thinks. It is for all of us.
There will never be a time when everything falls into place and eliminates all risk. If we are to fly we have to leave the security of the ground for the lightness of the air. We forget that air has heft to it, too. It is able to carry, support, and sustain travelers through long journeys. However, air requires that we work just as hard as it is willing to work. We have to be brave, stretch and reach out far and wide, in order to receive its benefits. It asks a lot of us, and that’s okay because these wings of ours, the ones we have always had, are begging for some wear, for some room, for some time to show what they’re made of and what they have to offer.
Eventually we will have no choice. Those wings won’t be contained for long. They either get used or they atrophy. And if that’s the choice, then why not give them a shot at the prize and go along for the ride? At the very least you’ll have a wonderful adventure and if you’re lucky you may just have the time of your life.
I’ve enjoyed the last two contests that I’ve run on this blog in recent weeks – the first was for a free 12-week subscription to the digital version of the New York Times (congrats, Trish!) and the second was for a copy of the book Lessons from the Monk I Married by Katherine Jenkins, one of my writerly friends. Those were so much fun that I’ve been hunting around for a third way to share the wealth!
The site Underground Eats has just launched to a small, invite-only audience and I have an invite to give away. I’d like to give it to you! Underground Eats is “the go-to site for exclusive Alternative Dining Experiences.” At the moment, they are only in New York City but they are hoping to expand to other cities shortly so I’m not going to limit this contest to New York City-area residents only. I just want to be clear that at the moment the only experiences available for purchase on the site are in New York City. The experiences are truly exclusive, unique, and can only be purchased through the site.
So what exactly does ‘Alternative Dining Experience’ mean? Here’s a little sampling of what’s on offer at this very moment:
The Truck Stops Here: 5-Course Food Truck + Beer Dinner – $40
No need to keep checking Twitter and chasing food trucks all over the city. For one night only – all your favorite food trucks, under one roof.
Edible presents The Drive-In Dinner at Brooklyn Brewery, hosting the Morris Truck, Bongo Brothers Cuban Food Truck, Red Hook Lobster Pound, Feed Your Hole and Coolhaus for a sit-down, five-course dinner with beer pairings.
Each course comes from a different food truck and is paired with the perfect Brooklyn Brewery beer – even dessert.
A Dinner of Titanic Proportions: 100 Years in the Making – $300
Bon vivants, all aboard.
Culinary provocateurs Jonny Cigar of The Noble Rot, Hell’s Kitchen’s Rob McCue and Adam Banks of Bravo’s Chef Roblé & Co., cordially welcome you to an evening of culinary history and decadence.
Heed the call, First Class and VIP passengers: no expense will be spared in this indulgent tribute to the 100th anniversary of the Titanic’s last supper. You will dine amongst an intimate clique of black-tied guests, on a seven-course menu, based on the original, but updated and reinterpreted from carte du jour of April 14, 1912. The galley is keeping the menu top secret for now (but we’ll send you a sneak peak closer to the event).
Drinks will pour, hijinks and other under-wraps surprises are rumored to ensue…and the band will play on.
The Ultimate Foodie Fantasy Camp: The New York Culinary Experience – $1395
You buy their cookbooks, eat at their restaurants, watch their cooking shows.
Now, imagine a whole weekend cooking side-by-side with your favorite star chefs, such as David Bouley, Jean-Georges Vongerichten and Dan Kluger? Pinch yourself, now.
Hosted by The International Culinary Center and New York magazine, The New York Culinary Experience is foodie fantasy camp. Learn how to make pasta sauces with A Voce’s Missy Robbins, Tuscan-style seafood with Cesare Casella, and chocolate desserts with celebrity pâtissier Jacques Torres. All classes are completely interactive, and you’ll get to enjoy every dish you prepare.
You’ll even have the chance to get up close and personal with the likes of Jacques Pépin and Bill Telepan at daily Q&A sessions.
The Michelin star count alone will drive your friends mad with envy.
So how do you enter to win an invite to the site? Like this post, leave a comment, or contact me through Twitter or Facebook. I’ll leave this contest open all weekend and then announce the winner Monday morning. Happy eating and good luck!
In less than a month, I’ll be taking flight to finally visit Incredible India, a destination that has been at the top of my dream travel list for many years. While there I will be completely immersed in the culture, sights, scents, and sounds around me. I imagine that there will be little time for internet access while I’m on the trip so in an uncharacteristic move my social media channels will take a well-needed rest during that time. I’m hoping that here and there I may be able to hop online in the business center of the hotels to at least give a snippet of an update but it will be vastly reduced from my usual chatting.
Below is a glimpse of my itinerary for the adventure ahead courtesy of the amazing tour concierge at Sunshine Travel and what I’ll be riffing on once I return to the States:
India – A living Heritage
“For the avid traveler, India provides an authentic adventure – stimulating, absorbing, daunting, sometimes moving and shocking. Here is one of the world’s great dramas; an ancient, vast, and crowded land committed to the most formidably challenging exercise in mass democracy. It is a spectacle in which hope, pride, paradox and uncertainty mingle and struggle. It is conducted on the whole, and to India’s credit in the open. The lasting memories of the land are hospitality, kindness, good humor and generosity. Here is a society of over a 1000 million people, growing by a million a month, divided and united by language, caste, religion and regional loyalties. It has often been described as a functioning anarchy; and it is in many ways an amiable one, of marvelous fluidity and tolerance. Indeed, the true Indian motif is not the Taj Mahal, the elephant or the patient peasant behind the ox drawn plough. It is the crowd, the ocean of faces in the land of multitudes, endlessly stirring, pushing and moving. It is in this human circulation that one sees India’s color, variety, busyness, and senses also its power, vitality and grandeur. Bon voyage! ~ Sunshine Tours”
May 10th – 11th
In-flight via Dubai (which will be spectacular in and of itself!)
May 12th
Arrive Cochin. Traditional garlanding welcome upon arrival.
Breakfast at hotel. Morning free to get over jetlag. At approx.1330 hrs, guide & driver will meet you at hotel and depart for sightseeing tour of Cochin city. Evening witness Kathkali Dance Performance show at theater.
Cochin, originally built by the Portuguese, has a natural harbour with lagoons and canals and fishing hamlets. One of the three biggest ports on the West Coast, it is also an industrially developed area. The coir industry is of special importance. An excursion by boat through the backwaters is enchanting.
Cochin sightseeing include visit Jew Town, Chinese Fishing nets, St.Francis Church (Closed on Sundays-0830-1330 hrs), Fort Kochi, The Dutch cemetery, Santa Cruz Basilica, Matanchery Palace (The Dutch Palace) etc.
Kathakali dance performance show. Stories from epics are presented in this dance-drama. It is a male bastion with female characters also being performed by men. Costumes are colorful and regal with faces painted like masks using natural colors and make-up. A predominant feature of this dance is the intricate facial mime work and eye movements.
May 13th
Breakfast at hotel. Morning visit Jewish Synagogue (closed on Fridays & Saturdays). After the visit, drive to Munnar and upon arrival, check in at hotel.
Munnar, Known as Kashmir of South India, Munnar is situated in Kerala. Snuggled in the lap of such an alluring terrain, Munnar is one of the most beautiful hill stations in Kerala. Munnar – an idyllic destination is located at an altitude of 6000 feet above sea level. Munnar derives its name from the Tamil word ‘munnu’ meaning “three” and ‘aar’ means “River”- spelled as Munnar on combining. After check in, depart for sightseeing of city. The town by itself has little other than the tea plantations and a colonial era CSI Christ Church, built in 1910 AD with some fine stained glass windows. Munnar is the final adventure travel destination. You can trek up the hills and mountain ranges nearby; also visit Tata Tea Museu, Anamudi: highest peak of South India is close to Munnar.
May 14th
After breakfast depart to Alleppey and board Backwater Houseboat. Lunch on board. Cruise through Vembanad Lake enroute visit Church, Temple, paddy fields, narrow lanes etc.
Dinner & overnight on board.
May 15th
After breakfast on board, disembark at Alleppey. Meeting & transfer to Cochin Airport to board flight for Delhi. Meeting & assistance upon arrival and transfer to Hotel Royal Plaza. Rest of the day free for independent activities.
Delhi, the capital of India has a fascinating history and a stimulating present. Delhi has been the seat of a power of a number of dynasties – the Rajputs, the Muslims invaders from the North, the Afghan dynasties followed by Tughlaqs, Sayyads, the Ladies and the Mughals, who continued the Imperial line, until British days.
The old city, built by Shah Jehan in the 17th century, stands today as an epitome of the whole history of Indo-Islamic architecture. New Delhi, designed and constructed by Sir Edwin Lutyens and Sir Herbert Baker is a mixture of east and west. The public buildings in red sandstone are in the Mughal style.
New Delhi, has a circular Parliament House and an imposing Central Secretariat in two blocks, which stand at the approaches to Rashtrapati Bhavan, the residence of the President of India. Delhi is today the political, economic and cultural capital of the world’s largest democracy and has also become one of the greatest tourist centers of the world.
May 16th
Breakfast at hotel. Full day free for independent activities. Likely taking in the main sights of Delhi.
May 17th
Early morning at approx.0515 hrs, pick up from hotel and transfer to New Delhi Railway station to board train for Agra. (Breakfast is served in the train by railway authority as complimentary, however, you can also carry packed breakfast from hotel). Meeting & depart for sightseeing tour of Taj Mahal, Agra Fort. Afternoon excursion to Fatehpur Sikri. Evening return back to Agra Cantt Railway Station to board train for Delhi (Dinner is served in the train by railway authorities as complimentary). Meeting & transfer to hotel.
Taj Mahal – the world’s greatest love tribute: the Taj Mahal built by Emperor Shah Jehan for his beloved queen Mumtaz Mahal in 1565 on the bank of the Yamuna River. The exterior is decorated with arabesques and texts of the Koran inlaid with precious stones. The Tomb itself, while pure white marble, consists of an octagonal building with a terrace square, surmounted by a dome 26 meters high, Agra Fort Or Red Fort, the most beautiful 17th century Mughal architecture. In 1565, Akbar began to build the Red Fort with its high red sandstone walls: inside, south, is the Jahangiri Mahal or Palace of Jahangir, built by Akbar to the north, the Pearl Mosque, built by Shah Jahan. The “Khas Mahal” which forms three pavilions, one discovers a beautiful view of the Yamuna and the Taj Mahal
Fatehpur Sikri – the ancient capital built by Mughal Emperor Akbar and whose palace is a fine example of Mughal architecture of the sixteenth century.
These magnificent red sandstone ruins of the middle of the plain are the remains of one of the capitals Akbar. He founded in 1569 by expressing his gratitude for the birth of his son, Selim. The building principal is the great mosque, probably the best in India. The Palace of Jodha Bai, the wife Akbar’s Rajput, includes a courtyard surrounded by a gallery surmounted by buildings and covered with a glazed blue roof. Akbar’s private apartments and exquisite palace Sultan Turkey found in another court, then the Panch Mahal, or palace has five floors, which includes room hearings. Visit the palace and called Bulund Darwaza the largest gateway in the world.
May 18thand May 19th
Breakfast at hotel. Full day free for independent activities. Again, likely taking in more of the main sights of Delhi.
May 20th Returning home at an ungodly early hour that will get us back to the U.S. on the afternoon of the 20th, again via Dubai. These time differences are going to be a little rough, but worth it!
Somewhere in there, I’ll be visiting with friends who live in Delhi who have been the driving encouragement behind me finally taking the plunge and making plans to get to Incredible India. I’m hoping for a yoga class or too and some Ayurvedic treatments. Maybe an elephant ride thrown in for good measure, too!
Whatever India holds for me, I promise I’ll be sharing it all here upon my return. I’m also thinking about crafting a way to bundle up my experiences in a more cohesive way, complete with photos and perhaps some video, too. Maybe it’s time for a second e-book…
“To the timid and hesitating everything is impossible because it seems so.” ~ Sir Walter Scott, Writer
Why do we hesitate? Why do we look away at the very moment when our focus is most needed to find what we’ve been looking for? For me, that moment of hesitation arises from fear, fear that what I’m about to do is the wrong thing or fear that I’m not up to the challenge. I imagine everything going wrong 6 ways to Sunday, and my imagination is vivid. So I step back, hoping to get the courage to try again.
And here’s what I’ve learned in a very real way over these last few months as I’ve prepared to take a very large leap of faith to reconcile my career and the greatest dreams of my life: hesitation only delays the inevitable. Anaïs Nin said so beautifully, “And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.”
That day is coming, for you, for me, for everyone who does something worthwhile with their days. Eventually, we won’t be able to stop ourselves from living the life we imagine. And it will never be less risky. We will never be less afraid. Jumping in and of itself is a scary proposition. Always.
Do yourself a favor. Do the world a favor. Make today the day when you blossom, or set a deadline and say something like, “On June 15th, I will start to live my life on my terms.” Circle it in red on your calendar and mark it with an “L” for Leap Day.
Scared? Me, too. And it’s okay. It should be scary because it’s worth doing. Let’s leap together and trust that we will find a net or grow wings.
I found this image on Pinterest. I immediately hung it up at my desk to read out loud any time I get scared as I begin this new adventure to merge my career with my personal values. It makes me feel strong. I hope it helps you, too.
I recently had a small group of people over to my house. As I was drafting up my grocery / to-do list, I wrote down “buy ice.” And then I started laughing. I have a freezer. I have ice cube trays. Did I really need to buy ice? No – I had everything I needed. I just had to take the time to fill the trays with water a few times and then crack the ice into a bowl.
We play this game with ourselves all the time. We put off doing what we really want to do because we need more – more training, more money, more contacts, more experience, more time. We have enough. We are enough. We have everything we need to get going right now. Sure, it’s scary. It’s a risk to let go of the familiar, to go off the well-planned, well-worn path. But that’s all it is – scary. It’s not impossible and we’re not incapable in any way. It’s going to take work but we can make it happen.
So many people have stories of a breaking point – an illness, a loss, a tragedy – that awakened them to the passion of their lives. I certainly do. All of a sudden we realize in a very real, non-negotiable way that our lives are finite, that we only get one time around in this form, and that it’s our obligation and deep responsibility to make the most of it.
Don’t wait for the breaking point. Breathe in and breathe out. The anticipation of leaping is much scarier than the leap itself. So gather up your courage and know that whatever you need to get your dreams to take flight, you already have. “Sometimes you just have to take a leap and build your wings on the way down.” (Kobi Yamada)
Christa Avampato 