Ode to good old London

I left you a few years ago and never felt happier. I was tired of you, bored and disappointed perhaps. Too fast, too cold, wet, indifferent, distant. This is how you made me feel, or rather this is how I perceived you after too many years of hard work, long bus waits, wet cycling nights and rental flats. For three years I felt free and far from you, I felt happy. I never ever thought I would miss you and want to come back.... ah, how arrogant of me! 
You embraced me again last year, you welcomed me with open arms again like a mother does to a child who wants to run away and explore alone but then comes back with nostalgia.
And you welcomed my little prince, my little English man, who is now growing and loving London every day more and more. I can see it in his eyes, how curious he is every time we go out.... he looks at you and then smiles at me. We are happy and grateful. We both love you and thank you for this new experience.

Love from Pushkar

Sand flies---BEWARE!

So, it all went smoothly (well, India smooth that is) until we flew to Delhi, where I was supposed to work as an English teacher for a few months.
It was over 30 celsius in the south and when we got to Delhi it was minus many degrees...and we were wearing sandals and summer clothes. Ehm, yes it was freezing, more than freezing. My brain was frozen for the first two days but the worst thing was that I had a high temperature straight away and breathing problems.
Anyway, I spent the week-end trying to adapt to our flat provided by the school and looking for winter clothes.
I managed to teach 2 classes on Monday, during which I really struggled as my temperature was way too high and neither the school nor the flat had any sort of heating.
The next day I decided to go to the Doctor's. My new boss sent me to a hospital nearby and they took me to the emergency room where they kept me for half a day, injecting all sorts of medicine into my body and doing some blood tests. At one point I even fainted and can't remember anything.
Anyhow, I was sent home and was told to rest for a week and take medicine (antibiotics, which I HATE).
Five days after I was worse and my temperature had gone higher....up to 43 celsius! We decided to move out of the freezer flat and find a warmer room in a hotel, with the hope that I would feel better.
We stepped into the hotel and I started feeling even worse so we jumped into a taxi headed to another hospital. We left all our luggage in the hotel and actually paid for 4 nights.
When I got to the hospital I was not conscious but Raffaele says they put me on this bed and took me to the emergency room where loads of doctors asked him a million questions about my condition and stuff. I only remember voices and a light but to be honest I felt like I was not in this physical world. It's the weirdest thing that's ever happened to me. I was not in my body anymore and I felt very peaceful but at the same time I wanted to stand up and explain to everyone my symptoms. I just couldn't, I could not move and I could not breathe.
I was hospitalised for a whole week. They put an introvenus into my arm and some tubes up in my nose so that I could breathe. They did so many blood tests, they just tested everything they possibly could (luckily I was in a private hospital, kind of like in an American movie, very very good one) and after one day they decided to put me into intensive care unit. Now, this was BAD. I could not even leave the bed to go to the toilet...I had to do everything while in bed in front of the nurses.
My condition improved and my temperature eventually started going down. I felt empty, no energy, no vital force, no life anywhere in my body. Being in hospital is the worst experience ever I think and for someone who never ever takes medicine it's even worse. I felt my whole body was poisoned and for the first time I really understood and experienced what all the spiritual books say about not being your body. I really felt my body was separate from my soul, it was just another entity and to be honest I didn't even care if it would just finish because I didn't feel it was mine anyway.
A friend of mine defined this a sort of spiritual awakening. I still don't know what exactly it was but I have been somewhat different since.
In the very end, I was dismissed as there was no more water in my lungs and I could breathe again and my temperature had gone and stayed down.
After a VERY high bill, unluckily for me as this year I decided to come here with no insurance, I got out of the hospital and felt like it was the first day of my life.
I am fine now, still getting better slowly and trying to re gain all the kilos I lost. I am grateful I got over that virus (which in the end it turned out I got through a sand fly bite on the beach in Sri Lanka!!!) and I am grateful I had my boyfriend with me, taking care of me all the time and keeping in touch with my family. Lucky girl. : )
Below some recent photos from Pushkar, where we are now. Very charismatic place, although too touristy for us but we have managed to find a quiet (Indian quiet) guest house with a great roof top from which you can just enjoy beautiful views on the lake.
Love and light to everyone. Om shanti

India 2013 OM OM OM

India again. Seems like yesterday when I arrived the first time and thought I was only taking a few months break from London. Here I am, my 3rd winter in Mother India and still enjoying every single flavour of it. This time it's even more special as I am here with my partner, with whom I am sharing  beautiful moments since this summer. Bless the Italian summer that brought such a sweet and unexpected gift.
We had problems with visas in Rome and our applications got rejected so we flew to Sri Lanka and got our 6 months visas there AND we discovered a beautiful island which we will go back to many many times!

We are now in Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu and have just finished our Reiki initations. Raffaele and I found a very good Indian teacher who initiated him to level 1 and gave me level 2 as a continuation to last year. Now we can practise on each other and I can also do distance healing.... so anyone who feels like having a distance treatment just let me know and we'll arrange a time. Let's Reiki!

I wish all of you a happy new year and hope to write this blog more often from now on.

Also, my new yoga retreats dates for 2013 are on my website. I will also organise a retreat in Crete, Greece in an AMAZING place where you feel like you are in India (the place is owned by a very sweet Dutch man who lived in India for 25 years, so he's done the whole place up as if he were in India). Please check it out on my website and send any friends who might be interested in my retreats  www.yogawithbharti.com

Love&Light

Valentina Bharti

My new website is live!

I will be teaching yoga retreats here in Italy this summer and they are all on my new website

www.yogawithbharti.com   Please spread the word and come to one of the retreats if they take your

fancy. They are suitable for everyone and they will take place in a beautiful location here in the Italian

countryside, immersed in nature with great local organic food.

Love, Bharti
 

India-UK-Italy

Here we go again,

thinking I would stay in India til June and possibly longer, I took a detour on my way up to Omkareshwar and went from Gokarna to Puttapharti, finally!
I met someone who was on his way there and since I was stuck with no train tickets or no quick way to go up north, I thought yeah! Surely I would find a quicker train from Puttaparthi to Khandwa, right?
No...I was wrong again. I need to remember to surrender every minute and sometimes or actually very often I still forget and try to plan. Stop planning! my mind is still in office mode sometimes and my organisational and planning skills are hard to die.
Anyway, spent about 10 days I think in Sai Baba's Ashram with Giuliano, also from Italy, a devotee since a long time. I tried to get a ticket from there to Khandwa for 3 consecutive days. This means I waited in line at the station from 6am til 8,30am only to hear that there were no emergency tickets, let alone normal tickets. The thing is that with my non tourist visa I couldn't even get tourist fare.
I then completely let go and decided there must be something for me there and there must be a good reason why I wasn't able to make a move.
The ashram completely took me inside. Some days I couldn't even speak and just kept on giving myself reiki.
Then one day my father called and said I shoudl go back to Italy for my brother's graduation. Weirdly enough I had just looked at changing my ticket to surprise them all and just show up on the day of graduation, but it was way too expensive to change my ticket so I had given up immediately. Then my father insisted and got me a new ticket.... and that's when I realised why I hadn't been able to leave that place! So I went from Puttapharti to Chennai (where it all started 4 months ago--same airport I got to from Indore at the end of Dec for my Yoga Teacher Training) and then a long journey started. From Chennai I flew to Sri Lanka, where I waited the whole night til the next morning, then took a flight to MIilan and then after a few hours to Rome.
I spent the night at my father's place so that no one else knew I was there. I quickly dyed my hair with henna and tried the different sarees I had bought for the occasion. My father helped me and we were both going crazy with these 6 meters fabrics, so colourful and beautiful but so complicated.
Needless to say that when I showed up at the graduation the next day my mother almost had a heart attack! And it was sooooo nice to hug my brother on his graduation day. I was so happy to be there with everyone.
Here are some pictures

So as you can guess, I am now in Italy... after India and after London for 2 wks.  More posts to follow on my next project.
The bottom line of this post is that as long as I keep accepting whatever comes and happens I am peaceful and happy. Long gone are the days in which I would try to fight change of plans, because I discovered everything happens for a specific reason and even when it might not seem it's all for the best, it is in the long run. So all I have to do now is wait and see what happens! Plain simple.

Jai Ma Jai Ma Jai Ma

Sai Ram Sai Ram Sai Ram

Let go

Let go has always been a big issue for me. And that's why I keep on being tested time after time, ruthlessly.
I need to let go of my attachments and slowly but surely I am improving. It's just that there are quite a few attachments still and sometimes it feels like neverending.
Today I need to let go of my adorable plants. They have been with me for many years, they have seen many houses I have lived in, some of them have gone ill and then come back to life, they have seen my happiest moments and also the saddest. They waited for me for the last two years, while I was in India they stayed here in London and grew even more beautiful. They welcomed me again a few days ago and they let me take care of them as if I had never left.
I am enjoying my days with them this week but as I get closer to my departure again I can't help feeling sad. They are alive and they always fascinate me. They are so strong, I envy them.
Plants for me are another reminder of how powerful nature is and how weak we are.
I would like to introduce them here.

Tina

Mina

Nina

Lina

Cina

Pina

Gina

Bina

Riazzerare

ricominciare tutto da capo. forse mi e' sfuggito qualcosa e ti ho sopravvalutato. o forse mi hai sottovalutata tu. ma non capisco, non capisco il perche' e il come. non ho processato quello che e' successo.

Lost in the sweetness of the flow

I had the intention to keep a blog this year too and actually write more than last time but I ended up not writing at all!
I've learnt so much in the last few months. It's all got to do with surrendering and accepting whatever comes, so I didn't really realise I wasn't writing my blog. I just went with the flow and the flow took me to many places and people, many thoughts and powerful experiences, many internal and external changes, many doubts and fears....but in the end the flow took me home. And where is home? I've just had the realisation this morning that home is where the Self is, nowhere else. I spent the last two days thinking, crying, rethinking and analyzing the question 'where is home?'.
Home is everywhere and everyone. Home is every moment of the day, it's within, it's the present. It's everything we say or do, it's everything we think.

Love from Home



Persa nella dolcezza del flusso

Avevo  intenzione di scrivere su questo blog anche quest’anno, anzi scrivere di piu’, ma alla fine non ho scritto per niente.

Ho imparato tantissimo nei mesi scorsi. Ha tutto a che fare con accettare tutto cio’ che viene ed arrendersi, quindi in effetti non mi sono nemmeno accorta che non stavo scrivendo.

Mi sono lasciata andare e ho seguito il flusso e il flusso mi ha portata in molti posti, da molte persone, molti pensieri, esperienze  forti, molti cambiamenti interni ed esterni, molti dubbi e paure...ma alla fine il flusso mi ha portata a casa.

 E dov’e’ casa? Ho appena realizzato questa mattina che casa e’ dove si trova il Se’, in nessun altro posto.  Ho passato gli ultimi due giorni a pensare, piangere e ripensare ed analizzare la domanda ‘dove e’ casa?’.

Casa e’ ovunque e tutti.  Casa e’ tutti i moment della giornata,  e’ dentro,  e’ il presente.  E’ tutto cio’ che diciamo o facciamo.  E’ tutto cio’ che pensiamo.

Con amore da Casa.

Om Ma Om Ma Om Ma

So, I made it through the ocean after a quick stop to get my connecting flight in Cairo and then waiting for another connecting flight in Mumbai for Indore.  I got to Indore's ashram and immediately saw Captain playing tabla in Ma's temple. Ah.... I cannot describe the joy and all mixed emotions when I walked in. So many memories and so many changes.  I was quite nervous before I arrived and I still am actually. I never really go to the same place twice because experience has taught me that when you go to the same place again you somehow get disappointed. But I could not avoid coming here again for such a silly reason. I HAD to come and there are various reasons why.

So here I am. I spent the first couple of days in Indore running errands and registering my visa and passport with the local police. I got to see Baba, beautiful.
The third day though, after another night of no sleep because of the excitement and jet-lag, I got up itching to go to Omkareshwar and see the children again. I was restless, I had to go and see them.  I was all packed and ready to go by bus when I got a phone call from Swamiji saying that he would go after a couple of hours by car with Sharat and Omkari, a lovely German lady who is here for a couple of weeks. So I waited and it seemed like the longest wait ever (but it wasn't, it was just my mind playing tricks and feeling the urge to hug the kids again).
So we finally went and I told him not to tell the children, I wanted to surprise them.

As the car got into Omkareshwar I started feeling so excited and emotional. It's something that I only experienced when I used to live in London and would be on my way back to Italy to see my little brother. I would cry just by thinking of him.  As I went up the stairs from the river I saw a bunch of children coming our way to greet us so I stayed a bit behind and waited.....  then the first one that looked towards my direction was Gopal, my sweet Gopal. His smile was worth all the gold in the world. We hugged like there was no tomorrow. We were too happy.

It was funny how as every kid realised I had arrived they would say out loud 'Bharti??' 'Bharti??' 'Jai Maaaaa Bharti!'.  Ah my sweeties, I missed them so much.

It was great also seeing Tam, Narayani and meet her fiance', Chandra, Margot and Gerald. All guests that were here last year for Xmas too.  Oh and Hasmukh, loveliest grin. It was like an instant continuation to last year... as if no time had passed.
Needless to say I spent the following days playing with the kids and pruning tulsi plants. I also had a very good Parikrama walk around the island with superb guide Hasmukh, Chandra, Narayani and Matt. We visited Radika (?), a very inspiring lady from Germany who is in charge of an ashram here in Omkareshwar. Oh and we also took a day trip to see Narmada Shankar, the Austrian Guru where the lovely wedding took place last year.

I am now on my way to Tiruvannamalai, all the way south in Tamil Nadu, towards the end of India, where I will stay until the end of February probably.  I am still jet lagged and am having the infamous Indian toilet problem, but it's not severe, it's just a reminder of where I am. : )

Love

-8 days to magic India again! : )

I have decided I will head back to India again and once again a myriad of 'coincidences' occurred since I made the decision---which lead me to think that I have made the right decision!

I applied for my VISA about a month ago here in Rome but there was a small glitch and the embassy couldn't reach me for a few weeks to let me know that they needed an extra document from India.  I was getting quite worried, as I had called them a couple of times but they had either not answered the phone or said that someone would call me back.  Then last Sunday I finally went to the Kali Mandir in Rome  http://www.kalimandir.it/   which was pointed out to me by a new friend I made here (who also happens to be amongst the myriad of my indian coincidences), and when I told the people I met there that the embassy hadn't contacted me yet, they advised me to just go there and sort the matter out, as it seems that the embassy here in Rome is quite particular and unorganised.
And so I found out myself too!!!  I woke up the next day and called them once again. They finally put me through to a man, who was so angry with me and started shouting as soon as he got on the phone. He said he had been trying to contact me for the last 3 weeks but I had given them an incorrect number and so they had not been able to tell me that the invitation letter I had given them was not sufficient. They needed another paper from the ashram in India and they needed it quick! I tried to explain that I had given the man at the counter 3 phone numbers where to reach me but he insisted I had not, so I said ok just tell me what you'd like me to do.
He gave me an appointment for two days after at 10am and said I should bring this important document to show that the ashram where I volunteer is an official one.  I knew this would be a difficult task as two days to get such a paper faxed or emailed back was quite rushed, but nevertheless I did go on the Wednesday at 9.30am.
I met up with another amazing new friend at the embassy (an Italian Baba who I met that Sunday at the mandir in Rome) Manoar Nath, who also wanted to apply for his visa (more on him a bit later).  I was called up for my meeting at 10 something, but unfortunately the fax had not arrived and so I had to wait a couple of hours for it to get to the embassy by email. I made a few phone calls to the Swamis in my ashram and at around 12.30 I got it through. I was about to leave and give up as I had to be at work at 2pm but the email came through and the Nepalese man at the embassy happily said 'now we can grant visa peacefully! You want 6 months, 1 year....we grant it'.  He then sent me downstairs once more (I went up and down from 10am til 12.30) to pay for my visa.  Unfortunately when I went downstairs they told me that I would only be able to pay from 2pm as the counter was now closed.
When I came back at 2pm, after a lovely walk with Manoar Nath, there were about 70 people queueing before me!!!
I was optimistic at first and waited.... I then realised I was too positive and called the school where I teach here to cancel my classes for the day.  And rightly so! I got out of there at 5.35 pm.  They granted me an X VISA for 6 months, which means that I won't need to get out of India to renew it if I want to stay longer. I can apply from there.  I could have gone to pick it up the next day but I was on my way to a great week-end in the north of Italy to see another lovely new friend who I met at the Vipassana retreat, so I am now going to pick it up either tomorrow or on Thursday.

As mentioned above, I finally paid a visit to the Kali Mandir in Rome, which is a sweet slice of India in the middle of an area in Rome where you would expect everything BUT a Kali Mandir. What a great discovering and what a great afternoon I spent there, where I connected with some special people straight away. The mandir was erected by a very sweet Italian Yogi, who has spent many years living in India and now lives here with Mataji, a lovely Italian woman who is also very much into India and its spirituality.
I also met Manoar Nath, an Italian Baba, who happens to be an old disciple of Cesare Baba, the Italian renunciate I wrote about when I went to Hampi and who I stayed with when I was there.  And there's more.... when Manoar Nath is in India, which is most of the year, he happens to live only a couple of hours away from where I stay in Omkareshwar! As he happens to go to India in the next few weeks too we have already decided that we will definitely meet up there and visit some places together. Oh and do you remember that I met Folco Terzani in Hampi with Cesare Baba, about whom he was about to publish a book? The book is now out and it's called A piedi nudi per terra (With bare feet on the ground). They showed me a copy at the mandir in Rome and they also told me that Cesare Baba spent 4 months here in the mandir in Rome after I saw in India.
I was amazed at how it is all connected and how suddenly I keep on bumping into all these people who are so linked to India. I am now even more excited about the trip and can't wait to see all the new and old friends there.

My flight is scheduled on the 19th of December and I can't wait to land again and smell India once more.

Om Namah Shivaya

Life goes too fast

It's been a long time and although I've been wanting to write I just couldn't. Many things happened since I got back to Europe and it's been like a roller coaster of emotions, moments of joy, of sadness, of disappointments, of doubts, of contentment. Very mixed emotions all together mixed with a sort of existential crisis but followed by the calmness and sweetness of the last couple of days that finally enable me to see things from a fresh perspective.
Everything is falling into place smoothly here in Rome and I still can't believe that it's all happening. If all is confirmed I should be starting to work in early October (more details will follow when it's all set).
In the meantime, I am missing India, its magic, its people, its noise pollution, it's chaos (it's not so different here in Italy after all and sometimes I really wonder which of the two belongs to the 3rd world!), I miss the smell, the smiles, the simplicity that is nowehere to be found here but mostly I miss my greatest connection to it, who's now miles away but close to my heart like never before.
Below are some pics for a small revival.....

A beautiful video of the school where I was teaching in India

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K0SotjcyAJU

Back in Italy

I was supposed to fly back to London on the 11th and then to Rome on the 17th BUT British Airways delayed our flight due to a 'technical fault' (turns out there was a leak in the fuel tank since the previous week and they KNEW about it!).

They kept us on the plane for about 2 hours without having the decency of making an announcement or giving us a glass of water. The air conditioning was not working either so imagine the heat as Mumbai was already on 40c!

They finally bothered to let us know that there was a problem and that we had to leave the plane while the issue would get rectified. Not so.... we were kept standing in a miserable airport corridor, again with no update or instruction on what to do. People started getting agitated and started asking what the problem was.

They then shifted us to an area where we could all sit (bear in mind that there were loads of elderly people trying to fly to New York and lots of families with babies). At that point the whole BA crew left and we only realised a few hours later when we started enquiring where everyone had gone and if we could have at least a glass of water. After such request, they (someone who suddenly showed up again) gave us a glass of water and a coleslaw sandwhich and a mini pack of crisps!

To cut it short.... BA crew (if they deserved such a title as they all seemed incompetent barbie dolls to me) showed up again and shifted us to a hotel nearby where they expected us to share rooms with total strangers and where we were expected to pay 5 star hotel rates to make a phone call (which according to European law is our right in such situation) and use internet. Also, they informed us that they would only cover for the hotel and breakfast and dinner. Nothing else! Still NO UPDATE ON WHEN WE WOULD FLY AGAIN OR IF WE WOULD HAVE THE POSSIBILITY OF TAKING ANY OTHER FLIGHT.

We were kept in this hotel for 50 hours.... without any update and insisting we should pay for any drinks (they were trying to charge me for a watermelon juice, we are not even talking about a glass of wine) except for water.

They finally flew us to London on the 13th of May at 1pm (with 40 minute notice!). They assured us we were elegible to compensation for at least our return flight and they instructed us to follow a link on their website once back to Europe. But guess what? They dated our boarding pass the 11th of May instead of the actual 13th AND they are now refusing to refund anything because they claim that the flight was not cancelled but only delayed. Outrageous. I am now in the middle of a legal dispute in which I will claim full compensation for the time I had to waste in such hotel and the fact that British Airways refused even the basic right of providing communication means to let our families know that we had been delayed.

Needless to say I will never ever fly BA again in my life and needless to say the company is really degenerating and has become as stingy and petty as Ryanair, but at least you wouldn't really expect much service from Ryanair.

Anyway, I will now be in London on the 24th of May and will stay until 3rd of June. My UK number is always the same so feel free to give me a call.

Love to all

Coming back to London and Rome

11th of May.... I will arrive at Heathrow. I was trying to extend my VISA but my one year visa states that I have to leave after 6 months and then I can come back after 2 months so I decided to happily come back to Europe and enjoy the Italian and British summer.... can't wait to see you all.

Love

11 Maggio, tornero' a Londra. Il mio visto di un anno prevede che dopo i 180 giorni consecutivi in India si deve uscire e si puo' rientrare solo dopo due mesi...e quindi torno felicemente in Europa per godermi l'estate italiana e inglese (se arrivera'). Non vedo l'ora di rivedervi tutti.

con affetto

How I ended up in Omkareshwar

I have been asked many times in the last few months how I found out about Omkareshwar and the Ashram where I ended up staying for 4 months and since I just got an email from the person through whom I discovered this fantastic place, I thought I would tell you the story.

Some of you might recall that I was ready to move to Istanbul, Turkey to go teach there. For some reason though a little voice was telling me inside that it wasn't the right choice.... so I remember one morning waking up in my flat in London and deciding suddenly I should spend the next year in India instead. I decided right there that I should go volunteer and practise Kirtan like I had been wanting to for the last 3 years.
I started looking for places where I could volunteer as a teacher in India through the internet but with no luck as all these big organisations seem to charge lots of money to volunteers and you never know what it'll be like anyway. Then I suddenly decided to send a message to Narayani, an amazing Kirtan singer whose concerts I had seen in London various times (some of you might recall that I went to a kirtan concert on Valentine's day in 2010) and whose CD I was playing all the time in my flat.
I asked her if she knew a place in India where I could do meditation, kirtan AND volunteer as a teacher.... and she happened to know just the perfect place where you can do all of these. I had never received so much grace before and it just felt right since her reply. There I was in Omkareshwar a few weeks later.... and what a journey!
I am dedicating this post to Narayani, whose web page you can check following the link www.onebodyonesound.com  and whose second album has just come out and I am attaching below her invitation to celebrate it. Please do go and check it out if you have the chance as you will not regret it. She is great and her concerts have a great and relaxing atmosphere. Thank you again Narayani for giving me the chance to spend the last few months in one of the most magical places ever! I will keep all the sweet memories as my most precious treasure.

Narayani

Kirtan, Voicework, Yoga 

Dear Valentina,   I am really excited to annouce that Maatri Sharanam, my new album is now available for sale and download from my website. Visit www.onebodyonesound.com to listen to samples or to buy the album. I will be launching the album on Saturday 16th April in London, full details are below. Do come along and enjoy a wonderful evening with myself, Lucy Crisfield and Tom Simenauer, the muscians who helped me create this album! If you have preordered the album you will receive it this week. If you do not receive it please do contact me.  Best wishes Narayani 07976 016 103 www.onebodyonesound.com

Kirtan Concert   

The Life Centre, Islington 

celebrating the launch of my album

 Maatri Sharanam  

Saturday April 16th  

7:30-9:30pm

joined by Lucy Crisfield & Tom Simenauer 

The Life Centre, Islington 

1 Britannia Row, London N1 8QH.  

Tel: 020 7704 0919       

islington@thelifecentre.com 

www.thelifecentre.com  

Maatri Sharanam is Narayani's second album  featuring some of her most popular chants, including Sita Ram and Bolo Bolo Submilla Bolo. A combination of meditative and ecstatic chants inspired by traditional Kirtan, that have taken on a western twist authentic to Narayani's style and her own journey integrating the depth of  Eastern philosophy with a Western life!

Come and celebtrate with Narayani in this evening of meditative and ecstatic chants,  led by Narayani's deeply resonant voice. Sanskrit mantras are set to beautiful, yet simple, melodies. Kirtan (often called Bhajans) is an ancient and effective yogic practice of singing together to open the heart and connect to the self. The chants are easy to pick up and give a wonderful opportunity to discover the power of your own voice.

Greetings from Taj Mahal

It's even more beautiful than I expected. Breathtaking Taj Mahal, monument of love.

Recent travels

I'm in travel mode at the moment and starting to get nervous about having to leave India in a month. : ( Don't know what the reverse culture shock will be like. The positive thing is that it will be summer in Europe so at least I will not have to face the winter.
I'm in Delhi right now and my father is here. He will be here for a couple of weeks and we are heading towards north around the Himalayas. We're going to Agra the day after tomorrow to see the famous Taj Mahal, can't wait!
Below are some pics of the recent places I visited. One of them is Khajuraho, popular for it Kama Sutra carvings on amazing to say the least temples. Enjoy!

sunset in sanchi

sanchi stupa

the main buddhist stupa

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detail of one of the gates

stairway from the stupa down to the entrance

The lady in white

Khajuraho

view of Khajuraho's temples

Orchha

beautiful Orchha

6am sunrise at Orchha seen from the top of a rock

The brain tree or Lover's corner as called by the locals

Shooting of the australian movie Singularity

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kama sutra

more kama sutra

and again....

this is well known

warning:do not replicate this at work

same as above