tropical rain.. tap tap tap

Singing stillness of the tropics buzzing with sounds of nature. The Bullfrogs drone in the night. Then suddenly.. the cool rain comes, full force.. Glistening in the lightness of the dark night. Tap tap tapping, boom boom, creating music on the way down from the sky. Ticka ticka ta ta. Beauty, awe, and wonder. Feeling all alone, yet fully embraced.

lost in paradise

Paradise... I've been lost in paradise.. A tropical luscious land of magic embracing my being with mother love. Bali... Oh la la.. It is said, that India is the root of spirituality and Bali is the fruit of spirituality. I feel that here, so strongly. It's quite amazing how immediately upon landing I was sucked in to a vortex of powerful grounding energy. I landed 3 weeks ago and have been in Ubud, loving the creative atmosphere, surrounded by musicians and all sorts of artists. I feel as if I am in heaven, dancing to the Gods.

a little bit of Melbourne

Woke up early to the kookaburra laughing.. The dawn had not yet risen , the quiet is almost haunting. I am in Australia now. It’s been a few days, and I have smoothly shifted from the full on craziness of India to the stillness of the Australian bush. I’ve spent the last two months running around like crazy, getting ‘so’ much done and now it’s time to relax, to catch up, to breathe the fresh air and listen to the silence… aaaaaaa it’s nice.

Today, though, I decided to go into the city. On the way to the train this morning, I saw my first kangaroo, well actually there were 3. It was a bit dramatic actually because one ran right into the car.. BOOM.. A bit freaky. Everyone was ok. Thank God.

Melbourne. So far, I love it. It’s a nice mix of artistic style and old Victorian architecture, bustling with business people and hip youngsters. It’s super diverse and I feel quite comfortable hiding in the mix, people watching from my bench at the café.

Been walking and walking… Am now sipping a bit of ginger beer on Brunswick St. in Fitzroy.. Kind of reminds me of Williamsburg in Brooklyn (or maybe the way Williamsburg was 5 years ago). Anyway, it’s super cool and I’m liking this city a lot!

The space in between

Somehow nearly two months have come and gone and now it’s on to the next adventure.

For the love of India… I really don’t know what to say. She has rendered me speechless.

Running from here to there, doing all the last minutes things, I had to do before leaving my second home, saying goodbye to dear friends, packing my storage box, packing my backpack (somehow, the bag always expands, he he), delivering the last jewelry orders and finally 2 hours in my room before the taxi came.. I had a moment to reflect and to take a deep deep inhale and long exhale and create the mental space I needed to move into the next energy.

There is something quite magical about the space in between. The time between places, the movement of travel. It gives us a moment to transition the mind space and the physical space into the next place. I like that time when the bags are packed and there is nothing else to do except, look out the window of the taxi and say goodbye to the land, goodbye to the people and thank them both for their kindness.

I particularly like this when I am leaving India, as sometimes the ride is a bit more harrowing than desired. Like today… The practice of patience and loving kindness can be a bit more challenging in those circumstances, but there she is.. Incredible India, always challenging, always teaching and always loving me back!

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

Where do I begin

Where do I begin? It’s been nearly a month since I’ve written and I have only one week left in India. So much has happened, do I begin with three days on the beach in Varkala, saying goodbye to my good friends and catching up with old friends. Do I tell you about the crazy day in a village nearby where I drove an ox cart to a jaggery factory (unrefined sugar)after which we went to a crazy bullock cart festival or do I tell you about the day in the Tibetan Settlement where I had to go into hiding from the police because I did not have a permit? Or should I tell you of my mixed emotions about leaving India.. The familiar feeling, I get everytime, shortly before I leave. Do you I tell you about my 5 week long virus? Or about dancing at the India club on Friday nights? I didn’t even mention making jewelry with Kumar or renting a scooter and driving in India for the first time. There is so much that has happened. Each day weaves into the next, yet seeming like a week in between. How does this land create this vortex of time and suck me in? I’ve visited with old friends, made new friends, laughed and cried, performed, practiced and recorded music, meditated, done lots of yoga, laid in the sun, read lots of books, been frustrated and overjoyed, danced under the full moon. I’ve had long conversations and eaten lots of good food. It’s amazing to be here. I love it so much. India is full on and full of (everything) all the joys in life are present here and all the suffering is right in front of us all the time. It is all of this and more. The clichés go on and my love for India never ends.

Ginger factory

India.. Ever fascinating wonders.. Everyday, we see something we have never seen before. Each time a beautiful little surprise.

One day of the tour we took a rickshaw tour around the quaint town of Ft. Cochin, a former Portuguese colony. One of the highlights was the ginger factory.

Here there are dipping the ginger in lime before they lay it out to dry in the sun, then the ginger is packaged and ready for export.

The sun was giving us a wonderful light show as we toured the factory! Enjoy..

gone fishin'

Balan, my jewelry teacher, after a long day of making jewelry... Fishing for prawns.