why don't you come with me, little boy, for a magic rocket ride...to kerala

so i officially signed up for my very first vipassana course last couple weeks of feb, so it looks like i'll probably be here till end of first week of march. that way i can go to elora and ajanta first 2 weeks of february and maybe hit film city since i gotta get back to mumbai anyhow. oh, vipassana is a 10 day buddhist meditation course without talking, 10 hours of meditation per day, no yoga, reading, or occupying your mind in any way. i've been wanting to do this since a good friend of mind taught me how to meditate with the wall stare and i like it very much, i've also done the mauna (i think they call it-not talking) for 3 days before and the benefits were outstanding. the place is called dhamma giri, and it's in igatpuri, a couple hour rickshaw ride outside of mumbai. the monestary was built for that purpose only. i won't be able to blog during those 10 days, i will when it's over.

so i got a 2 hour ride to margoan, where i had to catch my train to trivandrum. my map made it seem like it would take 36 hours, and that's what i expected, but i was on a rocketship-an express. 18 hours to train over half of the country of india!! a knock on my door at 4am for breakfast, by 5am i was here in kovalam. my room on the train was steller, totally private with the glass sliding door and the curtain, full on a/c with cozy fluffy wool blanket, perfect view of the western ghats. 2 lovely fresh red roses and 4 meals!!! 3 thali's and a pile of pakora to feed 7 indians and a mayo sandwich-hmm-had to pass on that one. i asked for ice cream and they brought me strawberry jello. i made them stop feeding me and they didn't get it-mango juice, please please please, only mango juice!!! no more thali! no more kerala rice!

no room at my old standby the sky palace, but i can move in there dec 5th for 20 days, i'm across the street at hotel palm garden till then.
so if there is any kind of emergency, krishna forbid, till the 5th of dec. i can be reached at
hotel palm garden
lighthouse beach kovalam
tel:04712481951

after the 5th,:
hotel sky palace
lighthouse beach kovalam
tel:0091471-2487906

bindifry