HAPPY DIWALI !!!!!

Happy Diwali!
This is the biggest holiday in India. A cross between Christmas and 4th of July. All the homes are decorated with colorful lights and firecrackers are going off everywhere. I was invited to join the family celebration of Hema and Sudarshan Pandey. Hema works for Child Family Health International, (CFHI) and has been coordinating my time here in Delhi.

Hema & Sudarshan with son Aryan and daughter Ambika

It has been a very sacred day with ritual, incense, chanting, prayers, lots of family and friends. A Brahmin Priest lead the ceremony. This ceremony was honoring the Goddess Kali who is known as the Dark Mother. She is depicted with big red eyes and her huge tongue sticking out. She is a ferocious Mother Goddess who battles evil and wins! Her devotees have a very loving relationship with her.

Hema & Sudashan performing puja


Rangoli made by kids


Sudarshan explaining rituals to me


Lighting the diyas (small clay pots)

I have been in Delhi for several days as guest and volunteer for CFHI. The first day we went to a health fair and met 5 young women from a small village in the Himalayas. CFHI is helping them to become nurses. They are so excited to be with us and appreciate the opportunity they have been given. They are all 19 and 20 and this experience will change there lives and the lives of there families and village.

Students from a Spiti Valley in the Himalayas, sponsored for Nursing Education by CFHI

The next day we toured Sulabh International. The founder is revolutionizing sanitation in India. We were greeted as dignitaries as over 100 students sing morning prayers. The school helps under privledged kids learn life and career skills. Sulabh is also know for the world famous Toliet Museum!

Prayer at Sulabh International


Tour of the Toilet Museum at Sulabh

On Monday I spent the day with Ms. Snehlata and Sanjay Chakraborty - CFHI Local Coordinator at the SAHARA Women and Children's home. They provide rehabilitation services for women and a creche (day care) for young children. I am enjoying my experiences very much and learning about the wonderful services that these people are providing. It is an honor to be invited to participate in these efforts. There is so many people here in India, over 15 million and so much poverty and need. I am moved by the love I am seeing all around me.


Singing poems to the kids in the Creche at Sahara Women and Children Home

We have another celebration this evening. Lakshmi is this evenings Goddess. She is the Goddess of wealth and beauty, purity and generosity.

It has been a month since I left California. I miss my friends and family. I am touced by my new friends. Raj-our guide from Multivision Travel- his beautiful family embraced me as family. Raj has helped me through many challenging moments and has sent 2 packages of excess baggage home. Airline tickets, taxis, hotels - oh my! Thanks to his great wife and daughter and what would I do with out 12 year old Ansh.

That's all for now. Any comments? XXRR

The Elephant Experience

Now we are staying athe the elegant Leela Hotel in Mumbai. I was bounced off the internet just after the elephant bath.

Our driver took us the the historic city of Cochin. We visited the oldest Roman Catholic church in India. It is the Saint Francis (my saint) Chruch built by the Portugeas in 1502. We also visited the Santa Cruz Basillica were I lit a candle and said prayers for Hanna Boys Center and Roderick. I am so proud that his is at Hanna and that he has straight A's. Thanks Hanna and Roderick keep up the good work!

A bit tired of hotel food Rosanna and I found a great cafe, The Kashi Cafe with a perfect carrot and orange soup and an herbed cheese sandwich on organic whole wheat bread. Simple pleasures. Our last evening together we celebrated our great guides Sherrie Baptiste, India Supra and Raj our dear friend and guide. Image his job of keeping 15 women and Chas (who me missed so much on the last few days-he had to go home early)happy and safe. Well done all of you. Thank you for your loving attention to detail.

I'm off to Delhi tomorrow for volunteer work. No more luxury hotels for a while. I am looking forward to this opportunity with CFHI. More on that latter.

If you want to read more about India, check out the book Holy Cow. I loved it!

We have 24 hour in Mumbai. Thanks for the emails. Now more than ever I love hearing from my family and friends. I feel so grateful for this journey into the unknown. Exciting, challenging, scary, emotional, restful, tiring....Ommmmm....Namaste

The last days of our sacred journey have been delightful. We stayed in the fabulous Marari Beach Resort. I had a private cottage in a palm tree jungle very near the Arabian Sea. The weather was perfect and thew sea very warm. We all need time to chillout after our 17 day journey. Kerela is a different India. The government is communist and many people are Christian. In the early morning you can hear gregorinan chants mingled with muslim call to prayer and happy Hindu's. The spa offers an Auyvertic Doctor who prescribes special herbs and treatment for what ever aliments you wish to work on. My shoulders are knot free and my skin is as soft as a babies behind. The herbs really get things moving and I am feeling very energetic!

Yesterday was an amazing day. Rosanne and I left the hotel with a private car and were driving about 2 hours to an elephant santuary on the Peryiar River. As we came down the hill, it was lightly raining and we discovered 5 elephants and there owner/trainers in the river for morning baths. The male was huge with long ivory tusks, about 12 years old. The female was 39 and really enjoying her scrubing. 3 young elephants were arguing sometimes loudly about all the scrubing. There were only a few other travelers who followed the young elephants when there bath was over. I was invite to help and joined the trainers to scrub the female. She and I bonded and made eye contact. I sang to her and scrubed her. She seemed to purr and occasionally take a trunk full of water and spray us both. I did not mind and felt tears of joy as we shared a special moment. The other trainers were laughing and teasing the big male. I touched his beautiful ivory tusks and possed with the trainers. We all laughed alot and really enjoyed the morning bath. When the elephants were done the boys all had there baths. I then helped with the elephant breakfast and was offered a ride on my friendly female. I

The final days of the Sherrie trip

The final days of the Sherrie trip

Heaven

We arrived at the Marari Beach Resort. Traveled for abour 9 hours. Yhis is the Southern tip of Indian and it is beauyiful. Can't see the keyboard. More later.

Assi Ghat, Varanasi

10/15/08

One of the things I love about traveling is experiencing places I have never even heard of. Varanasi is one of those places. Indian people consider it one of the most sacred place to die. They celebrate death and consider this place a gateway to the most peaceful resting place. The dead are cremated by the Ganges River 24/7. You can only be cremated here if you die in Varanasi. George Harrison and Gandi's ashes were brought here. People also do morning and evening prayers here every day. We are staying at a small, quaint place (hoteltemple.com). Our guide India Supra has been coming here for over 15 years. She has many friends here and the kids that live across the court call her Grandmother. The father of the family owns the boat that we ride on to the celebrations. The boat has a large top deck that is covered in sheets and pillows for us to sit on. This evening we enjoyed several musician friends that played drums and harmoniums and sing for us. The Ganges River is quite wide here with a gentle current. The moon is still full and beautifully reflects off the water. We are all given little baskets with flowers and candles that you gently place in the river as you make your wishes and prayer. The little baskets look magical as they float down the river and weave between the other boats.

The shopping is great here. Beautiful silks and cottons, craft works, carvings and statues. Our guides, India Supra and Raj from Multivision Travel help us find the really special shops and negotiate good deals. With months of travel still ahead it's really difficult to limit my investments! All the shops have young guys on the street that try to get you into there shops. They remenber your name and offer "a realy good price". My naturally curly hair seems to be a big attraction and I am taller than most people so I seem to get alot of invitations.

I had a fantastic hour and a half massage today for 400 ruppes ( less than $10). Tomorrow at 6:00AM we have a special yoga session with an Indian yoga teacher-another sun rise on the Ganges. Days are long and hot. The food is vegetarian and not too spice. Dal, naan, mixed veg and rice- no alcohol but plenty of bottled water.

I hope to get some pictures posted soon. Thanks for the emails and comments. That's all for now. Namaste

10/12/08

We have just spent 3 days at Swami Rama ashram in the Himilayas. Swami Veda is the spiritual director and leads us in several meditations. Each day I was awakened at 5:30Am for morning meditation and Hatha Yoga. The ashram is locatated near Rishikish on the Ganges River. It is still very hot here. I was surprised to find a friend from California, Marian Maass who is living at the ashram...it's a small world.

I was delighted to get a private meeting with Swami Veda. He is 76 years old and a very special person. He invites everyone to participate in a world peace meditation on the full moon. Oct 13th at 7PM calif. time. Please take 5 minutes or as long as you like and know that people all over the world will also be meditating at this time. Pass it on.

Our trip has been packed with wonderful experiences. 2 days in Hardwar, a small town near Rishikish. We experienced a Pooja (ritual) on the Ganges River. The Hindus believe that if you wash at the river at sunset and sun rise that all your past wrong doings will be washed away. They chant and pray and burn insense and splash water over themselves. I was lead by a guide to pray for my friends and family. For health and good fortune and love. Please let me know if you have any special new situations. It was a beautiful experience. Many people go to the river each day at sun rise and sunset.

I also experienced my first auyvertic treatment with a massage and a hot oil treatment were they therapist pours oil on your forehead and scalp. Very relaxing and healing.

We are traveling in a big white bus. It is unbelievable what I see from the window. Braham bulls and cows walking freely everywhere, monkeys, elephants, camels, goats, donkeys and horses, sugar cane, muslim women all in black, hindu women in colorful saris, lotus flowers blooming in irrigation ditches, beautiful intiricate temples, trucks full of young workers, roses, lantana, giant iris, motorcycles with mom, dad and 2 kids, huge billboards with sexy men adverising god knows what, bamboo, small stalls selling everything from tea to new cars, beggers, hockers, bicycles rickshaws, shrines, traffic like I have never seen, everyone honking, honking honking.

We are back in Delhi and the Dali Lami is staying at our hotel. Security is tight. We have another early day... If you know me, you know that computer stuff is not my best suit. I really want to stay in touch but the days are long and the computers are few and far between. Please let me know that someone is reading what I write. I have got to go to bed but will fill in with more details soon. You can email me at randiryan54@gmail.com or blog me!

XXRR

I just watched the sun come over over Jaipur. We are stayng at a heritage property called the Raj Palace. It feels like a museum. We are having agreat time. We road elephants yesterday to the top of an ancient castle. Last night we had a priviate concert by local musican. As the music started a family of baboons crawled across the top of the wall a joined us for the event until the private firewoerks show scared them off.

After months of planning and dreaming, the trip is beyond my expectations. Delhi was overwelming with poverty and traffic. I enjoyed an evening with the India director of CFHI. He gave me a tour of some of Delhi's sites. India Gate, the Presidential Palace and lots of traffic, horn honking, elephants and camels and motorcycles with families of 4.

Our first journey was about 4 hours away to an amazing bird santuary. Quite a difference from the noisy city. The afternoon was spent exploring the Taj Mahal. October is a month of festivals so this wonder of the world was full of lots of Indian vacationers and tourist from around the world.
I'm off to a yoga class. More later!