Ashram life

For waking up every morning and running a half liter of salt water through your nostrels for 'cleansing', the ashram was was pretty amazing. it was an entirely different pace of life. india seems to be a crazed country full of total chaos, but the ashram was the complete opposite. our daily schedule consisted of:
530 wake up
600 meditation class
645 sing mantras
700 nasal cleansing
715 breathing excersises
830 yoga class
900 breakfast
1030 contemplative walk
1230 lunch
200 tea time
300 lecture and discussion
400 yoga class
630 temple ceremony ( a drum circle basically)
730 dinner
830 meditation
1000 bed

after living in for a month with absolutely no rules, expectations, or obligations, the ashram life was a pleasent break. i was astonished how different the world is when my mind has a chance to calm down a little bit. we were entirely silent from wake up through lunch. total silence is weird. i dont think ive ever deprived myself of speech like that. after a while without communication, i thought in ways i had not before. i am hugely grateful for the new perspective on life that silence/ashram life gave me. i enjoyed the silence so much, i extended my personal silence time through the afternoon and dinner. overall, the ashram was an awesome experience and i met some really cool people there.

but now it is time to say good bye to india. roarke and i are headed to nepal tomorrow to do some trekking in the anapurna region with our new ashram friend colin. so we are headed right into the hectic and filthy train life tomorrow as we ride to nepal-india boarder. like always, our hopes are high.