Astrology and Shopping

Well, it's Sunday, and no, I couldnt bring myself to do the catheter gagging act...I dont think I will be able to will myself to...and I don't feel bad about it to be honest...today started off with some chanting and a neti nose clean and an amazing cappucino from the coffee place down in the market.

I went out with the Swedish couple, and we saw an interesting site on the side of the road:

As if, the cows are trying to get the foliage from the trees...usually we see them eating garbage or burnt paper from fires, it's kind of sad.  People just let them out during the day to wander around everywhere. It's so weird..we just pet them every now and then like they are dogs or something. It is a constant watch for cow shit..it's EVERYWHERE.

So, we walk around to the bridge and I get a real good view of Rishikesh:

We are on the other side of the bridge and we find a really cool bookstore with mostly english titles, everything from the Twilight series, to Tantric sex and Philosophies of yoga. I buy three books for 10 bucks. Sweet. I found myself trying to bargain for them, but reminding myself i just spent about 1/10 what they were worth.  We wandered around and look at the name of this store:

No, they didnt sell Ganga. People ask you if you want to buy hash all the time, but the thought of spending time in an Indian jail makes me just say thank you and walk away. I'll just keep on going without meat or booz or real caffeine...Its not like you miss it much when you can't even get it if you want it.

We also found this cool little astrologer who was charging 6 bucks for a palm reading. He had these really strange statues in the store:

yes, that is a god disemboweling a human...hm. And this:

These were lifelike in nature: They were about 5 feet tall.  Get a load of the astrologer typing our birth dates and hour of birth into the computer in order to provide us with an authentic Indian reading:

He then proceeded to take out a huge magnifying glass to examine our palms. You have had bad karma for many years...but you will get married in 2013 and have one baby, a boy.  Life will get good after 2015.  He told me I would have eye problems when I was in my fifties, that I would live until I was 84, and that I am totally emotional and rule my head with my heart  He told me I have had some crappy past lives, and that finally I have paid for them and life is about to open up. I can deal with that. Then, he tried to sell us this oil that helps us absorb cosmic energy better, and gave us chants to recite when we buy our prayer beads...what a savvy businessman...there was a line up when we left.

After that we shopped and I bought some major baggy clothes so I could fit in a little better. Tight yoga pants and t shirts get some major stares, beleive it or not.  I wanted to blend in a little more I suppose. for 3 bucks for shirts and pants, I could afford it.

After we got home to the ashram, I gave myself a pedicure, played my guitar until I got blisters on my fingers:

I'm just in pure heaven...back to the killer yoga tommorow. I wish I had one more day to relax!  A month to go...it already feels like I've been here for ages.

xoxoxoxoxo