Day 2: Initiation puja

So check out my new digs: the "Krishna Cottage".  On the left is the view from the door and the right is when you walk up to it. I wasn't sure if the cows were going to buck me if I pushed past them, and had to smile when I found myself sitting there waiting for them to move so I could pass by. You can imagine what the general smell is in the area...cooking fires, cow shit, and the waft of food cooking in the cafe next door. Dogs are continually barking day and night, goats and livestock are chained to stumps, garbage is everywhere...water runoff literally flows through little gutters in the streets.  literally over that brick wall is a family living, playing with their children, pressing cow pies, tending a fire, all amoung scads of what we call garbage.  Not one person seems to mind it at all, and not one person is miserable.  As if I looked for a garbage can to put my tissue in after I blew my nose!

Here is my laundry room, bathroom and shower. You have to flip a switch for hot water and the bucket is for scrubbing your clothes. I had to bargain for a clothesline and clips as well as toilet paper today, but all in all, a dollar is a steal for the whole lot if you ask me. The guy even threw in a sampler of his best chai tea that his family exports.

I met some really cool people already:  Ryan from London, England, Dave from Tennessee, Rudy and Stevie from Colorado, a girl from Macedonia, someone from Australia, and a cool couple who are travelling all over the world and this is their latest stop.  Ryan and I went out on the town today to check out the markets:

Amazingly, most of the streets were lined with benches if not stores. tons of locals just chillin on the benches begging, but not aggressive begging like in Mexico...more like:  "Namaste" with their hands out with a huge smile, or people just randomly trying to sell stuff at the side of the road like roasted peanuts, crispy bread, fruit, necklaces, you name it. I was greeted by so many strangers who told us that we were brought here from god and welcome to the holy city.  A shop keeper told me I must be fresh in, because I look so clean. 

 Stray dogs seem to be all the same breed...there are sometimes two or three just laying there in doorsteps of shops.  This particular set of puppies was lying at the side of the road with mom, and when we approached to take a photo, mom got up and came over, sort of asking us for an offering for taking a photo of her brood, just like a human trying to support her children...it was kind of cute.

Lastly, we got all the way to the great bridge over the ganges and saw the monkeys amusing the tourists by eating the vendor food:

At five thirty we met for "puja" today, and watched as the team of teachers chanted, made offerings to Krishna the Hindu god, annointed all of us, endowed us with commitment bracelets and put an offering of milk and a half a timbit looking things in the palms of our hands. You can imagine the resulting mush was interesting to eat, with many of us looking to see if the others were actually going to eat it.  Everyone here is  earthy to say the least, there are some great souls here and no one is hardcore, most are beginners like me.  We were told to leave our knowledge at the door and welcome a new way of living.  The instructors are young and have a philosophy that yoga comes from the inside out, they just need to show you what you've been missing all these years before you are awakened.  Through chanting, prayer, and postures, we are going to unlock the secrets of our soul.

We got mats, the text and workbooks, and were instructed that the nose must be clean for easy breathing.  Neti pots.  You can imagine there is some anxiety in the crowd for tomorrow. 

Cool, eh?