Feb. 27, Mysore, India

Here is a picture of Nathalie and I outside of my yogashala. I have been practicing at Mysore Mandala Yogashala with Sheshadri after P Jois told me I could only practice with in his daughter's class which is not until 8:30. Everything happens for a reason though as Sheshadri is the nicest person and his shala has a really friendly vibe, so unlike Pattabhi Jois's. The crazy thing is, I got the feeling that Pattabhi Jois liked me in spite of his rejecting me but his disposition is unlike and Indian person I have met here and he is very gruff. His daughter was nice to me but I still felt like the whole place had a snobby vibe. I am no stranger to coldness, being from Boston where snobbery rules the day but I did not want to deal with that in India.

These boys in the pic live near my Shala and they are among the privileged here in Mysore. They have servants and go to an all-boys school near the shala. I like their confidence but I know now that confidence comes with being in a higher caste than most people. They like to hang around the front of the shala to talk to Westerners and practice their English. At least, I think that is why they engage us. Most of the time, white people here are treated with the same "hands off" policy that the lower castes have with those above them so no one, other than those in the upper class, ever starts a conversation. Could be a language thing too although most people seem to speak a least a little English.


I thought I'd lose all kinds of weight when I got here because I'd have to avoid getting sick and eat only certain things but that has just not been the case. The hotel has na amazing breakfast buffet everyday and they give me a plate of cookies and basket of fruit every night. When I first got here, I would only eat fruit that had to be peeled but now eat apples, grapes and these kiwi-type things I get from the hotel. I eat salad everyday at the poolside restaurant. After spending 4 days, watching all of these skinny yoga chicks eating salads, I figured it was safe to have one myself and I have been lucky so far. It's a good thing but I was sort of counting on dropping some pounds when I got here and told my boyfriend how thin I was going to be when I got home. At this point, he won't notice any difference from when he last saw me. It's all good though.