11/2/2011
Arriving in Kathmandu again, eight hours from Pokhara by bus and a Universe away, I am dropped once again into the heart of chaos. Dust everywhere, nothing green to look at, drowning in the sounds of bleeping bus horns & revving motorbikes, choking on traffic fumes. I find myself staring at the pretty girls on the bill boards, who lusciously drink Coca-Cola or model the latest shampoo fragrance, because they are the nicest things around me to look at. The dogs sleep in the dust on the side of the road, next to the roaring traffic, and pick through piles of garbage to find food. I saw several today who were limping.
I decided to take the local bus from the tourist bus stop to where I am staying in Boudhnath, the Buddhist area. Whooo! That was an experience. Here is a metaphor:
While riding the tourist bus, it feels like I am trying to resist the chaos. I am physically higher up than the people in the city, and I mentally try to distance myself from all that I see. This is like resisting an emotion that comes up inside. On the other hand, when I am squeezed into a local minibus with normal Nepali people, I delight in watching the city go by, I savor the taste of adventure, and I actually enjoy the sense of chaos as I ride through it. This is like allowing an emotion to flow through the body, watching it run its course and then letting it go.
When I finally reached my room, I practically collapsed on the bed in tears, just from the sheer intensity of re-experiencing this city. It is a completely in-your-face experience. It's not on a TV screen, not in a picture, it's all around me and it's noisy, dirty, and overwhelming. By allowing some emotions to flow, I released some of the tension my body had been holding, and I felt better. I am glad to be staying in Boudhnath, an enclosed area, where it is a little quieter, and you can hear the Buddhist monks chanting and ringing bells and clashing their gongs.
Don't get me wrong - there are aspects of this city that I enjoy - it's just a love/hate relationship! I am looking forward to going to Nakote village, in the Helambu area in the mountains, where I will teach English for a month or two. I won't have Internet or electricity at that time, but I hope to reconnect with my blog at least after one month to share some stories.
All the Best and Namaste!
Melissa
Thursday, November 3, 2011
The Anna Purna Sanctuary Trek
The following is a back log of writings from my 10-day trek in Nepal. I have entered it into the blog so you can read it from start to finish. I hope you enjoy!
Trekking Day 1: The Secret Rainbow
10/22/2011
1030m ascent, 370m descent
Tolka
Today I snuck into my room at evening time
The rain tapping the tin roof of the lodge
My feet snuggled into a bright red sleeping bag.
The minute I opened the wooden shutters and peeked out my tiny window,
I spied a secret rainbow, quietly colorful, like a Nepali woman.
The rainbow arched over an emerald valley,
With raindrops sparkling over her body.
Cicadas whirr and the river rushes below.
When I look outside, all I see is jungle, perhaps a few tea houses.
Violet flowers shaped like trumpets cover bushes with heart-shaped leaves.
A pleasant breeze visits me,
And fills my nose with moist rain and golden sunlight.
My legs have worked hard today.
The trek of many stairs to Tolka was long.
My heart is happy, my belly ready for food.
1030m ascent, 370m descent
Tolka
Today I snuck into my room at evening time
The rain tapping the tin roof of the lodge
My feet snuggled into a bright red sleeping bag.
The minute I opened the wooden shutters and peeked out my tiny window,
I spied a secret rainbow, quietly colorful, like a Nepali woman.
The rainbow arched over an emerald valley,
With raindrops sparkling over her body.
Cicadas whirr and the river rushes below.
When I look outside, all I see is jungle, perhaps a few tea houses.
Violet flowers shaped like trumpets cover bushes with heart-shaped leaves.
A pleasant breeze visits me,
And fills my nose with moist rain and golden sunlight.
My legs have worked hard today.
The trek of many stairs to Tolka was long.
My heart is happy, my belly ready for food.
Trekking Day 2
10/23/2011
Chomrong
450m descent, 870m ascent
Who knew you could get good chocolate cake in the Himalayas? Well, Chomrong Cottage Guest House is famous for it, and for good reason. Yummmmmm. So good after 8 hours of trekking! My body has begun to get used to trekking all day - this afternoon I got into quite a groove, going at a slow & steady pace, using my hiking poles to help me along.
Here are several strategies for climbing up REALLY steep hills:
a) Plant your feet, gaze up at the seemingly endless flight of stairs, and say, "I'm gonna KILL you, Motherfucker!"
b) A more peaceful strategy, chant "God, Love, God; Love God Love," with every three steps.
I used both of these strategies today depending on my mood.
Not to brag or anything, but there is something TOTALLY BADASS about being a single woman CARRYING HER OWN PACK up this gnarly trail in the Himalayas! I feel so good about myself right now (grin!). Most of the other tourists I see hire a Nepali man to carry their stuff. Those guys are amazing! (the porters) Some of them carry 2-3 tourists' bags (which are not light to begin with), and they may only be wearing flip flops. (Many porters do have boots, though) I even saw one porter carrying a double mattress! That's how they get everything up here in the first place. Everything has to be carried on someone's back, from the food, to the beer, to the lumber the lodges are made of. Makes me really appreciate everything up here.
I really enjoy the sounds and scents of trekking, especially in the early morning. Today when we set off at 7:30, there was a lovely mixture of hay, woodsmoke, and buffalo dung in the air (really, when it all mixes together in your nose, it smells good! Like a horse barn in the country.) I also love seeing the rice terraces, and the way the light gets caught in them, like shelves stacked up on the hillside. My favorite moment today was as I was hiking alone up a never-ending flight of stairs, deep into my steady trekking rhythm. I spotted a small, white-painted shrine off to the right. Pausing to pick two orange marigolds, I continued up to the shrine to pray and offer the flowers. My prayer was of thanks, joy, gratitude, and glee. I read what the shrine said on the outside - it was all in Sanskrit, so I could pronounce the words but did not know what they meant.
Tomorrow I will go to Himalaya Hotel. I am a little nervous about the distance and the elevation gain, but as I've learned so far, the first hill is always the toughest. Once I get beyond the fear response, I am carried by trust and love into the circumstances I need for care and support. So the "fear response," as I call it, is always followed by the "trust response." Before I arrive at a future destination I can imagine the thousand myriad things that can go wrong, so much that I almost psych myself out of going. But somehow, I always go for it, and most often I am taken care of in wonderfully serendipitous ways.
For example, I began this trek alone, and I hiked up the first hill from the road alone. During that whole time, running through my mind were thoughts like, "You should never trek alone. What was I thinking?!! This is so risky. Especially as a woman. What if I fall and break my ankle? Or what if some crazy man jumps out of the bushes and rapes me? What am I going to do then, huh?!!" And so on and so forth, until I reached the top of the hill, and met a wonderful couple from Germany who agreed to trek with me for the rest of the day. Just goes to show the power of the mind and what it can do to you!
Even though I am tired, I feel good, I am happy, satisfied, and content - the most I've been since arriving here.
As they say in Nepal,
Namaste!
- Melissa
Chomrong
450m descent, 870m ascent
Who knew you could get good chocolate cake in the Himalayas? Well, Chomrong Cottage Guest House is famous for it, and for good reason. Yummmmmm. So good after 8 hours of trekking! My body has begun to get used to trekking all day - this afternoon I got into quite a groove, going at a slow & steady pace, using my hiking poles to help me along.
Here are several strategies for climbing up REALLY steep hills:
a) Plant your feet, gaze up at the seemingly endless flight of stairs, and say, "I'm gonna KILL you, Motherfucker!"
b) A more peaceful strategy, chant "God, Love, God; Love God Love," with every three steps.
I used both of these strategies today depending on my mood.
Not to brag or anything, but there is something TOTALLY BADASS about being a single woman CARRYING HER OWN PACK up this gnarly trail in the Himalayas! I feel so good about myself right now (grin!). Most of the other tourists I see hire a Nepali man to carry their stuff. Those guys are amazing! (the porters) Some of them carry 2-3 tourists' bags (which are not light to begin with), and they may only be wearing flip flops. (Many porters do have boots, though) I even saw one porter carrying a double mattress! That's how they get everything up here in the first place. Everything has to be carried on someone's back, from the food, to the beer, to the lumber the lodges are made of. Makes me really appreciate everything up here.
I really enjoy the sounds and scents of trekking, especially in the early morning. Today when we set off at 7:30, there was a lovely mixture of hay, woodsmoke, and buffalo dung in the air (really, when it all mixes together in your nose, it smells good! Like a horse barn in the country.) I also love seeing the rice terraces, and the way the light gets caught in them, like shelves stacked up on the hillside. My favorite moment today was as I was hiking alone up a never-ending flight of stairs, deep into my steady trekking rhythm. I spotted a small, white-painted shrine off to the right. Pausing to pick two orange marigolds, I continued up to the shrine to pray and offer the flowers. My prayer was of thanks, joy, gratitude, and glee. I read what the shrine said on the outside - it was all in Sanskrit, so I could pronounce the words but did not know what they meant.
Tomorrow I will go to Himalaya Hotel. I am a little nervous about the distance and the elevation gain, but as I've learned so far, the first hill is always the toughest. Once I get beyond the fear response, I am carried by trust and love into the circumstances I need for care and support. So the "fear response," as I call it, is always followed by the "trust response." Before I arrive at a future destination I can imagine the thousand myriad things that can go wrong, so much that I almost psych myself out of going. But somehow, I always go for it, and most often I am taken care of in wonderfully serendipitous ways.
For example, I began this trek alone, and I hiked up the first hill from the road alone. During that whole time, running through my mind were thoughts like, "You should never trek alone. What was I thinking?!! This is so risky. Especially as a woman. What if I fall and break my ankle? Or what if some crazy man jumps out of the bushes and rapes me? What am I going to do then, huh?!!" And so on and so forth, until I reached the top of the hill, and met a wonderful couple from Germany who agreed to trek with me for the rest of the day. Just goes to show the power of the mind and what it can do to you!
Even though I am tired, I feel good, I am happy, satisfied, and content - the most I've been since arriving here.
As they say in Nepal,
Namaste!
- Melissa
Trekking Day 3
10/24/2011
Himalaya Hotel
1140m ascent, 510m descent
Today I played cards in a full lodge dining room. It was fun to look around the table and see faces from all over the world: Spain, Germany, Austria, Israel, Japan, Nepal. I learned a new card game called "Shit Head" - it is quite fun, especially with more than two people. I'm sure if you Google it you will find some of the rules. I have also made friends with a Nepali guide, Mahendra, who is working for a Japanese man on the trek. Mahendra has been making reservations for me and his Japanese client at the lodges, because it is easier to book rooms for more than one person as you get to higher altitudes. I am very grateful for this serendipitous help!
Himalaya Hotel
1140m ascent, 510m descent
Today I played cards in a full lodge dining room. It was fun to look around the table and see faces from all over the world: Spain, Germany, Austria, Israel, Japan, Nepal. I learned a new card game called "Shit Head" - it is quite fun, especially with more than two people. I'm sure if you Google it you will find some of the rules. I have also made friends with a Nepali guide, Mahendra, who is working for a Japanese man on the trek. Mahendra has been making reservations for me and his Japanese client at the lodges, because it is easier to book rooms for more than one person as you get to higher altitudes. I am very grateful for this serendipitous help!
Trekking Day 4
10/25/2011
Macchapucchare Base Camp (MBC)
This morning I made it to MBC in only 4 hours, arriving at noon. This is the last stop before I ascent 430 meters to Annapurna Base Camp, which lies at 4130 meters. It was a lovely climb today, through a valley between cathedral-like rock faces, alongside a river running strong with snow melt. I paused today at a small rock shrine to give thanks to these beautiful mountains, and as I approached MBC I was greeted by a soaring Himalayan Eagle. It hardly flapped its wings, soaring freely until it reached a spot above me, where it made a smooth turnaround to go back behind the rocky cliff. It felt as though it was saying hello to me :0)
After taking a two-hour nap, I am now sitting in the lodge dining room, trying to stay warm, drinking lemon ginger tea. I am watching a group of Nepali guides and porters playing a fierce game of hearts (they don't just lay each card down as they play, they SLAP them down with gusto!). While I was napping I heard loud shouts from outside - at first I thought it was an emergency, but now I realize it was the guides & porters playing a game of high-altitude volleyball!
I just got invited to play Scrabble with some other travelers. I will write more tomorrow!
Namaste,
Melissa
Macchapucchare Base Camp (MBC)
This morning I made it to MBC in only 4 hours, arriving at noon. This is the last stop before I ascent 430 meters to Annapurna Base Camp, which lies at 4130 meters. It was a lovely climb today, through a valley between cathedral-like rock faces, alongside a river running strong with snow melt. I paused today at a small rock shrine to give thanks to these beautiful mountains, and as I approached MBC I was greeted by a soaring Himalayan Eagle. It hardly flapped its wings, soaring freely until it reached a spot above me, where it made a smooth turnaround to go back behind the rocky cliff. It felt as though it was saying hello to me :0)
After taking a two-hour nap, I am now sitting in the lodge dining room, trying to stay warm, drinking lemon ginger tea. I am watching a group of Nepali guides and porters playing a fierce game of hearts (they don't just lay each card down as they play, they SLAP them down with gusto!). While I was napping I heard loud shouts from outside - at first I thought it was an emergency, but now I realize it was the guides & porters playing a game of high-altitude volleyball!
I just got invited to play Scrabble with some other travelers. I will write more tomorrow!
Namaste,
Melissa
Trekking Day 5
10/26/2011
Annapurna Base Camp
Wow, I made it! This morning I left from Macchapucchare Base Camp (MBC) at 6 am to catch the sunrise as I walked 2 more hours to Annapurna Base Camp (ABC). Those were probably the hardest 2 hours of the entire trek - it was SO cold! My fingers were so numb I could hardly move them, even though I was wearing gloves. It had snowed a little the night before, and I think I spotted snow leopard tracks! (The tracks were too small to be a dog, anyway). Upon reaching ABC I collapsed in the nearest lodge dining room to thaw my hands and have some ginger tea & oatmeal.
During my icy morning trek, I had been doubting whether it was worth it to come all the way up here. After breakfast, when I walked up to the hill with all the prayer flags, all my doubts vanished. It was totally worth it. The beauty here blows my mind and heart. I couldn't keep back tears as I turned around and around, gazing at the 360-degree views of up-close, gigantic snow-covered mountains. The words awe, wonder, and amazement are the closest approximation to what I was feeling. No wonder so many people come here every year. On the hill where all the multicolored prayer flags are strung out, there is a quote from a climber in plated metal: "Mountains are not the arenas where I exercise my desire to achieve, they are the cathedrals where I practice my religion."
Here is a poem about Anna Purna Base Camp:
Face-to-face with snow-covered gods
Heaven touches Earth with blue sky and clouds
Black crows ride the ribbons of air
Brown grass gets tangled in last night's snow.
I don't know how I got here:
Dropped from an airplane turned upside down?
Perhaps what grabs my heart the most
Is knowing this is only the beginning.
This is only the beginning of my journey.
I still have no idea, really, what lies around the next corner.
The air is rich with feeling here.
Many people have died here,
Trying to ascend further up into heaven.
(Just one week ago, Korean climbers died in a snow avalanche.
Helicopters go by searching for their bodies.)
Many people have truly lived here, reaching as far up into heaven as they can with their feet planted on solid ground.
I know I am alive right now,
Closer to the edge of disbelief,
Stretching the truth,
Overstepping my boundaries with strides of trust and intuition.
It is a feeling beyond happiness, beyond elation,
As though I would like to cry for many days,
Just for the sake of being alive.
And all from being encircled by mountains,
Snow-covered giants,
And being warm and safe inside.
Annapurna Base Camp
Wow, I made it! This morning I left from Macchapucchare Base Camp (MBC) at 6 am to catch the sunrise as I walked 2 more hours to Annapurna Base Camp (ABC). Those were probably the hardest 2 hours of the entire trek - it was SO cold! My fingers were so numb I could hardly move them, even though I was wearing gloves. It had snowed a little the night before, and I think I spotted snow leopard tracks! (The tracks were too small to be a dog, anyway). Upon reaching ABC I collapsed in the nearest lodge dining room to thaw my hands and have some ginger tea & oatmeal.
During my icy morning trek, I had been doubting whether it was worth it to come all the way up here. After breakfast, when I walked up to the hill with all the prayer flags, all my doubts vanished. It was totally worth it. The beauty here blows my mind and heart. I couldn't keep back tears as I turned around and around, gazing at the 360-degree views of up-close, gigantic snow-covered mountains. The words awe, wonder, and amazement are the closest approximation to what I was feeling. No wonder so many people come here every year. On the hill where all the multicolored prayer flags are strung out, there is a quote from a climber in plated metal: "Mountains are not the arenas where I exercise my desire to achieve, they are the cathedrals where I practice my religion."
Here is a poem about Anna Purna Base Camp:
Face-to-face with snow-covered gods
Heaven touches Earth with blue sky and clouds
Black crows ride the ribbons of air
Brown grass gets tangled in last night's snow.
I don't know how I got here:
Dropped from an airplane turned upside down?
Perhaps what grabs my heart the most
Is knowing this is only the beginning.
This is only the beginning of my journey.
I still have no idea, really, what lies around the next corner.
The air is rich with feeling here.
Many people have died here,
Trying to ascend further up into heaven.
(Just one week ago, Korean climbers died in a snow avalanche.
Helicopters go by searching for their bodies.)
Many people have truly lived here, reaching as far up into heaven as they can with their feet planted on solid ground.
I know I am alive right now,
Closer to the edge of disbelief,
Stretching the truth,
Overstepping my boundaries with strides of trust and intuition.
It is a feeling beyond happiness, beyond elation,
As though I would like to cry for many days,
Just for the sake of being alive.
And all from being encircled by mountains,
Snow-covered giants,
And being warm and safe inside.
Trekking Day 6
10/27/2011
Bamboo
Today it is the festival called Tihar, when the Hindu people of Nepal celebrate Lakshmi, the goddess of prosperity and light. Last night and tonight, the lodge owners lit candles on the porches, which created a very magical feeling. I remember celebrating Laksmi Day in Fairfield, Iowa - instead of candles, people used white Christmas lights and strung them around their doors. Lakshmi, may my days and my doings please you, and may I earn your blessings of light, prosperity, and illumination!
Namaste
Melissa
Bamboo
Today it is the festival called Tihar, when the Hindu people of Nepal celebrate Lakshmi, the goddess of prosperity and light. Last night and tonight, the lodge owners lit candles on the porches, which created a very magical feeling. I remember celebrating Laksmi Day in Fairfield, Iowa - instead of candles, people used white Christmas lights and strung them around their doors. Lakshmi, may my days and my doings please you, and may I earn your blessings of light, prosperity, and illumination!
Namaste
Melissa
Trekking Day 7
10/28/2011
Chomrong
Oh thank heaven for comfortable guest houses! After trekking only 4 hours today, I decided to stay in Chomrong with my new friend from France, Cecile. We have a GORGEOUS view overlooking the hills and river valley between here and Sinuwa, and can see the snow-covered Anna Purna mountains in the distance. All for only $2/night each! I got a bit of a sniffly cold while in the frigid, high-altitude areas, so I just took it easy this afternoon. Dal Bhat for lunch, then started reading Seven Years in Tibet - it's actually quite a good book. Tomorrow I plan to relax in the hot springs in the next town, about 1.5 hours away. Much Love and Namaste!
Chomrong
Oh thank heaven for comfortable guest houses! After trekking only 4 hours today, I decided to stay in Chomrong with my new friend from France, Cecile. We have a GORGEOUS view overlooking the hills and river valley between here and Sinuwa, and can see the snow-covered Anna Purna mountains in the distance. All for only $2/night each! I got a bit of a sniffly cold while in the frigid, high-altitude areas, so I just took it easy this afternoon. Dal Bhat for lunch, then started reading Seven Years in Tibet - it's actually quite a good book. Tomorrow I plan to relax in the hot springs in the next town, about 1.5 hours away. Much Love and Namaste!
Trekking Day 8
10/29/2011
Jinhu
Today I took it really easy, walking only 1.5-2 hours downhill to Jinhu, which is near some natural hot springs. oooh, it was so nice to sit and soak in the warm water! I had to wear my T-shirt and pants while swimming, as it is not culturally appropriate for women to show much skin. I found it funny that all the men went swimming in their underwear, though!
I have my own room this time, and as I write I am looking out through white and pink floral curtains onto a misty jungle hillside, lush with greenery. Today I had fried potatoes with yak cheese for lunch. Along with ketchup and green chili sauce...YUM! They sure do know how to serve up the carbs in these trekking towns. I'll try some eggs for dinner to have some protein.
Anyway, enough about my diet--things are going great, I'm happy, content, and pleased with how my trip is going so far. Last night was "Super Diwali" - the last night of the four-day festival called Tihar in Nepal, Diwali in India. Day 1 honors the dogs, day 2 honors the crows, day 3 honors the buffalo (water buffalo I think - black and big with curved horns), and day 4 honors the relationship between brother and sister. There was quite a party outside my guesthouse - mostly the young porters & guides clapping their hands and shakin' it up to some Bollywood music. I even danced a bit myself. I found it quite funny to speak with one particular drunken Nepali guide - he already had the whole Nepali/Hindi accent and side-to-side head wobble going on, and now his speech was slurred and he stumbled to and fro! It was all good fun.
Much Love!
Melissa
Jinhu
Today I took it really easy, walking only 1.5-2 hours downhill to Jinhu, which is near some natural hot springs. oooh, it was so nice to sit and soak in the warm water! I had to wear my T-shirt and pants while swimming, as it is not culturally appropriate for women to show much skin. I found it funny that all the men went swimming in their underwear, though!
I have my own room this time, and as I write I am looking out through white and pink floral curtains onto a misty jungle hillside, lush with greenery. Today I had fried potatoes with yak cheese for lunch. Along with ketchup and green chili sauce...YUM! They sure do know how to serve up the carbs in these trekking towns. I'll try some eggs for dinner to have some protein.
Anyway, enough about my diet--things are going great, I'm happy, content, and pleased with how my trip is going so far. Last night was "Super Diwali" - the last night of the four-day festival called Tihar in Nepal, Diwali in India. Day 1 honors the dogs, day 2 honors the crows, day 3 honors the buffalo (water buffalo I think - black and big with curved horns), and day 4 honors the relationship between brother and sister. There was quite a party outside my guesthouse - mostly the young porters & guides clapping their hands and shakin' it up to some Bollywood music. I even danced a bit myself. I found it quite funny to speak with one particular drunken Nepali guide - he already had the whole Nepali/Hindi accent and side-to-side head wobble going on, and now his speech was slurred and he stumbled to and fro! It was all good fun.
Much Love!
Melissa
Trekking Day 9
10/30/2011
Pokhara
Today hiked all the way from Jinhu, through some less-travelled trails to Gandruk, and then all the way down to Nayapul and caught a Jeep ride with some other trekkers back to Pokhara. Long day. While hiking the less-travelled trail from Jinhu to Gandruk, I had my very own personal canine guide. This dog was quite happy to plod along with me through rice fields and up and down hills, and seemed content with his role as my protector and guide for the morning. When I arrived in Gandruk he deserted me for his girlfriend at a local farm, though. :0)
The best part of my day was arriving in Gandruk, following the sounds of Bollywood music, to find a group of Nepali teenage girls dancing! They called me to dance with them, and of course I did. They were quite impressed with my style, I have to say, because I have studied North Indian dance...and pressed me to show them some American moves! They switched on a Western pop music song, and there I was trying to show them my best hip-hop and jazz moves. I think I became instantly cool in their eyes at that moment. I got some good pictures, but unfortunately can't upload them yet because my card reader is still with the stuff I left with a friend while trekking.
Namaste!
Melissa
Pokhara
Today hiked all the way from Jinhu, through some less-travelled trails to Gandruk, and then all the way down to Nayapul and caught a Jeep ride with some other trekkers back to Pokhara. Long day. While hiking the less-travelled trail from Jinhu to Gandruk, I had my very own personal canine guide. This dog was quite happy to plod along with me through rice fields and up and down hills, and seemed content with his role as my protector and guide for the morning. When I arrived in Gandruk he deserted me for his girlfriend at a local farm, though. :0)
The best part of my day was arriving in Gandruk, following the sounds of Bollywood music, to find a group of Nepali teenage girls dancing! They called me to dance with them, and of course I did. They were quite impressed with my style, I have to say, because I have studied North Indian dance...and pressed me to show them some American moves! They switched on a Western pop music song, and there I was trying to show them my best hip-hop and jazz moves. I think I became instantly cool in their eyes at that moment. I got some good pictures, but unfortunately can't upload them yet because my card reader is still with the stuff I left with a friend while trekking.
Namaste!
Melissa
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
Out of the Mountains
Hey there! I'm done with the trek, and am heading back to Kathmandu tomorrow. I will post more stories from my trek in the next few days. I am having a wonderful time. That sense of traveling, where everything works out, everything is taken care of, you meet the right people at the right time...it's all happening like magic. Yesterday I met two French girls, one of whom studies Shamanism...we had a great conversation, and my heart opened again after having been closed due to needing to be "strong" in a crazy environment. We shared our experiences with spirituality and God and all that good stuff, and now I really feel like myself again. ;0) This morning I spent about an hour in meditation and prayer, inside, and felt that I could carry my open-heartedness even though the city was crazy around me. Mmm. yummy. better. :0)
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