It’s been a bit since I’ve posted, but we are deep in the process now, and with a group of 14 amazing humans, we have all been taking a deep dive into Ayurveda on all three realms: body, mind, and spirit. There are so many things I could write about today–so many of those deep things–but today I’m going to share a few of the beautiful things about this place beyond the panchakarma: the puppies, the kitties, the bulls, the bees, the flowers, and oh my gosh, the people. Enjoy looking 🙂
This little bee with the see-through wings spent an entire day on the front face of one of our steps. I almost didn’t see it, but the bright yellow band caught my eye. If you peek closer, you’ll see that there is a delicate white stripe around each “ankle” on this beautiful little wisp. As we are going up and down the stairs all day (to treatments, meals, yoga, Dr. appointments, abs class, walks), I had the delight of seeing this unusual creature dozens of times. And then one trip up, she was gone!
A week or so ago, we had a spell of cloudy days, when the fog rolled up the mountainside and completely obscured the valley below.
It rained two nights in a row, and the drops pelted against the metal roof. In the morning there were more tiny new visitors I’d never experienced here in India before! The pictures don’t really show just how teeny these guys are. Each toad was only the size of my index fingernail, and the lizard barely an inch long! Those of us in the “Crows Nest,” as I call our perch above the Doctor’s house, spent plenty of time checking out their stripes, dots, and diminutive feet! Zoom in to really see the itty bitty bauble toes on the lizard, each with its own little white dot! Check out the way the brown toad has wedged himself into the moss in the corner of our step. I think he looks a bit like Ganesh 🙂
Just for scale, here’s that little peeper on the right next to a sign about 20 inches wide:
Each day, regardless of weather, we walk through the villages, down the paths through the tea, along the forest road, and back up the BIG hill that is our driveway. Here are a few of the other creatures we encounter along the way:
Okay, these cows and bulls are big. Like I mean BIG. And these particular bison are not even as big as the biggest ones we’ve seen and even walked past while out on the trails. This photo is literally a drive by snap–and they are a ways off in the tea. You do NOT stop to coo at these honkers. One day Karen and I happened upon a handful of bison, one on the pathway, and the others in the tea. There was a baby, so we didn’t dare pass. Thankfully, a local village lady saw us stalling, and she went ahead slowly and “shoo shooed” the female off the path. She instructed us to follow her, and we scooted by within feet of the big guy, sporting horns I cannot describe. There are no pictures for obvious reasons. When you meet a bison on the trail, you don’t stop for selfies. People have literally been gored up here in the mountains doing just that. Not these yogis!
Meanwhile in the village, there are cows, a few goats, dogs, cats, and always monkeys leaping from rooftop to rooftop. I love the one of Karen holding the most adorable puppy who just wanted to follow her everywhere!
And everywhere we go, amidst the tea, alongside the animals, walking, smiling, working, and sitting in the sunshine are the wonderful people of these mountain villages. Here are a few elders, youngsters, and those in the middle:
One special visitor got lots of attention this week: Mr. Teddy. He meowed us as we walked to yoga at 6:30 am, he followed us on the first part of our morning walk, he was there at mealtime looking for treats, and he followed us up to the crows nest where he confidently inspected every bedroom and made himself right at home with all of us up here who were happy to scrub him and hold him as he purred away.
It’s one of those years for orange kitties, I guess, because yesterday we went to town and found a pile of kittens begging for our attention:
Another day coming to a close here up on the Mountaintop, and as always, it feels like hOMe here. Sending you warm wishes from all the creatures and beautiful people here in India!
with love,
Katie xo
