My annual sojourn to India each winter is truly a coming home for me. This place. The people, the villages, the way the light hits the tea, the markets full of vegetables and fruits in every imaginable color… these mountains. I just can’t sufficiently describe it all to you, and yet each year, I try.

For those of you who may be dropping into my India stories for the first time, welcome. If you have traveled vicariously with me before, I hope these posts are a wonderful revisit. I first came to Coonoor eleven years ago on the wings of an idea and a plan with my friend John to create this experience for others. My heart is full of gratitude just thinking about all the people who have joined us for this deep adventure into Ayurvedic medicine and the profound healing that can come of experiencing its magic in this way.

The journey…

I kiss my kitties goodbye at 1:45 am, and Declan and I meet Annie and Peter in the dark of the night. I watch their sweet embrace and know that will be me in a couple more hours saying goodbye to my beloved. Dec drops us off at the Delta terminal, and I cling to him for a moment. He peels me off of him and says “off you go.” It’s hard to say goodbye each year for a month or more, but we are more used to it now.

After a quick hop from Boston to JFK, Annie and I meet Molly and check in for our flight to Delhi. It’s a 15-hour flight, but we nap a bit, pick at the airplane food, and I listen to a restorative yoga playlist that eventually puts me to sleep. Once in Delhi we are separated for a little bit going through customs, but we meet at our next gate and board our final flight to Coimbatore. The Fairfield Inn is nearby and is a 100 rupee taxi ride (just over $1). We talk about grabbing a bite before bed, but choose to skip dinner and instead take a little stroll along the street near our hotel. It’s loud and we are bleary eyed, so we head back, knowing we desperately need a good rest. If you know about the dosa at the Fairfield, then you’ll understand why we agree to get up early for the yummy buffet of fresh fruit, ghee dosa, various curries, chutneys, omelettes, and masala chai. It will be the last of grazing for a month, as we are heading into a full-on panchakarma, and that means no chai, coffee, eggs, or spicy foods. We rest well, wake up hungry, meditate for 20 minutes and then eat to our collective heart’s content. Sorry, no dosa pics–we were too hungry. Just a picture of this fruit:

Before we know it, our driver, Ganesh, has arrived to chariot us out of the hotel parking lot and into the web of morning traffic. Kids are on their way to school; motorbikes zigzag through dense rows of cars and busses. Horns toot, old ladies weave between bumpers, a cow crosses a highway, dogs sit in the dust as lorries thunder by… it is just like I remember and equally unbelievable that so many people, animals, and vehicles move in this mysterious rhythm that miraculously seems to work. We laugh, point, squeal, and shake our heads with amazement and delight. And we haven’t even gotten to the 14 hairpin turns yet!

Our ascent into the mountains comes after a solid hour of driving through banana plantations and little roadside villages. The road begins to tunnel through denser forest, and very soon hairpin #1 turns us uphill. It doesn’t take long before the landscape lifts us into the clouds. Huge trucks full of pineapples, veggies, bags of tea, and concrete blocks chug up this mountain. Motorbikes look for openings to snake through the thicket of vans and cars. Every once in awhile I close my eyes to avoid watching a near collision; but it all flows magically, and after an hour or so, hairpin 14 arrives. We roll the windows down to let in the cool mountain air.

The last mile to the retreat takes us on a single lane journey through the Glendale tea company’s emerald hillsides. We weave back and forth, squeeze drastically close to the edge of the road to pass a town bus, and then there it is: the driveway. And oh man is it a driveway! Up we go, and Ganesh does it beautifully. Doctor Sundara is there to greet us, and I offer a hug before running up to hug Jansi, Selvi, Seeranjeevi, Sathya, and Latha, our dear lady therapists.

I take a deep breath as I enter my room again, see the bed that Narayan made so carefully. Everything is just as I left it. Annie and Molly are in the room right next to mine, and together we look around, smile, hug, and feel the sweetness of this return. We have barely taken our shoes off before we are whisked away to massages and then treated to the most delicious lunch of yellow dal, green bean sabji, chapati with ghee, and a delicious cucumber and carrot salad in a honey-lime marinade topped with pumpkin seeds and raisins. Ohmygoodness!

After lunch, I hike the stairs to our porch and look out over the valley. The view from my bedroom is, by itself, enough reason to return. I love how when I pull open my curtain each day, the horizon is different. It could be that I wake up to see a thin glow over the mountains–a promise of the sun to come, or that the retreat is enveloped in a cloud, or that I can see valley after valley, all the way down to the plains. We are truly on a mountaintop. The sun rises over us to the east, follows us throughout our days, and we can watch it slide each evening into the hills on the other side of the retreat. Some days the clouds are so thick that the sun is like a white eyeball in the sky, doing its best to burn the fog away. I’ll leave you with a handful of snaps taken in the first two days:

I’m happy to be back in my nest on this beautiful hillside with my sweet friends, ready to embark on another amazing adventure into our health.

with love,

Katie

Katie O’Connell

Katie owns Dragonfly Yoga Barn Studio & Retreat in North Sandwich, NH with her husband Declan. Katie has been on the yogi path for nearly 30 years leading yoga retreats, workshops, and teaching yoga, Ayurveda, and meditation around the world. She is a singer, gardener, writer, sourdough baker, lover of kitty cats, thunderstorms, and intensely dark chocolate. You can find her at:

www.dragonflyyogabarn.com

I am grateful for so many things in this life 💜

My dearest ones of all, my amazing kids (and their awesome partners!) I am so lucky to be your mama, and sometimes I have to pinch myself and ask how these two precious humans came through Declan and I and into this world… it is just a magical and miraculous gift from the Universe to us, these children. Sigh. And to my beloved man 💜 there are just no words for you, my love.

I am grateful for the sweet and deep friendships that nourish me so… I feel so held, seen, and cared for in this life. I am honored to walk with you through thick and thin, with laughter and tears, music and magic, and so much more. I am grateful beyond measure.

This beautiful land I live on… the evergreens, the moss and mushrooms, the birds, moose, porcupines, and bears. For the owls and frogs. For the way the autumn sky lights up pink and shines on Whiteface Mountain, just wow–I get to be HERE every day.

I am thankful for the rain and the fog and the snow that’s coming.
For the quiet landscape of winter, and for the return of spring… for deep rest and renewal and flourishing–I am grateful for it all.

For the night sky! For the belt of stars that call me to look up each night, I am grateful.

I am grateful for my Native American bloodline and the code I carry from my mother’s family to my own. I honor my sacred ancestors today–it was not Thanksgiving to them. It was another day to honor the earth and to walk in harmony with the land and animals. May my feet honor their memory.

I am grateful for being able to go… to travel the world and see beautiful people and places… to expand my awareness of this planet. To keep my eyes open to what else is happening in the world outside my oasis–and to be more than a bystander. I am grateful for the weight of this responsibility.

I am grateful to come home to this house and yoga studio we built with our own hands. I am happy to clean each room with love and care. I am grateful to cook here in my beautiful kitchen and practice yoga on the gorgeous pine floor Declan made. I am grateful for my warm bed, knowing so many do not have a home-place like this to rest in when the sun goes down.

For all of my students, then and now… to all of the “kids” who taught me how to become a good teacher way back when. How to be patient and caring and to honor how different we all are–those years were the rich soil that grew the garden of my yoga practice and teaching. To my yoga students… omg, I just cannot express what you mean to me–I get to share what I love and you come to practice, travel, learn, share–and I can call that my job! I cannot measure my gratitude 🙏🏼 Truly, I am blessed!

For every day and every experience that has brought me to this moment as a woman ~ child ~ wife ~ mother ~ elder ~ wisdom keeper ~ teacher ~ student. For the hard things. I am grateful for you too. I have learned and am always learning how to be resilient, how to peel back another layer of story and armor, how to build my strength with compassion, integrity, and forgiveness.

I am grateful every day for this journey in this body with this mind, these eyes, this voice, and this very heart. I cherish the choice to move from my heart with every step, and how to let joy be the feedback that my heart compass follows. I am grateful for the teachers that nurtured this awareness in me–I bow to you 🙏🏼

With love and gratitude for all of this and so much more,
Katie
💜🙏🏼

Happy Halloween, Blessed Samhain, Dia de los Muertos! These past few days as the veil has drawn thin, we have the capacity to sense, feel, maybe even see through to the other side of this experience. Do you believe?

Many of you commented about the remembrance of your pets on Oct. 27~28, a special part of the Dia de los Muertos week which is a day of calling your departed pets home for the night. Today I hope you will post the name of someone you are remembering tonight and tomorrow as we move from Samhain~All Hallows Eve~Halloween into Dia de los Muertos on Nov. 1. Feel free to share a memory or a tradition if you like, or a picture of your Samhain~Halloween~Dia de los Muertos altar on my facebook page:

Let’s talk about Ireland and SAMHAIN, pronounced Sow-win or Saa-wn. Some have noted that the Irish holiday of Samhain coincides with Halloween, but did you know Samhain was actually the inspiration for Halloween? And did you know in IRELAND the tradition is to carve potatoes and turnips on Halloween? And that when the Irish came to America they discovered gourds and pumpkins to carve? Yep. Let’s remember some of Halloween’s roots and bring spirituality back to our dearly departed spirits!

Samhain was a time when the folks of Ireland could feel the veil was thin… it was the time between seasons, between the bounty of harvest and the long winter, a time to gather inward, to survive on summer stores, sit at the hearth close to each other… and yet there was and is an inner knowing that the spirit world and all that is outside of this human body is close by… accessible… maybe even tangible if we listen. Sometimes to listen we need to go outside, outside our comfort zone, outside our homes, outside of our neatly-packaged beliefs even, to grow our awareness wide enough to sense and feel what is beyond this limited body and thinking mind.

The ancient Irish were once afraid of the spirits, thinking that they would be stolen on these nights, taken from their human lives by evil ghosts. Somewhere along the line, they began to make scary face masks and create costumes, to beat their bodhran drums, and march into the fields under the full harvest moon and build enormous bonfires to scare away the evil ones! But over time, the people came to see the Aos Sí, the “unseen folk” as ancestral spirits returning home, seeking the warmth and welcome of fires and family. It truly is a tradition that understands we are more than this physical body bag of flesh (is that halloweeny enough for you?) and that we are spirit once the body bag is gone!

What does this Irish tradition teach us? Don’t be afraid. Love conquers fear every time. Are you missing a loved one? Go out tonight under the dark sky… open your heart to the wondrous possibilities of a sweet visit from a spouse, a friend, a granny, a child, a pet that has left its physical body behind. And maybe someday, when your physical body has dropped away its bones and muscles, you too will come back like a whisper to visit your dear living ones for a moment on this Samhain night.

With love and many blessings,

Katie

My very favorite holiday, and here’s why!

I posted on October 27th on my FB page about Dia de los Muertos here in Mexico, and how the celebrations happen over many nights, spanning October 27 through November 3rd. It is a holiday with so much tradition, so much tenderness, and with so many layers, I have grown to love it deeply over the past 13 years I have been coming to Central America.

Some of you might remember traveling with us to Costa Rica in 2012–our very first yoga retreat!! Or Guatemala and Nicaragua between 2015 and 2017. Then came Mexico, and for the past 7 years, I have to say, this place really has our hearts. When it comes to Dia de los Muertos, Mexico and its little “magic towns” here on the Nayarit really take this tradition to the absolute… the streets, the shops, the restaurants, the casitas, the stairways and tiny cobblestone paths… every place becomes an altar, a place of remembrance. I love that the way I feel in India is so similar to the way I feel here. Holidays, the Divine, family, and tradition are all paramount. And the colors! Oh my goodness, like India, the murals, the clothing, the textiles, the decor, the incense, the food, the flowers!!! Truly, I am a lucky girl to have these spots on the planet that stir my soul the way they do!

Anyhoo… back to my post!

October 27th is for our pets, our dearly departed and beloved furry family members who have stepped out of their physical paws and tails and into a light body that, if we remember them in a special way, can still visit us!! But only if we believe, if we keep our hearts open, if we remember to keep their sweet faces on our altars, and on October 27th-28, to put out special treats. I imagine Maizy Moon and Seamus will eat those even if they are left for Puddy, Sweetie Pie, and Mr. Paws (and going way back: Lefty, Lola, Buckwheat and Millie, Daisy, Sweet Pea, and Goodbye Girl, Buddy and Spirit, and Oatmeal, my very first kitty). That’s a lot of kitties over my 50+ years!

Preparations for Dia de los Muertos are well underway here in Sayulita, where we have spent the last 3 years visiting during this beloved season. The town is decked with colorful flags, the restaurants put out their skeletons reminding us to put a little meat on our bones, and the shops are full of sugar skulls, candles, marigolds, and altar decorations. EVERY nook and corner here becomes a place to pause. 

October 28th, people prepare their altars and light the first candles and lay out white flowers. We honor all of the souls who have passed on. It is a collective moment for all of us here still embodied to honor those released from their human form. The candles light the way so our departed loved ones can see their way back to us when they come through the veil to visit on their special day! This is a sacred journey for our loved ones, and they are asking us to be aware of them and to call them back in for sweet moments of memory. Pull out pictures and mementos, tell stories of your loved ones, and know they are listening! If they hear us talking about them, and we light the way, they have a moment to return, to touch into this realm, remind us they are always in our hearts. 

Today, October 29, is the day of tribute to the unclaimed spirits who have no families to welcome them home. On this day, we can put out a tall glass of water to quench their thirst, as they may have been traveling a long way to find a family to welcome them in. You could write a love note and put it on your altar with the simple words: Welcome, or “all are welcome here” or whatever way feels special to you to acknowledge the spirits who seek the abode of a loving family.

After today, things really ramp up… but I hope to post more on that later. For now, just opening our hearts to the great mystery of life, death, and the expansive beyond and all that is possible feels like a wonderful practice.

With love, the tenderness of memory, and the sweet joy of sharing this life with you. Many blessings on this day and always, from the magic town of Sayulita,

Love, Katie

(p.s. more on the foot thingy later)

Today, August 27th, is an auspicious day, the Lord Ganesha’s birthday and the beginning of a 10-day celebration throughout India (and worldwide) for those who love Ganesh, the elephant god with the broken tusk, round Buddha-like belly, and little mouse as his escort. He is as sweet as the treats he loves to eat, as Kapha as they come, and as wise as the day is long. Join me for a little story about Ganesha’s birthday!

When I first learned about Ganesh it was over 20 years ago, and I was a newly-minted yoga teacher only just discovering the Hindu deities. At first I didn’t latch onto Ganesh; but now I take him everywhere with me. You see, Ganesh–my rotund and rooted elephant friend–is known as the “remover of obstacles,” and who doesn’t have obstacles in their pathway? (Maybe more on that in a later post). Ganesh is about WAY more than removing obstacles though. He is a protector, a sturdy and rooted being, wise as the day is long, and a benevolent giver of blessings. And I love him. I remember when I found this OM pendant and saw the curves of Ganesh’s trunk and tusk taking the forms of the symbol representing the sound of the Universe, it instantly became a fixture around my neck.

Ganesh is the child of the Goddess Parvathi, born from her own need for companionship and protection during long periods of time when her husband Shiva took off for the mountains to meditate or go hunting. The tale goes that one day while Parvathi is heading to her bath, she asks the bull Nandi to guard her door so that no one will come in; the trouble is, Nandi is Shiva’s bull, and his allegiance is to Shiva, so when Shiva returns home and asks Nandi to step aside, he does as his Lord wishes, and Shiva enters Parvathi’s room without her permission. To say she is P-O’ed is an understatement! Parvathi vows that the next time Shiva leaves for the mountains, she will take it upon herself to create a being that will be as loyal to her as Nandi is to her husband.

The day comes when Parvathi takes the dirt of her own body, mixes it with turmeric paste, and breathes life into her new son, Ganesha. Parvathi instructs Ganesh to guard the door and allow no one to pass while she bathes, so he plants himself as a guard, a sturdy protector of his dear mother and vows to let no one pass without Parvathi’s consent.

When Shiva arrives home, he sees the strange boy and orders him to move. Ganesh flatly refuses and even fights off members of Shiva’s army, completely unscathed and as grounded to the spot outside his dear mother’s door than ever before. Now Shiva, who is a pretty even-tempered mountain man, becomes angry. And when Shiva gets angry, well, we all know the fire of destruction will fume out of his hands! Shiva loses his marbles and wields a sword that slices Ganesh’s head from his body in a gruesome and mindless instant!

When he learns that the dead boy is his beloved’s own son, he falls in remorse. Parvathi, however, can not be consoled. (It is said she wailed so long and hard that her crying echoed over the valley below Mt. Kailash!). After her cries, she grows fiercely angry and threatens to destroy all of creation (important backstory: Parvathi is a form of Devi, Parashakti, the Divine feminine, the power of creation itself– a woman not to be messed with!). Anyhoo, Lord Bramha, the Creator is a bit worried by her threat, so he and Shiva agree to Parvathi’s two terms: one, that Ganesh be brought back to life, and second, that he be revered as a God among the gods themselves. Agreed! Brahma himself goes to the woods to find the head of the first beast he encounters and returns with a great elephant’s head, which Shiva places on Ganesh’s body as he lovingly breathes new life into the boy he now calls his own son.

There’s always more to the story than the story itself, but for today, we’ll leave it at this!

Happy (double) Birthday, dear Ganesh. May we all be as brave and steadfast as you! May you offer your protection when we need someone to stand up for us. May we receive the blessings and kindness you offer to all beings!

Sharanam Ganesha!

with love,

💜

Katie

All photos by Katie O’Connell

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

Happy Maha Shivaratri, Everyone, and blessings on this auspicious day and night!

The festival of Maha Shivaratri, or the Great Night of Shiva,” is one of the most significant in the Hindu tradition. It is said that spiritual practices like meditation, chanting, and yoga performed as we are moving through this new moon are magnified 10,000 times! It’s also said one should stay up all night dancing and singing to get the full effect of this new moon Shivaratri energy, but I don’t think that’s happening for this yogi who will most likely be in bed by 9 pm–right after we finish chanting!

Here and now, during this darkest night of the month, we have the opportunity to let go of limiting ideas about ourselves, release ourselves from the patterning and conditions that trap us in our body and mind, and affirm our illuminated Self. This isn’t easy work. These beliefs and conditions can be deeply ingrained ruts that seem impossible to climb out of; but we are worthy of the diligent effort it takes to get to the cushion or mat (Tapas), worthy of the spiritual self study (Svadyaya), and worthy of the rewards that bring us ever closer to our true and limitless Self. Here on our panchakarma retreat, guests spend a minimum of 3-4 weeks clarifying the body, mind, and spirit with diet, exercise, meditation, chanting, herbs, and spiritual counseling under the wonderful guidance of Dr. Sundara Raman. As of today, all 14 of us have completed our purgation and are ready to celebrate the next step of this purification and the rasayana (nourishing routines) that will support our ability to move toward greater balance in body, mind, and spirit.

My regular students know my favorite chant to sing at the end of yoga class is “Om Namah Shivaya,” one of the most popular Hindu mantras, and especially important for those who worship Shiva as the incarnation of the Divine. I like it because it is known to be a mantra used to purify the body and mind, as well as to balance the five elements in our being: earth (na), water (ma), fire (is), air (va), and space (ya). I sing the entire chant five times: “Om Namah Shivaya Gurave, Satchitananda Murtaye, Nisprapanchaya Shantaya, Niralambaya Tejase,” which means:

“I offer myself to the Light, who is the true eternal teacher

Within and without (the teacher of all teachers),

Who assumes the forms of

Pure joy, pure awareness, and bliss (reality),

Always present and full of peace, this is my true nature

Independent in its existence,

Ever luminous, and always supporting me.”

Short and sweet, it means: “Salutations to That which I am capable of becoming!” We are all capable of becoming clearer and stepping towards the luminous and authentic beings we are when we clear away the obstacles (Kleshas) that obstruct our ability to see who and what we really are. Now those kleshas, that’s a story for another post!

The celebration of Shivaratri invites us to recognize and use our divine potential for our highest good, and thus the good of all creation. All we have to do is give ourselves to love and practice what raises our vibration, be it Bhakti yoga or meditation. As my teacher Dr. Paul Dugliss says, “every time we practice, it uplifts all of humanity for all time.”

I’m honored to be co-leading an Ayurveda retreat and teaching yoga here in the high mountains of Tamil Nadu, India on this auspicious holiday and sharing this time with beloved friends here at Mountaintop. Let it be a beautiful day of preparation and a night full of singing, flower pujas, and bringing in the light! For us here on the Mountaintop, overlooking the sunrise and set, the city lights below, and hearing the distant music from villages near and far, we will be sharing the blessings of this day and night in the radiant container we have created together. Let your luminous and radiant spirit shine into the darkness of this new moon magic!

With love,
Katie

Alright, it’s time for a post just about the amazing food lovingly prepared by our team of chefs. Each day we are fed the most beautiful veggies, delicious dals, fabulous fruits, and glorious grains (okay, I know that sounds a bit overboard, but I’m not kidding. I’m getting hungry just thinking about what surprise is next!)

Every day after sunrise yoga, we are given a plateful of fresh fruit–just one variety: papaya, lychee, pomegranate, mango, avocado w/ flax seeds and honey (OMG), bananas, always with a side of dried fruits like amla berry, dates, or figs. I love it all.

In Ayurveda, fruit is eaten separately from grains and dairy, as taking them together can create fermentation and digestive malaise. Waiting at least 30-45 minutes allows for fruit to digest before adding the dairy that can cause fruit to ferment in the stomach and digestive tract (so all of you yogurt w/ fruit kinda folks, this one’s for you!). For those of you interested in a little primer on food combining and what foods don’t play well together, check out Dr. Vasant Lad’s site here:

Once we finish our fruit, some of us like to take a walk through the tea and the little village of Hulical, which takes exactly 30 minutes and gives just enough time to work up our appetite as we huff up the driveway to the retreat and arrive just in time for our grain breakfast. Phew! This morning after our morning jaunt, Annie, Molly and I circle back to the dining room to have breakfast. We are warm after our walk and decide to eat outside under the ficus tree in the shade. Mahalakshmi brings us each a bowl of the prettiest porridge I’ve ever seen. It is decorated with rose petals, pepitas, and almonds. She returns a minute later with a little silver dish of jaggery (unrefined dark brown sugar) for a little sweetness. Karin joins us at our little table, and together the four of us savor every bite. I look into my bowl to see a rose petal heart.

Some of the other breakfasts include quinoa puma with roasted chickpea chutney, or maybe a poha with cilantro mint chutney and cashews. Some days it is millet with veggies, and other times it’s a green mung bean dosa with coconut chutney. (Did you say “you had me at coconut chutney?” Me toooo!). Sorry, no dosa picture–I ate it before I could document that one.

Lunch each day consists of a vegetable sabji, some kind of amazing dal soup, packed with protein, a chapati, and a little salad of either greens, beets, or a mix of veggies, often dressed with lime, sesame, and honey–soooo good! Clearly, John’s delight tells you how delish this beet and coconut salad is. And btw, no one gets as humongous a pile of cabbage sabji as John. Somehow he’s got it in with he kitchen! Most of us ask for a side of ghee to pour on our piping hot chapatis, and with a little pink rock salt, voila! It is a heavenly lunch!

Here are a couple more pics to whet your appetite! That funky-looking puckered vegetable is called a Chocho, or a Chayote, and it’s often used in curries and coconut sabji like the one on the left. On the right is a lentil dal, steamed beet greens, fresh green salad with sprouts, and always lime with everything!

Dinners are meant to be a bit lighter than lunch, so while the lunch has a dal (lentil) soup with lots of protein, dinners have a lighter veggie soup, steamed veggies, and some kind of light grain like mint rice, millet with chopped veg, and sometimes (like last night) sweet potatoes with herbs. In Ayurveda we eat the biggest meal in the middle of the day while the digestive fire (Agni) is high, and later as the sun goes down, we eat a lighter dinner that’s easier to digest before we sleep. The meals are all made with lots of love, and it’s really fun to see how many of the veggies come right here from Mountaintop’s own garden: pumpkins, lettuce, cauliflower, gourds, bananas, beets, carrots, and so much more! Thank you Indrani, Mageshwari, Mahalakshmi xoxo

For now, I’m off to bed with a full belly and an even fuller heart. With love from India,

~Katie