rasyogi

An old man is standing beneath a cherry tree in a certain stance, knees slightly bent, his hands below his waist, body width apart, as he gently shakes them as if coaxing life into them. A contemplative smile plays across his face. A small transistor radio lodged in the fork of the tree chats away in an awry sort of way. An elderly couple walks together uphill, backwards, greeting me in a duet of “hello” and a synchronized bow as I walk past them. I smiled at them and bowed in return. I thought that maybe they walked this way all the time so they wouldn’t have to face the approach of time head on. Another man well on in years does the same, his face buried in the newspaper that he is reading. Oblivious to ... read more

The first month passed with the swiftness of a sparrow chasing sparrow. I had virtually no time to become acclimatized to the culture before I started teaching yoga at Y+ . Teaching yoga brought me into intimate contact with an alien cultural before I could say “ni hao” . Pronounced “nee how” it is the Mandarin greeting. And with a very sensitive and specific sector of its population - educated upper middle class and upper class women. The vast majority of whom were being exposed to and practicing yoga for the first time. The impact was cushioned to a large extent by the bubble of the Y+ environment with its staff of very friendly women all eager to learn English and very curious about the foreigner in their midst. We quickly established a relationship of ... read more

I remember reading one of those listings that pop up on the Yahoo home page whenever I go to check emails, that named what some travel writers regarded as the ten most beautiful causeways in the world. Although I don’t remember what causeways were listed, I was kind of surprised to see that the Venetian causeway, not in Venice, Italy, but Miami, Florida was listed among them. The West Lake in Hang Zhou is traversed by three causeways - the Bai Causeway, the Su Causeway, and the Yanggong Causeway. If these spectacular land bridges were neither included nor ranked above the Venetian, somebody needs to revise that list already. Distinctive in their individuality as they are in their collective presence they are masterpieces of land art. Even on a misty day as today when visibility was ... read more

Today is my day off and the first chance to further explore the celebrated West Lake. Situated at the geographical western edge of the city, but at it’s commercial and hospitality epicenter it is ringed to the west and south by a range of green hills with names like “Flying clouds over Yuhuang Hill”, “Jade Emperor Hill” and “The hill flown from afar”. Mainly because of these fortuitous geographical features Hang Zhou was regarded by Marco Polo, the legendary Venetian traveler, as the most beautiful and majestic city in the world during his visit in the 13th century. He remarked that because of it’s stunning lake, many canals and with it’s “12,000 bridges, mostly of stone” it reminded him of his hometown. As for myself, when I first visited Venice in the latter part of ... read more

mon Oct 24 I had nine students in my first yoga class in China today. it is described as a flow class but the equence was a modified astanga first series. i do my best to transcend the language barrier by demonstrating as i speak, delivering instructions with confidence and maintaining a sensitivity to the needs of each student. i am able to deliver a few commands in chinese to the amusement of sean, the studio director, who is taking the class and who is almost fluent in the language. I see that it was challenging for the most part for most of the students but carry on as i know that challenges are nothing new to these people. i am also encouraged by the discipline of the predominantly female class, their focus, and the ... read more

Mon Oct 24 I happen upon the fabled West Lake, one of china’s main tourist attractions during an early afternoon stroll. I am surprised to discover it here one block away from the studio. Shimmering in the afternoon glare, tourists saunter along its edge. Tourist boat operaters wait patiently for the next client interested in taking the trip to the manmade island across the water. The usual curio shops, common to any tourist destination, dot the esplanade. An old man intercepts me from behind greeting me and inviting conversation. I am startled and a bit humbled at the same time by his presence and his interest in me. He struck me as more than just another curious native. His English is functional and we are able to communicate. His face is ageless, his comportment reverent and ... read more

Sun Oct 23. Walked to the studio along the same route I traveled the day before . cool pleasant morning . at the same street corner where the woman did her sword the previous morning a group of about 8 women performed a dance, whirling and swooping with scarves swirling around them - gracefully, delightfully, as harmonious and synchronized as migrating birds. There, I meet sean, an American who has been traveling in asia for more than four years, three of them in china. Sean is the director of the hang zhou program. A pleasant man, with a boyish grin we proceed to talk about our plans for the day and life in hang zhou where we will travel together shortly. We make a brief stop on the road to hang zhou on the outskirts of ... read more

friday 23 oct. 9:02 pm the approach to narita airport japan took us over a seemingly agrarian community . observing the checkered layout of the land and noticed its organic nature - how the irrregularly shaped residential areas was weaved into the rectangular patchwork plots of lland and copses of trees . from the air i could feel a sense of rural sobriety and harmony. brief stopover in japan - the somber atmosphere reminded me more of kingston airport than a so called first world transit hub......the calm comforting. after 23 hours of travelling i finally arrived in china, the fabled middle kingdom, mother of the orient. my flight was for the most part, comfortable..the northwest airline stewards in bisiness class were exceptionally pleasant and ready to serve. the space generous, the creature comforts quite ... read more

the landscape stretches out for infinity beneath me , the horizon blending into the sky and dissolving into the atmosphere. the terrain stretches out like a living thing - amoebic self propogating irregular cells and swirling ribbons of water and earth- protoplasmic. untrampled by human feet and untouched by the scarification of civilization the fringes of the tundra mesmerizes me like a prolific mushroom growing forever defying the limitations of boundaries. As enchanting as a masterpiece conceived and executd by an unknown abstract expressionist artist i float as if supported by the folds of clouds that roll beneath the cruising carapace of the 747 . i am tempted to jump, secure in the knowledge that the clouds will catch me and embrace me . And then, aaagh! suddenly, a straight line- the hand of homo ... read more

earthquake in japan resulted in flight being deferred to following day. i was a little inconvenienced but eventually accepted the flow. provided with very comfrotable hotel room at crowne plaza hotel for overnight stay. hope that this will be a foretaste of my china experience. ... read more