Train ride from Jaipur to Jaisaimer We left the hotel room in Jaipur at around 10 o ´clock at night to walk to the train station to catch a sleeper train to Jaisaimer. With Kyle´s compass and his awesome sense of directions we walked through the alleys of Jaipur all the way to the station. We saw our train announced on the board and as most trains in India it was late. We actually checked the status of our train with a website Kyle found which was very reliable. Our train arrived and we got in found our berths, we had the top (for Kyle) and the middle one (for me). It was a smooth ride, but I did not sleep much as I was worried we would kept sleeping and miss our stop which in ... read more

Train ride to Agra: Taj Mahal We woke up after a good night sleep occasionally being interrupted by street dogs barking and barking. We were out the door early to catch the 7am train to Agra from Delhi. We organized with our hotel to drop us off at the south train stations. It was a little bit expensive considering it was not far, but we preferred the security of knowing a taxi will be there early than having to look for one. I was excited to be on my first train ride and so was taking pictures of the train station surroundings and exploring a bit the station before the train left. I got some chai and a few snacks and water as well. We had second class seats so we found our seats, Kyle put ... read more

Feb. 10th, 2013 Last yoga class and trip to New Delhi I woke up at dawn a little before sunrise to do my morning meditation. I slowly sat down on the bed for meditation pose and breath slowly and deeply. I did my final meditation in the ashram. The morning yoga class was a multi-leveled class and the room was completely packed with people. I took the last mat on the shelf and sat down in butterfly pose with hands in muddra for the initial chanting and breathing. The breathing exercises were helpful and helped relax and calm and keep the mind focused for the practice. I have learned that yoga is all about the power of the mind, stillness and breathing. We did a series of routines with 7-9 different yoga poses, some harder than ... read more

Feb. 7th- 8th, 2013 Friday I woke up at the usual time for my morning meditation, 6:00 AM, as it was a chilly brisk morning I decided to stay in bed wrapped in a warm blanket and meditate there. I began my meditation, about being able to be free and let the mind stop controlling my thoughts, actions, feelings and others, by taking a few deep breaths inhaling and exhaling on a count of 4 inhaling deeply holding the air and exhaling on the count to 4. It is an exercise I learned at the pranayama class and I have been using it as a tool to release my nerves, anxieties and worries. It really works! After this breathing. exercise, I listened to the guided meditation by Deeprak Chopra center about letting go of control. It ... read more

Feb. 5th, 2013 Mumbai airport My flight arrived at the international airport of Mumbai at 11:55PM and my first impression of India was watching all the local people get respectfully and politely on the bus from the airplane to the terminal. In spite of being the largest population in the world I could observed that they were polite and a little more organized and less rude than their fellow Chinese neighbors. I entered immigration and noticed a bunch of lines: visitors, locals, business travelers, visitors with Indian working permits, etc. I could tell that it was a well organized airport. I went through immigration and baggage quickly and without much hazard and headed to find an exchange money place. After I found one I noticed the rate was so crappy compared to the one Kyle had ... read more