Sola

the night before the jain temple visit, megan and i were sitting at a rooftop restaurant looking west over the lake and the mountains beyond the city. just as the sun set, we watched a huuuuuge monsoon come in from the west. the whole sky and lake turned bright pink and orange, and we saw deep purple rain clouds sweep across the mountain range infront of us, then into the city. it was the biggest storm we had been in since we got here, the kind of fat rain that everyone has told us they're waiting for. 8 little lizards took refuge with us in the restaurant during the storm.

the next morning we payed 300 rupees to a travel agency to get a ride to Ranakpur, the Jain Temple. unfortunately, the ride was in a truck that a french woman had paid to take her ALONE! she was not willing to have more people in the car with her. so, we watched the guy from the travel company hand our 300 rupees to some guy on a motorbike in the street. he turned to us and said, "he'll be here in 20 minutes to pick you up." so, when he returned we jumped into the back of his car and drove off... for about 10 miuntes. then we pulled down a small dirt road to a little school house, and the engine stopped, and our driver dashed into the school. he emeregd a few minutes later with a tiny 6 year old boy. his son! another 10 minutes or so down the road, we stopped again. this time, we were invited in. we were greeted by his wife in their small apartment, given sweet limewater, and waited a few minutes while she packed a small bag. turned out the guy who was driving us was from jodhpur. he and his wife and son were making the trip back there, and as Ranakpur is on the way, they agreed to drop us there.

the drive was bumpy but beautiful. i had no idea there were such big, green mountains in that part of india! and the Jain temple was unbelievable! And a really nice young guy, Sandeep, showed us around, for free! he and his family have been taking care of the temple for 17 generations, so he seemed to know every little detail about the place. Jainism is a sort-of-religion that branched from hinduism. they rejected the caste system and ritual sacrifice, and are most known for their pacifism and respect for all life. the most famous images of jain monks show them sweeping infront of their feet as they walk and wearing masks over their noses and mouths to prevent accidentally killing a bug. during the monsoon, Jains don't eat onions, garlic, or tomato because so many insects depend on those crops. like buddhism, the ultimate jain will seperate himself from all material things and reach enlightenment. monks do not use any form of transportation other than their own two feet, and a few even go naked. some of the most pious jain monks will actually die from starvation or dehydration.

megan and i parted ways the next day and i made my way to rishikesh to see the ashram where i'm supposed to do yoga for 4 weeks in september. i didn't get the best feeling about it... so i'm considering changing my plans. i left rishikesh the next afternoon on a 15 hour overnight bus to McLeod Ganj, home of the Tibetan Government in Exile. i got a bright pink room with a little kitchen in a smaller town called Bhagsu, about 2km walk from the center of McLeod Ganj. i like it here. it's deep in the mountains, foggy, moist, and cool. everything is moldy and damp, but it's nice to be relieved of the heat in Rajasthan. there's a lot of yoga available here, so i may just stay for a while. the weather's bad enough that being inside for most of the day would be fine!

the streets are very steep and narrow, and the two main roads (Jogiwara and Temple Road) are littered with shops for buying supplies, trinkets, souveniers, and umbrellas. most of the time, the fog is so thick you can see more than 100 feet past your window, but every now and then it clears and you can see the mountains and waterfalls across the valley, and even a high peak in the distance. all the vegetation is thick and green, and there is an active interest in keeping the town litter-free. there are notices posted about using rubbish bins and dumpsters, not burning trash, recycling, reusing, and respecting the life around McLeod Ganj.

there are lots of flyers up about yoga courses, meditation classes, discussion groups about living in exile, information sessions about the chinese occupation of tibet, cooking classes, language lessons, and hiking guides. lots to do in a small town! i'm excited to stay for a while and learn some things :)