Varkala Magic

Varkala has a magic.. perhaps it's simply the magic that all beaches have, how powerful the sunset is as it falls over crashing foam and white waves, but I feel a flowing in my being that resonates so much with this sea, sun and sand business. Tonight I made it to the beach for sunset - I am usually doing my yoga asanas at this point, or maybe resting, but after tonight I realise how powerful this time of the day is and vow to myself to WORSHIP it in a sense. Although doing my yoga on the rooftop with Ambika at sunset the other day was pretty powerful as well... so much prana at these times, how powerful it is...

I love this life... as I walked to refill my waterbottle (they have a natural springs which flows down near the sea here, which is totally purified and safe, and saves so many plastic bottles of water) I got almost a mantra ino my head that went 'everything is here... everything is here...'. Lately (the past few months) there's something in me that has almost been searching in a way for something, I don't know what... I think it is just a case of losing my mind, really.. he he, but so true... everything is here, it's just a matter of being open enough to it, of dying to every moment and really feeling ALIVE and fresh at all times...

I'm so inspired by the people that have come into my life recently. For my entire first week at this beach I was spending most of my waking hours with Levik, Ambika and Sam from the Sivananda Ashram in Neyyar Dam near Trivandrum. We all arrived here seperately and just had the most amazing times ever... Such beautiful people... Levik of the many dreads, such a bright sprite full of eccentricity and energy, Sam with his openness and wonderful welcoming nature, and amazing playfulness! Ambika with her beauty and grace... so much surfing and frolicking at the beach, extended two hour breakfasts and dinners, music nights at 'Johnny Cool's', this great cafe I play two informal gigs at, and gatherings around the OM flag that we hand sewed before we left the ashram... there aer otehr characters in this play as well... Ange, from the ashram also, who hung out for a few days before heading off with her man Michael, Angel the brother of Levik, Brad from Texas who knew all the words to 'Patience' by Guns n Roses when I played it for him, and the 'Shiva Moon' crew - a two room guesthouse / restaurant where my guitar was always welcome and a liquor fondly known as 'XXX Rum' was often doing the rounds... (not passing by my lips though.. two nights of this at 'Johnny Cool's' was enough alcomohol for me...)

I haven't updated this blog thing for about a month so have yet to write about the whole ashram experience, hopefully I'm gonna get back into the writing swing and it's gonna follow soon... as for now I've just come from the beach with a smooth swing in my gait and words in my head, and there's beautiful music playing in this shanti little email cafe and a papaya, apple, lime, ginger and spirulina smoothie at my lips when I take the time to pause between sentences, so I'm happy to say the very very least.

I have decided that I'm gonna try to make it to Varanasi for the next full moon... this gives me about two weeks to
a) leave Varkala!! ahhh.. not such an easy task!
b)visit Munnar, a beautiful place in the mountanis
c) train it to Tamil Nadu, to Pondicherry and Auroville
d) train up to Kolkatta, possibly breaking the journey in Puri on the way.. perhaps Darjeeling too...

oh well.. so many options... It's gonna take years to enjoy all of India... I love her more with every day. Yesterday in Varkala township there was an elephant festival - like everything in India the elephants were about four hours delayed so I didn't stay for them although did see a great parade with big floats of various scenes from the Ramayana - you had the huge head of a demon, laughing hysterically (don't know how they did it, but it was awesome!) with a tiny Hanuman that they had rigged to fly into the demon's mouth and out of his ear victoriuosly brandishing his trumpet or something... they had Durga equipped with five lions roaring ferociously... Ganeasha with flapping ears and his mouse, and a lion I dont know the name of, ripping out some prince's stomach... not a religion for the weakhearted, is Hinduism...

I will have to tear myself from this computer I think... emails to write, mosquitoes to dodge... I am trying to write more now that I am pretty much alone again (the others all left yesterday morning, the beach ain't quite the same without them but I have also been loving getting into my meditation fully again so all is good...) so I should be back soon.. still have to write down the ashram experience and just generally ramble on descriptively about this country I love so much... Om Namah Shivaya, Om Namah Shivaya
xxxxoooo