Visa Regulations Require Trip to Thailand. Oh, Too Bad

May 18, 2009

It has been a month since either of us wrote in our blog. Our time has been packed with various wonder-filled activities in and around Nimboli. . Both of us have written about our Indian experiences, but neither of us have polished them for this blog. By the photos you might wonder where we have gone. Palm Springs, California? China? Japan? They don't allow you to wear bathing suits like this in India!

Right now we are in Chaing Mai, Thailand. We wanted to escape the worst of the heat in Nimboli which was expected to get up to 120 degrees F. And now we are in northern Thailand experiencing monsoon weather. We do find it refreshing after so many weeks of dry heat. We also had to leave the country every six months to renew our tourist visa. Some people have student visas when staying in an ashram and we will have to explore this. But for the time being, it is to our advantage to “have to leave” the country every six months. We probably would not have left if it was not required.

Dahvee found a four star hotel online, the Green Lake Resort, with two fabulous swimming pools, gorgeous and elegant simplicity in its architecture, and more than just a comfortable place for us to stay.

The tourism trade has suffered 50% here in Thailand due to swine flu scare, political upheaval and economic downturn. Of course this works in our favor by everyone offering special discounts. Our hotel is just a short drive outside the city of Chaing Mai and charges $ 26 a night which includes breakfast and air conditioned room. They shuttle guests to and from the main city for free three times a day. We are very happy with our arrangements. The gardens are abloom with exotic flowers: many varieties of orchids, birds of paradise, Champa, and unknown flowers. It is heavenly. We are surprised that there are not more bugs..

Sunday night is the principal weekly street fair which attracts locals and tourists. We were looking forward to attending. But as soon as we jumped out of the shuttle, the clouds released torrents of rain. We looked around for a dry place to wait out the storm, and there was our salvation: “Starbucks”. We had tried the Indian equivalent in Mumbai: Costa Coffee and Café Coffee Day. Each time we were disappointed. But here in Chaing Mai, you would not know the difference from this Starbucks and the one in your neighborhood in the states, except of course, the Thai translations. We were not disappointed.

We spent our first day napping by the pool, swimming in the delightful water and reading. Impulsively I bought a copy of Louis Fletcher’s “The life of Mahatma Gandhi” at the Mumbai airport. (In five months I have found only one adequate bookstore in Mumbai. I know there must be hundreds, but when we go to Mumbai we usually have a list of things to do that always exceeds the time we have available.) This book is perfect for it is answering many of the historical questions that have arisen in our minds since arriving in India: When and how did the caste system get started? When did the British arrive and for how long did they rule? What did India look like before the British? And what exactly did Gandhi do for India. I am not going to answer those questions for you, but this book has been a fabulous resource for me. I have been a fan of Gandhi’s since I saw the movie of his life probably over 20 yrs ago. And now I am learning more about what influenced his decisions and his actions. I do believe this will make a difference in the way I adapt to the amazing country of India.

Every night our hotel has a spa special which allows us to partake in some kind of massage or spa treatment. Right now we are waiting for our notification that our evening massage for $9 will be ready. The other night, Dahvee had two and half hours of body work and he looked so relaxed when he got back to our room. Chiang Mai has become a mecca for massage and health treatments. Of course, we all have heard of the plethora of sexual massage parlors here, but also, there are many legitimate massage clinics. Even at the open air market, there were rows of lounge chairs, the kind you watch TV from, where massage therapists awaited the chance to give a client a foot or back massage. By the end of the evening all the chairs were filled, and there were many hands at work on exposed feet, backs, legs, arms and heads. I personally like to receive my back rub in private. Dahvee has been trying for weeks to receive a massage in Nimboli. Two times he has found a massage therapist, both times men, and was given 10 minute massages. Not quite what he had in mind. So we are looking into taking a 5 or 10 day Thai massage class here in Chaing Mai so that we can at least be of benefit to each other once back in Nimboli.

Our second day here we walked around inside the old walled city of Chaing Mai. We are immediately struck at how clean and organized the streets are. I wondered why is it the concrete streets of India crumble making for such rough streets? Dahvee explained that the politicians and city officials are known for siphoning money off the top leaving very little for infrastructure. It is a shame.

Here in Chiang Mai it seems that every street has a beautiful Buddhist temple and gold laden stupa. Inside, we found monks in orange robes performing various rituals, eating lunch or meditating. The energy in each of the temples was beautiful and strong and we found it very easy to meditate. Some of the temples are over 500 years old, so one can imagine that many prayers and devotions have been performed in each. Dahvee caught some great shots of the gorgeous architecture of the temples with their adornments of dragons, gold, and Buddha figures. Here is his friend the dragon.

More to come………………….
Jeanette

Adjusting to New Life in Nimboli

This is a quick status report:

It is hard to believe, but today the phone line men came again, and now we have internet service at 1500 speed, not 50. Wow!!! it is fast.

We finally can begin to download podcasts again. Hooray for Kazi!!

Our third letter has now been delivered to Nimboli via post office. It arrives hand delivered by motorcycle. Amazing!!

Had our third puja in Dome today, a little yagna with paduka abesheka; very lovely. This brahman, Govinda, includes us and explains some things in English.

Air conditioner is working well.
Kazi having success with his work for NET.

Swami G came and went. He is looking forward to seeing his Australian friends and Swami Shankarananda in Melbourne.

Dahvee had to get a replacement bike since first one broke twice. He is very happy with his replacement.

Our doctor next door invited us in for tea today. dear man and devoted to Swami Pornananda, of Rak Hadi Baba lineage next door. Lovely neighbors we have here in Nimboli.

The river is drying up quickly. Just heard that we can count on the water table rising for several days in August above the porch.

Doctor told us that the only dangerous things are scorpions and snake bites. He has anti venom for both. Seen three scorpions so far. I think I will get off the floor now that I think about it. We did get a darling little cat for catching crawling things. He said the lizards and chirogs not dangerous.

Off to bed,
Love,
Jeanette

Goddess Visits During Yagna

Dahvee and I are doing our best here in this hot weather of 105 to 110 degrees. It is suppose to get even hotter in May, up to 120 degrees. Our visas require that we have to leave the country every six months, so we will probably leave in late May to go to the highlands of Nepal, or such. In June the monsoon season starts, and everything gets more humid, but cooler. Some people like the monsoon, some don't. We will see.

Fortunately we are in the process of having an air conditioner installed today. Dahvee has broken out in a fungal rash across his chest and back, kind of scary. We have been in communication with our new hormone doctor in Mumbai about it, and have already received one prescription for the infection. We feel glad we have that connection with a doctor who speaks English. Can you imagine, when we had our first appointment with him, he spent three hours talking to us. When was the last time you got more than an half hour in the states? And we were able to both get our Bio identical hormones here in Mumbai. Hooray!! Dahvee probably got the infection when we went swimming in the local river, which has now almost dried up. When we were swimming, we all felt like scratching ourselves, but we were so hot, that we just ignored this discomfort. Since our bodies are so hot, this fungus is having a great time. I won't scare you with photos. Hopefully we can report soon it is completely healed.

We haven't gone to many places but many amazing synchronistic events happen here in our home. The other day Dahvee, Maheshwari and I sponsored a puja with a Brahman for one of our staff who painfully wants to have a child. She and her husband have been married for eight years, and here in India not having a child is a problem. She earns about $ 2 a day, so putting on her own puja (at $ 30) would be out of her budget. I remember how painful it was for me to want a child and not be able to conceive. Fortunately for me, those times are long gone; and instead we can all pray for them.

This local Brahman, Govinda, came over and did the most elaborate Puja for them in our Dome at Fire Mountain. Here they appeal to the Goddess and Krishna for getting pregnant. So I bought a little brass figure of Krishna and a photo of Shiva, Parvati and their child Ganesh for Juanita to use in the puja and then take back to her home altar.

In the middle of the the three hour puja, we were all startled by the appearance of the most beautiful cow who broke through our fence and ran through the yard. She visited us exactly when the Brahman was doing the prayers to the Mother/Goddess. She was so elegant, holding her head up high. And then when she wanted to leave our fenced compound, she faced our newly built bamboo gate, looked closely for the weakest link, crouched down on her back legs, as if the Mother herself was bending down and gathering up her dress so she could escape thru the gate. Here in India, Krishna is associated with the Cow Goddess. You can find the most touching icons of Krishna suckling directly on the udders of cows. So, when this wondrous cow ran through our yard, we all felt so blessed by this visitation of the Goddess. We all knew this puja would be a successful prayer.

At one point in the puja, they pour ghee onto a plate, and we all look into it to see what the face of the child will be. The photo above is me seeing an image of Krishna crawling baby style, like the other little statues I had seen in the store. Juanita saw it too. We all believe a special child is to come through this couple

Jeanette and Dahvee arrive

NEWS FLASH:  PEACE ABOUNDS IN NIMBOLI!!!

 

Displaced refugees Jeanette H and Dahvee H report being amazed by the intensity of the peace and quiet of Nimboli after just one night’s residence.  They were quoted as saying “the sun rises – the sun sets – the air is suddenly filled with a sweeping arc of white egrets wafting over the hibernating rice patty fields and brick-making grounds -  -  occasionally the sounds of children playing, yelling their surprise and  delight, the sounds of drumming and chanting of God-Dess celebrating/invoking people, the familiar pervasive chipping sounds of masons plying their trade, and the very audible  inclusive silence.  Not even the ubiquitous Indian noise of diesel machinery disturbs the tranquility here - - just the cawing of crows and multiple other unidentified avians polka-dot the space time surround.

These amateur and jet lagging travelers expressed their surprise and being graced by a cool almost cold, night and the surprise of awakening to a dense and delicious morning fog blanketing the entire region and making every surface, yesterday dry and dusty, wet with dew.

 The pair was observed to be rather in a state of shock and when asked about their apparent befuddlement, they could only mutter unintelligibly about “simple, it’s so simple” - - adding some further stuttering about powerful, palpable energy vortices, and Presence of Lineage so rich and available, they appeared to be highly affected by their translation to this location. 

Commenting on their evening meal, DH was heard to exclaim –“Wow, this is kick-ass dal the likes of which I’ve never experienced before - - this new cook has culinary siddhi - - not only transcendent dal but healing as well!!”  His reaction surprised this reporter as DH previously had boringly lamented over “yeah, there will be dal and then dal and if you don’t like dal, you can chose dal.” The new cook (Ms. Sunita (sp?) pronounced soon-ita) when told the couple liked spices, obviously was splendidly suited to the challenge, and has won the hearts of the appreciative pair.

Major construction was observed at Fire Mountain, home of amazing manifestations current and approaching, in the form of two new bathrooms arising rapidly brick by brick at the hands of the rhythmic Adavasi builders, and also the renovation of the women’s lavatory basins/mirrors and salon area. A buzz of excited discussion focused around the erection of a fabled dome-like structure rumored to be the future meeting place of guests and meditation enthusiasts from abroad, soon to arrive.  The place fairly sings with anticipation of this blessing. 

Asked for a comparative analogy to describe their Nimboli experience, a jumbled tossed salad of descriptive terms ensued– tossed salad life with no-thyme, thyme-less, thyme-a-plenty, thyme on your hands, and thyme, only thyme – this description doesn’t make much sense, but it seems to resonate solidly in the Haleys’ experience.

How is it the day rolls on in such a quiet, polite, timeless way in Nimboli, when so much of the world should apologize for its rough-shod treatment of the generous offerings of each moment?  A question to ask and enjoy, and certainly not to answer, but rather to use as fuel for transport to the origin of the question.  

As we left the happy couple, whose expectations obviously were surpassed by their experience, we heard Consierge  Sunil announcing the coconut curry luncheon was ready.

If you fancy a unique, spirited, and heartening adventure, we recommend plans for a trip to Fire Mountain, Maharasthra, India are in order. 

GODDESS’ FAVORITE GIFT/BEQUEST?

Stopped in my tracks near the top of the stairs by the arresting sight of the Meditation Dome pulsing with Light and Power – shinning and vibrating as a huge energy center – subtle spiritual nuclear energy. 

I had experienced and was awed by the power and vajra intent of the Yagna just completed for Juanita, our beloved cook and helper, and her husband who so feverently desired to have a baby and had not been successful.  Early on in the magic of the Yagna, I knew with the inner knowing that it was already successful. The preparations for the event were intense!  Jeanette’s love had organized the people and the mangos and oranges and spices and nuts and seeds and flowers and Deity and Guru pictures and flowers, and it all came together orchestrated by Govinda, the Brahman, the facilitator of the deep, very deep and intense ritual groove of calling upon the Gods and especially in this case the Goddesses of the Indian Spiritual Architecture. So carefully he laid out the flowers and seeds and nuts and fruit and oil and spices in so many different evocative symbolic representations of spirit knowledge.

There was a big crowd at this event - - only a handful, less than 10 human form beings, but what an assembly of Spirit!  There is no question in my mind of the powerful response of the Goddess to a couple who intensely desires to have a baby.  Apparently this ranks at the top of the list of Goddess priorities evidenced by rich, quick, thorough response of Spirit Presence.

Irresistible the attraction of the young couple holding the coconut aloft together, pouring the anointments on the symbolic feet of the Guru,  throwing the ghee on the flames of the fire as the Brahman Priest chanted the age old powerful invocations to the Deities.

 

 The though arose--- Goddess is not capable of resisting such primal desire to birth another facet of Herself.

 

The smoke of the fire, at first an annoyance, later became a cleansing and transformative blessing, clearing away more of the self centered importance that has held this one imprisoned for so many lifetimes.  The Flow of Spirit Power boggled my mind - - the habitual stance of observing a ceremony with the little mind continually commenting and criticizing and categorizing was washed away by this rush of Spirit Presence.

I wondered—a boy or a girl?  --as the Brahman so relaxed and familiar with the response of the Spirit chanted on and wielded the elemental instruments of wood, water, food, oil, spice, Sanskrit words and meanings, all the while directing the couple in the presentation of their desire at the feet of the Goddess – the question affirming my conviction that the game was already over, the harbor was reached, a new soul is on the way.

 

About the couple?  She, Juanita, a strong, well proportioned woman capable of any task and possessing a beautiful smile and a musical step - - He, a man of even and accurate flowing grace, each movement executed with just the right amount of effort and ease and pinpoint accuracy - - a lightness about his being that complemented Juanita’s corporal beauty very well. A very special soul on the way, the thought that glided by in consciousness as I saw the picture of how well this new one will be cared for and loved as a result of withholding the child long enough to create an intensity deserving of the newborns stature.

 

The Brahman in a matter of fact closing statement said, “it is done, no problem”, -- gesturing to the elaborate physical staging and the unseen crowd of Spirit, he further explains “this is God - - it is done.”

 

Sucking in as much as I can hold of the astounding power vortex pulsing from the Dome, I marvel at how blessed this one is by the magic of our couple’s desire to have a baby and the response of the Goddess to,  I imagine, her favorite request.  I am happy that the physical and spiritual architecture of the Meditation Dome holds the charge of the Blessing.  I descend down the steps with a lightness of foot.