After Mysore, I went to the city of Bangalore for one night with a friend to do some market shopping. The markets in India are an experience in and of themselves. You go to the main busy street of the market, lined with shops, carts, vendors, crowds of people and rikshaws driving everywhere, and then, if you just turn down any small ally off of the main street, you enter into what feels like an entirely different world – it’s like, the “real” market. No cars, just so many people and so many vendors situated in narrow lanes, selling everything from fruits and veggies to baskets and oils, to clothes and beads and jewelry, handmade accessories, shoes, bags, and SO MUCH fabric – tons of colorful fabric. You can’t walk a few steps without one of the vendors trying to lure you in – waving something in your face, or saying “Come, come.” Its mind blowing how any of these vendors make any money at all. There are so many of them all selling what feels like the same exact things, and for so incredibly cheap, practically nothing. How on earth do they make a living doing this?

It is also so overwhelming. After only 15 minutes in the market, you feel exhausted. The people and noise and amount of stimulation sucks the energy right out of you. But it is eye-opening to realize that in such a digitally dependent western world, where we get whatever we need by just the click of a button on Amazon, here in India, people trot out to the market to get their everyday essentials.

The reason I went to the markets in the first place is because the woman I was traveling with wanted to buy fabric and beads to take home for her business that she is starting. I am glad I experienced them (because these markets are what I think of when I think about India), but I can definitely say, I am not a fan of market shopping!!

From Bangalore I took an overnight train to Auroville – ten hours sleeping on the train. I was so nervous about the train ride. I had no idea what to expect – how safe it would be, how clean it would be etc. But I was riding first class and it ended up being totally fine. I was in a 4-person cabin and we each had a bed. The other people in my cabin were respectful and quiet. We boarded the train at 9pm, so we quickly turned the lights out and fell asleep, and then we arrived the next morning at 7am. Easy! And another thing I am glad I experienced while here, because trains are another thing I think of when I think about India.

Auroville, my next destination, is this experimental community built in the 1960s around meditation, yoga, alternative medicine, organic farming:  basically, a big conscious living community. There is this giant golden globe structure that is the center of the town and the focal point for the community that you can go inside to meditate. The community currently has about 3,000 full time residents and is growing by the day. It attracts a HUGE number of tourists, over 50,000, every year. Each year people travel from all over the world just to meditate in the globe for 30 minutes. And then of course, you have a large number of tourists (like me), who come to stay for a few weeks, some even months, to experience and get a taste of the place. Many are long-term visitors trying to see if this is a place they can start a “project” or new business venture, and see if they want to become full time residents.

I got here with absolutely no plan – I arrived and went right to the Visitor Center and told them I was here for 2 weeks. They gave me two options – a guest house or a homestay. I chose the homestay… I figured it would be nice to get to know the locals so I could get a better feel for the town and their community. I am staying at this family’s house and, as I am upstairs in my room writing this right now, I am feeling a bit weird… I am having one of those moments where I have no idea where I am, what I am doing, why I am here or why I would EVER QUIT MY JOB in the first place. LOL. I am experiencing a lot of doubt. BUT, I am riding out the doubt and letting it be there without getting attached to it or emotional about it, knowing that I always get uncomfortable in new places and new situations. I have experienced these same exact feelings and doubts over the first 2 -3 days in every new place that I have been during this 6 month traveling adventure. And its normal – it’s all part of the process, part of the experience of traveling. It’s a part of moving from one place to the next. New places, new people, new living situation, new environment… with so much that is new, you are completely out of your comfort zone and feeling uneasy is to be expected. I am trying to remember my breathing right now! “Are you breathing?” as my teacher, Bharath, in Mysore would constantly say. I haven’t practiced yoga in 3 days due to the traveling, and after practicing every day for a month, I am feeling it. Looking forward to getting back onto my mat tomorrow morning!