Guest guest Posted January 4, 2003 Report Share Posted January 4, 2003 Hello again, The attachment appears not to have worked, so I'll try the copy and paste approach. In Amma's love, Jyotsna 18 December Amritapuri Up early and attended 1,000 Names. It’s exciting to be here! 1,000 Names were a bit of a disappointment due to fact you can’t hear the names. (This has changed since 1996.) Well, our flight # 405 from Singapore was uneventful. I took one tranquilizer before leaving and one during the flight, as I was definitely jittery. The next day K asked me if I was feeling better. I asked what she meant, and she said, “You looked a little green yesterday.” C. and I were both nervous. Halfway through the flight she came and asked me for a pill and I gave her two. Later, my roommate V, who was also on Flt. 457 told me she took Xanax (?) that second flight. Trivandrum airport seemed rather small and remote—one runway surrounded by fields. We went through immigration and customs fairly quickly and then engaged three taxis— K,C, and P in one, T and I in another, and V and L in the third. The fare was 850 R’s per taxi (old price) or about $30 per taxi. Our taxi was an old black Ambassador, which I had read about in one of my books on India. It was well-shined and seemed in good repair. The only mishap was that the horn stuck once and the driver rather embarrassedly stopped quickly, lifted the hood and stopped the noise. At first we were in this semi-rural area right on the sea, which looked like a scene out of National Geographic. The villagers waved and seemed very friendly. Then, as the drive went on—for three hours!—the roads became progressively busier and more crowded. Driving in India is sort of a hoot! It IS true that the largest vehicle has the right of way, and that the dictum of the road is “I honk, therefore I exist.” I had always heard this described as maddening to westerners, but I must say I thought it was rather a courtesy to let other drivers know when you are near. It became dark about an hour and a half into our drive, and the streets became more and more crowded—thronged might be a better word. Apparently in India there’s nothing to do at night except go out and stand by the road. The roads were practically lined with men watching traffic intently. They would especially look into our taxi at us western women and seem delighted, although not in a particularly wholesome way. (Then today, X, an ashram resident, tells me that even to make eye contact with an Indian man is thought to be the nonverbal equivalent of “Come and get me!”) Even without knowing that, my original smiles at all the locals had become more and more reserved and then ceased as we traveled along. After about two hours we apparently turned off onto what I think must have been what the map called the “seaside” road. I thought our destination must be getting close, but we just kept jouncing and bouncing over these incredibly bad (red) dirt roads for what must have been 45 minutes to an hour. That seat was getting mighty hard! Our driver was a good driver and stopped periodically to ask passersby (of which there is never any dearth!) the way to the ashram. (Ashram was always the first word that he said and the only one I understood.) I’ll never understand how he found it with so many dark, twisting, turning, difficult to navigate roads—very few signs and certainly none in English—and no street lights, etc. I thought we must be arriving at the most remote spot on earth! Finally there is a sense we are getting close and a few more twists and turns and lo!, we are at the gate! I am relieved to see a nice young American follower (whose name I don’t know, but whom I’ve seen on tour a lot) coming out of the gate. He tells us to go around another corner and we arrive at the western canteen just as bhajans are over and dinner is being served! We leave our luggage sitting out in the open and have some bread, butter and vegetables. We go to the office to sort out the seemingly endless morass of details concerning our visit. I am told I am getting a luxury flat, and then it turns out that V, one of the LA ladies on Flt. 457, is my roommate. She and I are compatible, and we are both quite relieved. We even got a western toilet! The room is perhaps 15’ by 18’ with a separate kitchen nook with lavatory, and a separate bathroom with toilet and shower. All is fairly primitive by western standards, but luxurious by Indian standards. Electricity and running water, even warm water in the afternoon when the sun beats on the pipes on the west side of our building. Mail Plus - Powerful. Affordable. Sign up now. http://mailplus. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 4, 2003 Report Share Posted January 4, 2003 Hi Jyotsana, Attachments don't work with the Ammachi chat group. You have to send the attachment in the body of the e-mail. Nice description of your first day! a curious and witty write-up. Jai Ma! Ammachi, Ellen Lamb <jyotsna2> wrote: > Hello again, > > The attachment appears not to have worked, so > I'll try the copy and paste approach. > > In Amma's love, > Jyotsna Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 5, 2003 Report Share Posted January 5, 2003 Dear Jyotsna, thank you so very much for posting this entry from your diary. I await your next post. How far away was the flat from where Amma stays? What was the weather like? How did you like the luxury flat? Did you have to walk up a lot of stairs to get to it? Were you able to sleep o.k.,and did you sleep on the floor? What did you cook and how did you buy food? Hopefully your next post will include the answers to some of these questions. Thank you again. In Amma, Sara J. Ammachi, Ellen Lamb <jyotsna2> wrote: > Hello again, > > The attachment appears not to have worked, so > I'll try the copy and paste approach. > > In Amma's love, > Jyotsna > > 18 December Amritapuri > > Up early and attended 1,000 Names. It's exciting to > be here! 1,000 Names were a bit of a disappointment > due to fact you can't hear the names. (This has > changed since 1996.) > > Well, our flight # 405 from Singapore was uneventful. > I took one tranquilizer before leaving and one during > the flight, as I was definitely jittery. The next day > K asked me if I was feeling better. I asked what she > meant, and she said, "You looked a little green > yesterday." C. and I were both nervous. Halfway > through the flight she came and asked me for a pill > and I gave her two. Later, my roommate V, who was > also on Flt. 457 told me she took Xanax (?) that > second flight. > > Trivandrum airport seemed rather small and remote—one > runway surrounded by fields. We went through > immigration and customs fairly quickly and then > engaged three taxis— > K,C, and P in one, T and I in another, and V and L in > the third. The fare was 850 R's per taxi (old price) > or about $30 per taxi. Our taxi was an old black > Ambassador, which I had read about in one of my books > on India. It was well-shined and seemed in good > repair. The only mishap was that the horn stuck once > and the driver rather embarrassedly stopped quickly, > lifted the hood and stopped the noise. > > At first we were in this semi-rural area right on the > sea, which looked like a scene out of National > Geographic. The villagers waved and seemed very > friendly. Then, as the drive went on—for three > hours!—the roads became progressively busier and more > crowded. Driving in India is sort of a hoot! It IS > true that the largest vehicle has the right of way, > and that the dictum of the road is "I honk, therefore > I exist." I had always heard this described as > maddening to westerners, but I must say I thought it > was rather a courtesy to let other drivers know when > you are near. > > It became dark about an hour and a half into our > drive, and the streets became more and more > crowded—thronged might be a better word. Apparently > in India there's nothing to do at night except go out > and stand by the road. The roads were practically > lined with men watching traffic intently. They would > especially look into our taxi at us western women and > seem delighted, although not in a particularly > wholesome way. (Then today, X, an ashram resident, > tells me that even to make eye contact with an Indian > man is thought to be the nonverbal equivalent of "Come > and get me!") Even without knowing that, my original > smiles at all the locals had become more and more > reserved and then ceased as we traveled along. > > After about two hours we apparently turned off onto > what I think must have been what the map called the > "seaside" road. I thought our destination must be > getting close, but we just kept jouncing and bouncing > over these incredibly bad (red) dirt roads for what > must have been 45 minutes to an hour. That seat was > getting mighty hard! Our driver was a good driver and > stopped periodically to ask passersby (of which there > is never any dearth!) the way to the ashram. (Ashram > was always the first word that he said and the only > one I understood.) I'll never understand how he found > it with so many dark, twisting, turning, difficult to > navigate roads—very few signs and certainly none in > English—and no street lights, etc. I thought we must > be arriving at the most remote spot on earth! > > Finally there is a sense we are getting close and a > few more twists and turns and lo!, we are at the gate! > I am relieved to see a nice young American follower > (whose name I don't know, but whom I've seen on tour a > lot) coming out of the gate. He tells us to go around > another corner and we arrive at the western canteen > just as bhajans are over and dinner is being served! > We leave our luggage sitting out in the open and have > some bread, butter and vegetables. > > We go to the office to sort out the seemingly endless > morass of details concerning our visit. I am told I > am getting a luxury flat, and then it turns out that > V, one of the LA ladies on Flt. 457, is my roommate. > She and I are compatible, and we are both quite > relieved. We even got a western toilet! The room is > perhaps 15' by 18' with a separate kitchen nook with > lavatory, and a separate bathroom with toilet and > shower. All is fairly primitive by western standards, > but luxurious by Indian standards. Electricity and > running water, even warm water in the afternoon when > the sun beats on the pipes on the west side of our > building. > > > > > > > Mail Plus - Powerful. Affordable. Sign up now. > http://mailplus. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 5, 2003 Report Share Posted January 5, 2003 --- "saramj33 <saramj" <saramj wrote: > Dear Jyotsna, > thank you so very much for posting this entry from > your diary. > I await your next post. It is said that the eagerness of the listener loosens the tongue of the storyteller:). Watch out, you may create a monster here:). Seriously, I'll answer the questions in the hope that they may be of general interest. > How far away was the flat from where Amma stays? I've been to India twice, and this diary is from the first trip in 1996. At that time there was only one building of "luxury" apts., the 7 story building now known as Building A. They were in the process of building the 10 (or 11?) story Building B at that time. When I went there in '99-'00, they had finished B and were working on C, which is between A and B. I understand C is now complete also. To answer your question, our building was east of the temple and our flat was on the west side of Building A, looking toward the temple entrance and the Arabian Sea. Amma's house was hidden from view, being on the west side of the temple, very close to same. Ordinary devotees such as myself were not allowed to go over there unless for a specific task. On Tuesdays, when there was Sadhana day, Amma Herself would lead us in a circumambulation of the Temple, including Her house, and it was a thrill to walk past and see four or five very white "Amma Dresses" hanging out to dry and shimmering in the hot tropical sun. So our room was on the 3rd floor, although the floors weren't numbered the way they would be here. You had to go up one floor to get to "Floor 1." So we actually had to go up to the 4th floor. What was the weather like? It was hot, around 85 or so most days, I'd guess. There were no thermometers around, so I mostly guessed at the temperature. It was plenty hot during the mid-day. In our room people tended to nap or just lie around and try to stay cool at that time. I didn't need anything more than a sheet for cover at night, and probably using that was just habit, as I'm used to sleeping with something over me. That first trip it never rained while I was there, although it did three times on the second trip. On that trip there were a couple of cool nights when I used my wool shawl as a cover. > How did you like the luxury flat? Did you have to > walk up a lot of > stairs to get to it? I liked the luxury flat just fine. Discerning readers may have figured that using the Indian toilets had weighed on my mind a lot before I went, so I was absolutely thrilled to have the type I'm used to. (So I'm a wimp!) There was a ramp at the end of the building, no stairs, for which I was grateful. (The newer buildings have elevators, which usually, but not always, work.) Were you able to sleep o.k.,and > did you sleep > on the floor? I carried a thin Thermarest mattress and slept on that. I never had any problems sleeping, although there were the usual problems of having enough space for four people (most of the time) and their belongings in the room, especially after we gained a roomate with gobs of stuff, i.e. pots and pans, etc. What did you cook and how did you buy > food? Actually cooking was not allowed in the room. No electrical appliances were, although many people (I think) may have fudged on that some. I was just so happy to be there that I didn't care about having tea in the room or anything like that. On that trip I usually ate at the Eastern Canteen, where rice and curry (?) (Kunja?--there's a name for it.) were served three meals a day. To be frank, the western canteen had far, far too much conversation for me. I much preferred eating in the comparative silence of the eastern canteen, where I could pretend (in silence) that my Divine Mother was lovingly feeding me each bite. > > Hopefully your next post will include the answers to > some of these > questions. > Thank you again. > In Amma, > > Sara J. Namah Shivayah, Sara! Much love to you, Jyotsna > > > > Ammachi, Ellen Lamb > <jyotsna2> wrote: > > Hello again, > > > > The attachment appears not to have worked, so > > I'll try the copy and paste approach. > > > > In Amma's love, > > Jyotsna > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > Mail Plus - Powerful. Affordable. Sign up > now. > > http://mailplus. > > === message truncated === Mail Plus - Powerful. Affordable. Sign up now. http://mailplus. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 6, 2003 Report Share Posted January 6, 2003 Namah Shivaya, > I've been to India twice, and this diary is from the > first trip in 1996. At that time there was only > one building of "luxury" apts., the 7 story building > now known as Building A. They were in the process > of building the 10 (or 11?) story Building B at that > time. When I went there in '99-'00, they had > finished B and were working on C, which is between > A and B. I understand C is now complete also. And they're building another one where the Indian kitchen was. > To answer your question, our building was east of > the temple and our flat was on the west side > of Building A, looking toward the temple entrance and > the Arabian Sea. In January 2000 we stayed on the east side of that building overlooking the backwaters and Vallikal, 4th floor (5 up). Loved walking up and down that ramp several times a day. My leg muscles got so strong! There was an elevator, but the ramp was closer and easier the stronger the leg muscles got. Amma's house was hidden from view, > being on the west side of the temple, very > close to same. Ordinary devotees such as myself were > not allowed to go over there unless for a specific > task. On Tuesdays, when there was Sadhana day, > Amma Herself would lead us in a circumambulation > of the Temple, including Her house, and it was a > thrill to walk past and see four or five very > white "Amma Dresses" hanging out to dry and > shimmering in the hot tropical sun. As part of the breakfast serving crew, got to go past Amma's apt. to the house that was originally Amma's family's home to get the yogurt for the breakfast. By her grace also ended up doing typing seva in the computer room which was not only air conditioned but also entered just across from her apt. > What was the weather like? > It was hot, around 85 or so most days, I'd guess. > There were no thermometers around, so I mostly > guessed at the temperature. It was plenty hot > during the mid-day. In our room people tended to > nap or just lie around and try to stay cool at > that time. I didn't need anything more than a > sheet for cover at night, and probably using that > was just habit, as I'm used to sleeping with > something over me. I remember it cooling down just enough by early morning to need a little more than a sheet for covering. Midday was definitely nap time. > Were you able to sleep o.k.,and >> did you sleep >> on the floor? > > I carried a thin Thermarest mattress and slept on > that. I never had any problems sleeping, although > there were the usual problems of having enough > space for four people (most of the time) and their > belongings in the room, especially after we > gained a roomate with gobs of stuff, i.e. pots > and pans, etc. The Ashram provides sleeping mats and that's what we used, but have heard recently of infestation. Anybody got any news on this? The advantage of going with a spouse is you get a whole flat to yourself. rooming with 4 strangers in a room seems daunting to me, but of course by Amma's grace anything can be done. > What did you cook and how did you buy >> food? > > Actually cooking was not allowed in the room. No > electrical appliances were, although many people > (I think) may have fudged on that some. I was > just so happy to be there that I didn't care about > having tea in the room or anything like that. > > On that trip I usually ate at the Eastern Canteen, > where rice and curry (?) (Kunja?--there's a name for > it.) were served three meals a day. To be frank, > the western canteen had far, far too much conversation > for me. I much preferred eating in the comparative > silence of the eastern canteen, where I could > pretend (in silence) that my Divine Mother was > lovingly feeding me each bite. We ate breakfast at the Western kitchen for a little extra protein and I often preferred the simple food of the Eastern kitchen, especially in the evening. Jai Ma! premarupa Aum Amriteshvaryai Namah Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 6, 2003 Report Share Posted January 6, 2003 --- Kenna <kenna wrote: > Dear Premarupa, It's great to get your comments on Amritapuri, too! > > In January 2000 we stayed on the east side of that > building overlooking the > backwaters and Vallikal, 4th floor (5 up). Loved > walking up and down that > ramp several times a day. My leg muscles got so > strong! I loved the ramp, too! > > The Ashram provides sleeping mats and that's what we > used, but have heard > recently of infestation. Anybody got any news on > this? The advantage of > going with a spouse is you get a whole flat to > yourself. rooming with 4 > strangers in a room seems daunting to me, but of > course by Amma's grace > anything can be done. > > Yes, we single devotees are sometimes jealous of the couples getting all that privacy and space! Both trips there were roommate issues, although I prudently left those out of my diaries! As I understood it, only the cloth mats rented by the ashram were lice-infested. When I was there in '99-'00, they were rapidly getting rid of those and replacing them with plastic-covered foam mats. Somehow, I don't know how, I managed to get head lice (pediculosis humanus) on my second trip. It was a humbling experience. Neither of the roommates I stayed in touch with got them. I did sleep on one of the plastic covered mats the second trip. Who knows? I didn't even know I had them until I had been home for a couple of weeks, so perhaps I acquired them right near the end of the trip. It's a mystery to me. In Amma's love, Jyotsna > > Mail Plus - Powerful. Affordable. Sign up now. http://mailplus. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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