Varanasi is not for the faint-hearted. The infamous Varanasian touts scour the ghats with preternatural persistence in attempting to sell their wares or services. A maze of thread-thin alleyways studded with hundreds of Hindu temples pad the area between the ghats and the rest of Varanasi, a bustling, noisy, typically Indian city with cows vying with the tuk-tuks, rickshaws, and automobiles for space on the dusty streets. When they find their ways to the ghats, visitors must be prepared to witness the display of burning bodies on public pyres. Those who try escape by hiring a boat to take them down the Ganges, will be confronted by carcasses and corpses floating among the debris. Those who make it as far as the opposite bank will encounter members of the notorious clan of Aghori Sandhus who drag corpses from the river to engage in ritual cannibalism and other ghastly rituals. Indeed, Varanasi is full-on—India level 10. As Lonely Planet succinctly states: “Varanasi takes no prisoners"...
Manaslu is the eight highest mountain into world at 8,163 meters above sea level. It’s impressive doubled-edged summit sets Manaslu apart from the other mountains — white capped giants in their own right — constituting the Manaslu massif. Surrounding Manaslu is the eponymous Conservation in addition to the adjacent Tsum Valley (pronounced “tsoom”). I trekked for twenty-two days through the region...
I got to celebrate Diwali with the Herr family in Bir -- a small town in the foothills of the Indian Himalaya. From left to right: Miri Herr, (myself), Lovely Herr, and a family friend of the Herr's. Rangoli are aesthetic patters created on the floor for the purpose of attracting good fortune.
The Diwali festival is a one of India’s most widely known and celebrated events. The festival is an auspicious observance, celebrating new beginnings and the triumph of good over evil represented as light over darkness...
The Dharmalaya Institute was founded in 2008 by an international team. According to its website, Dharmalaya is “devoted to education and empowerment for compassionate living, with a practical focus on sustainable village development, contemplative service-learning, and immersive ecotourism.” I attended a week-long Earthen Architecture and Sustainability Workshop held at Dharmalaya’s eco-campus located in the bucolic Himalayan foothills near the town of Bir...
A monk descending the stairs of an apartment complex in Gangchen Kyishong, the capital of the Tibetan government in exile and spiritual center of Tibetan Buddhism.
Dharamshala is most-well known for being the home of the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan government in exile. (Actually, his holiness resides in Gangchen Kyishong, a suburb just up the hill from Dharamshala.) Located in the foothills in the Himalayas among thick coniferous forest, Dharamshala has become a popular location for tourists to trek, participate in yoga and meditation workshops, volunteer, and learn about the Tibetan people in exile...
In January, 2015, Governor of California, Jerry Brown, declared a State of Emergency in response to the fourth year of the State entering a record-breaking drought. In August, I drove from Los Angeles to the Kings Canyon National Park in Northern California, witnessing first hand the devastation of the drought...
On the train to Amritsar I made the grave mistake of attempting to create a sleeping cacoon of solace by wrapping, around my a head and torso, an ocher dhoti— the same kind babas wear (baba, which literally means “father,” is term of endearment that a younger person can extend to all elders. The honorific title is also used to refer to the orange-clad Hindu monks). This resulted in my sleep being continually disrupted by the unpardoning index fingers of conductors believing that I was a vagabonding baba. However, despite arriving in Amristar with bags under my eyes, I have to admit in taking pleasure witnessing the deluge of chagrin overcoming the conductors faces the moment they realized I was a gora (the Indian term for a foreigner)...
I was on a tight schedule after leaving Mai Thik Hoo as I had signed up for an earthen architecture program at the Dharmalaya Institutein Bir. Although I could only afford to spend a day Pushkar, I just had to get a taste the iconic backpackers’ hub before I absconded north to escape the post-monsoon Rajasthani heat...
For most liberals, voting yes on Proposition 59 would seem like a no-brainer. However, the LA Times, which declined to endorse Prop. 59, provided a compelling argument for why, at the very least, this initiative requires serious reflection for voters in favor of overturning Citizens United overturned...
Following my trip to the Kumbh Mela in Ujjain, which you can read about in my previous post, the gang (consisting of Frites, Amelie, and myself) continued on to Rishikesh, which, as you might recall, is the iconic epicenter of Indian spiritual tourism where I spent my first 6 weeks in India studying yoga...
Kumbh Mela, a Hindu pilgramage festival held once every 12 years at a given site, drew an estimated 70 million visitors to the city of Ujjain this year.
KUMBH MELA — a pilgrimage festival where millions of Hindus gather to bathe in one of four sacred rivers that, according to Hindu mythology, were formed when rivaling demons and demigods splashed holy amrita (“nectar”) unto the land during a scuffle over a jug holding the nectar. At any given place, the Kumbh Mela is held once in 12 years...
I am excited to announce that I will be suspending my travels indefinitely to live and work in India. Mai Thik Hoo is an organization I founded along with four of the loveliest of people: Frites-baba (UK), Amelie (Germany), Hitesh (India), and Rakesh (India). The purpose of Mai Thik Hoo is to study and promote the practices that make people happy. Our labs take the form of live-in environments where guests are invited to reside and participate in a daily program consisting of activities scientifically shown to improve human well-being...
Hello again. I’ve just arrived in the State of Rajasthan via a 15 hour night bus from Mumbai. Rajasthan is known for its desert scenery, camel salaries, and fervent celebration of Hindu festivals; indeed there is a religious “camel festival” that starts tomorrow. Before I get swept up with everything going on here, I’d like to do a quick recap of the ongoings of the last couple months as poor internet connectivity and a busy schedule (festina lente as they say) did not allow me to blog.
I’ve essentially been spending a lot of time at the beach as I traveled north along the maritime states of Kerala and Karnataka...
I'm quite late posting this! (Holi was March 24th.) I've been off the grid for the last few weeks soaking up the sun in Kerala and Karnataka, coastal states comprising about half of India's western seaboard. I owe you guys blogs from my travels in the backwaters of Alleppey (known as the Venice of India) and from Fort Kochi, a nexus of Indian spice trade colonized by the Portuguese, Dutch, and British, and home to India’s most ancient Jewish community established after the destruction of the second temple in 70 CE. I also spent two weeks camping on a secluded beach in Gokarna investigating free will and determinism with an English chap who goes by "Frites"...
I just arrived in the beach side backpackers haven of Varkala, a burgeoning town the southwestern coastal state of Kerela. It’s really touristy here, more so that I expected, but also very simple and underdeveloped. The address of my guesthouse is: “near the helipad.” I’ll be traveling in Kerela for the next 10 days...
Of course I would never lend my support to an international mining company whose business model calls for the exploration and exploitation of coal to feed the industrial complex...
In the early CEs Mamallapuram (aka Mahabalipuram) was a bustling seaport. Today the town teams with European tourists sojourning to see the town's World-heritage listed temples, which gives the town outright touristy vibe; as my guidebook puts it, “Restaurants serve pasta, pizza and pancakes, shops sell hand sanitizer and things from Tibet, and you known you have landed, once again, in the great Kingdom of Backpackistan”...
Tamil Nadu is a state on Indian’s south eastern tip sharing a maritime border with Shri Lanka. Littered with temples and Dravidian ruins, this ethnically and culturally distinct region, composed mostly of Tamil speaking Hindus (around 80 percent), is known for its vibrant culture that continues to manifest the venerable architecture, music, art, and dance traditions of the Tamil People’s Dravidian ancestors...
This monochrome photo essay documents life in Rishikesh, India. I spent six weeks in Rishikesh, a North Indian town bifurcated by the Ganges, studying yoga and soaking up the culture...
