Naked Soul Kitchen

We all more or less have gotten used to our daily schedule. Rising early to start our day with Mr. Praveen for two hours of ashtanga yoga. Then having an hour for breakfast and recovery after which we run back upstairs to learn the theory of the postures we are doing in the morning class. That class is also with Mr. Praveen. We learn the benefits, the limitations and the ways to teach the asanas to our future students. After that follows the last class before lunch and our day time break; the yoga phylosophy class. It was taught by Mallika, a lovely 65 year old woman, at the beginning, but we have been getting a member of the ISCON, Iternational Society for Krishna Consciousness, teaching the history and the phylosophy of a true yogi in the past few days. A lot of the things we are learning is pretty heavy and not necessarily everything I agree with, nonetheless, it is very interesting. The swami has been bringing us some food from the temple everyday, which has been delightful each t...

I had these ideas of where I was in terms of my yoga practice understanding, the spirituality of it, my flexibility and many other elements that are involved in the practice of yoga, but all of that knowledge was shaken up today. There is so much that I need to learn and understand about this practice which has existed for thousands of years. All the knowledge that I thought I had needs to be put aside and I need to be like a child. Learning from zero, taking everything in, understanding, believing, and finally, putting it all to practice. The view facing the mountains.Studio on the left. This morning's two hour Ashtanga Vinyasa practice was the hardest and most difficult session of yoga I have ever done, both physically and mentally. There is so much I still need to learn and practice, practice, practice. My body was shaking and so was my mind. As difficult as it was, after those two hours with Praveen, our instructor, I felt better than I...

After a thorough research on the internet about how to get to the three breweries that are in Chennai, I journeyed out to one of them. It was a hot day, not unlike any other day here in Chennai. I got to the bus stop at around 11:00 and did not get to the brewery until 14:30. Although the place was only 30 minutes away if driving with car, public transport and lots of leg work turned into 3.5 hours. Like any journey in a foreign country, this one was sprinkled with frustration, laughter and the grace of kind strangers. After an hour on a city bus, inhaling dust and automobile fumes, I reached the final stop of Poonamelea. A few inquiries later, I found a tuk tuk driver who knew the location of the Empee Brewery. Or so I thought... The price was negotiated and I was taken on a very short ride to a place which was nowhere near where I had to be. The older, gray haired driver dropped me off on the highway where the actual brewery was located. The little thing he did neglected to menti...