A Travel Experience: Post One

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I am spending a month in the Bahamas doing a yoga teacher training. I was originally set to do the training in June, but with the Houston move, I postponed it to July. I almost postponed the teacher training yet again due to a back injury that won't seem to heal. However, as the wise Joseph pointed out, I have a better chance of healing away from home where I seem to always find a strenuous activity to participate in. Why take epsom salt bath soaks when I can soak in the warm atlantic ocean? So I alerted the yoga people that I was injured and got their blessing to come on down.

While it was a particularly crappy week with my back injury part of me wanted to stay in Tennessee just because I was feeling like I  couldn't let go. I didn't want to leave the ever sick flock of chickens, my geriatric Weiner dogs, my garden, and the last days of my husband living in Tennessee. Sure, I may have left with hesitation, but the fact is that life will go on no matter where I stand. I've been planning on this teacher training for over a year, or over ten years if I look at my long term goal list from my early twenties. My dissertation research hinges on the fact that I am certified to teach yoga. So with an ailing back, approximately 75 pounds of physical baggage, and tons of mental baggage, I embarked solo on my long planned international travel. With a lot of helpers I made it to the ashram no more injured than when I left. (An ashram is the yogic/Indian term for a monastery type place). Helpers included cab drivers, hotel workers, ashram yogis, airport personnel, and random strangers.

Things you may be interested to know about the ashram include the fact that there are a lot of rules. The following things are strictly prohibited:

• Meat
• Knees
• Shoulders
• Caffeine
• Drugs/alcohol
• Smoking
• Onion
• Garlic

The following activities are required: 

Attend morning and evening meditation and yoga classes. The first meditation is at 0600, the last is at 8pm, and the duration is two hours.

Over the next few weeks I'll go into these rules and the rationales in more detail. For starters I'll address the prohibition of knees and shoulders.You may be wondering how to avoid showing knees and shoulders at an Ashram situated on the beach. You are allowed to wear bathing suits on the beach, but on your way there you better be covered up. 

This is what the whole Ashram looks like. It's basically a collection of cottages and tents linked by a tropical path. 

Between you and me I will be breaking the caffeine rule by using caffeine pills so that I don't go into full withdrawal. I do plan on tapering down but I'll have a migraine for the whole damn month if I quit full stop. The rest of the rules I am more than happy to oblige. Well actually I'll also be breaking the "you must attend all yoga classes" rule on my first couple days. The teacher training does not technically begin until Saturday so I am taking these first few days to completely rest my back. I'll do some restorative yoga in my dorm, but I'm not pushing it with a whole structured class.