I am sorry to say I am finishing the first week in Pune with a bad case of Traveller’s Diarhhea. I made the mistake of drinking a glass of tap water at a salon. I asked if it was filtered and they told me it was; I later came to understand that their command of English is left wanting. We also had a misunderstanding about the services and the prices, as they gave me a 1.5 hour facial in addition to my pedicure, and I didn’t have enough Rupees to pay for it. Plus, I had to tell them to get me out of the clay mask because I needed to get to class! I walked into class 5 minutes late. Luckily, Geeta was not teaching.
I say luckily, because she would have probably reamed me out. But Geeta is recovering from her travels abroad. She gave a convention in London in late May and returned to Pune warn out and coughing badly. We saw her come for practice on Wednesday and Thursday, doing restorative postures with 2 assistants to help her place props and straps.
We were so excited thinking we were going to have Geeta for Pranayama class on Thursday evening. Geeta is world famous for her pranayama classes, which lead you into an exquisite blissful state. I have only experienced this with her once, when she came to Las Vegas for the U.S. convention.
Anyway when class began, Pandu, the secretary, came up to make an announcement: all those who are for the first time in Pune, go upstairs for class. That meant that we would not be getting Geeta for a teacher; instead we would have another Indian who assisted at the Institute. We waited for 30 minutes. Most of us were in supta baddhakonasana or some other restorative posture. Finally a woman named Raj Lakshmi came up and led the class. As it turned out, Raj is a great teacher. She was absolutely spot on with instructions, and her accent was easily understandable. I fell asleep in lying down pranayama, which can be embarrassing, but they understand that we are tired. I cannot remember the last time I fell asleep in pranayama. You must remember it is really hot and humid here, with no a/c. They open windows, but sometimes there is no breeze. They run many fans at the institute, but it may not be that way in every place you go.
On Friday, the monsoon finally came. What is a monsoon? It is simply heavy summer rain that comes with a cold front and brings relief. We would call it a flash flood in Houston. The monsoon could last 5 minutes or 2 days. But it is heavy and the streets flood. The cooler termps make everyone happy—I think this is why Indian movies always feature happy songs and dance in the rain.
Now is the time to watch out for mosquitoes. There is standing water on our balcony. I have greased myself up with “Bite blocker,” a natural, deet free product available online from the U.S. So far, so good.
I was at the salon when the monsoon hit. I accepted the water from the lady, and took a refill. She assured me it was filtered. It wasn’t. When I finally got to class, I was extremely exhausted. I didn’t get yelled at. An Indian woman named Gulnaaz was teaching. Like Raj, Gulnaaz is a senior assistant for the medical classes and assistant to Geeta during her practice.
We did standing poses, as is the norm the first week of the month—really basic stuff like down dog, Trikonasana, Vira 2, Utthita Parsvakonasana, then Vira I and Vira 3. At that point I thought I was going to die. I had already done an intense standing pose practice for 3 hours earlier in the day. People had remarked about my energy—“Where do get it? I just wish I could suck some of your energy for myself!” So I thought that explained my fatigue. Then I became farty. Ah, well, probably shouldn’t have had the Dal at lunch. Hard to digest. Then there was the long necklace of sweat on my chest. Why wasn’t anyone else sweating so?
After class, I felt barely able to walk, but then again I have blisters on my feet from new sandals. I didn’t bring much in the way of shoes because they are so cheap here, I was encouraged to buy some. Anyway, arriving back at the flat, I was almost too tired to eat. We had mangoes (prewashed and dried before but), watermelon, and toast with peanut butter. It is a relief not to have rich Indian food for every meal. But I was too tired to clear my plate or do dishes. I didn’t even brush my teeth, but flopped right into bed. After an hour or so, the cramping began, and I was up every hour with the Pune Poops.
So I skipped class today, and practice as well. I didn’t leave the apartment. I was too weak and feverish. I am taking Immodium and started a 3 day course of antibiotics, given by Nadja, my flat mate from Boston, whose travel medicine doctor was smart enough to prescribe for just such a case. Geeta got another Indian woman sub today, and again they did standing postures. So far there has been little new information for me in these postures, and I have not been adjusted once. My flatmates have been adjusted, and I know the teachers do walk around.
I am feeling much better after just one dose of the antibiotics. I am sure to be in class Monday morning with Prashant. I look forward to it.
I thank all of you who are continuing to make it to class and keep up your practice.
Warm regards,
Pauline
