Monday, May 23, 2016

JILLING TERRACES in UTTARAKHAND

the main building at sundown
Three years back while hiking to Mt. Everest base camp in Nepal, inhaling in its thin but pollution free, fresh and healthy air I was wondering whether India being much bigger in size and with wider spread of Himalayas has such unadulterated place to offer? And three years later this April, I found my answer in Jilling Terraces, Uttarakhand.

Meditating in nature's lap



the Jilling trail
Nestled aloof on a hill in Uttarakhand, Jilling Terraces is not easy to reach. Nothing compared to Everest trek though but still a nice steep 45mins hike to reach this heaven. But I believe good things in life should never be easy, that way they are valued and cherished more.





Once you are up there, your mind goes to a self cleansing mode. No worries, no stress, no past and no future. Time literally freezes. But mind you, it's not just the pretty location that enchants you to this place. It is as beautifully done inside by its architect duo owners as outside by nature. Every furniture piece, cutlery and crockery, fabric, artifact and lamp is an art piece not just tastefully collected but carefully carried over shoulders to this height.
valley view from the rooms

dining lounge








And home stays are worthy of visit if you feel mother care in the hands of your hosts. The caretakers are friendly, helping and ready to go an extra mile for your comfort with a big smile. Fresh Rhododendron juice, omelettes and parathas for breakfast, authentic kumaoni meals of pahadi dals, mutton, achaar with phulkas along with the pure air to breathe in; takes care of your health all the while you are there.


On reaching, it took us an hour to calm down the excitement of being there. After which we had lunch and a nap to rise up to a setting sun, enjoying it's beauty with a cup of tea in the verandah. We took a walk around and went to playing board games in the dining lounge over snacks and rounds of drinks followed by scrumptious dinner. The food made us edacious and we ate too much to initiate a round of story telling session near the chimney till we felt the need to retire for the day so that we can begin the next day hand in hand with the rising sun.
Second day began with yoga in the open. After breakfast we went for a long trek; up to the edge of the hill to the village at the foot of the hill and back to our little heaven. Then exhausted, we lazed around the rest of the day chit-chatting, napping and reading books from their wide collection.
We regretted to leave on the third day and so I would recommend 3 days and 3 nights minimum stay to explore and experience and a day or two more to relax and replenish your energies after all the jumping around.

But all in all, it's a place that you visit and never leave instead you leave a part of you at the window sill, on the deck or at the dinner table and lock up its beauty in your memory so that you can revisit it every time your busy life takes over, at least till you plan to come back, which we certainly are.

              
Ringol cottage
        
    Padam and Kafal
    Uttish and Buransh
  • Location - Bhimtal Road, Uttarakhand
  • Commute by air - nearest domestic airport @ Phoolbagh, Pantnagar is around 50kms away. nearest international airport @ Delhi is around 295kms away.
  • Commute by rail -  nearest railway station @ Kathgodam is around 44kms with Shatabdi running every day to and fro.
  • Commute by road - nearest hotspot Nainital is some 30kms away and you need taxi in any of the above cases. Call for Jitin Bhai's taxi service @ 9412039589, it's very prompt with decent drivers.
  • Commute on foot - from matial village (at the foot of Jilling) to Jilling Terraces, the hike is 2kms (nearly 45mins). They send portars for luggage but carry rucksack (that would be better for porters to carry). Wear proper shoes (climbing ones, if you have or shoes with good grip will do) and comfortable clothing for the hike.
  • Stay details - the rooms are named after endemic trees of the region. Buransh and Utish on the ground floor with common verandah, an extra room with single bed and chimney; Padam and Kafal on the first floor with a wide window framing nature by the bed and the cottage Ringol with a living and dining space, a double height toilet (too sexy), verandah and terrace overlooking the valley.
  • In and around - trek to nearby two villages Paniali and Kanarkha or the Gaula river. Play board games in the lounge, read books or just sit around watching birds glide and chirp and the play of sun and shade over the mountains.
  • Seasons - Summers are pleasant in day time and
    cooler in nights, rains are dramatic to visit and winters would be chilling with snow mountian views.(chimneys and electric bed warmers would take care of your sleeps)
during nights

Wednesday, May 11, 2016

SURYANAMASKARS - HOW MANY ARE ENOUGH?

It has n number of benefits (you can Google those later) but it is not a number. It is not that a certain number of suryanamaskars a day will keep the doctor away, but it might keep you away in a few days if you treat it as numbers.
If practicing suryanamaskars daily is exhausting you, if you roll back into your bed after the practice or want to rest before beginning with your everyday chores, than you might be going all wrong with your inclination and intentions of doing it.
Rightly done, suryanamaskar will of course shake up those joints and muscles rusted by laziness and make them sore in the beginning but eventually it should be more energizing and restorative than tiring and exhausting. It is, after all called suryanamaskar for a reason, that it is a way of bowing down to Sun God and thanking for being the greatest source of energy. It is supposed to stimulate pingala nadi also called as surya nadi, that helps to tap sun's energy and remove energy blockages if any. But if you target to do so many suryanamaskars in so much time than you better call it burpees or something more fancy because it won't be beneficial as it should be if it is not done as a spiritual ritual.
So next time when you get down on your mat for suryanamaskar, switch off your phone, turn off your timer, silent your mind and just be in the flow, breath comfortably in all postures, stay as long as you wish in any posture letting it massage your muscles, align your mind in every pose and do as many as it feels good. Yoga is never about pushing yourself rather it's more about raising yourself. Numbers would increase on a healthier day and decrease on a not so healthy day; doesn't matter. What should matter is showing up each day and finding a new you after each practice.

Monday, May 9, 2016

FOOTHILLS HIMALAYA @ JIM CORBETT NATIONAL PARK

Jim Corbett National Park, the home to the mighty king of the jungle and inspiration to the "jungle book" is worth a visit, not just for its king but for every flora and fauna there and the best places to put up for your duration of stay are the forest guest houses inside the forest zone (Dhikala being the best one). But the better they are the rarer the availability, rarer than spotting the king himself. But it's not a news of disappointment anyways because here comes Rushil Shergill's foothills Himalaya home stay into picture and trust me it will be a much better option.

right at the foothills with the forest around
Needless to say, tiger spotting and staying inside the Forest sounds more thrilling but if you go as a tourist and book a safari directly with forest office your chances of spotting a tiger gets thinner. On the other hand, if you have Rushil to accompany you; his knowledge of the jungle, about secret whereabouts of tigers and his familiarity with the locals can thicken your chances of a game or two. I think my husband rightly called him young Jim Corbett of India. Plus you get to experience hearty Punjabi hospitality, a sneak peek into the life of a falconer/organic farmer/self made architect building his new rammed earth wall house with quite efficient chimneys all by experimental learning.

organic onion farms
We were not lucky enough to spot any tiger but I swear we do not regret it as we visited quite interior parts of the jungle where no safari jeeps go, saw the surrounding village, farms, got introduced to art of falconry; all thanks to our generous host. His whole family treated us with such warmth and fed us with farm grown organic mouthwatering food over rounds of drinks and countless stories about the jungle and their life in the wilderness. Even their dogs seemed to be trained in hospitality. They came running to greet us (like old friends), slept under our bed (sleeps are sound with a furry friend at your feet) and stood guard at night when we were star gazing in the open (leopards do visit the village occasionally).
the cottage and the fruit trees' garden in front

In the end, while leaving after just two days, we didn't have a "check out" feeling but as if saying goodbye to a friend and his family after spending a whole summer with them.

Details - 

Jim Corbett's winter house
  • Location - Kotabaug, Kaladhungi, Uttarakhand ( just 30mins from the Jim Corbett National Park)
  • Commute by air - nearest domestic airport @ Phoolbagh, Pantnagar is around 50kms away. nearest international airport @ Delhi is around 295kms away.
  • Commute by rail -  nearest railway station @ Kathgodam is around 44kms with Shatabdi running every day to and fro.
  • Commute by road - of course you need taxi in any of the above cases. Call for Jitin Bhai's taxi service @ 9412039589, it's very prompt with decent drivers.
  • Stay details - there are 3 double rooms to opt from and tents are pitched if need be.
  • In and around - National Park is indeed the reason for the visit but don't miss Jim Corbett's winter house which is converted into forest museum, buy his books "man eaters of Kumaon" and "My India" for thrilling hunting stories.
  • Seasons - Summers are best for tiger spotting, rains are dramatic to visit and winter treks around are fantastic.







Sunday, May 1, 2016

MY YOGA STORY

You can call yoga as just a form of physical exercise till you revert back to it just for flexibility, strength and weight loss. This definition of yoga that I presumed,  hurdled me to stick to it for anything longer than a month. Asanas are actually a preparatory tool to train the body for stillness required for the further stages. This outer most stage involving the physical body is called Annamaya kosh. 

The physical body is controlled by the sensory organs which are controlled by the mind and the mind by the breath. Controlling breathing is the next stage called Pranamaya kosh. To move further inwards to this stage however, you would need a prescription by your doctor for some ailments ( it does not show benefits so much on the outside unless it's practised for a longer period and so is not so interesting). I was though curious to know the further journey and how would that benefit me. Pranayama and asanas together ensure a healthy mind and body for the yogic progress.

A regular and steady practice of both would start affecting various spheres of your life magically. My food preferences, my mood swings, my temperament started changing. My patience, perseverance, tolerance increased in a course of time. This stage called Manomaya kosh ignites a thoughtless mind that activates the intellect.

The breath that controls the mind is kryptonite to the intellect. This activated intellect will have a hundred doubts and a million questions and will thus need direction for further journey. A good guru is a must here. I wanted to know all about yoga, it's origins to its preachers to its goals and teachings. I began reading lots of ancient scriptures and preachings by Patanjali, Swami Vivekananda and many more; asking my guru for translations and more explanations. This stage is called Vijnyanamaya kosh.

I won't say I crossed all these stages for the next one. It's not correct to cross them. You need a constant practice of stabilising at this yogic path through these stages going through lots of failures, learnings, acceptance and evolution to be able to experience the innermost stage called Anandmaya kosh or the blissful state.