Author Archives: cherethomas

Life goes on …

KJ, this one’s for you.

As you can see by KJ’s photo, one day ahead and six hours behind, nothing slips by a Kiwi.

How long has it been? It feels like an eternity, but I think it’s been about two months, give or take, since we were first ordered to stay at home.

I have to say that biggest kudos go out to my mom, who hasn’t complained at all during her lockdown. Although today she told us she’s confident the first place to open will be nail salons because her fingernails are growing way too long (& she probably doesn’t want to have to sit through another one of my pedicures…). She seems to do fine with washing and “doing” her own hair. No matter what, she always looks good.

On any given day, you will find her sitting on her couch watching the Western Channel, Home Improvement Show or Fox News, or playing solitaire.

Here during a “wine & dine” with Robb via Zoom on my iPad.

She likes it when we bring her food. Below is a homemade pizza I made on the Traeger (bbq) and caesar salad that we brought over for dinner. Yes, it was yummy!

ps … If you talk to her, tell her her hair looks wonderful.

It’s amazing how easily we’ve fallen into this crazy habit of cooking. How preposterous! And we even enjoy it!

Anything from tuna salad to tortilla lime crusted tilapia with spinach salad, artichoke and potatoes to zucchini/shrimp stir fry to lobster to minestrone soup (me) to ham and bean soup (Bruce) to cheesecake (for my mom’s birthday last month), and much much more. The ideas are endless. Who would have thought?

  • When the grandkids aren’t around, the dogs take care of beater cleanup.

We’re not the only ones cooking …

The grandkids are staying busy …

That is, when they’re not being home schooled!

I’m spending a LOT of time in the yoga studio. I have it set up to teach Zoom classes from my iPad, and I feel blessed that my students have invited me into their home practice space. Here’s a glimpse of what Zoom looks like in my space …

Aside from teaching three classes a week myself, I’ve also been taking virtual Zoom classes and workshops. Having the iPad already set up in the yoga studio is very convenient. I’ve been taking three classes a week with my teacher, Gloria Goldberg, and I’ve also taken a virtual Iyengar Yoga Therapy workshop on Yoga for Trauma, and a Social Media Webinar sponsored by the Iyengar Yoga National Association United States (IYNAUS). I’m also half-way through a 4-part Virtual Yoga Philosophy Retreat (Gitte Beschgard, Vidya Institute), and this morning I took the first of a 7-day Iyengar Yoga workshop “The Power of Unity Community Gathering” with Abhijata Iyengar, BKS Iyengar’s granddaughter teaching from her home in Pune, India, also sponsored by IYNAUS.

Other items of noteworthiness …

Hogan, oblivious to it all, came out of hibernation a while back. As usual, he sucks up a LOT of water the first day we take him out of hibernation. I supposed I might be thirsty too after spending several months locked up in a basement.

Alo and his scooter had a too-close-of-an encounter with a thorny bush and required stitches.

Superhero Silas turned SIX Tuesday!

… and how is it that there is STILL no toilet paper on the shelf at the grocery store!!

Blogged on Amma’s iMac with LOVE!

Jujuri – Part 1 (the last Sunday with Nana)

Still on a 2-hour rickshaw ride, now begins the leg of the trip from Saswad to Jujuri. Keep in mind that what goes up, must come down. In other words, this 2-hour rickshaw drive to Jujuri will result in a 2-hour rickshaw drive back to our flat in Pune. This also means that we have to walk up a lot of stairs in Jujuri and then back down again.

The drive was beautiful – a lot of farmland, very few cars and little to no pollution (that we could detect anyways).

Goats
A small temple we passed along the way.

I found another opportunity for Nana to stop on the side of the road to take a video for the kids. All kids young and old, including this kid here. Hey, a pun!

The image above is a video. Click on it.
I love this photo.

Now in Jujuri

The Jujuri Temple is on a small mountain that seems like a very big mountain when walking up all the stairs. But there’s plenty of entertainment along the way to keep one’s mind off the uphill climb.

Me and Jill – in the little village below the temple.
Street food.
The yellow stuff is turmeric. Turmeric doesn’t come out in the laundry. All this stuff is sold to place at the various altars along the way, and the powders are to throw on the deities, and to get all over your body, hair, clothes and anything else carried along.
Stuff to buy.
More offerings for the deities.
Toys and miscellaneous items for sale.
More turmeric and other items.
A lot of people …
This is the lady we bought our turmeric from (because she let us leave our shoes there).
You can tell from the color of their clothes that these people have already been to the temple.
Here’s our first look at what the turmeric is used for.
A very yellow Nandi.
Nana insisted we put turmeric across our foreheads
We begin our ascent.
Coriander
This lady got to be carried up and down the stairs.

I have about the same amount of photos and another video for Part 2 of Jejuri for my next post.

Blogged on Amma’s iMac from home with LOVE!

Another Sunday with Nana – Saswad

On our last Sunday with Nana, he took us on a two hour rickshaw drive out of Pune. This post takes us half way to our final Sunday destination to a small pilgrimage village called Saswad.

We begin with chai. We always begin with chai!

This is where Nana convinced us that spending 4 hours (2 hours each way) in a rickshaw and returning home at 9pm when we have to be at Prashant’s 7am class is a very good idea.
Boys at the chai cart.
Chai and deep fry street cart food master.
Treasures.

We stopped at a gas station along the way so Nana could get oil for the rickshaw. He didn’t think he’d make it up the big hill without it. While Jill was taking a photo of me in the rickshaw, all the gas station attendants surrounded her to see what we were up to.

They weren’t very shy.
Then this guy in the green shirt told us we couldn’t take pictures at the gas station. This didn’t make sense because we weren’t really “in” the gas station, but everyone dispersed nonetheless. Then, as we were driving away, we see this same guy driving a rickshaw. What?? Who made him the boss of us?
Beautiful colors.
We stopped along the way for a snack. This woman was cleaning her vegetables. This is normal – cleaning veggies on the floor. A very common sight.
BIG bags of snacks!
Nana putting oil in the rickshaw.

Heading up the mountain.

The drive up the mountain was green, lush and beautiful. We stopped a couple times on the way up the hill to take photos.

Panorama.
Street vendor selling snacks at a turnout on the hill. We bought roasted peanuts and made a mess on the floor in the backseat of the rickshaw.
Young girl at the turnout.
Woman eating lunch out of her tiffin.
Goats.

Saswad

Saswad is a small pilgrimage village about 30km from Pune (half way to our destination). There’s a temple in the village which is the resting place (or samadhi) of the 13th century Varkari (aka Warkari) Saint Sopandeo, one of Saint Dnyaneshwar’s three brothers.

Here are photos of the sights as we drove through the village to the temple.

A common sight of women carrying various items on their head.
Beautiful and colorful fruit vendors.
There’s something about these trucks that I like. Unusual and colorful maybe?
Why did the chicken cross the road?
Check out the fine detail around the plate on the bumper, complete with elephant heads.
Here we are on the grounds of Sopankaka Temple looking out over the river.
Warkari Nana.
Nandi.
We sat in this very small temple (after I bumped my head going in) and Om’d several times with Nana. There was a beautiful vibrational echo that made us not want to leave.
One of a few quarters where people who come to visit can stay.
Carved painting outside the temple.
Sculpture of Dnyaneshwar, his two brothers, Nivruttinath (the oldest) and Sopandeo, and sister, Mukta.
Side view of Nandi.
Leaving the temple.
View of outside the temple.
Children of the village playing in the street.
Karha River as we leave Saswad.

Clean air of the countryside was a welcomed blessing. Posting from home gives me another opportunity to re-live the experience through photos. How beautiful it was.

A special HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my very sweet, adorable and loving grandson, Alo, who turns a big SIX today!! I love you very much, Alo.

Blogged on Amma’s iMac from home with LOVE!

Sunday with Nana – The Drive Home

Here are the final photos from the Sunday Nana took us to Alandi and other temples. These are of the drive home through the country.

Vegetable vendors.
Another small outdoor temple.
More very fresh vegetables.
This sign was on the athletic grounds of one of the military bases.
Housing.
Cows.
The question is … How slow?
Hiding in plain sight.
More housing.
The altar at Guruji’s Fifth Punyatithi.
Prashant during his talk.
The total disarray of shoes during the kids’ class.

There are still more photos to come. Stay tuned.

Blogged on Amma’s iMac from home with LOVE!

Sunday with Nana – Dehu

Dehu is on the outskirts of Pune, very close to Alandi. It’s where Saint Tukaram lived and taught people how to pray to god. This temple on the banks of the Indriani River (Alandi is also on this river) was constructed by Saint Tukaram’s younger son Narayanbaba in 1723.

This next very short video shows how water buffalo and people can coexist without a care in the world.

This is a YouTube video. Click on it.
Red powder or “Sindoor” is a common powder placed on and around deities in temples. The use of this powder has been a tradition in India for over 5,000 years and is considered to be very auspicious.
Item being sold outside temples to be offered to the deities.
Nana with our bounty. Jill and I are still wearing Warkari (also spelled Varkari) markings from our Alandi visit earlier that day.
Sweet little cat under a cart of various candies also being sold to be offered to the deities.
Nana getting his Warkari markings.
Approaching the temple.
This group was posing for someone else so I also took a shot.
The line to the temple. Some people get really pushy in these lines.
People everywhere are on their phones.
Hanuman.
Outside – the temple walls.
Another small temple on the grounds.
Jill and me with some more new friends.
Small house very near the temple grounds.
On the bank of the Indriani River.
Retaining wall at the river.
Stairs going down to the river.
Door on one of the nearby structures.
Another one of the temples on the grounds.
These two wall sculptures on one of the buildings next to the temple appeared to be made in brass. There were several other sculptures which together told some sort of story.
I liked this man’s decorative hat complete with peacock feathers. I think this kind of hat construction could be a fun project for the grandkids.

I’m currently sitting in the British Airways London Heathrow lounge taking advantage of its wifi, charging my devices, blogging and downloading a couple movies for the next (11 hour 15 minute) leg of my trip that doesn’t take off for another 4 ½ hours. I’ve contracted a cold, have gone through all my good tissues and am now working on the less than adequate tissues (very thin sandpaper) provided at the airport. I slept almost the entire 9 ½ hour flight from Delhi to London and it was nice!

I said a sad goodbye yesterday to my Pune Sister, Jill. She and Cyndy Cordle (also from San Diego) braved the drive to Mumbai after the early class with Prashant. Jill went off to Australia and Cyndy was returning back home (probably arriving in San Diego before I do). As you can tell from a lot of my photos Jill and I had many great experiences and a lot of laughs together.

Jill and Cyndy bonding in Mumbai.

I stayed for Sunita’s 9:30am class and Nana gave me a ride to the Pune airport later in the afternoon where we said our final goodbyes and I gave him a stash of left over rupees.

A last 2019 chai and selfie with Nana on the way to the airport.

The Pune airport is like the rest of India – chaos. Enough said about that.

I have many more photos to share. If you’re not subscribed, check back again in the next couple days to see photos of rickshaw rides in the countryside and up a mountain road, goats, pigs, probably more cows and water buffalo, more chai photos, more temple visits, and a couple more videos. It’s never ending.

See you soon!

Blogged on Amma’s MacBook from the London Heathrow Airport Lounge with LOVE!

Pimpri Chinchwad

Pimpri Chinchwad – Shree Gajanan Maharaj Temple

This temple is very close to Alandi. We stopped here the last time I was here but there was construction going on. The beautiful new area leading up to the temple on the hill is beautiful.

Of course the people …
This is the area that was under construction last time I was here.
Me, Nana & Jill
Looking up the hill.
Looking down at the grounds from on top of the hill.
Looking out over the city and countryside.
The ceiling inside one of the temples. This is the only photo I have inside. I got reprimanded …
There’s Nana.
Now traveling to the next temple.
Street corner fish market.
Now this was scary. These three cows were swaying back and forth in this very small “truck.” I wondered what the weight maximum is for this vehicle.
Entering the town of Saint Tukaram Maharaj Temple in Dehu.
Vendors selling souvenirs and “offerings” to place in the temple.

Let’s talk about toilets

On the other hand, let’s not … But here’s another one for the kids (also young and old) – a couple pictures of public toilets. These are women’s toilets (because I didn’t go into the mens’ …). I’ve now used several of these toilets and they aren’t so bad. However, you might run into a “situation” if you can’t do without toilet paper. Soap can sometimes be an issue too …

I leave tomorrow and there’s no wifi in our flat. I’m currently sitting in the lobby of the Marriott Hotel using the wifi so I can get this last post out before I leave tomorrow evening. I have a ton more photos to share but it looks like I’ll be sharing them after I leave India.

It’s getting late so I’ll say farewell for now. Stay tuned. There’s more to come.

Blogged from Amma’s MacBook from the Marriott Hotel in Pune with LOVE!

Sunday with Nana – Alandi

It’s Wednesday evening here and I’m counting down the days before I go home. Three days. This might sound crazy (because it is), but I’ve devised a highly scientific method of counting down the days using eggs and watermelon. That’s right, eggs and watermelon. You see, I have six eggs left. That’s two eggs for each morning – Thursday, Friday and Saturday. And I now have one whole watermelon which means I have half a (very small) watermelon for tomorrow night and the other half for Friday night.

I’m finishing up some business here with Sudhir, the owner of Dimpex, who handles all my batiking. It looks like he’ll be done with most of the t-shirts I brought, but he’ll have to parcel the long-sleeve hoodies. The rain we had the first half of the month put a damper on this project because they don’t use dryers here and the batiking process requires the different colors to be done in stages, and each stage requires the shirts to dry before the next stage.

Sudhir with a few of the t-shirts he brought for me to check out yesterday.

Alandi

Here is the remainder of my Alandi photos, including a video that gives a good picture of what it’s like by the river. As I mentioned in an earlier post and posts from prior visits, Alandi is a pilgrimage town and resting place (aka Samadhi) of Saint Jnaneshwar. There is a very old and popular temple here. We opted to not go into the temple this visit, but I’ve been there on all my prior visits. If you want to know more about it I’m sure you can find more information online.

This (above) is a video. Click on it.
Several people sell flowers and other offerings to be placed in the temple.

People literally beg us to take their picture and take selfies with them. It’s like we’re celebrities there. Queen for the Day (remember that show?).

It started raining.

All these people were taking shelter from the rain under this foot bridge. I was able to get their attention and all of them looked at the camera for a photo.

Selfie under the foot bridge.
The Warkari man.
Another Warkari man.
In this photo you can see that the water level came up very high here during the monsoon rains earlier this month and there’s a nice trash heap along with the river debris.
Selfie on the bridge.
This is one of my favorite photos of Jill. She looks like she’s got a big pillar growing out of her head. Awesome! This was totally random, btw.
And here’s our fearless rickshaw driver relaxing with his cell phone.

This is a week of lasts. Tomorrow will be my last early morning (7am) class with Prashant. I’ll also be attending my last class with Abhay tomorrow who’s been a wealth of information and a great help.

Now, off to bed for me.

Blogged on Amma’s MacBook from Pune with LOVE!

And then there were two

Saturday Jill and I said goodbye to our flatmate, ManYee. ManYee is Hong Kong Chinese and lives in Australia. I met her here in 2013 when she and I shared the same flat. We didn’t know each other before then but now ManYee, Jill and I are “Pune Sisters.” There’s no doubt we’ll stay in touch and hopefully meet up in Pune again.

ManYee in her element, at the street food cart. Every day she’d bring home and eat street food of all varieties.
Pune Sisters having an FNO (Flatmates Night Out) at the Pune Marriott.
Pune sisters friendship bracelets.

This is the best thing ever in the whole wide world. You remember Daisy, right? Well I spotted her today without a care in the world. The below image is a YouTube video. You may not see the arrow in the middle of the image, but you have to click on it to view it. Trust me, you do not want to miss this. Maya, Alo, Sparty and Kando – I love you very much. This one’s for you!

From the backseat of an Uber – water buffalo. Yay!

These water buffalo were crossing the street just ahead of us.
This big truck is a “Goods Carrier.” It, you guessed it, carries goods.

I realize the next two images look to be poor quality, but I took them through the flat’s mosquito screens one early overcast morning. I did a little research online and learned they’re the Indian Gray Hornbill. They’re a fairly large bird and unusual looking, but beautiful. We get very excited when they come hang out with us in the morning.

Back in an Uber – cows in the fast lane.

The Road to Alandi

Nana took us to Alandi two Sundays ago. I’m sharing some of those photos today and will posts more to come. Alandi is a very auspicious and holy place of pilgrimage. I’ve made a trip there every time I’ve come here. There’s a very old temple there, and people come from all over India to go inside it. Because Alandi is a bit of a drive from Pune, Westerners don’t go there often which means we get stared at a lot. The people are very friendly, and they love having their picture taken with us.

The following four photos are of the “Road to Alandi.”

Oxen on the road.
Fruit cart along the highway.
There are huge apartment complexes like this all over Pune.

Sai Baba Temple

We made a short stop along the way at Sai Baba Temple in Pimpri Chinchwad.

Nandi, the bearer of truth and righteousness, sits in front of the temple.
Kurma (tortoise), representing sattvaguna (pure qualities), is also seen at the entrance of the temple.
Here’s inside the temple.
Outside – Me and Jill with Nandi.
This interesting fellow had his eye on us.
So we both took selfies with him.
Woman begging outside the temple.
Jill and I scored this orange and gold banner for Nana to hang on his mirror.

Alandi

Ah, Alandi.
A lot of people come here from all over India, and a lot of people travel here in the backs of trucks like this one. This also is legal in India.
Along the river.
It’s ok to wash your motor scooter in the river.
We have yet to be christened “Warkari” (holy person). Stay tuned …

More photos of Alandi to follow in my next post.

Blogged on Amma’s MacBook from Pune with LOVE!

The family car

Cheers! (my flatmate Jill and me)

Hello from Pune. I’ll start with some photos from my view on foot, as opposed to the back seat of a rickshaw or Uber.

Speaking of rickshaws, I realize that some of you call these motorized vehicles tuk tuks, but here in Pune they’re called rickshaws. Everyone calls them rickshaws, including the rickshaw drivers. Therefore, I call them rickshaws. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it!

And speaking of Ubers, during the past couple days, Uber snuck one in on us. When I arrange for an Uber, I always choose the cheapest ride which easily accommodates up to three people. Yesterday we were picked up by a rickshaw. An Uber rickshaw. Then again today another Uber rickshaw. Come to find out, rickshaw is now one of the Uber options, the cheapest option, which is about half the price of the previous cheapest option. This is great if you’re traveling a short distance, but for the long haul my body (particularly my back and neck) takes a beating in a rickshaw. After all the rain, the roads are horrible and the ride is extremely bumpy. Plus, if given a choice I’d rather be inside a vehicle with windows so I don’t have to breathe foul air and/or get wet when it rains. That is, of course, unless Nana’s driving. Just sayin’.

Veggie cart near Abhay’s studio
School kids
These two were blowing me kisses from their 2nd floor apartment

Below – one of the stores where we shop for food (& snacks).

Another view from the inside of an Uber, Ganesha on dashboard
Sewing shop

Here begins my collection of photos of the family car …

This is legal in India.
It’s a good thing Mom (yes that’s Mom) has a helmet on.
Look! Five people!

I think you get the picture (pun intended). Motorcycles and scooters are everywhere and there’s no limit as to how many people can ride on one (without a helmet).

Now I’m off to Prashant’s Friday evening Pranayama class.

Blogged on Amma’s MacBook from Pune with LOVE!

Where’s Daisy

I love Pune, I love the people, I love the crazy way everything is done, and I love the organized chaos. You know you’re at home here when you can navigate your way across any street comfortably. Pedestrians might not have the right of way, but hoofed animals certainly do!

Have you ever wondered where Daisy’s run off to? You’ll find out in this very short video (and another one for the kids). It doesn’t get much better than this!

This is a video. You have to click on it to watch.

Below are more photos taken from the backseat of Nana’s rickshaw.

Cricket in the street
When a block wall starts to crumble, simply fill it in with miscellaneous bricks and stones.
We see a lot of structures falling down like this one.
Outside Wagh Jewelers.
One of many Ganesha street temples.

I had a long day today filled with lots of yoga and then when it’s all said and done, more yoga. I’m fortunate to have two roomies who share the same passion as I do.

From Prashantji – What’s outside of you is the World. What’s inside you is the Universe.

A little more than a week to go here in Pune and I’ve already taken 902 photos. I’ll be spending another Sunday with Nana so I’m pretty sure I’ll easily get past 1,000. That doesn’t include the many yoga therapy poses I’ve taken.

Blogged on Amma’s MacBook from Pune with LOVE!