Thighs, Legs and j-pegs

When teaching at JCHS from 2003-2009 it was really important to me for my high school students to gain a vocabulary when talking about their bodies. This wasn't only true of the health/sex ed class, but also of the Pilates, yoga and dance classes.

My adult and teenage students often point to a part of their body and say "this hurts" or "this is tight" without knowing the names of those muscles. This is always surprising considering that the people with whom I work are incredibly knowledgeable about so many other things, just not always about body things.

So I thought I would break it down. The big leg muscles are the hamstrings and quadriceps. The hamstrings and the quads are both muscle groups, not actual muscles. The QUADriceps are made up of four muscles*, and the hamstrings are made up of three muscles** (or it could be four if you consider the biceps femoris two muscles, short and long). The quads are the muscles in front of the upper leg and the hamstrings are the muscles in the back of the upper leg.

The thing that both of these muscle groups do that is so amazing is that they work on the same two joints, the hip and the knee. The quads are all very important in knee extension. The middle quad muscle, the rectus femoris, attaches to the ilium hip bone, so it flexes the hip. The hamstrings are involved in knee flexion and hip extension.

Both these muscle groups cross over the knee joint, so they are really important knee stabilizers. The quads cross over the front of the knee to the patella (knee cap). When the quads are tight, they often pull on the patella, sometimes moving it out of alignment. This sometimes causes clicking or pain but can be managed by rolling out the quads with a roller or pinky ball as well as through stretches. The hamstrings affect the knee from the other side and can be stretched and massaged. Be aware that pain in the back of your knee is something to you should heed. Those are tendons that are asking for attention. Tendons don't stretch like the big part of the muscles. Stretch the big part of the muscle first and you will probably find that your tendons will quiet down.

The other big reason to stretch your hamstrings is, because as I mentioned before, they attach to your hip. When the hamstrings are tight, they can pull on your pelvis, which in turn can cause lower back pain.

The front and back of your leg should balance one another, agonist and antigonist muscles. When walking the quads lift your leg and bring it in front of you. The hamstrings pull the leg behind you. When each muscle is doing its job effectively the other muscle gets to stretch.

So proper gait actually balances the muscles! We will focus on that one another time, in addition to the lower leg muscles and the IT band.

So remember, quads - front of the legs, and hams - back of the legs. Now go for a walk in sensible shoes or no shoes at all. Allow your arms and legs to swing. Let your legs pull the ground underneath you and push the floor away. Then stretch.

*The muscles in the quads are: Rectus Femoris, Vastus Lateralis, Vastus Intermedius, Vastus Medialis. When rehabilitating the knee, we focus on strengthening the Vastus Medialis

**The muscles in the hamstrings are: Biceps Femoris, Semitendonosus, Semimembranosus

Jewish Yoga?

I just got off the phone with the Marin JCC. I can't get specific with my frustrations because the internet is not private. Here is my take on Jewish yoga:

As modern Jews, particularly those of us who live in the Bay Area, we are very aware of our physical health. Many of us find peace and inner strength from exercise and movement. In my classes I hope to convey that this sense of calm is not separate from Judaism.

Granted, working out, doing yoga or dance, is not the same as going to synagogue or studying Talmud. But Jewish life has never been ONLY about studying holy texts. It has been about taking care of your family, passing on traditions, living an ethical life and celebrating community. In a world where we have become more individualistic it can feel like Judaism just doesn’t fit.

For me yoga is a great place to start thinking about mindful movement. Yoga means union. The definition of that union has different interpretations. I think it is the union of the divine spirit inside us and the physical world. It is a time to reflect about how you stand, how you sit, how you breathe. When brought into a Jewish context, one can start asking questions like: where did that first breath come from? We can acknowledge that our bodies are absolutely incredible creations. We can start to appreciate the Divine context in which we live life.

This past summer I visited Sri Aurobindo’s Ashram as well as Auroville, a community that is dedicated to living out Auribindo’s teachings, creating an ethical community that is mindful, environmentally conscious and diverse. I was expecting to find a community that practiced yoga in the way that I knew it – on a mat. However, Sri Auribindo called mindful living Yoga. When one was doing organic farming, that was Yoga. When one was preparing food for others in the community, that was Yoga. When one was contributing to the community by being a security guard or artist, that was Yoga.

Yoga was not something that was done on the mat. In some ways, that community had a different challenge: getting on the mat.

So many of us practice yoga on the mat. So many of us practice mindful movement in Pilates or dance or maybe even on the treadmill. The challenge for us is to take the yoga off the mat. I’m not saying that these followers of Auribindo were perfect – far from it. But they got the idea right. Wouldn’t it be great if everyone who did yoga on the mat spent equal amount of time contributing to the community? One could argue that meditating, praying and mindful movement IS giving to the community. But I would argue that your personal experience is only one part of the puzzle. (I am married to King of Giving and Community Outreach, Rabbi Mark Asher Goodman.) In modern Judaism, you can't get away from Tikun Olam (Fixing/Healing the World) as a core principle.

This experience in Auroville made me feel more confident to take some of the Hindu out my yoga teaching. It is not the core of Yoga. With Judaism as a viable option, we don’t need to use Hindu god stories to explain our purpose in life. We have hundreds of our own stories that are rich and confusing.

We can breathe and think about our ribs expanding, what it means to give a rib to create another being (story of Adam and Eve). We can reach our heels back into the ground and imagine Jacob tugging at our heels (story of Esau and Jacob’s birth). Jewish folktales share the wisdom we have gained through the ages, often with humor. Sometimes we take it all way too seriously.

I often need to remind my clients that there is not pot of gold on the other side of that stretch. Judaism is all about the journey, not the destination. So much of the Torah focuses on wandering, not on living in a homeland. This is something to which so many of us can relate.

So now I need to write a description of a Jewish yoga class. I think I needed to get all that out before I market myself to the JCC’s of the South Bay and North Bay Jewish community. I am putting it out there that I would like to have some offer from SF. So much more convenient.

Butt Trilogy

So we are finally on the most famous of the three glut (pron. gloot) muscles, the Gluteus Maximus. In Pilates, we call the Gluteus Maximus an "on-off"muscle because it doesn't need to be used all the time. Meaning, the GM is not essential for stabilization like the psoas muscle or even the Gluteus Medius. We can stabilize our spine and pelvis without squeezing our butts. Butt squeezing might be a way of toning the muscle but it is not the way one should live life.

The Gluteus Maximus is used when we get up from a sitting position, climb stairs or simply extend the leg in front of us. It is the largest and most superficial of the three gluteal muscles, meaning it is furthest from the spine (so not a part of the "core") but it still important to keep it strong.

When the Gluteus Medius gets weak, it can often affect the piriformis and the TFL, and press on the sciatic nerve. When the Gluteus Maximus gets weak, it too can affect the piriformis, causing it to work overtime and press on the sciatic nerve.

When the GM gets too tight, it can affect the deep rotator muscles underneath it, called "The Deep Six." The Deep Six muscles, which include the piriformis, rotate the legs and stabilize the pelvis and leg. It is important to stretch and massage the GM so that all the rotator muscles that lie underneath the GM can work effectively.

Remember I mentioned the psoas earlier? That's the muscle we need to lift the leg. If that muscle is tight then we can't do the exercises we need to do to strengthen the GM, like climb stairs or run with correct form. This often causes the hamstrings to do the work instead of the GM, causing tight hamstrings that can pull on the pelvis and lower back.

So stretch those psoas muscles (also known as hip flexors)! Stretch those piriformis muscles! Climb some stairs and then stretch your hamstrings and piriformis muscles again!

Gluteus Minimus

The gluteus minimus is another overlooked butt muscle. It is the smallest of the three gluteal muscles. It often works together with the tensor fasciae latae (TFL). My high school students used to comment "There's a latte in your leg?". I will get to the TFL another day.

In Pilates, when we do side leg series, we sometimes feel this muscle as we lift the leg away from our midline in abduction. The gluteus medius also works when we internally rotate. If this muscle is tight, it can interfere with rotation in the hip. One very effective way of loosening the muscle is through massage with a foam roller or with a pinky ball.

Gluteus Medius

I thought I would start my Glut (pron. gloot) review with one of the lesser-known butt muscles, the Gluteus Medius. It is very important for pelvic stabilization.

Here are some additional functions: We use it to push the leg to the side, away from our midline, and it also works when we move the leg back into our midline. We can access it when we internally rotate our leg (anterior fibers) and when we push the legs away from our body in external rotation (posterior fibers).

In Pilates we focus on core stabilization so I watch people walk and look for hip movement. There definitely needs to be some hip movement because of the weight transfer, but it is important to look at the quality of the weight transfer. See diagram above. When we move forward while walking or running the Gluteus Medius makes sure we don't waddle side to side. It works together with the inner thigh adductor muscles to keep balance on one leg. Walking and running is the body's way of propelling ourselves in space by balancing on one leg and then another leg. When we walk we are balancing and then we fall forward and catch ourselves with the opposite leg. It is pretty amazing that most of us don't mess up the process more often.

The Gluteus medius helps us from swaying our hips so we don't pull on our joints and bones which can cause a lot of pain over time. There are exercises we do to isolate the Gluteus Medius but if you already know your butt the way that many of my clients do, see if you can work the muscle while standing on it, keeping your anatomy lesson of the day functional.

Butt Bowl i.e. neutral pelvis

I love this youtube video called Butt Bowl. It uses a fun way of finding your neutral pelvis.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PhTC_Jm78uk&feature=player_embedded

The QL

The Quadratus Lumborum (QL) muscle is next big culprit of annoyance for many people with back pain. It attaches to the sacro-iliac (SI) joint so it has a lot of responsibility. It needs to stay strong enough to keep your hips nicely attached to your back but loose enough that your psoas and low abdominal muscles can also work. Muscles need to play fair and unfortunately the QL likes to hog a lot of the action. When that happens the hips can easily move out of alignment causing muscles and ligaments to also readjust. Some people feel that their SI joint, to either side of the top of the butt-crack, move out of place, causing sharp pain.

The QL is also responsible for hip-hike and side-bending. Side-bending to one side (shortening the QL) can stretch the other side (lengthening the QL). If you are injured, go easy here because you need give your ligaments a chance to go back into place. This can take time. Ligaments can take longer to heal than muscles.

Another, more gentle way to access the QL for some, is simply to breath. The QL starts at the 12th rib and it stabilizes this rib during inspiration -- so breathe in and you might feel your QL lengthen a little. If you reach an arm to the sky as you inhale and imagine the hips staying nice and square, you are stretching the QL on one side.

The QL needs to work when we move, but we need to keep it relaxed enough that it doesn't throw off our core stability.

The Psoas Muscle

I just updated my facebook fan page with my thought of the day.

Here it is:

I have so many things that I want to share with you today. I have been thinking about the psoas muscle over the past couple of days. I have two clients who are trying to wrap their head around the concept. Liz Koch wrote a book (which I own, so let me know if you want to borrow it) solely dedicated to the psoas muscle. The psoas muscle is actually the iliopsoas muscle. You can check out her website www.coreawareness.com to learn more. I love that her approach is holistic but not in an annoying new-agey kind of way. Okay, maybe some of that music and psoas stuff doesn't really do it for me, but this woman really knows her stuff. When people say that their back hurts, I first try and figure out how this might relate to hip tightness and alignment.

In the summary below, she basically covers the main reason we have lower back pain. It has to do with gravity and how our bodies distribute the weight. She calls it the Pelvic Keystone:

"Gravity passes directly through the bony skeletal core via the spine, legs and feet; it does so by transferring weight from one spine to two legs through the pelvic basin. What creates and maintains pelvic integrity is a web of ligaments called the sacral iliac joints – this pelvic keystone transfers but does not bear weight. The psoas protects and attempts to prevent injury to the lumbar spine, pelvic keystone and nervous system. When torn, frozen or lax these proprioceptive rich pelvic ligaments communicate disturbed weight bearing signals that demand that the psoas, as messenger of the central nervous system, get involved. If weight does not move smoothly through the pelvis (evident by a torque, tipped or instable pelvic basin) it will be impossible to maintain a supple psoas."

So basically what Koch is saying is that we need to maintain alignment and strength of the psoas muscle so that we don't overuse or abuse it. I have worked with Yogis and Yoginis who are incredibly flexible but have very weak psoas muscles. I have worked with strong athletes who don't know how to release their psoas muscles for better athletic performance. And then there are most of us who simply suffer from lower back pain every so often, and there is a simple answer: psoas health. I could go on about this, but I truly recommend Liz Koch's expertise on the issue.

Article on SI Joint Pain

Just read a great article in Yoga Journal about Sacro-Iliac joint pain while researching more about what not to do when a pregnant woman suffers from pubic symphysis diastasis. It seems that the condition is aggravated when pregnant women stand for long periods of time and do exercises that would further destabilize the pelvis. Exercises that one should not do include split leg exercises that hurt. Keep doing pelvic tilts and Kegels, with an emphasis on the release part, not the tension part, to keep those pelvic floor muscles strong.

I haven't seen the belts, but there are also belts that can be purchased online to help stabilize the pubic bone into the spine. Maybe someone can create a belt that sounds a little more cool and less like an old school period pad (which is still what is used in places like Sri Lanka and India.)

Now on Facebook

I just joined Facebook hoping that I would easily be able to advertise for Pilates and yoga but it is all too complicated for me. I think I will just redirect people to my blog if they want to know what's going on. I tried to create an advertisement where I would pay per click for the month of December but they won't let me. They want more money.

Yelp stopped publishing my wonderful reviews. Maybe Facebook will come through and I will see the light that so many people have found in cyberland.

Off to get a great night sleep before waking up early for bike class at M2. And then a session with my rockin' trainer Nikki.

Adding another Prenatal Class!

I am so excited to announce that I will be adding

another prenatal Yoga class

Sundays 6:30-7:40pm beginning January 3, 2010.

I just joined Facebook, partly to keep up with people but mostly so that I can advertise my latest projects.

I need to figure out how to create a fan page. I am really annoyed with Yelp because they are not showing about 8 reviews that have been written about my business.

Ramakrishna Monks

Here are some monks from the RamaKrishna Temple. Click here for video

Mr Wiggles

So while I was in Goa a friend e-mailed me that she was terribly amused by a man whom I choose to call Mr. Wiggles (no, not the professional dancer, Mr. Wiggles). He and his girlfriend, Ms. Jiggles, had a whole stretching, bouncing, jiggling and wiggling routine that they would perform every morning for a couple hours of the beach.

I took some photos on my final day in Goa. Here is some video, too.

Video on train and then of Cochin Synagogue

The full review of the train ride is in a different blog. The video starts out dark but gets lighter as it goes along.

Here is the video.

In Cochin one isn't allowed to take photos in the synagogue so I had to be sneaky about it.

Here is the video

More photos- final stretch

Here are some photos from the final stretch of my trip, beginning with my train ticket to Cochin and ending in Mumbai.

Here is the slideshow

Goa photos

picasaweb.google.com/noamark76/NoaInGoa?feat=email#

More videos

The first video that I am posting is from Auroville, the place where I first stayed in India. It is 3 hours south of Chennai. The golf ball structure has an amazing meditation space in the middle which I described in an earlier blog. Also, the red brick structures around the golf ball are actually meditation spaces, each dedicated to a different aspect of one's humanity. For example, one is dedicated to Aspiration, so if this is a trait that you feel you need to work on, you would book a time to meditate in that chamber. Click here to watch. I am not talking because I was supposed to remain silent, even in the surrounding gardens.

I went to Chittambiram with my friend Arpita to see the Nataraj Temple. Here is the entrance way. Click here. It is about 2 hours from Pondicherry and Auroville. We shared the taxi ride there and back. It was a lovely day. We ended the adventure with a wonderfully glamorous dinner on the rooftop restaurant near the beach in Pondicherry.

The next video is a temple that I visited after my stay in Auroville and Pondicherry. You can see people standing in line to get their ash. I needed to stay quiet here as well because technically I was not supposed to photograph. Click here to watch.

I also went to the Ramakrishna Temple in Chennai. Click here to compare. So calm.

OK, I will upload more videos soon.

Sri Lanka Photos are up

You can see the slideshow off my Picasa album here

I am still waiting on some photos from the first part of my India trip.

Enjoy!

So how was your train ride?

Here is an answer to that question:

The train trip was fine. When I first got to the train station I was relieved to see 5 other American backpackers. There was an Indian guy who was trying to befriend all of us. After talking to all the Americans I decided that I didn't really like them enough to make an effort to be friends, but at least I would be waiting at the station alone until the train arrived. The Indian guy told us to board in the center and walk to the correct car.

The train was only 15 minutes late. I tried to seek out my car based on what was written on the outside of the train but that proved challenging. I knew my time was up when the train started to move without me on it. I quickly hopped on the train and asked some younger guys which way to go. They pointed me in the right direction, telling me that I was in 2nd class and that I need to walk up to the front. The one problem with that was that the path to the front of the train was blocked because it was the pantry. I walked as far as I could through the train car, passing feet and hands. Bodies were crammed into this small place and the image that unfortunately came to me was from the Holocaust.

While I waited until the next train stop, I was quickly joined by the group of American tourists who were probably given the same directions by another local. The small stuffy area included a man sleeping on newspapers and the American tourists. There were cockroaches crawling around and I stressed out because I really needed to pee.

Eventually I did use the squat toilet while the one really nice American girl watched my stuff. The train came to a halt after waiting for 30 minutes or so and we quickly scurried to an AC car. Luckily I came across a train ticketer who showed me to my berth. I thought I had an upper bunk and I thought I would have some privacy. But no, I had a middle bunk, with a man underneath me and a man above me. Everyone was snoring. It was pitch black. I didn't know what to do with my huge backpack so I simply threw it on the bed with me. I pulled out my sleeping bag sheet and a few minutes later, another train worker came by and provided me with clean sheets. Being squished between two beds and with little space to move, I managed to find a relatively comfortable position. Throughout the evening I was thankful that I was only 5 feet tall.

I thought I was the only woman in the area until I heard a baby cry in the double bunk across the way. Turns out that there was a family. The man in the middle bunk next to me was sharing a bunk with a child. I managed to get a few hours sleep. But I was very relieved once daylight came.

The whole train experience was no longer scary. I could see that there was a couple on their honeymoon, in separate beds of course, underneath me. There were three ladies traveling together. There was another family in the area next to me. I started to enjoy seeing Indian life on the train.

Once everyone was awake, the middle bunk is folded away and the three people sit on the lower bunk. The woman sitting next me (also who was sleeping under me) was curious about me. She was also a teacher. She taught 1st and 2nd graders. She took a photo of me with her cell phone and sent the photo to her sister. She asked to read my journal, and I agreed to let her, but started to feel uncomfortable when more than 5 minutes passed. Not only did I start to feel like there was private information in there that I preferred to keep to myself, but I worried that my recorded observations of Indian life might offend her. Particularly the thoughts on sexism in India.

I eventually gently took the journal back. She didn't ask any questions. I asked if she had any questions, but honestly I don't think she totally understood what I wrote.

So after 15 hours on the train I was relieved to get off. The scenery through Kerala is very pretty and I was met in Cochin by a hotel worker.
I was promptly driven to Fort Cochin and then my Cochin experience began.

video with Suzanne and Ronald in Goa

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fPBWWIoR0-0

I am wide awake at 3am so I will post some videos that I had difficulty posting before.

Back in SF

Mark met me at SFO with a huge bouquet of flowers. He is awesome.

I showered as soon as I got in. I stank.

Now we are hanging out at home. Will probably lay low for the next few days.

Will upload videos and photos for you to see. -Noa

final day in Mumbai

I made it to Mumbai. Lisa and Gary have been awesome hosts. I am glad that I can help run errands with them. Doing last minute shopping with final rupees.
My flight is at 3am tonight so I will head to the airport at around midnight.

Will update more when we get back from the latest shopping trip.

Lessons of Attachment

In Yoga, there is a lot of discussion of attachment. Attachment to ideas, feelings, memories. While travelling in India there are constant lessons on attachment. You think you are heading to point A? Sorry, road is closed. You think you are going to Temple B? Sorry, Temple closed to non-Hindus. You want to be on the train by Time C? Sorry, the train is running 3 hours late. You thought we agreed on price D? Sorry, that was when I thought you meant something else. More rupees please.

Today I woke up, took a rickshaw to the bus. It took an extra hour to get out of Kanyakumari because traffic simply stoppped for about half an hour. Traffic cannot flow when there is a single lane. So until enough complaints and a few police officers stepped in, we just stood still. The driver seemed pretty jovial about it all. Eventually I got to Trivandrum an hour late. I quickly caught a rickshaw, trying to avoid being swallowed up by the sea of rickshaw drivers that descended upon me as soon as I got off the bus. I had 45 minutes until my flight was supposed to take off. I thought: Okay, I will make this flight. We're off. But where to? The frickin' gas station! He looked at me and said "Petrol". I thought, okay at least we won't run out of gas on the way. We were on the way.
When we get here, he tries to get more money out of me, telling me that he thought we were going to the international terminal which is closer to town. I told him domestic and that I was flying to Mumbai very clearly. I kindly told him that we agreed on 100 rupees and walked away.

At the airport...
Last time I checked into my domestic flight to Goa a week ago, the person behind the desk forgot to return my computer print-out of my e-ticket. I tried to get into the airport today with just a passport, but instead needed to go to a desk. I wanted to do the print-out yesterday but the hotel wasn't very helpful and the internet place with the bad keyboard didn't have a printer.
So I'm at the airport and of course the printer is broken. He prints from a different printer.

Get in and guess what? My flight is delayed for another 2 hours. Hopefully I will make it to Bombay today. I am looking forward to meeting Becky P's sister with whom I am staying for my last night in India.

At least the prices at the airport are reasonable. A chai tea here is 10 rupees. At the airport in Bombay it is 60 rupees. Ridiculous.

But I really enjoyed my bus rides here. The scenery is beautiful in the south. Passing rice paddies and palm trees with mountains in the background. I was lucky to get a seat. Because I took long rides, I boarded early and got the single seat up next to the driver. I could put my huge backpack there and just relax.

Okay, hopefully I will make it to Mumbai today. If not, I am ready to dis-attach from that idea and look for a hotel room for the night. I can fly to Mumbai anytime in the next 12 hours. My flight back to SF is in 36 hours. I will hold on to that idea for just a little bit longer.

Love from India -Noa

Kanyakumari

I made it. My final destination. Kanyakumari. Took the bus from amma's ashram and got here 6 hours later. Ate something at the hotel. Went to Vivekananda Memorial and saw the Indian " Statue of Liberty"
Then experienced a cool temple where the men need to take their shirts off in order to enter

Was hot and stuffy> now will go shower and hydrate and rest> i leave for airport to mumbai tomorrow>

this keyboard is annoying>>>>>

Last day at Amma's

Tomorrow I leave Amma's Ashram. It has been a great experience here. I would love to come back but when it is sunny. I hate the rain. Walking around in flip-flops in the mud is icky.

This morning there was prayer/meditation from 5am until 6:30am. Then chai tea. Then I went to yoga from 7:30 until 8:30 with a groovy lady called Davika. She is American and taught a nice iyengar yoga class. She was also my tour guide yesterday.
Then breakfast. Indian breakfast is free but I went for the Western food. I had a couple fried eggs and toasted cornbread. Yum.
Then I did a little shopping in the gift shop here. I bought a couple bars of Ashram chocolate to share with my friends. I feel bad that I am not bringing home gifts for everyone. So I apologize in advance. However, if there is something you REALLY want from India, please let me know and I will try and make it happen over the next couple of days. After shopping there was lunch but because there is only outdoor seating I just bought a cookie and a pb cupcake and went for a walk. As I was walking a crow tried to take the food from my hand. Now I have a scratch from the bird. Annoying.

I am enroute to the Ayurveda College but wanted to check in with everyone before continuing on the road.

When I get back to the Ashram I will get a Masala Dosa for 15 rupees. What is up with dosas being so expensive in SF?

I leave for Kanyakumari tomorrow early morning. Hopefully I will get there in 6 hours or less....

Lots of love -Noa

Amma's Ashram

Made it to Amritapuri's. I like it here. It is super calm. My room is simple but has a nice breeze on the 9th floor. I took a 3 hour bus ride to get here. It was pretty comfortable -- in some ways the opposite of my train experience.

I have 4 minutes until the internet office closes. Soon I have a tour of the ashram. I have all day tomorrow here and then I head down to Kanyakumari in two days.

Ommmmm.

Cochin

Arrived safely. Went to Jew Town. Off to see a Kathakali dance performance. Will write more later.

Another day at the beach

Today is my last day in Goa. I have an 11pm train to Cochin tonight. This will be my first overnight train anywhere. I am not looking forward to the squat toilets on the train. It will be a 15 hour train ride. I have my pinky ball and theraband so that I can stretch out while on the train. I think I am on the top bunk so that will give me a little privacy.

Last night I had a difficult time sleeping. I kept waking up thinking that there was a bug on me. It was probably just sand because I don't have any new bug bites this morning.

I took some video of the guy in his loin cloth with his girlfriend. My new friend Ronald says he is doing Tai Chi. I don't know... the people in Golden Gate Park do not look like they are doing what this guy is doing. You decide. If I am not completely successful in uploading this video now, I will show it to you when I get home in a week.

Video from dinner

Here is some video from dinner a couple nights ago with Ronald and Suzanne.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fPBWWIoR0-0

Goan Dinner

Yesterday I was so much more at peace after talking to Mark on the phone. It was the first time we had spoken since I left on my adventure.
Afterwards I bought a train ticket to Cochin for tomorrow, November 6. I am one day behind "schedule" but that's fine. I feel very comfortable here on the beach. My new friends, Suzanne and Ronald, moved from their guest house/hut at Bakti Shukir to my place at Papayas. From the outside Papayas looks like a little bit of a mess. They just re-opened for the tourist season on November 1, but the beach is much more quiet than Palolem.

Every room is named after a fruit. I am in Mango. I forgot to mention that at Quiet, every room was named after a planet. Guess what planet I got? Yup, Uranus. Awesome.

Last night, Ronald, Suzanna and I walked 40 feet down the beach for a lovely evening. We watched the sunset and enjoyed a fish feast. We ate grilled tandoori fish and traditional Goan Xacuti fish.

The restaurant first showed us the fish. We had a choice of lobster, squid, some other gooey sea creature, kingfish and snapper. We chose the snapper. I will try and upload the photos. I have tried twice but it may be the computer that I am using.


During dinner we talked about all sorts of things. Ronald is finishing up medical school and he is specializing in gastro-intestinal stuff and other digestive medicine. It is fascinating to me. He is very interested in Kashrut. So whenever he is in SF I promised him that he could get all the details from my Talmud-savvy friends, including my husband.

Suzanne works in low-income housing in Rotterdam. She is also a big fan of yoga and Pilates.

Ronald asked me when I thought I might die, hopefully of natural causes. I am not sure. I only got to know one of my grandparents. Before he asked me this question I had been reading a booklet that I had picked up at Sri Auribindo Ashram entitled "Death". Don't worry , this was one of four booklets that I picked up. I don't buy into many of the things he says, but I enjoy sitting on the beach reading about these greater topics. He asks the question "why is there death?" assuming that the soul lives on forever. Personally I don't believe in reincarnation, so worshipping cows here in India seems odd. Auribindo talks about death being a impetus for us to get things done. He calls it Aspiration. I just think that without death, we would be lazy. We wouldn't have a Deadline. As we get older, we see the frailty of life. We become weaker. We see our parents age. More people around us hit that deadline. That deadline gives us a sense of responsibility to make changes in this world that will hopefully improve life for those in the future.

While in Sri Lanka I met a woman who said she had no qualms about working for an unethical company or for a country that supports injustices against women, people of different faiths and people of different sexual orientations. She became angry with me when I said that it would be difficult for me to even be friends with someone who gives such a big part of their life's energy to a cause that could harm others.

In SF Mark and I are so lucky to be part of a greater community full of ethical business-people, teachers, doctors, spiritual leaders, healers. I wrote earlier about Barbara Marx Hubbard's theory of how the butterfly emerges out of the catipillar. My friends, my associates, my colleagues are making that blueprint on the catipillar's cacoon so that the butterfly can emerge.

photo success?

OK, So I have to figure out how to bring this image right side up. But we're making progress, right?

Noa in Goa

I have been waiting forever to be able to write that title above. I have arrived in Goa. I am uploading some videos from the past day so that you can see the beautiful beach here. I am staying at Patnem beach where there are a few Europeans and some cows on the beach.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_w0LEaHyhrs


I walked to Palolem Beach which is much more built up to sit here at a nice internet place and inquire about train tickets to my next destination Cochin.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hQwiCZF8OHE



Yesterday I was nervous because I didn't know how I was going to get from the airport in Goa to my beach.
I spoke to a couple sitting next to me while riding the airport shuttle bus that takes you from the gate to the plane in Mumbai. Turns out that they already arranged a taxi to take them to their hotel in Palolem Beach. They were totally cool with me joining them in the car. Thank you Ronald and Suzanne! They are from Rotterdam in the Netherlands. That saved me over 1000 rupees! I arrived at my hotel and I am very impressed with the facilities. The toilet is amazing and I was given not 1 but 2 rolls of toilet paper! I am tempted to spend more time here just because of the bathroom facilities. Just kidding... kinda. Anyone who has ever travelled in countries that lack running water hopefully can appreciate my reverence of a flushing toilet -- one that can handle tp. On my flight to Goa, it was the first time that I have been among tourists. In some way, it was nice to be able to talk to the person next to you and have a lot in common right off the bat. I met Regina and her husband Daniel from New Zealand. They had come from the north and did a 14 day trek in the Himalayas. Mark, maybe in a few years?

camera

I just purchased a camera in the airport in Mumbai. My flight to Goa leaves in an hour. I tried to find an international calling card so that I could call Mark and connect with him on our first wedding anniversary. No luck. Hopefully he checked his email so that he knows that I am thinking of him on November 2. I am also thinking of him on every other day but you know what I mean...

Now I will sit down and try to assemble this camera. Hopefully it will work. I got the cheapest digital camera available.

Last day in Auroville

Yesterday I went to the temple in Chitamburam. It was in the Dravidian style.

Mark asked me to get more specific about my experience so here goes:

In Auroville, it is basically a strange version of probably what the state of Israel looked like when they were drying out swamps with an Indian feel and New Age sensibility. It is dirty and there are a lot of old hippies that have moved there or are visiting. There are a lot of Indians who have also moved there though I am unsure if they are in it for the potential financial or security of because of what Auroville stands for.

The best thing I have seen / experienced so far is the inside of the golf ball. It is an amazing meditation place. I couldn't get in until today because of the rain. The inside is all white and they are afraid that people will track mud inside. They give you white socks to put on. You are led up a spiral pathway, all carpeted in white to a huge room that faces a glass sphere. When the sun passes over the golf ball there is a window at the very top that catches the light and then the light is refracted inside the glass ball. It is beautiful.

I appreciate how it is not, despite the name Matrimandir, a temple to The Mother. She specifically said that it is a meditation space that is not dedicated to a person. It is for anyone, from any religious background to sit and meditate in whatever way you want -- as long as you are silent.

Then after grabbing a snack at the bakery and some jewelry -- couldn't help it--- I started my journey in a private taxi to Chennai.

So what do I want out of this solo trip? What have I gained so far? What I want from this experience is to be able to reflect on where I am in life. To think about my spiritual path. I don't have the opportunity to really to that at home and it is great to spend some time doing that. On Sunday I sat around a circle with 8 others in silence. The birds were chirping. Some motorbikes went buzzing by. Some fresh fragrant flowers were in the center of the circle and I could sit there/ lie there/ think there/ meditate there for 3 hours. There was a quiet closing chant that is pretty common that basically translates as: May all things exists in peace.

During the movie on Saturday night I started reflecting on how I feel about bringing a child into a world that could very well be destroyed by climate change, war and other forms of destruction. The movie I saw in Sri Lanka was very depressing. However the movie by Barbara Marx Hubbard (old hippie new-agey lady) called Humanity Ascending made me feel a little bit better. Her theory was much more hopeful. Instead of thinking about humankind being destroyed, she sees it transforming into something better. She uses the metaphor of the catipilar transforming into a butterfly.

Today I visited two other temples, Rama Krishna Mutt Temple and Shiva Kapaleeshwar Temple.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_1nftzD67vo


Tonight I am sleeping in a kinda icky hotel. I look forward to getting to the beach in Goa.

Back in Pondi

Now I am back in Pondi at the same internet cafe. I am here to update.

Yesterday after I left the internet cafe, I went to a very sweet shop and cafe called Kasha Ki Aasha. It is women owned and operated. I had a dosa pizza. It didn't taste like pizza but I wanted something Indian-ish that didn't have curry.

After sitting there for a while, I started speaking to a group of American guys sitting nearby. When I upload the video and get a photo from them, I will upload the images. Anyway, it was fun talking to them. Turns out they grew up in Chicago and two of the guys are studying to become priests at a divinity school in Kerala. The third guy worked for Lehman and now does NGO business stuff here. Their families are orginally from India so it was interesting gaining their perspectives on India and religion in India. It is always nice to speak to people and find so many similarities in cultural values and religious issues.

I returned by tuk-tuk. My friend Arpita called me. She moved to a cheaper guest house. Unfortunately, someone tried to break into her suitcases. Fortunately she has them locked up. Unfortunately, while trying to pick the locks, they are now jammed. Her decision is to keep the locks jammed and go shopping. I don't know if the plan worked to her financial benefit but we had fun shopping today.

We went back to Fabindia. I bought a couple more Kurtas because my other ones are smelly and I don't feel like washing them in this rainy weather. When I get to Goa, it will be dry and sunny and I will hand wash all my Indian stuff. We got silly and bought matching earrings -- also not financially smart. But when I convert the rupees to dollars, it seems okay, right??? Ten bucks...

I took Arpita back to Kasha Ki Aasha and tonight we will see a movie in Auroville about Laughing Clubs. Arpita and I talked about women in India. She said that about 70 percent of Indian women are beaten by their husbands. There are villages near her home that have no daughters (ie female babies are killed by boiling them in milk). I truly hope that more international pressure can change some of these horrible injusticies.

Tomorrow I will take a 3 hour meditation class and then we will hire a taxi to take us to a temple about 2 hours away in Chidambaram. The story behind the temple is basically a "dance-off" between Shiva and Krishna. Arpita will take photos. I will take video and will upload soon.

Love from Pondi -Noa

Aurobindo in a day

I am staying at a guest house that is part of Auroville. It is a strange city of about 2000 people, many from France and Germany, and many Indians. They all follow the teachings of Sri Auribindo and his follower, a French woman who passed away in the 70's, whom they call The Mother. In many depictions of the two of them, it kinda looks like Jesus and Mary or something similar.

Separate, (and I learned that people are touchy about this) is the Sri Auribindo Ashram which is located in the center of Pondicherry. The city of Pondi, as it is commonly referred, is about 15 minutes drive from Auroville.

The city of Pondicherry has two parts. There is the Indian part, that looks a little shitty and run down, partly due to the fact that is was damaged during the tsunami. And there is the French part which is much nicer. The French part is still motorbike filled and crazy but it has some cute shops and quiet gardens.

I made a new friend yesterday who is also staying at the same guest house as me. Her name is Arpita and it is her first time travelling alone. She is from the central part of India. Her sense of local culture, her confidence on the motorbike and my general sense of being made for a very good combination.

After I took a tour of Auroville and it'sholy site-- this central golf ball structure that holds dirt from 140 different countries, we rode to Sri Auribindo Ashram. I bought a couple books from the ashram library. The space itself is pretty small. There isn't a place to sit or learn. People leave their shoes outside and bow/meditate before a bed of flowers. Then that's it.

We then went for lunch and checked out other hotel options. I like where I am staying but there are zero activities on site. If I stayed closer to town I could easier grab a tuk-tuk/3 wheeler or walk to civilization. Another option is to stay here for the weekend and go to Chennai a day early and see some temples. I have to leave from Chennai which is a 3 hour drive from here anyway on November 3. My flight is at 9am. Anyway, sorry I am thinking as I am typing.

Back to the activities of yesterday. We walked along the beach,visited an Ayurveda hospital. I didn't have a treatment done but the place seemed pretty legit.

I bought toe rings. My friend Arpita told me about all the signs to show that a woman is married. Toe rings - matching, one on the same toe on both feet is part of the deal. Arpita took photos. She will e-mail them to me.

We then had tea/coffee at Le Cafe on the beach in Pondi and then made it back to our guest house for a shower and dinner.

The rains came down again last night but it has been dry all day. There was a tremendous boom with every stroke of lightening. I think it is the most impressive thunder that I have ever experienced.

Signing off from Pondi. Love -Noa

Quiet Healing Centre

I arrived safely at Quiet Beach. The rain started last night. Right now it is barely drizzling. I am waiting for my taxi to take me to Auroville. I will get acquainted to the village, have a little lunch and find out some activities that I can do over the next few days.
I will get some lunch and return to my cute space here/ Taxi here. will update more later.

Goodbye Sri Lanka

I had a great time in Sri Lanka. It is not the most beautiful country but there are definitely beautiful parts. The tea plantations are really gorgeous as are the mountains. I didn't have time to see the beach towns (where Julia lives) but I will be on the east and west coast of India so I will have plenty of beach time over the next two weeks.

I uploaded a few videos onto youtube. I think everyone will get a kick out out of the "How to make elephant dung paper" video. Right now I am using the free internet station at the airport, so going between windows on this computer would probably be difficult.

It was great spending time with Julia. Unfortunately she now is on another six hour journey back into the hills for work.

When I arrive in Chennai, hopefully there will be a driver waiting to take me down to Pondi, as Pondicherry is commonly referred.

I am very happy that the weather has held up so far. No rain except for some sprinkles in the mountains. How is the weather in SF? It usually gets so cold around this time of year. Here I am dripping sweat even when there is "air-conditioning". I suppose this is good for getting rid of toxins, but it also makes for a very stinky journey.

Will update more later. Friends, feel free to reply to any of my posts. -Noa

back from knuckles

Julia and I arrived safely back from Knuckles Mountain Range. It was beautiful. We ended up meeting a friend of Julia's boss' father who happened to own a house in knuckles. The place is vacant and he has servants living there and tending to the place. It was a nice villa hidden away between tea plantations and forests. The servant, Yoca, took us on a hike yesterday. We saw water buffalo hanging out.
I of course walked ahead of Julia and Yoca and went way past the house. BUT I saw wild MONKEYS! They were big.
The day before we went to an elephant orphanage. I will upload some video from the elephant orphanage tomorrow.

Here is one video. I love how serious he is about making elephant dung paper:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m0AQmILd-k0

Tonight Julia and I will have a nice meal here in Colombo. Doing laundry at her boyfriend's apt now.

Lots of love to you all. -Noa

tomorrow's plan

Julia and I decided where we are going tomorrow.

Check it out: Green View Holiday Resort

first night in sri lanka

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_YNmFmL4r-Q

Introduction to Stringhoppers

Julia guides us through a breakfast in Sri Lanka

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MdPr_pA0R4I

Bus ride in Sri Lanka

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lpQNopuPSL0

Sri Lanka

I arrived safely in Sri Lanka. My friend Julia met me at the airport in Colombo. We stayed at a very nice guest house last night. We are using her camera so we will upload photos later.
I have a few videos. One is from our ride in the 3-wheeler (tuk-tuk) last night. Another is from this morning at the guest house. I finally had a good night's sleep! My congestion is much more manageable. We have another video introducing you to a traditional Sri Lankan breakfast called Stringhoppers. And then there is a video of us on the bus. There is a front row 'reserved for clergy', a second row 'reserved for disabled' and a third row 'reserved for pregnant women'. Interesting.

We had dinner last night at a place called The Cricket Club Cafe.
Right now we are at a cafe and will be going to another restaurant, Barefoot Cafe, for the film screening The Age of Stupid about climate change.
Tomorrow we will head towards Kandy and Knuckles Range.

more day 1 updates

From the synagogue here in Mumbai.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sGTRPJIeDWM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yDjjo7Hs0SM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uczIIENEwp4

All dressed up for my big meal of the day.

DAY 1 in Mumbai

I arrived to the hotel last night at 3am. Still congested from before. I walked around for about 40 minutes this morning. Couldn't find anything that resembled a cafe for breakfast so I walked back to the hotel.
I saw that some people order room service to their room. The food comes from somewhere outside. I don't know if it's intentional but I have no toilet paper. Good thing I brought back-up.
I also forgot my camera which totally blows. I am trying to figure out how to upload the video I took this morning.

Basically I am in that typical dreamlike state that one feels when one only slept 3 hours and is hopped up on sudafed.

Will update more later. Tomorrow I fly to Sri Lanka. Julia will show me the ropes.
Here is the video from today. Hope it works: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_0pvKZgwEKk

This is when I was in my room recovering from my morning walk. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FbLJGrXUsR0

Quiet Healing Center

Received an e-mail confirmation from Quiet Healing Center, a guesthouse at Sri Auribindo Ashram in Pondicherry. It included the following note about dinner. Love it.

Thanks for your confirmation , we expect you any time from 7 pm onwards.

Dinner is served at 7 pm , Do you want us to keep some for you or would you rather stop on the way here to eat ?

Looks like Kanye West and I will be crossing paths in India. Seriously.

Karuna Trust

Today I received an update as to what is going on with a great organization that I support in India:

Dear Noa

Our project - Support 5000 women out of sexual & economic abuse - which you supported, just posted an update with news about the progress and results your generosity has helped make happen. Here's the unedited update from the field:

Thank you - an update from the field
By Steven Murdoch - Project Manager

Having just returned from India I am pleased to report that this project continues to give much needed support to women who are experiencing caste discrimination, sexual harassment and domestic violence.

It saddens me; however, to report that our project partner continues to receive many requests for assistance from young women who have been subjected to despicable sexual assaults from men of higher castes. These heinous crimes continue because there is little or no redress under a rural legal system which is largely ignored by police and local authorities.

It is for this reason that our project partner works tirelessly to bring criminals and their protectors, including police and doctors to justice.

In my last report I shared the story of Diksha Ashruba Shinde and her sister Panchshila of Shindi village, Beed District. The sisters were violently assaulted by a group of nine men in an unprovoked caste attack. Both Diksha and Panchshila were punched in the face and chest and beaten with sticks and iron rods.

Thanks to the work of this project, the doctor who refused to admit the sisters to the Kaij Rural Hospital was suspended from work and five police constables and one police inspector were suspended from work under section (4) of prevention of Atrocities Act.

The project’s team have also successful won compensation from local government for the sisters as a result of their advocacy work. The project’s publicity of the case drew the State Home Minister of Maharashtra to make an unprecedented declaration that any village accused of repeated atrocities would find its development fund frozen by government.

If there is a silver lining to this case it is that, with the help of the project, both Diksha and Panchshila, have fought to turn disaster into opportunity. Both sisters have enrolled for and been selected to attend Nirmala Niketan College of Social Work in Mumbai, where they will train in order to dedicate themselves to the empowerment and development of Dalit Women.

Thank you for your continued generous support for this project. Your generosity is giving young women like Diksha and Panchshila a voice and bringing criminals to justice.

Stay tuned for more updates. And thanks for your support!

Steven Murdoch and the Karuna Trust team in India

You can learn donate
www.karuna.org

Little Lois in London

This is my favorite photo of Lois, Leigh and Andrew's baby girl.

Leigh's online store.

video test post

seattle fish throwing

Here is a pic of fish flying from Seattle.

Prenatal Yoga Class Forming

New Prenatal Yoga Class Forming November 15 in Duboce Area

www.noaarts.com

www.noaarts.com/prenatalyoga.html

Details: This is based on DEMAND. SO PLEASE CONTACT NOA if you are interested in being part of this exciting new group of moms.

The class will be on Monday and Thursday 11:30-12:45am. Sunday evening class at 6:30-7:45pm. Time can change depending on moms' schedules.

Blog beginning

The blog has begun. I am going to document my year. My year, the Jewish new year of 5770. My year, my second year of marriage. My year, the year I travel to India and Sri Lanka. Who knows what other things will mark this new year!

I will try and update this space with my travels October 20 through November 13. I will arrive in Mumbai at 1am on October 22 so I will go right to sleep (hopefully) and then stay in Mumbai the evening on the 22nd.

I will try and add some photos and video as I go and may do a few test runs in the next week or so to make sure I can load photos and videos with zero problems.