i'm very bendy

*disclaimer: the only real purpose of this email is to make all my other yoga friends ridiculously insanely jealous. so if you are not interested in yoga at all, you do not need to read this blog. but you should. for your own health, and the health of your loved ones.*

taking yoga in classes was very high on my india to-do list. i was determined. it was going to happen. how could it not? this is the yoga birthplace after all. for all those that read eat, pray, love- the india chapter on yoga is set in the same state where i am currently living. i thought that i would have to find a class outside of school to achieve this goal. or enroll myself into the same yoga-boot camp that was detailed in the book- and in adventure magazine. (actually, this remains as a goal on my kerala exit list (things i will do before leaving)- so i will be enrolling myself at some point). but alas, the universe has smiled upon me and has offered me ashtanga yoga classes directly at school. and they are incredible. i've been an active yoga-atic for almost 2 years now. not exactly consistent, because i'm not exactly wealthy. but i treasured the once a week $6 class my public health friends and i partook in, and any other classes i could get my hot little hands on.

the class we take is taught by a wonderful woman named chetana. apparently she has been doing yoga for 15 years, and has been educated by a couple of the big shot gurus in india and the uk. big time. her voice alone plunges you into a deep state of relaxation and focus. we often walk around campus singing her chants and songs. her english is quite well and is accompanied with a charming accent. the class is 6 days a week. yes, that's right. six days a week. everyday at sunset. which is a perfect ending to the long trying days i've come to accept as standard work days. it's hard to describe the classes. it just feels more pure, more correct, more...the way that yoga was meant to be. it's only been a month of classes but already we have progressed quickly- learning the wonderful names each pose has, and challenging my body to twist into poses with names like bharadvajasana and utthita parsvakonasana. already i've noticed a drastic change in my own body. it quite intensive but taught in an incredibly empowering and calming manner. the room alone has a raw sense of energy, and the huge lotus flower at the front offers a point of focus and clarity. it's pure zen when the monsoon season kicks in and the chants are harmonized by the cooling response of the rain steadily falling outside our half exposed room.

the best part is...the entire month of class is only $12 USD (insert intensified jealously here). that's right, about the cost of a single yoga class back at home. an entire month. multiple that by seven months, classes six days a week. that's a looooot of good, cheap, consistent yoga. i think upon my return i will demand to be referred to as a yoga guru. or master at least. it's science.