Sivananda Ashram - before the TTC

As the actual TTC (Teachers Training) will start tomorrow I take the chance to post a few lines today and tell you about my impressions here. The Sivananda Ashram is huge and accommodates up to 350 guests / students which is way more than I had expected. The ratio between women and men is 90 to 10, which gives this place a more smooth and warm energy. I met a very funny guy from the US -- he is actually a globe trotter, his suit case is his home ;) -- and we decided to have a good time here no matter how hard the training might get. With a smile on your face everything becomes more easy, no?
Yesterday we sneaked out of the Ashram -- which is not really according to the rather strict and well structured rules here -- and went to the near by lake. There we had the opportunity to observe some Indians wash an elephant. The animal really seemed to enjoy this part, I doubt that it enjoyed much wearing the heavy chains around its legs. In the Ashram we were told that there were alligators, but as the local people told us that there were none at this time of the year and I consider myself rather dangerous too I decided to risk a small bath. My 2 colleagues and and I walked for a bit to explore the next two settlements near by and find a place to have a Chai with milk and sugar like it should be here in India.
Back to the Ashram we could see the same elephant once as part of some kind of show off to some official from Thailand and I was think of setting up a conspiracy in order to free the animal.
The intermediate classes here are rather intense, especially as I am a bit out of practice right now. My headstand was rather wobbly, so the teacher´s assistant did not dare to leave me alone, as my feet seamed to be suffering a heavy hang over ;) So today in the morning I decided to take it easy and go to the beginner´s class. I am sure that within a month I will be fit like a sports-shoe. I uploaded a few impressions of the Ashram to give you an idea of my 1 month home… big hug to everybody.