Ashram life is breathtaking, unusual and full of energy! Cali, Colombia is a beautiful city with lots to do so you will never get bored here. I arrived at Yogendra EcoAshram at the end of January with about a week to rest, explore and try to make this place feel like home for three months. It was difficult for me at the beginning trying to figure out how I fit in with a world so different than my own back in the states. Living at a yoga ashram is a whole culture shock within itself excluding the fact that I was also in an unfamiliar country! Putting myself out there by talking to other people and taking part in things that I love to do at home (spontaneous dancing, reading, etc.) really helped me to make this uncomfortable life feel very comfortable. We began the yoga teacher training early February and busy days starting at 6:30am continued for three weeks. Learning about yoga philosophy was incredible and truly has changed a lot of my perspectives and I was able (and still continuing) to establish a healthy mindset for my future. This was very challenging for me since I needed to dig deep into what parts about myself I was unhappy with and try to see the beauty in them. It’s a process of changing my whole entire mindset but once I started, I have felt so free and much more positive about myself and the world that I live in. I am now beginning to see the beauty in each thought that comes into my head, each person I meet and each place I go. We learned all about yoga postures and many students taking the course, including myself found that we have been doing many of them wrong ever since we started doing yoga! It was refreshing to see how to actually position yourself so you wouldn’t cause an injury. We were taught by Chaitanya and Syam and they are INCREDIBLE teachers. They are so willing to help with anything and so passionate about their yogic lives.
After the three weeks of the 200 hour teacher training, I went to do a week long homestay in the city. I stayed with an artist and it was really special to hear about her life since she has been through so much. I was lucky to have her take me to all the best local eateries! Brownies, ice-cream, empanadas galore!!! I was happy to return to the ashram though because it felt like home. Seeing Shanti, Chanco (the dogs), Lolita (the baby goat), other volunteers and everyone that works at the ashram was a reminder that this is exactly where I want to be and how much happiness this place brings out in me! I loved the first teacher training course so much that I am currently taking another, Yoga Therapy! The food at the ashram is crazy good!! I was never much of a meat-eater before but eating all these healthy, vegetarian meals, I don’t think I will ever want to go back to eating meat! There are a lot of volunteers coming and going so we are never really alone and it’s nice because many people return for other teacher trainings so I have gotten to create longer and more personal relationships than I previously thought I would have!
Everyday when a teacher training course isn’t going on, the schedule is very relaxed and a volunteer teaches a meditation and yoga class. We each do a daily seva (a short task like cleaning a room or helping make a meal) and have the majority of the day to rest, read, go into the city, talk with others or really anything you want! It’s an incredibly beautiful place and an amazing area to start or continue a spiritual, yogic journey! I can’t believe I only have about a month left – it feels like home and I am not ready to leave these beautiful views behind but lucky to have fresh mindsets to bring along!
Con mucho amor, Maddy
