Around the world trip from August 9 - 27

Except for Kaula Lumpur, Malaysia I haven't visited any other South East Asian countries. So I took the opportunity of attending a wedding in India to continue the journey eastwards for the return trip and cover some of these countries. I ended up flying 12 flight segments across six different airlines covering Singapore, Siem Reap (Cambodia), and Bangkok (Thailand). I was hoping to cover Manila in Philippines as well on the way to Los Angeles, but international transit passengers weren't allowed into the city during the layover! The photos and videos of the trip are available on Instagram and Facebook.

If any one interested, the total cost of flight tickets came to $1365.48! Given the peak summer season, this was a pretty good deal for an around the world trip I think. I booked all one way tickets. The eSIMs from airalo worked really well in India and the other Asian countries I visited.

8/9 - RIC-ORD-AUH-HYD: $543.30 - American Airlines and Etihad Airways

8/16 - HYD-KUL-SIN: $124.03 (9818 INR) - Airasia

8/18 - SIN-KUL-REP: $114.37 (157.40 SGD) - Airasia

8/21 - REP-DMK: $72.56 (99.86 SGD) - Airasia

8/24 - BKK-MNL-LAX: $359.00 - Philippine Airlines

8/25 - LAX-SJC: $35.22 - Southwest Airlines

8/27 - SFO-RIC: $117.00 - Breeze Airways

Day 12 at the Arogyalayam

Additional mudras were taught at the Yoga class today. I’m still not able to do the right nostril for Sutra Neti on my own. With fasting ended, today’s diet is fruits for all three meals. Below are the fruits served at breakfast:

I got full body massage and steam bath again today. I didn’t schedule any afternoon treatment as I need to take my dad for the follow up visit of his eye surgery. Below are the fruits served for lunch:

I happened to talk to a young man who joined here for three months to lose weight. He is finding it hard to eat this food as he was accustomed to eating biryanis and junk food. Even without fasting, just by eating this food, he lost 6 kgs (13.2 lbs)! Motivated him to stick with it and take advantage of all the programs being offered while here.

We left for the eye hospital right after lunch. I am very comfortable driving the stick on Indian roads now. We had to wait a long time for the doctor to return from lunch. Every thing is fine. On the way back, got a chance to explore the nearby area as certain roads became one way as the state assembly was in session. We came back to the Arogyalayam by the dinner time. I wasn’t that hungry. So I didn’t try all the fruits that were served. Below is my dinner plate:

Today was full moon. So, the evening lecture was in the open air theater. Dr. Raju explained in layman terms how heart functions and the impact of salt in take on the heart. The animation was very nice. After the lecture all the light were turned off so that health seekers could enjoy the full moon light along the river bank. The view and the breeze was truly magical.

Day 11 at the Arogyalayam; Fasting - Day 7

I skipped the Yoga class today, but did Surya Namaskar and Pranayama on my own after performing the kriyas. I started juice fasting today. The schedule is as follows:

8 am - Vegetable juice
11 am - Fruit juice (water melon)
1 pm - Butter milk
3 pm - Fruit juice (pine apple)
6 pm - Sugar cane juice

My morning treatment today was Vitamin-D bath again. So laid down under the red box in hot sun after drinking a glass of water. After about 20 minutes, I was drenched in sweat. Took shower under the water fall.

The after noon treatment was spinal spray. Basically, water jets hit your spine for about 10 minutes to increase blood flow. I went for a swim in the river for the first time during this trip. It was refreshing. Today’s evening lecture was about digestive system with videos and animation. 

Day 10 at the Arogyalayam; Fasting - Day 6

There is Mr. Lamba who came to the Arogyalayam about three years ago and he was so inspired by what he saw and the difference it made to his health. He was instrumental in raising money from the other health seekers then to get the mud bath facilities constructed. It seems he has been coming here once a month to inspire the current health seekers. After an hour of the Yoga class, he led the attendees with clapping exercise and laughing yoga. He inspired a few attendees to join the Arogya Seva (Lifetime membership) program.

Yoga class resumed with 15 minutes to spare. Mr. Reddy (Yoga instructor) led the group with Mudra Pranayam again. After performing kriyas (Jala Neti, Sutra Neti, and Netra Shuddhi) sat with Corin (lady from France) to explain Pranayam so that she could follow what’s being taught.

My morning treatment was liver pack. Basically, cold and hot packs are placed on your chest for 10 minutes and then their places are swapped for another 10 minutes. The after noon treatment was full body massage and steam bath. I have been listening to the lectures in the room itself. Below is diet to follow for weight loss:

Day 9 at the Arogyalayam; Fasting - Day 5

For some reason, my stomach did a number on me this morning making me late to the Yoga class. Did the kriyas quickly as I have to go for a blood test. Sutra Neti through the right nostril is still a challenge for me.

My morning treatment today was mud bath again which I quite enjoy. I took several pictures on the way back to the room.

Panoramic river view near the mud bath center

Panoramic river view

Boating area

Panoramic river view from the boating area

Rest area near boating - View towards the ashram

View towards the river

Boat used by the administration to travel to the nearby island, granted by the state government, where some of the vegetables and fruits used at the ashram are grown

A light along the path

A seat along the river made out of a drum!

A hut near the boating area

A hut along the river bank

 

Kriyas are performed here

Path along the residential buildings

Chandra Kala Vedika (Stage) grounds

Yoga Hall

Large swings and Shuttle badminton courts for recreation

You can buy coconut water here

Physio Therapy (inclusive in the fee) hut for Gents

Checked with the floor doctor in the after noon. He suggested I do honey water fasting only one more day as we are leaving a day early. So, on Wednesday I will be on all day juice fasting and then all day fruit diet the following day to ease out of fasting. The blood test result showed little low on potassium. So the doctor advised I drink coconut water and take electrolyte solution.

I went for enema in the after noon and looks like my bowels are pretty clear. So, I’m not going to go for this any more. I also got the after noon treatment of Cold Hip Bath done. Today, there were yogic games in the evening. I participated in one of them. It was fun.

Yogic games at the Chandra Kala Vedika

I am normally a night owl, but here I have been dozing off by 8 pm and getting up by 4 am. Today  evening, several health seekers narrated their experiences and several have committed to join the Arogya Seva program. We already joined this program last year. For Rs. 2 lakhs/$2,820 (non AC) or 3 lakhs/$4,230 (AC room), a person can avail the 15 day program once a year or 30 day program every two years for the rest of their life irrespective of future price increases. You get a coupon book for the next 25 years. It can be used for your friends and family as well. 

Day 8 at the Arogyalayam; Fasting - Day 4

Today the Yoga session was shortened by half an hour for Yoga nidra. Dr. Srinivas led the group through this journey. It was pretty relaxing and at the same time, planted seeds for service in the subconscious mind. I also met a lady from France in the Yoga hall today. Despite not understanding the Telugu language, she did fine in the Yoga session. It seems she just joined the program yesterday.

I was able to do Sutra Neti through my left nostril pretty easily on my own today, but the right nostril is another story. I still had to take an attender’s help. I met another young man today who joined here for three months to lose weight. 

Being Sunday, it is a holiday for the treatment center staff. So, no treatments today. Instead there were wonderful lectures in the morning. The first one by Dr. Raju on how our thoughts impact our bodies through hormones. It was very insightful. Especially, the kind of damage anger causes to our body. The second one by Dr. Srinivas was on bone health and demonstration of yoga asanas to give relief for neck pain and back pains. 

In the evening, cooking class was at 3 pm today where making of a few Indian food items were demonstrated and samples were provided to the attendees. I couldn’t taste any of it as I was fasting. 

Cooking class

We then went to the Yoga hall where the Yoga instructor led the health seekers with this clapping exercise. We also went on a walk along the river. Some were boating, some were swimming. Weather has been pretty awesome here. The lights among the plants also created a magical ambience.

The evening daily lecture by Dr. Raju is on good food items - sesame seeds, sprouts, coconut, etc. Myths about milk, egg, and non-veg were also discussed.

Day 7 at the Arogyalayam; Fasting - Day 3

I am really enjoying the Yoga class. I couldn’t have asked for a better place to be on my birth day (December 7th). I had tough time with Sutra Neti today. I had to take help from the attender for both the nostrils. I tried Vaman Dhauti in the room. You are supposed to squat while drinking water for it. I didn’t do that initially. So when I regurgitated forcefully, not all the water that I drank came out. Only a small portion came out. My esophagus appears to be clean.

There was a wonderful talk by Dr. Vishala on personal relationships which I listened from the room.

My morning treatment was spending 15 minutes in Jacuzzi with jets. With body made of Pancha Bhootas, all the Naturopathy treatments are around those five elements. The after noon treatment was a Gastro Hepatic fomentation pack where I was asked lay down face up on a cold pack and then a hot pack was placed on my stomach and a cloth was wrapped around my waist. I skipped the enema today.

Below is a display board about the procedure of drinking 4-5 liters of water every day. There are numerous boards like this with health tips and information through out the facility in all the buildings.

As long as I continue taking the honey water every two hours, I’m not feeling any hunger or any lack of energy. It feels like you can stay like this forever! Looks like I did lose about 1 kg (2.2 lbs) in these three days. Tummy has almost flattened. This is truly a marvelous system. There is a group (5-6) from Canada staying here for 3 months.

Day 6 at the Arogyalayam; Fasting - Day 2

As usual, after the Yoga class, I did the kriyas from 6:30-7:30 am. I am still having trouble doing Sutra Neti on my own. It is essential to have a calm mind for the catheter to pass through freely. Otherwise, the nasal passages constrict making it difficult to do this kriya. I’m going to try Vaman Dhauti tomorrow. Below is the kriya kit I have been using to do Jala Neti, Sutra Neti, and Netra Shuddhi:

The morning Naturopathy treatment that was prescribed to me was Vitamin-D bath. You are asked to drink a glass of water and make you lay down under a red colored glass box outdoors for about 20-25 minutes. By the time you are done, the sweat pours really open up and pretty much the sweat on the mat equals the amount of water you drank! Stood under the waterfall afterwards instead of taking a regular shower. It was very refreshing. I am supposed to take honey water every two hours. Because of this activity, I was late by about 30 minutes and I could tell the difference as I felt brain throbbing a few times.

The after noon treatment was Spinal pack. Hot packs were placed along the spine while I faced down.  I also got the enema done. Since there is no solid food consumption, enema is necessary while fasting to clean bowels.

Day 5 at the Arogyalayam; Fasting - Day 1

The daily schedule at the Arogyalayam is as follows:
4:20 am - Wake up songs
5:00-6:30 am - General Yoga class
6:30-7:00 am - Kriyas
7:30-8:00 am - Breakfast
8:00-9:00 am - Manchi Maata (Good word) -> Lecture by Dr. Vishala on keeping mind healthy
9:00 am - Noon - Morning Naturopathy treatments
12:30 - 1 pm - Lunch
2:00-4:00 pm - After noon Naturopathy treatments
5:00-6:00 pm - Cooking lessons
6:00-7:00 pm - Dinner
7:00-9:00 pm - Dr. Raju’s lecture on how to take care of the body

Of course, the meal times do not apply to those who are fasting.

After the Yoga class, I did the following Kriyas:

1. Jala Neti - Pouring water through one nostril and let the water come out of the other nostril using Neti pot. You breathe through the mouth while performing this kriya.
2. Netra Shuddhi - Cleaning your eyes using the eye cleaning cup.
3. Sutra Neti - Cleaning the nasal passages using a catheter. You insert the catheter through one nostril and bring it out through your mouth and move it back and forth to clean. An attender helped me with this as I was having trouble inserting the catheter through my right nostril. It’s amazing how much mucus comes out even when you don’t have cold. After this, I could really feel more oxygen flowing in. This can eliminate snoring too. 

Around breakfast time, I did get the hunger pangs but a glass of water controlled it. Once I started taking honey water from 8 am onwards, no more hunger. I repeated this every two hours with a glass of water in between. Since there is no need for any digestion with no food in take, body is supposed to use the energy in cleaning process similar to what happens when we sleep once the digestion is completed. We are basically prolonging this state with fasting. One is also supposed to place a mud pack shown below three times a day on the abdomen to decrease intestinal heat and stimulate peristalsis.

My morning naturopathy treatment for today was Cold Hip Bath. You basically sit in a tub filled with cold water for 15 minutes with your feet outside. In the after noon, I had a full body massage and steam bath which made my body very light. This treatment is supposed to open up sweat pours so that impurities in the body can come out. 

The fast food chains opened in the last 10-15 years in India must be causing havoc to the younger generation. There are many overly obese youngsters getting treatment here to lose weight. Obese kids used to be very rare in my childhood.

Day 4 at the Arogyalayam

I attended the Yoga session again at 5 am. A few more asanas were introduced today. I really like attending this class. Doing it in a group is a big motivating factor. Kriyas like Jala Neti and Sutra Neti will be introduced tomorrow. As usual, drank 1.25L of water twice prior to breakfast time.

Today’s breakfast consisted of two different type of sprouts, coconut, peanuts, dates, and papaya. The treatment prescribed to me in the morning was hand and feet bath. The apparatus shown below is filled with hot water and you are asked to put your hands and feet in it for 15 minutes. The head is covered with a towel dipped in cold water. This is supposed to increase blood circulation.

The daily yoga session and the water consumption is making me really hungry. I ate too much at lunch today. The afternoon treatment prescribed to me was Vibro massage of hands and legs. Today, I wasn’t hungry at all at the dinner time. For some reason, none of us were hungry. We skipped going to the dining hall. Mom and I shared the fruits delivered to the room for my dad.

Since I will be fasting from tomorrow onwards, a tray of supplies (250 grams of honey and lemons) was delivered to the room this evening. I am supposed to mix two spoons of honey with a bit of lime juice in a glass of warm water and consume every two hours from 8 am to 8 pm; also a glass of water from 9 am to 7 pm every two hours. Body is supposed to start the detoxification process while fasting.

Day 3 at the Arogyalayam

Today is the day, cataract surgery has been scheduled for my dad at a nearby eye hospital. I was one of the founding donors of that hospital over a decade ago. The primary objective of this hospital’s foundation is to fight against the curable and preventable blindness in India. They follow 80:20 model where the 20% who can afford the treatment cross subsidizes for the 80%  from weaker economic sections of the society who receive free eye care every year.

Anyway, we already took permission from Dr. Raju when we checked into the Arogyalayam, so that we could leave the facility for the surgery right after breakfast and return by 7 pm. The breakfast was very delicious consisting of papaya, sprouts, carrots, coconut, peanuts, apple, pineapple, dates, and cucumber.

I’m getting comfortable driving on the Indian roads. It was a good experience for me to drive to the eye hospital as we had to navigate many types of roads and traffic conditions. We reached the hospital shortly after 9 am which was jam packed by patients seeking treatment. The hospital is run very professionally though. We just had to go through the motions of going to different rooms for various pre surgery activities. We were allotted a room and surgery was performed around 1:30 pm. A physician checked the eye again around 3:30 pm and asked us to come back for a follow up visit on December 12th. We headed back and reached the Arogyalayam around 4:30 pm.

One amazing service offered at the Arogyalayam with no extra charge is in-room service for health seekers with limited mobility. They deliver meals, perform various naturopathy treatments in your room including one-on-one yoga sessions! Just in case, we may not make it back by the dinner time, I already called in advance from the eye hospital to deliver dinner for my dad and I to our room.

We stayed in the room listening to the Dr. Raju’s evening lecture starting at 7 pm. I dozed off soon after. 

Day 2 at the Arogyalayam

Woke up around 3:30 am. I am still getting used to the time difference. My mom was already up and getting ready for her early morning meditation. After drinking 1.25L (~42 fl. Oz.) of water, started getting ready for the 5 am Yoga class. At 4:20 am, wake up songs are played for half an hour through the speakers in each of the rooms.

The buildings in this campus are truly remarkable with unique architectures. No expense is spared to create a very pleasant atmosphere with so many plants which is very conducive to support health seekers in their journey.

The new Yoga hall looks very grand from the outside and it can easily accommodate over 100 Yogabhyasis (students of Yoga).

Yoga Hall

Yoga class in session

Old Yoga hall converted to Gym

Our room is on the 3rd floor on the left of this building

Consumed another 1.25L of water after returning from the Yoga class. Headed to the dining hall for breakfast after taking shower.

Lunch is served from 12:30-1 pm. Today’s lunch consisted of two pulkas (wheat rotis heated on fire), millets, egg plant curry, a leafy vegetable pickle, carrot curry, and curd.

I went for a mud bath in the afternoon. Mud from the river bottom is applied all over your body including your head. You sit like that for about an hour until the skin tightens up when the mud dries. After taking shower at that facility, the waterfall was started so that we could stand under it for a few minutes which relieves you from any body aches. The skin felt very smooth after the mud bath.

Dinner is served from 6-7 pm. It is very light and consists of different types of fruits. As you can see they are big on Papaya which was served at breakfast too.

The other four buildings

Breakfast served from 7:30-8 am

Yummy lunch

Typical dinner 

Winter 2019 Trip to India

My purpose of this trip is to spend time with my parents again at the MSR Arogyalayam (temple of health). We spent a month at this place, the summer of 2018 and it was an awesome experience. During that time, my mom and I fasted for 21 days surviving on just honey water. Since then I didn’t become sick (not even caught cold) even for a single day. I would like to reinforce what I learned last year at this truly magical place.

On this trip my travel took me from IAD to AMS on KLM. The Schiphol airport is very convenient for transit passengers. There is a small art gallery, science museum displays and even a library on the airport premises.

The AMS to BLR was on KLM too and was almost a 9 hour flight. This is my first time landing at the Bengaluru airport on an international flight. The airport is fabulous and is much better than some of the airports in the Western Hemisphere. 

 

Clearing immigration, customs was a breeze at the airport. Since the flight arrived at BLR around 1 am IST, I had to wait about 4.5 hrs for the connection flight to VGA on Spicejet. I prebooked my breakfast on that flight which was pretty good. 

 

This is my first time landing at the Vijayawada airport. My Dad came to the airport to pick me up. My hometown is about 2 hours away from that airport. We reached home by lunch time, after visiting one of our relatives on the way. I got to drive stick after a long time. Right before the trip, I got the International Driving permit from AAA which is valid for a year. Steering wheel on the right side and driving on the left side of the road takes some time to get used to. 

We started early the next day for a 3 hour trip to get my dad’s eyes checked at an eye hospital closer to the Arogyalayam. After scheduling his cataract surgery for Tuesday, we reached the Naturopathy retreat center by lunch time. 

Day 1:

After checking in, discussed the next day diet and treatment plan with the floor doctor. The view from our room’s balcony was priceless. The dinner was all fruits for me after which we attended the lecture by Dr. Raju on how to take care of our bodies for a disease free life style from 7-9 pm. Jet lag hit me hard during his lecture.