I kept waking up all night with the sounds of birds, crickets and traffic, that’s when I realised I forgot to close the windows to cut the noise. Tossing and turning in the new bed, at 4.20am I woke up once again with the voice from the mosque (something that’s stayed with me since childhood and again during my days in Dubai), I finally left the bed at 6.30am as I would be picked up at 8am for breakfast and a show around the centre.
As I sat and sipped on the morning tea outside the room on a chair that was set up for such relaxations, the thought of Twinkle Khanna’s book “Pyjamas are forgiving” came to my mind and just then, I heard my name being called by a lady. We walked down together and she started explaining what is where including the studio for the 6.30am yoga session in the mornings that I missed out on today. I looked around and noticed that the place is green, it has a certain calmness about it amidst the sounds of the nature. I understood that their clientele were mostly German hence it was no surprise that in their library I could locate only handful books in English. There were a total of 8 guests including me and we all ate in the Dining hall, in a long table setting. We picked our plates to serve ourselves from a counter where there was a lady who was kind enough to introduce the local dishes to each of us and repeat if needed. I looked around the room and while most of the guests were German, I saw one Indian boy as well. We had two types of cereals with nuts and honey as well as puttu (a Keralite dish that I learnt to make during my Ayurveda nutrition days, few years ago).
Apparently, we all had fixed seats as every day the team assigns medicines and keeps food personal according to individual Ayurveda Diet. As I sat and looked around, there wasn’t anyone to socialise with as the Germans were chatting in their language while the Indian boy was busy eating his meal. So I ate while looking outside the windows, occasionally smiling at the passing by team members of the centre. Shortly after, I went back to my room that was on level 1 and waited for the time of my consultation. Since it is my first one, I was expecting it to be detailed and explanatory with Ayurveda being a very passionate subject for me.
I was still tired and felt my head heavy, so thought of sleeping for another hour. At 10am, I woke up and sat on the chair outside, sipping the hot water from the flask and making some notes. As per Ayurveda lifestyle, it is recommended to drink hot water sip by sip than room temperature or cold, a practice I got used to since then. I heard my name again as a lady walked up to the room to ask if I was ready for my first consultation, and if yes then to take a seat on the black chair outside the chapel until I am called by the doctor.
When my turn came, the consultation began with few more questions beyond the health form that was emailed prior to my arrival. After sharing some more details on the knee injury as well as some stomach issues, the doctor did some practical tests as I lay on my back and stomach. Then, once more I made my way to the room waiting to see what happens next. Within minutes, a therapist called out and walked me down for my first massage. In the treatment room, one more lady waited for us and then we started the session with a prayer, in their local language – Malayalam. One after the other they said some words which I couldn’t comprehend and in the end, we all said amen! I asked one of the ladies what the prayer was about and she replied – to Jesus. Such was their simplicity, after changing I experienced the one-hour long Ayurveda massage in a traditional setting, with my eyes closed to feel from inside. The paste that they were applying all over smelled like pickle, it started to burn so I asked what it was, as I could smell mustard as well. Apparently, it was a paste with dried ginger, few other ingredients and a herb called Kottaya. Once done and showered, they applied a powder in the crown of my head, to ensure I don’t catch cold.
At lunch time I went to the dining room where a new face emerged, an Indian guy sitting next to me. Apparently he was the brother of the boy I saw in the morning. He initially came to support the brother but eventually realised his own concerns and decided to join him for few days. We chatted for a bit, asking the usual questions of who, how and from where. The desserts (small sesame balls with jaggery) were kept on the other side of the table so I assumed it wasn’t for me until one of the German ladies offered it and soon we all started chatting. We introduced ourselves, what we were here for and one of the ladies mentioned that it was her 4th visit, this time without her mom and sister. We all bid goodbye to see each other again in 2 hours for the tea time at 4pm and a small presentation by one of the doctors covering the subject – Introduction to Ayurveda and Doshas.
Once back to room, all I could think of was another nap, maybe it’s the medicines, the course of treatment or the fact that I had nothing to do or simply that my body needed more rest. I decided to sleep at every opportunity I got. So I slept for 30 minutes until someone knocked at the door for another treatment, this time it was focussed on the back to ease the pain. What seemed like steam out of a pressure cooker without whistle, was used on my back after a massage. In 30 minutes, this treatment was over and I walked back thinking yaaay I have 30 minutes to sleep before the tea time at 4pm. A lady doctor was waiting for me at the door to ask how the treatment was, my experience, last night etc and suggested to finish 2 if not more flasks of water in the day as the treatments would dehydrate me a lot she explained. Also, she figured I would feel sleepy but suggested to avoid sleeping so I can have a sound sleep in the night.
Around 4pm I walked down for tea and a plate full of fresh mangos were in front of us to share, soon after the presentation started. We sat on one side of the table and the doctor explained with diagrams on the board using chalk, showing some great insights and finished with Q & As. We all received a print to remember the knowledge and philosophy imparted to us along with some morning exercises, he called it the 5 / 5 / 5 rule – intake of water, exercise and meditation.
Prior to the start of the afternoon, I was given a sheet with a run down of tomorrow’s plan, it would be my first day to detox, what they call Virechana Plan. It would start with a capsule at 5am, ayurveda tea at 6.30am, green tea at 7.30am and so on until the soup at 6.30pm (last meal). It would all be provided in the room so I wouldn’t see much of the others, maybe except for dinner as it is only soup. I was curious to know how it would go considering it was only day one and already I felt low in energy and wanted to sleep all day even though we had all that food.
Surprisingly enough, my dinner on day one was soup too, they call it a ‘special dinner’ as it was meant to prepare you for the detox day. The portion was huge, a separate bowl just for me and I felt actually quiet full with it. Just before dinner, the doctor who did my consultation came to the room to introduce another doctor. The doctor was traveling the same night for a week or so, so this was him saying goodbye for now and to assure me I am in good hands. I was also told that the new doctor is the same gentleman I would meet in the other centre after 10 days, as I had split my stay between the two centres for experience – Homestay (where I currently was) and Lakes & Mountains (true to its words, facing Lakes & Mountains).
Before I could call it a day, a lady came to the room with a special wrap to tie around my knee and with that it was bed time. With no expectations for the next day or the rest of this trip, I said my silent prayers before I went to sleep, this time with the windows closed.
I am grateful for this experience and the journey so far… Namaste!
