The art of pottery itself can be meditative, maybe it is the effect of the fluid spin of the wheel, or the grounding effect of touching the clay/ earth with our bare hands. We went to the ancient pottery square in Bhaktapur on our last day of xphase to meet the artisans and try our hands on the pottery wheel.
Our fourth day of X-Phase brought us closer to India and deeper into the plains of Nepal as we went to visit Lumbini, the birthplace of Buddha. We arrived later in the afternoon and only had a few hours to walk around, but we were able to visit the Maya Devi Temple and sit in the large lawn under flocks of birds and learn about Buddha’s lifestory and listen to some visitors from China sing prayers towards the setting sun. The true highlight of the day was stopping to get chiya and samosas at a shop on the way. Although… Read More
Dear friends, family, and followers – This morning we left behind Amritsar and concluded X-Phase. The instructors are once more instructors, the students are great, and the rides out of the dusty plains of Punjab into the Himalayan foothills......Read More
On Saturday Dec 1 the students went on a hike up from Nagi Gompa Nunnery up into the Shivapuri National Park, and climbed Shivapuri Peak, the highest point of the Kathmandu Valley Rim. Pictures of the group at the sacred Bagdwar spring, the source......Read More
Meet Rupa. She is 47 years old and has been in captivity for most of her life. Rupa came to Nepal from India, and much of her life-story is unknown. She has had, at least, three babies, and has been separated from each of them. Rupa has been working......Read More
As we spend our final days together doing transference near Kampot, we have one last collaborative post to share with you. Each of the 10 mini-posts have been written in general response to three questions proposed to us by our instructors: What is......Read More
Learning how to be a more contributing, inclusive, caring member of the group. Everything is so complicated! Therefore so many sides to one issue. Everything, every place, every action is so connected to everything else. Feeling, thinking,......Read More
Think it could be very hard going home to all the things we established are now in our panic zones that were once parts of our lives and values before we came here, but keep in mind there are still 15 relationships that are still just as strong......Read More
I fear forgetting the insights and memories I’ve cultivated – be it my little homestay sister’s rapturous laughter, or how to be fully at peace in quiet moments of solitude, unencumbered by self scrutiny and external expectations, life, man.......Read More
Our time could not be bought with my Ibu. I miss you Ibu. To whom it may consume, soon I will skip school, I will move to see you, our time will bloom. There will be no red rule, we can get matching tattoo, We can eat sate every night, You and I......Read More
Yesterday, as everyone was, for the first and thus far only time, furiously typing away on the Chromebook, assembling each part of the personal conclusion Yak, I was reflecting. I’d just written my part – a long and rather overly wordy......Read More
In Morocco I… In Morocco I lived in the mountains, the desert, and by the sea. I was welcomed into two families who fed me tajine, couscous, tea, and bread. I learned about the history of this country, about colonialism, religion, and......Read More
Salaam from Transference! Its been a while, and apologies for my personal silence on the yak board. We’re currently wrapping up our time in Morocco in the sleepy surf-town of Sidi Kaouki. Its beautiful here, and an ideal spot to reflect upon......Read More
Hi, Yak readers! Guate X phase is officially over, the part of the trip planned by the students.We took Dragons to the Caribbean for the first time ever in Guatemala, spending 2 days in Livingston, 3 days at a community center called Ak Tenamit, and......Read More
Powerful, mighty, strong, serene, tranquil, mountains. Throughout this trip I have come to realize the gravity of mountains. They, indeed, have a sort of gravitational pull. Once you start to look at them towering over what seems to be all of......Read More
The students just finished up their x-phase in Lijiang, Shaxi and Dali. For these final days of our course we’ll come together in a quiet natural environment outside of Kunming to reflect on our experience together these past 3 months. Here are a......Read More
