26.4.15

Explore India // I'm going to live in the mountains!


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How's everybody doing! I have been supremely busy with finals, having the time of my life spending all day with my books. TT_TT. There's also another reason I've been M.I.A. (Yes, I just used M.I.A., please don't disown me.) You must be wondering by now what exactly the title of this post means, and this is where I explain it - I'm going for an internship to the Western Himalayas! 

If you are familiar with my blog, you'd know that I am studying architecture at university. As part of our final year we need to complete an architectural internship and thesis project. I had mentioned previously that I was in the process of prepping my portfolio and sending out applications. One of the places I applied at was the Dharmalaya Institute, which is located in Himachal Pradesh near the town of Bir. Himachal Pradesh is a predominantly mountainous state, and this particular institute practises and teaches the vernacular architecture of the Himachal region, carried out mostly in mud, earth, bamboo and other natural materials. Earth architecture is a field I'm extremely interested in so I was elated and humbled, when I got selected!

However, my love for sustainable architecture is not the only reason I applied. Since for me 2015 is the year of saying yes and trying new things, an experience like this was something way out of my comfort zone, and therefore exactly what I was looking for. At first, I was quite unsure of my decision to go. I'd have to be extremely far away from home for several months, and I've never lived alone for such a long time, especially in an atmosphere which is so far removed from what I am accustomed to. I thought maybe I should postpone it to another time when I felt more 'ready'. But then one day I was listening to this song, by Asaf Avidan, and the lyrics of almost the entire song go like this: 

"One day, baby, we'll be old, oh baby we'll be old, and think of all the stories that we could have told "

 And I realised I don't want to think of all the stories I could have told, I WANT to tell them! So I mustered up my courage and decided to go for it, no looking back.




The motto of the institute is 'çompassionate living', which means they believe in causing minimal harm to other living beings. Obviously, this means that the routine and lifestyle followed here is completely different to what we are used to in the city. Located in the heart of a forest, this little community is entirely organic, vegan and minimalist. My time there will be spent in learning organic and natural architecture, how it benefits the earth and people , and majority of my day will be spent building with my own hands. It's going to be a lot of physical work from what I understand, and I am absolutely ready for it. 

It all sounds so exciting and scary at the same time! From the pictures I have seen so far on the internet, the geography looks stunning! I I am so excited to go stay in the mountains. The only other time I have been to such a region was my trip to Mukteshwar, which you can about here, and I had loved it. I leave the very same day my exams get done so it's been a real scramble getting all my things together. I'll be gone for a good four months, if not more! 

The more I think about it, the less anxious I feel.It's going to be the experience of a lifetime. Yes, I do not know anybody there, but I'm sure the people I'm going to meet will be amazing and what I will learn there academically will be priceless too. It's just the break I need after having a rollercoaster year at college, away from the busy life of the city and I am happily willing to take on the challenge of living as simply as possible.

So that's what's been up in my life! I hope to have a decent internet connection at least intermittently to be able to update the blog and share with you my experience. Four months is a long time without internet. Please let there be internet. Oh God. 

Meanwhile, stay inspired and do that one thing you keep putting off! It feels great! 




What have you done recently that scared yet excited you?

9.4.15

Life update and Book Haul




It's been ages since I've been on here! Unfortunately exams and university had to be given first priority, and while I'm still not technically done, the exam I dreaded the most is finally over. I don't think it went all too badly. I breathed a sigh of relief, went on a movie marathon and slept for a million hours. 

The only really eventful thing that has happened in the past few weeks is a huge book sale that took place in my city recently. It's an annual thing and I do try to visit every year. It offers a vast collection of books in various genres at bargain prices. I'm usually spoilt for choice and really have to restrain myself from purchasing every book I lay my eyes on. It's a struggle, I tell you.

All the books I picked up this time are just Rs 50 (1 USD = Rs. 62), which is a fraction of their original price. A couple of them are secondhand, but in excellent condition and the rest are unused, although a little dusty. But hey, so are most things in India. What I like most about this sale is that it has a lot of books by lesser known authors and I discovered quite a few books I would have never come across at a conventional chain book-store.

Here are some of the titles I purchased:

Sickened - Julie Gregory
The Woman Who Went to Bed for a Year - Sue Townsend
Blott on the Landscape - Tom Sharpe
A Tiny Bit Marvellous - Dawn French
No Child of Mine - Susan Lewis
The Help - Kathryn Stockett
Charlotte's Web - E.B. White

I bought a few for my little cousins too. They're all authors and books I loved as kid and read occasionally even now! So if you have any little humans in your life who need a birthday present, I would definitely recommend these!

Fantastic Mr.Fox - Roald Dahl
George's Marvellous Medicine - Roald Dahl
Cosmic - Frank Cottrell Boyce
Scorpia - Anthony Horowitz
South by South East - Anthony Horowitz
Holes - Louis Sachar
Wayside School Gets a Little Stranger - Louis Sachar
Horrid Henry and the Secret Club - Francesca Simon
A Handful of Horrid Henry - Francesca Simon
The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe - C.S.Lewis




While taking a break from uni work, I started reading Sickened by Julie Gregory. It is an autobiographical novel about her childhood and how the Munchausen by Proxy complex affected it. The foreword of the book says "Munchausen by Proxy may be the single most complex - and lethal - form of maltreatment known today. It is formally defined as the falsification or induction of physical and/or emotional illness by a caretaker of a dependant person. In most cases, the perpetrator is a mother and the victim is her own child."


It sounds a little dark, but I'm about 50 pages in and find it hard to put down. I find the human mind fascinating and love reading about psychology, so this book is right up my alley.

I used to read a lot, but haven't done so in while, so I hope to get back into the habit once I'm done with exams. There are heaps of unread books lying at home to choose from and I shall keep you guys updated!

What are you reading at the moment?