Yoga for Swatchies

And now for something completely different…

We spent the month of February in the warm, sunny Bahamas, training to be Yoga teachers at the Sivananda Ashram on Paradise Island. The course was great – we learned so much about Vedantic philosophy and the ancient, great yogis.

It was like college and summer camp combined, but with more yoga and at the beach!

It was very spiritually enlightening. We also met some great people from all over the world, and vastly improved our yoga skills.

Here are some of my yoga pics:

This is Savasana, or Corpse pose. It’s also me doing Forward Bend. And Fish.

The backbending series: Cobra, Bow, and Locust. Also Child’s pose.
The piece de resistance: Sirshasana, Headstand.
Mountain pose, Standing Forward Bend, and Triangle. And the Warrior series.

The beach platform

Our Teacher Training class – 64 people, plus the teachers. I missed the picture because I was doing Karma Yoga.

Chillin’ at the beach.

Deep meditation. I can do it with my eyes open!

Our tent – the messy side is Devon’s.

I knitted that yoga bag!

She sure did.

A visitor to our tent.

Getting my Starbucks fix… shhhhhh… don’t tell Swamiji!

Visiting Atlantis Resort, which was right next door to the Ashram. After Week 3, we NEEDED a spa day.

Another visitor – he was the size of ME!

That’s me!! Doing tripod headstand! Which is TOTALLY as hard as it looks, I swear!

(It’s so not)

How would you know? You don’t even have arms!

Swamis Brahmananda and Sadasivananda. Don’t they look great in orange?

Even their SOCKS are orange!

Sunset Yoga class… oooo, ahhhhh….

Check out that TAN! And the Crow, of course. You can’t tell in the picture, but my feet are off the ground and I’m totally balancing.

So overall, it was just a really fabulous experience and we learned loads and practiced yoga (not that Devon has kept it up at ALL) and met cool people and chilled on the beach. In FEBRUARY. Good stuff indeed.

Off to Thailand!

Devon didn't really have a plan after Australia, but she trusted the Universe and we ended up flying FIRST CLASS to Kuala Lumpur. For $7 extra!!

You should have SEEN that leg room, it was sick!

Well, leg room isn't really an issue for me but the big cushy seats were NICE. We only stayed in KL for two days, then we were on the train to Thailand!

 

There was so much to see and do there, I don't know where to start! We spent a few days in Bangkok, where Devon broke her ATM card. Don't worry though, we made some great friends because of it!

Tell them about the sparkles!!

Ah yes, and Devon got some tinsel put in her hair. Then we headed north to the mountains, for the town of Chiang Mai and the Trek of Doom.

Oh come on, it wasn't that bad! Whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger!

Yeah yeah. So while we were in the north, we visited a silk factory. They didn't have yarn, though. :(

Silk worms, fattening up on leaves

Unraveling the silk cocoons on a spinning wheel to make thread

Weaving the silk fabric on a loom

And an umbrella factory, where they make and handpaint decorative umbrellas. So pretty!

We also went to "Monk Chat" at Wat Chedi Luang, one of the many Buddhist temples in Chiang Mai. You can chat to the monks in English so they can practice. We met 2 very cool monks. I had a very interesting conversation about Buddhism and how it compares and contrasts other world religions. Devon taught them how to say "What's up". Equally meritous, for sure. We still exchange emails with Sone, the monk on the left! He is very sweet.

I'll let Devon tell you about the trek.

Ah, the trek. 3 days in the mountains and jungles. Sweltering heat during the day, freezing cold at night. 16 km over steep hills, nothing but your wits to guide you…

(And two Thai trekking guides)

Eating off the land…

(Eating food the guides cooked for us, and a lunch they wrapped in banana leaves, which are more effective than Ziplocs at preventing leaks.)

Facing wild animals…

(Trained elephants that we got to ride)

Sleeping on the bare ground…

(In a sleeping bag in a bamboo hut)

Peeing outdoors…

(She did this even though there WERE toilets available)

Navigating the rapids in a lashed together bamboo raft…

(The water was about 2 feet deep)

Some more shots from Thailand…

Our favorite juice bar in CM… fresh juice and smoothies for $1!!

Chiang Mai is such a small town you can ride a bike everywhere!

Then, pray tell, what ARE you supposed to dry with the drying machine?

Dispatches from Australia #1

Long time no see, huh? I know, I know, but Devon and I have been extremely busy and I'm going to make up for the total lack of communication right now.

Where did I last leave you? Fiji? Oh yeah, an accident report from the field. You'll be glad to know I am thoroughly patched up! Though if Swatchy Doc wanted to come over and check me out, I wouldn't be opposed (hubba hubba). Anywho, Knittah made me a lovely band-aid that matches my scarf, and Devon sewed it on. And now she keeps me far away from critters, at least most of the time…

So let's see. After Fiji, we made a brief stop in Brisbane, Australia, and headed up to the Sunshine Coast, home of the Australia Zoo and the late Steve Irwin, Crocodile Hunter.

Look, it's a sleeping koala!! They sleep 20 hours or more a day… almost as much as Devon!

I heard that!

Oh, are you up from your nap already?

 

Here I am, just chillin' with a kangaroo.

CRIKEY! A reticulated Python! Oh come on, you wouldn't have been able to resist saying it either. Speaking of the Crocodile Hunter, they had a thing where you could take a picture in front of a blue screen and have it digitized, like with your head in a crocodile's mouth, or you with Steve Irwin. WITH STEVE IRWIN! Is it just me, or is that a little macabre?

The zoo was awesome though. It was cool to see Australian animals, and you can get so close to them! We even petted a koala… they're so soft and fluffy!!

The weirdest thing about Australia is how similar it is to the US. It felt a lot like Florida! The money is cool, it's all different colors and each one has a little window.

Helllllooooooo!

Of course Devon gets a big kick out of looking through it. Over, and over. She never stops finding it funny. EVER.

I see you!

Sigh. 

Tropical Paradise

We made it safely to Fiji! Landed at 5:15 this morning (Thursday), got on a bus to the marina, to a boat to MantaRay Island! This place (Fiji is general) is incredible. It is PARADISE. The water is the most amazing blue -- you know how in the Caribbean the water is turquoise and it's so gorgeous? Well here, in the deep part of the ocean, it's cerulean, just like the crayon!! Wild. The island I am staying is small, part of the Yasawa group on the far west of the Fiji Islands

There was another "backpacker" at the bus stop with me and we were on the same bus and boat so we got to chatting. I was very excited to be meeting my first world traveler.. I wondered where he could be from... Australia? New Zealand? Maybe somewhere in Europe?

NOPE. Princeton, NJ.

Crazy!! Then at the resort I met a kid from Toms River. We're everywhere! But my roommate is from Germany so there's a little culture there hahahaha.... oh, Devon wants to say hi!

Hi guys! I did my first Scuba Diving class today -- unbelievable. Instead of doing it in a pool, you actually swim in the lagoon and get to see all the fish and it was like being inside the tank at the aquarium or even like being in Finding Nemo! I didn't think swimming in the ocean could get any better but diving is pretty freaking fantastic, especially when the water's so warm you don't even need a wetsuit. It was a very different experience for me, the eternal shutterbug, to be looking at beautiful things and not be thinking about taking pictures, just experiencing them "in the moment". Still though, I wish I could have taken pictures to share with you!!

I wish I could have gone scuba diving, too, but they couldn't find a weight belt to fit.

Plus, I think you have to be bigger than the tank. And have a mouth to put the regulator in.

Details, details.

Oh, and the food is fantastic too!
Love,
Swatchy Prep and Dev
xoxoxo

P.S. Happy early Thanksgiving!

Oh gee, Fiji!

Prep here... just wanted to let you guys know Devon got a one way ticket to FIJI today! She said FAA regulations don't require Swatchies to have a seat of their own but I swear, if she tries to stuff me in the overhead again....

Anyway, sandy beaches, here we come!

Swatchy COOLNESS

Well, I have been waiting til y'all commented on my other posts to post the BIG SURPRISE, but I guess I'll just have to throw it out there.

I. Met. CRAZY AUNT PURL!!!! She had a book signing here in LA and Devon, her friend Amy, and I all went. It was so stinkin' cool. She is just as awesome in real life as on her blog, and she just LOOOOVED me! Devon gave her our postcard so maybe she'll even come check out the site! We emailed her a copy of the picture and she emailed us back. Cause, you know, we're friends now. *buffs nails on shirt*

P.S. She mentioned porn twice! Hahahahaha....

Utah? No, YOU tah!

We decided to relax and detox from Las Vegas in lovely St. George, UT, home of Devon's friend Callie. We did lots of hiking!

The desert is SOOO different from home in NJ. There are these HUGE rock sandstone mountains everywhere, and the air is so, so dry. There's NO humidity and it never rains -- great for hair but your throat gets so dry during the night.

Callie's family keeps their shoes outside because there's not even DEW!

We went to Snow Canyon's sand dunes -- the sand is as soft as powder, I loved curling my toes up in it.

Except for the scorpions!

Oh, they only come out at night, don't be such a sissy.

Then Callie, Devon, and I went to Zion National Park for a nice long hike. I remembered my hiking shoes this time! The red mountains are so incredibly huge you can't even comprehend.

Utah's a beautiful place to visit but I don't think we could stay there. The grammatical errors in the newspaper alone almost made my head explode! But Callie was a fantastic hostess and we had a wonderful time. Next up, the piece de resistance!

Vegas, Baby!

Let's just say, What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas! ;)

Tee hee... you got lei'd!

The San Francisco Treat

Hey all! Prep here. San Francisco is one of Devon's favorite cities, so I was really looking forward to checking it out. We got to meet a few of Dev's online friends, which was great, and just chill out and explore on our own a bunch, which was very relaxing. Here are some pics:

Outside the Embarcadero Ferry Building, in view of the Oakland Bay Bridge. We like this one better than the Golden Gate because the Ferry Building is filled with tons of great food and cute stores!

Devon's FAVORITE thing about SF is the food, so of course we had to go to her favorite hole-in-the-wall taqueria, Pancho Villa, and get some delicioso carne asada quesadillas. Ole!

The BART is such a super easy, cheap, nice public transportation system even DEVON could figure it out (and this is a girl who grew up an hour outside NYC and has never ridden the subway alone). Good thing I was there to hail cabs though, or we would have been stuck trudging up and down those city hills all day long...

What a great trip -- we can't wait to go back! Berkeley has joined Portland on the short list of places we might move to. See you soon!

"I love Oregon!" ~Celeste

(Note: I wrote this post on 9/29 but Blogger was being a pain so I just uploaded it today. Sorry! ~D.)

Hi everyone! Swatchy Prep here. My good friend Swatchy Hugs and I met up in Portland, OR this week to visit our friends Korin and Ruby. Celeste used to live here, but it's Devon's and my first time! We LOOOOOVE Portland! It's such a cool hippy city. Devon likes that she can wear cargo pants and fleece and fit right in (preppy purse notwithstanding - you can take the girl out of Jersey...)
Yesterday we went to Multnomah Falls in the Columbia River Gorge. Hugs did a hike to the bridge, but I hadn't brought my hiking boots so I stayed in the car. They told me it was gorgeous though!

Haha - get it? GORGEous? Hahahaha...

Devon, I told you to stay in the other room! Anyway, the falls were SO BIG! It was definitely unlike anything we've seen on the East Coast.

Later, we headed over to Powell's, the largest independently owned bookstore in... the world... or something cool like that.

in Rehoboth? Hahahaha! Devon, no one else will think that's funny. You had to be there.

They have bike racks outside (It's SO Oregon!) with the names of all different books on them.

Today we drove out to the coast (after a coffee stop, of course -- OR coffee will make a coffee drinker out of anyone), and visited the AMAZING Cannon Beach and Ecola State Park. I can't even describe how beautiful it is, I'll let the pictures do the talking. And then we grabbed a local brew at a cute little pub -- coffee isn't the only thing Oregon does well!
Devon and I departed for San Francisco and Celeste and Hugs headed to Vegas, baby! We'll miss them!! (stay tuned for updates... including one from Prep that just may knock your handknit socks off)

Oh, Canada!

Here I am waiting at Newark Airport, passport at the ready!Hi Knittah! Well, Devon and I are here in beautiful Toronto...
That's in Canada!
Yes, Devon, she knows where Toronto is. Anyway, today we went to the CN Tower.
This Canadian money looks so funny -- it's all different colors!
Yes, it is. Can I finish telling Knittah about Toronto now?
Oh yeah, sorry.
So the CN Tower is the second tallest building in the whole world.
And they have $1 and $2 COINS instead of bills!
DEVON!
But I want to tell her they're called loonies and twonies.
Are you done now?
Yes. Zip it, lock it, put it in my pocket.
So the view from the observation deck is incredible! You can see for miles -- all of Toronto and out Lake Ontario. We had a drink and a snack at the cafe and sat right next to the wall of windows. I have made great friends with Melanie's 4 year old daughter. She loves carrying me around.
Last night I had sweet potato fries with BLUEBERRY DIJONAISE!
So that's all for today! Good night all! Tomorrow we're going to the Royal Ontario Museum!
WAIT!! Tell her about the black squirrels!!

Drinking some delicious iced tea...
A view of the CN Tower from below -- Whoa!On the observation deck -- there's also a glass floor you can step out on -- it's wild!

TOOOOOO-Ronto! Toronto! I love ya, Toronto. You're only a--

Go to bed, Devon.

Swatchy Hugz, meet Swatchy Prep!

Here we are! We're back!

Swatchy Hugz has been having a hard time keeping up with his keeper lately, but this Sunday, Celeste and Devon got to meet, with Swatchies in tow!

We were all four so sad that we couldn't relocate the visit to Knittah's place, but we knew that she was recovering from some big time travel... So here are the photos, just for you, Knittah!

Swatchy Prep and Swatchy Hugs









Bonding before the mountain of exquisite yarn Devon's leaving in Celeste's care while she travels the world. You can see how enthusiastic Swatchy Hugz was feeling upon meeting one of his own kind...