I find India to be a place for contemplation, meditation, even.
Activity week has arrived and past, and still all I am thinking about is the futures. Woodstock, while not necessarily inspiring me academically, has re-ignited my passion for the outdoors, which I recall being one of my top passions. By connecting me with people whose passions have also been focused on the outdoors, I am now seeing the promise the outside holds. I am certain mountaineering holds a place in that future, although as they say, the future is never certain. on another note, today at morning tea a large alpha male rhesus monkey strode boldly up to the food and took two pieces of bread. When threatened he simply bared his teeth and kept walking. I simply stood there in near proximity (nearer than almost everyone else) and nodded to him, and his confidence.
During Activity week, the majority of the junior class and myself, traveled around eight and a half hours through the "hills" (they may be mountain sized, but here they are considered hills) to the Nehru Institute of Mountaineering, one of India's foremost mountaineering centers. While the food was barely an improvement over the food back at school, it still was a good time. The first day we were there, we were woken up at 5:30 for PT (physical training) we then proceeded to go for a 1 km jog with aerobics thrown in. At the end we all stretched and did yoga. Of course, we ended that with a group om. We then acquired our gear (if memory serves me correctly) which consisted of a backpack, a 2 meter rope, a carabiner, water bottle, sleeping bag, mess kit, ground mat, and a windproof jacket. Most of the gear was worn and heavily used. I ended up ditching the jacket, sleeping bag, and (nasty) water bottle. In the afternoon we did a bit of rock climbing, which I had a lot of fun doing. The NIM artificial wall was huge, and quite nice, and also featured intimidating 45 and 90 degree overhangs, respectively. I only attempted the 45 and on my second attempt conquered it. Upon arriving to the bottom of the 90 one however, I found the prospect of climbing it quite daunting, and chose to take the easy route on the flat side of the wall. The following day we woke up, checked our packed gear, and headed to a well established climbing area. there we stayed for three days in large portable yurt-like tents, climbing, bouldering, rappelling, and on the last day, crossing a cold mountain stream. Finally we left, back to the institute. The instructors definitely knew their stuff, the one problem was that none of them were very proficient in English. this made following instructions somewhat difficult as more often than not, they were delivered in Hindi.
The main reason I am considering the outdoors as a significant feature in the years to come can be almost summed up in one word, dependability. While I do not see lacrosse continuing much past college, nature will be there. To say that I enjoy fresh air and being outside is an understatement, I love it. Fishing, hiking, skiing, camping, climbing, etc. I love it all, and who knows, maybe I can write about it all too.
I recently heard a rumor that Mr. Kutty (pronounced "Kooty"), a worker at the HANIFL center, was discussing a summit expedition to Bandarpunch, (the name literally means "Monkey's tail") one of the more prominent peaks in the Indian Himalayas and at about 20,300 feet, (6316 meters approx.) it is taller than the tallest peak in North America, Mt. McKinley. I don't know if the expedition will get off the ground but I already sent an e-mail to Mr. Kutty informing him of my interest, as well as one to my mom titled "you're gonna hate me for this" which outlined my interest in the expedition. Of course, I received a reply from my dad with an article attached titled "Evidence of Brain Damage After High-Altitude Climbing By Means of Magnetic Resonance Imaging", good to know the parents are always looking out for me.
On a musical note (no pun intended) I have a recital in two days, where I will be performing Raga Bivas, an early morning Raga, on the sitar. Hopefully it will be a good performance, for playing to 7/8 timing with the Tabla carrying a very awkward beat can be challenging. Nonetheless, I love sitar so all most likely will be well.
mountains, music, and writing. sounds like a good future to me.
-Thom
