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At around 6am, the monks from the college gather at the temple for morning puja. All the volunteer teachers and guests are invited to join in the morning puja session which lasts an hour (optional attendance). Even though I am not able to recite the chants, I enjoy going to morning puja as the rhythmic chants are very calming for the spirit and it is a wonderful way to start a new day. The picture below is an inside view of the temple when we were allowed to take pictures during one of the ceremonies ( pictures are not allowed during puja).
At times, I am woken up by loud banging of bottles or shrieks, but no one is unduly alarmed because it normally means one of the monkeys have invaded the rooms of the volunteers. There are no fans in the rooms, so we sometimes leave our windows open for ventilation. At times, we might just step out of the room briefly and this is when the sneaky monkeys make their moves! They are generally harmless snatch thieves, and I have had my bag of bananas stolen.
One monkey snatched a bottle of expensive vitamins from my neighbour's room, she was furious and jumped onto the ledge and chased after the monkey. The monkey was so shocked that it dropped the bottle!! Basically you just need to remember the shut your windows! Before I left, a new baby monkey was added to the brood!
At 7am, we have a simple breakfast at the reception hall that comprises milk tea and bread. This is followed by optional Buddhism classes at 8.30 that is conducted by Tenzin who is a senior monk studying for his Buddhism Philosophy degree. From 10am onwards, most of the volunteers will be busy with our English classes, which takes up 3-4 hours in the day! So most of us have a pretty packed schedule in the monastery.
Lunch is served at the staff reception and it is always a vegetarian meal. For those who really need to eat some meat, there are a few simple eateries if you care to walk downhill 5-10 minutes from the monastery. I have been trying to shed a few kg forever, and by the time I returned to Singapore, I realized that I have lost 3.5kg just by eating simply for 6 weeks. Having said that, at times I am still starved for protein and I walked down hill and ordered myself a nice portion of eggs with fried noodles.
When I have time in the afternoon, I would simply chill and read a book in this open air shelter. Incidentally, this was where I conducted my one-to-one English lessons as well with one of the college student monks. A tourist who was visiting remarked "you teach English in heaven".
The Wifi reception is best near the computer lab, and we might be able to get some weak wifi signal near our rooms, so I would move my table out to get a better reception. On some days in the afternoons, I will be surfing the internet with the mountain ranges in front of me and the eagles will be soaring by!
The day quietens down and in the evening sometimes I just hang around the courtyard watching the college students practise the lively Tibetan debate
I find it almost unbelievable but for 5 weeks, I probably lived one of the healthiest lifestyle in my entire life, waking up at the break of dawn and hitting the sack around 9 pm. There are normally electricity outages at night in Pokhara so it is also a good idea to go to bed early!
On weekends, I normally travel to the Lakeside, and my two favourite haunts are Mike's Place and Jiva Cafe and spa. Mike's Place is an unassuming eatery by Lake Fewa and I just enjoy chilling out reading my book and having a leisurely breakfast. Jive spa is another great place to have a coffee surrounded by lush and leafy trees with birds chirping and indulging our senses in a wonderful massage. For the quality of the premise, the prices are fairly reasonable with prices starting from 22000 rupees for a 1.5 hour massage. Incidentally both Mike's Place and Jiva Spa are within walking distance of each other (5 minutes). If you are there for a few days, just get a local map as it will outline all the key establishments in Lakeside.
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