Living at the ashram

I was incredibly nervous before I arrived at Sivananda ashram near Trivandrum, India.

Seriously. The ashram costs just $11 per day, which includes room, board and a full day of yoga, meditation and chanting activities, so I wasn’t expecting much.

I imagined myself sleeping on a bamboo mat in a cockroach-infested shanty, eating gruel and pooping in a hole.

So it was such a pleasant surprise to walk down the cobblestone path and see Lakshmi, the women’s dorm where I would be staying for a week.

There are something like 36 beds per floor, and each one is arranged cubicle-style. Everyone at the ashram also receives sheets, a pillow and a mosquito net.

This was my house.

Some girls were very untidy.

And some were remarkably neat.

Finally, a few others turned the space into something entirely unique — like this mini artist studio.