trek

my favorite things – patterned fabric

introducing a new feature today to this blog  – my favorite things –

every once in a while i’m going to highlight a few of my favorite things in this world with either photos or stories or something along those lines. . .

this week, it’s my love for patterned fabrics.

ever since i was a little kid, i have been a sucker for pattern. i still dream of working in the textile industry and one day creating my own. . . but for now, i can only appreciate the beauty of the ones already created.

i think one of the reasons i am so attracted to regions of the world like india and nepal is because of the fabrics you see every second of everyday. life revolves around color, pattern, and texture there.

. . .

“what do i make of all this texture? what does it mean about the kind of world in which i have been set down? the texture of the world, its filigree and scrollwork, means that there is the possibility for beauty here, a beauty inexhaustible in its complexity, which opens to my knock, which answers in me a call i do not remember calling, and which trains me to the wild and extravagant nature of the spirit i seek.”

– annie dillard

. . .

friends often ask me how/what i pack when i go places, but to be perfectly honest, i’m not the best at packing. i love it, yes, but am i good at it? nah. . . not really.  i over-pack like a person who has never traveled before. i still bring too much stuff with me, but i have learned some things a long the way. . . take, for example, the wonderful sarong/pagne/lungi/whatever you want to call it, pictured in all the images above. this lovely bolt of fabric was a gift to my sister abby’s from her friend catherine. i fell in love instantly with this patterned piece from benin and . . . uh. . . i sorta took it. . . it was the best thing i brought with me while backpacking through europe.

there are endless possibilities and that’s one of the things i admire most about this light weight, rectangular fabric. it serves as a:

1.) a skirt . . . short or long . . . {*see first image. this was taken varanasi. i think that chai in terracotta cups on the ganges river should also be added to my favorite things list too. . . that, or, irish chai. either one. . .}

2.) a scarf {*second image. this one was taken on a trek in nepal. you might need to click the picture and see the image  closer up to actually see the scarf. i just couldn’t bear to crop out the mountains in the image. they look a whole lot better than me! himalayas – another things to add to my favorite things list}

3.) multiple different dresses {*third image. a belted dress on a boat in pokhara, nepal. i don’t remember what i was laughing about in this pic, but i found it the other day and it made me smile. i wish i remembered what it was. . . another sarong/dress/ bathing suit cover-up here}

4.) a towel {basically, it’s the only thing you need with you when you travel}

. . .

+ my what i wore wednesday post coming soon

+ nothing quite like dancing in the fleet foxes’ “liquid laser” show last night.  it was incredible. cold, crazy rain, lightning, thunder + fleet foxes + skipping with hipsters = happy grace. i honestly don’t know if i have ever been more soaked. i was real smart and went to an outdoor concert without a raincoat!{*sad the concert ended early b/c the rain damaged the equipment and the show ended early}. the walkmen were also great live {plus, the walkmen video was filmed in nepal! looks like mustang}.

+ astro homework, here i come! {oohh. also, want to see something crazy? check this out! or any of these from this gallery. ssro uses the same telescopes unc uses in the chilean andes. cool? i can’t get over them!}

yoga in the himalayas

in the middle of our trek on the annapurna circuit, brad and i took a full day off to acclimatize in the small town of manang. i spent my day “off ” exploring this tiny, but beautiful mountain town, doing a little yoga under a great big, blue sky and the himalayas, and reading and resting my blistered feet.

the best part of my time in manang was this experience {or the multiple cups of tea and cake i consumed}. . .

the weather was balmy, considering we were at almost 12,000 feet in april and i was all alone. alone to focus on my practice and nothing else. no distractions, no loud noises, just me, my practice, and the mountains. what more could a person want?

. . .

“waking this morning, i smile,

a brand-new day is before me.

i aspire to live each moment

mindfully,

and to look upon all beings

with the eyes of kindness and

compassion.

may you, and all other beings, be

happy and free from suffering.”

– a mindfulness meditation, frank jude baccio

. . .

1.) utthita hasta padangustasana, extended big toe pose {a great pose that not only improves balance but also stretches out your upper leg and hips}

2.) standing side stretch {great for balance and the back body}

3.) virabhadrasana I, warrior I {good for everything}

4.) virabhadrasana II, warrior II { a personal fave. esp. love the transition between vira I and vira II. fab for shoulders and hips}

5.) natarajasana, dancer prep pose {just the prep. pose here. nothing feels better than that victorious feeling once you master a beautiful, steady natarajasana!}