Van Niwas>Dhakkar Chhore

Actually, we got involved in this program from the moment we left The Indore campus. It was quite to be with friends and discussing things totally different from what we discussed in the campus. Few of our group members also got an opportunity to see The classical and unique Taj Mahal during our way to Ashram. it made the journey for them even more memorable.

  Our Trip to Kathgodam to Van Niwas gave us a glimpse of out is going to happen in coming days. The first view of the place was very exciting, the road carved between mountain was a sign that we are going to challenge ourselves a lot in this trip.From the time we entered the Ashram till we left, the hospitality from Volunteers were incredible. The whole trip couldn't have been so memorable and interesting withput them. All of us enjpyed the food served there a lot. Officially our trip started with the inaugral sppech by Prof. JV and Prof. Gunta. All of us in our group has never seen Prof. JV before and so, the energy we saw in him throughout the trip was exceptional. Infact, the way he introduced us to the program energized us immensely to fully utilize the time there.  Our first trip to montains started from trekking to the Tiffin top. The path used by us was quite challenging with a width for exactly one person to walk. It gave us a glimpse of coming challenges. We reached there quite tired but the first view of mountains from Tiffin top made us forget the pain of coming there.

The next day started with scrambling, this was the starting of self realization exercises. Most of us never thought we can do all this but, finally all of us did and realized that it all lies inside whether we can do certain things or not. Afternoon session was left for us to explore the scenic city of Nainital. Few things to be worth mentioning were the Naini Lake, Local Candles, Naina devi temple and delicious food.


Following day was divided as per our choice. Most from our group preferred the 16km long trek and others went to spot the rare species in the famous Corbett national Park. The trek was worth for the awesome natural views and never forgettable Snow peaks we spotted for first time in our life. The trip to Corbett was also worth taking for the pleasure of safari and spotting animals in their natural habitat. The next two day we did lots of fun and adventurous activities like rock climbing, rappling and river crossing. All of them was a challenge in its own way and we learned, enjoyed and tested our full potential all at the same time.

 

Moreover, the sessions on stress management and emotions was also a unique learning experience for us and the learning from this session will remain with us forever. We hope it will prove as a valuable tool in channelizing our stress and emotional problems for positive outcomes.
The last event for us to enjoy to the fullest was of Camp fire. We discussed a lot during the preceeding days for what to present. Finally, we agrred upon a play which was perfectly in sync with the learning of ashram. The play was lifted from the famous TV series Shaktimaan's "Chhoti-Chhoti magar moti baatein". We named our play as "awesome Ashram". The rehearsal as well as the stage performance was quite fun and

                                                     

each one of us enjoyed a lot. The performance of others group were also quite enjoyable. Apart from Scheduled activitits the stay in ashram with friends were also quite enriching. We made lots of new friends and older friends became even more closer. At the end, it looked as if things came to an end all of a sudden and we could have enjoyed a longer stay. The yoga sessions and other valuable teachings from the trip can be still seen among us. We thank the two mentors Prof. JV and Prof. Gunta for their dedication to make the workshop precious for us. We hope these relationships will become stronger with the passing of time and guide us to become best with every forward step.