Understanding

It been just over a week since I arrived in Italy - a short time that already feels like a lifetime, which I suppose it is,  but also very much a paradigm shift for me.  Letting go of my whole life, allowing others to take over every aspect of my work, my finances, my responsibilities and to completely let go and trust everything is as it is has been such a huge shift for me and as I planned and arranged this adventure, my whole being was in the planning and creating, now I am in the doing.  And the doing is the part now what I have found to be challenging and life changing (as it is meant to be of course).  


One of the aspects to this journey so far is not being able to communicate and interact as I normally do, this is not South Africa in any way and the whole culture and people are different.  Generally people are not very helpful and really just busy with their own journey and their own life story - we all are and learning to deal and be in that reality is what I am learning right now.  This adventure is for me to learn to be alone with myself, to experience whatever life shows me in as aware and empowered way possible, and to be open to whatever happens in each moment - my understanding is deepening and more and more my eyes (and the eyes of my soul) are opening.  


I spent Friday, Sat and Sun morning - Full Moon - Pesach and Easter in Narni, a village that has been inhabited since the Paleolithic and Neolithic Ages, so its old and seeped in history.  Narni (in Latin Narnia) originally called Nequinum,  has been mentioned in records as early as 600 BC.  Interesting enough the imaginary land of Narnia, described in the works of C. S. Lewis, is said to have been named after Narni after he came across the name in an atlas as a child.  And magic is sure is. Wandering in the old streets of cobbled stone among the buildings that have such deep roots and so many stories, listening the church bells chime ever hour resonating and filling the spaces of the town, was an experience that I always dreamed of having Italy.  Being a celebration weekend, the town was busy with a buzz of all sorts of people, taking time out of their busy lives to come and celebrate their holy time in the country, so there was lots of energy and diversity of people.  

It rained much of Saturday and this gave me the time to relax, repack and sort my case and rest - and in the evening I wandered down a little ally to find a Trattoria - La Gallina Liberata Cucina (Chicken Liberated Kitchen) - a vegetarian kitchen run by a woman who practices Yoga and the space resonated such light and warmth.  I walked in to the sounds of Youssou NDour and my spirit lifted.  She offered me a warm bowl of the most delicious and nutritious bean soup and a glass of local wine, and I felt filled and happy and connected with a kindred spirit  and although we couldn't have a conversation, we connected.

So now I am in Assisi - home of St Francis of Assisi and gee its beautiful.  I have just arrived and the train journey was amazing, seeing the ancient, old villages on the hill sides in the country side.  And I have 2 nights here so lots of exploring to do.  Its evening now and the the sky is filled with light after a cloudy and rainy day - and its inspiring.  Something beautiful that I have received this weekend from one of my mentors Marianne Williamson is that the road to enlightenment is filled with un-learning and I am un-learning fear, negative thoughts, not trusting life's flow, and many other patterns, and the strongest message I am accepting right now is TRUST - TRUST - TRUST - and I trust that you are all blessed and having a wonderful, peaceful Pesach & Easter weekend.


Be blessed always
Om Shanti Om
Nidhi xxxx

Shifting Shifting Shifting ......

Day 3 was yesterday and I hit a huge wobble - I had a traumatic journey to Naples with confronting regional train mayhem and come face to face with con artists offering to assist with ticket bookings, and then to come to Naples and be confronted with filth, noise, degeneration and stinky, dirty streets that are so busy they just don't stop.

And I'm still coughing and coughing, struggling with the Achilles tendon and I just wanted to go home. I felt so really sad and lonely and even being in the moment felt like a punishment. And I can't really communicate with anyone here as there is very little English spoken. And this is the moment of shift - getting through these obstacles and seeing the bigger picture - and I had a glass of wine, ate a delicious pizza, walked slowly home back to the B&B, connected with my angels (ethereally and on BBM) and felt a bit better.

But I am still coughing !!! and coughing and coughing - all night ! did some drumming on my chest and it seems to help loosen and at least that helps me a little bit. I am going back to Roma tomorrow and think I may go and find a doctor to help me - this is really difficult and slows me down. I am working on healing this with EFT, visualization, drumming on my chest :-), cortisone meds and much praying, but the wheeze is like an orchestra and it is just not shifting - I am exhausted and it holds me back as I can only move really slowly. And did I mention how many people in Italy smoke - nearly all of them and the streets are just full of smokers puffing away which doesn't help the breathing process either.

Anyway enough winging - Naples - city that has absolutely shocked me and where I certainly would never return to even if offered a free holiday here, has the most amazing National Archaeological Museum where I spent my morning and this was absolutely inspiring.

I have started a Facebook Page http://www.facebook.com/AdventureWithNidhi in which I will post all my photos and suggest you like so that you get the updates - thats of course if you are on Facebook - and if you not then perhaps its a good time to go on and see all the amazing photos that I am taking and posting daily - this is super sexy technology which stores items in cyberspace so that little space is taken up.

So I am back to Roma tomorrow - I have already booked my train ticket so I won't have any further problems and will be staying in a little hotel close to the Vatican precinct where I will go to see all the wonders of Rome before leaving on Friday for Narni. Narni is a small hilltown village located in the Italian province of Terni on the southern boundary of the Umbria region, very near the exact geographical center of Italy. I believe that once I head into the country and start exploring the beauty and nature of Italy, the soft gentleness of Mother Earth and her bounty I will feel much better and start experiencing the sacredness and magic I dreamed as I created this journey.  I have never really been a city girl and without nature's love and beauty I feel so empty and have to work really hard to stay connected.  

Today I received this wisdom that links with my shift and how I choose to live my life.  Its Native American Code of Ethics, and I feel compelled to share this with you all today :

Native American Code of Ethics

Rise with the sun to pray. Pray alone. Pray often.
The Great Spirit will listen, if you only speak.
Be tolerant of those who are lost on their path.
Ignorance, conceit, anger, jealousy and greed stem
from a lost soul. Pray that they will find guidance.

Search for yourself, by yourself. Do not allow others
to make your path for you. It is your road, and
yours alone. Others may walk it with you,
but no one can walk it for you.

Treat the guests in your home with much consideration.
Serve them the best food, give them the best
bed and treat them with respect and honor.

Do not take what is not yours whether from
a person, a community,the wilderness or from a
culture. It was not earned nor given. It is not yours.

Respect all things that are placed upon
this earth – whether it be people or plant.

Honor other people’s thoughts, wishes and words.
Never interrupt another or mock or rudely mimic them.
Allow each person the right to personal expression.

Never speak of others in a bad way. The negative
energy that you put out into the universe
will multiply when it returns to you.

All persons make mistakes.
And all mistakes can be forgiven.

Bad thoughts cause illness of the mind,
body and spirit. Practice optimism.

Nature is not FOR us, it is a PART of us.
They are part of your worldly family.

Children are the seeds of our future. Plant
love in their hearts and water them with
wisdom and life’s lessons. When they
are grown, give them space to grow.

Avoid hurting the hearts of others.
The poison of your pain will return to you.

Be truthful at all times. Honesty is the
test of one’s will within this universe.

Keep yourself balanced. Your Mental self, Spiritual
self, Emotional self, and Physical self – all need
to be strong, pure and healthy. Work out
the body to strengthen the mind. Grow
rich in spirit to cure emotional ails.

Make conscious decisions as to who
you will be and how you will react. Be
responsible for your own actions.

Respect the privacy and personal space of
others. Do not touch the personal property of
others – especially sacred and religious
objects. This is forbidden.

Be true to yourself first. You cannot
nurture and help others if you cannot
nurture and help yourself first.

Respect others religious beliefs.
Do not force your belief on others.

Share your good fortune with others.
Participate in charity.

I love you all so very much - I miss you - I miss drumming and connecting - and this journey is already instilling the wisdom of deep connection no matter where we are in this world, that reaches across all boundaries, borders, oceans and continents.  Be blessed wherever you are - thank you for being in my life, for sharing with me and following my journey.  I get messages every day from friends for all over reading my blog - thank you all - Om Shanti Om xxxx

Buongiorno from Roma

I don't think I anticipated the immensity of this step I have taken and leaving SA has been really hard for me - and of course my deep attachment to certain people does not help with the letting go process.  The wisdom that keeps arising within me is to Stay in Each Moment.  Its so obvious and yet something that I seem avoid and as soon as I project a little into the future and allow the fear to step in, I see so clearly what Staying in Each Moment is about.  So it is in this moment that I am writing in Rome in Laurogrotto B&B 47 via Appennini writing my first blogpost on Italian ground.

Building up to leaving I became really ill with a touch of pneumonia and have brought this horrible,  tight chest with me - and all I do is cough and cough.  I have some "not so nice" meds to take and I am sure once I settle into a new rhythm and allow myself to completely let go and Be in each Moment, the tightness and restriction will subside and I will start to feel better.

Rome is beautiful and wondering around the streets yesterday and going to the Piazza Navona last night drinking a glass of Italian wine and eating simple pasta, listening to the various musos express and share their passion, and of course hearing lots of English being spoken all around by the various tourists was so wonderful.

blooming Wisteria on an old building

statues in a garden 

Arriving in Rome from the airport

Piazza Novana

Piazza Navorna

Artists displaying their work in Piazza Navorna

this sax player serenaded me with a very sweet
rendition of Love Story Theme

A Jamacian lady took this photo of me in front of one of the
 fountains in Piazza Navona

Today is a new day, its with new eyes and wonder that I set off on my next adventure - trying to get onto a topless bus and go for a drive around Rome - the weather is lovely - its warm and spring is in the air.

There is still a remnant of the fear of letting go of my comforts and familiar life that lingers within my physical and it is this feeling that is propelling me to focus on each moment and allow to be what is.
I am blessed to be here doing this and experiencing the magic and wonders of the world.  We are all so connected and I have been able to skype, sms, bbm and call as if I am just up the road, which I suppose if we look at the map, I am.

Ciao for now xxxx

15 Days to Go .....

Today is 14 March 2012 - I have 15 days left until I leave SA for the adventure of my lifetime. I am feeling this on a very deep level and haven't been sleeping so well - 2 AM is usually where I get the panic of what I am about to do - and the hours until around 5 are long with so many emotions running through my body and thoughts playing in my mind.   


I am presently in Johannesburg staying in a lovely guest house in Parkview - a little suburb near the Zoo Lake,  surrounded by trees and old houses with so much character and history.   The guest house is called Remote Corner and it is exactly that - what is so funny for me is that its quieter here than my house in Knysna was, there are so many birds and creatures living in the garden.  My little room is called Flower Pots and its in a very established colourful garden and a wonderful big black pooch called Hagrid or Haggie as he is called, who has become my friend - he gets my toast crusts in the morning.

This is Haggie !

The beautiful Gardens of Remote Corner

My room Flower Pots !

I am really pleased to introduce my very special travelling companion who will be accompanying me on my travels - her name is Lucy.  She has her South African Flag and an Aids Awareness Red Ribbon and she was given a lovely gift from another friend Julie which she is wearing on her waist.  Lucy will change, be decorated and adorned as we travel to our various destinations. 

Lucy is a Travelling Doll created by my friend Suzi Smart.
"Simple forms guide play, simple facial features allow for a range of human emotions
and various fabrics ensure a tactile experience"

And the time has come for me to share the outline Itinerary for my Sacred Divine Adventure.  I would like to say here that this journey has developed and taken the form of a Sacred Adventure where everything links and flows exactly how it is divinely inspired to do so.  Taking a sabbatical from my life is the depth and truth behind this adventure.  And so is utilizing this opportunity to write my blog, begin my book and the paper which will support my application for the masters programme I would like to create on my return. 


I have a huge amount to share and to learn and travelling and exploring on this journey will all contribute to this and allow me the space to re-create and present myself.  Its an unfolding, and a journey that is going to push me from my comfort zone of safety, build and embrace my self confidence and get me to experience life in a completely different way to what I am used to.  Most people I have told of where I am going and what I am doing refer to "Eat Pray Love" - and yes there is an aspect to my journey that is similar to Elisabeth Gillbert's experiences in her book but its more to me than just that.  The concept of Eat Pray Love are representative of Physical, Emotional and Spiritual aspects of my life and I believe that each country and town or village I visit will reflect the Physical, Emotional and Spiritual aspects within myself and contribute to my Sacred Divine Adventure.

I leave SA on 29th March en-route Rome via Frankfurt.  I arrive in Rome at 09h20 on Friday 30 March 2012.

30 March - 21 May I am in Italy, travelling by train from Cities to country villages and town, and allowing myself to be in each moment and experience a country that I have always dreamed of visiting.  I have booked many quaint, quiet, very old country spaces to stay that have views of vistas, authentic Italian hospitality and are rich with history and culture.  I have a train ticket so this will be a slow journey giving me the opportunities to take my time and experience as much as I want to without rushing to meet deadlines.

23 May - 27 June I am in Bali, staying a rented house in Ubud where I plan to spend the time writing and getting clear about how to present my book.  I am hoping to have some special visitors visiting me in Bali.

29 June - 7 July I am doing a cruise around Croatia - lots of swimming in the water and seeing magic castles.

8 - 14 July I am visiting Latvia and investigating and visiting the village where my grandmother was born - investigating the female line of my ancestors.

14 July - 4 August I am in Russia - here I will connect with my friends from Dances for Universal Peace and exploring St Petersburg, Grishino and Moscow.

4 August I fly to Athens to meet my new family Sasha Chaitow and then to Corfu to meet her parents Leon and Alkmini Chaitow.  

I leave Corfu 19th August enroute to Spain - via Ferry and train accross Italy and Ferry to Spain where I will be until 3 September.  And then my final destination is the UK where I will be until 31 October 2012.

Om Gum Ganapatayei Namaha

Om and salutations to the remover of seen and 

unseen obstacles 

I AM Divinely Blessed 

Unplugging from Paradise

I have lived here on the Garden Route for 14 years - 2 cycles of 7 years, and the essence of peace, beauty, nature in her abundance, no rushing, wonder and extreme awe have filled each day of these 14 years.  Sure life has had its ups and downs, and there have been some very dark spaces, mainly light spaces, but underlying all of this has been existing in this equisite paradise.

One memory that expresses this  for me is the day that the planes flew ino the twin towers (9-11-2001) - there was extreme drama playing out on the television, so disturbing and unbelievable - I went outside to just breathe and the vast lawn outside my house was filled, completely, with bright, yellow dandelion flowers, with their faces open to the warm sun - it still brings an opening in my heart thinking about it, and it was in that moment   I felt such a deep gratitude for where I was on this earth and for the ultimate gift I had created for myself of living in paradise.

The reason I am feeling this now is because in 6 days time I am leaving the Garden Route to begin my adventure and the visual and tactile experiences and the awe I experience in each moment of each day will change.  And right now I am unplugging myself from this paradise, about to shift into a moving, ever changing, roaming, busy and completely different reality.

My most sacred place on the Garden Route, a space of holiness and deep connection with Spirit, where I pray and feel 100% tuned into consciousness is my Sacred Goddess River, the Hoogekraal River.  This has been my sanctury for 13 of my 14 years here and a point of reference in my life where I connect and feel whole and ONE with God/Goddes/I AM Presence.  She holds me, lightens my load & my heaviness, cleanses me, absorbs my tears and her waters replenish my skin and my hair, rejuvinates and sanctifies me each and every time I swim in her amber water.  And she is the prescious jewel I will always focus on, keeping me connected and part of the Garden Route, as I wander off on my sacred adventure.

Goodbyes are sad, they mean so many things and often feel like a separation or an ending of something.  I am choosing not to say goodbye, just so long, my way forward is filled with so many hellos, new experiences and adventures, so the feeling right now is that I am unplugging from this reality, this paradise, these beautiful people who grace my life.

Sala Kakuhle (fare-well) Garden Route, Bless you .............

I'm Homeless and feeling free

Today I put my life's possessions in a storage container - what a liberating experience - I am staying in such a lovely holiday house in Sedgefield for the next 15 days until I leave for Jozi and then Rome.  Its quite surreal as I look around my new room at my bags and know that I have closed a chapter of my life and am beginning something that I always only dreamed of doing.
The process of minimising my belongings into a suitcase and a backpack is completely liberating and I am feeling less and less attached to the things that I have held onto and worried about for so many years - and that freedom of living in each moment is so new and so extremely exciting for me.

I have a few loose ends to sort out and tidy up and that I will be doing within the next few days and then I am going to chill, spend huge chunks of time swimming in my sacred goddess river in Ruigtevlei and in the beautiful ocean and walking on the beach in Sedgefield with my dog Camilla - we are spending quality time together before I leave.  There is a sadness for me just saying goodbye to her - we are deeply connected and having had her alone (as Jasmin my other dog found her new home with a lovely lady in Bibbyshoek) - it has brought us into a new space with each other - she is a very special, gentle dog who brings a special blessing and a heart connection into my life.

 I have to say here that Erin (my goddess daughter), who has been with me since beginning Jan, has also brought with her a filling of a space and a lovely dimension.
Erin is angel - I have known her since before she was born and I have always believed that
the angels kissed her before she was born - she is gentle lovely caring fairy child who has been the most awesome help to me - I feel blessed to have had her with me.

And my beloved Nicole (my daughter) comes home on Monday and we will be spending time together in Sedgefield chilling, sharing my exciting trip and her adventures and experiences and this is another blessing I am having before I set off on my journey.

I am feeling very relaxed and supported right now - there is a peace and an angelic feeling around me and with all that I am doing  and I believe that I am surrounded by light and elemental and angelic support.  Everything is illumninated around me and my experience of creating my adventure, finding homes for my animals, packing up, planning and making my bookings, obtaining my visas and generally each aspect of coming to where I am right now has been completely supported and inspired with Divinity.

And although I am physically homeless, I am not in anyway homeless as Mother Earth is my home and I feel held, loved and supported in each moment - And I am free and its beautiful - until next time, be blessed.

and my sacred adventure begins ............

To begin this adventure has taken months of planning, arranging, creating and so many emotions are arising and as I prepare for the packing up of my life, putting into a storage container.  I am amazed at how exhausted I am right at this moment ........... there have been many, many years of so much of life's experience to get me to this point - 14 Feb 2012 -  the appropriateness of this time and this day and the opportunities that have presented themselves into my life at this time.  are all petals of this beautiful lotus flower of my life.


I think what I am realizing is that actually sitting down and beginning to write and express what I have set out to do, to write a blog about this adventure, to write a book about the women and in turn the divine feminine archetypes making up my life, to share the wisdom and the deep, sacred and holy information of these times for people now and for future generations and to share the depth and rhythm of drumming and facilitating and the magic of working with rhythm as it heals and brings people together so beautifully, is a huge task and undertaking.  And where does one begin with a task like this ?


The most important aspect of my very full and cluttered life full of responsibilities, has been to release myself of most of the responsibilities,  in order to create a space to be able to embark on this adventure and to write.  I feel that there is a well within, deeply connected to Spirit that is bubbling to be expressed and to just have the time and no commitments or requirements for me to fulfill and honour besides my own needs, my own desires and my own dreams, is just such an amazing thought.  And a good vision to hold in my mind's eye as I feel so ovberwhelmed by the packing process :-)


This is an amazing process - shifting my home and my comforts into boxes into a storage garage and to minimise my very full life into a suitcase and a backpack - and take off in perfect love and perfect trust on this sacred adventure.

I am on a Sacred Journey – I live in South Africa on the southern tip in paradise and am a Facilitator, Drummer, Writer, Artist and many other things.  My journey will be taking me to Italy, Bali, Croatia, Latvia, Russia, Greece, Spain and the UK and will last 8 months in time, but a lifetime in shift and energy. It begins NOW !

It started with me first of all needing to take a sabbatical from my life, to travel and explore myself and some of the world through my eyes and with my heart. I am undertaking to begin writing 2 books and keeping a travel blog – one book is based on my work as a drumming therapist and facilitator and the work that I do which is deeply transformational and inspiring shifting trauma and connecting groups and individuals with their own inner rhythm and light while connecting with Spirit through the most unbelievable tool – the drum. This will take the form of a thesis/paper which I will have published and which will assist with bringing Drumming to be used as a mainstream mechanism in Music Therapy.

And the second  is a book about the Women in my life and the role of the female archetypes and the opening and exploring the inner Goddess and the Divine Feminine Principal. My journey to Latvia is for me to connect with and discover where my ancestors originate from and give me more insight about my Grandmother (who was born there), my great grand mother and the generations before them – my feminine line.

Both these works, although each taking a different medium and form, come from and to the same place and share the purpose of sharing wisdom and divinity with all.

Each place, town, centre that I am visiting on this journey is sacred and envelopes retreat in various forms and ways.  It’s through the peace and tranquillity of retreat, of being in nature and out of the mayhem of tourism and city business, that I am able to really connect with my own true nature and do the work that I AM called to do. 

So here I go on  ........................my sacred adventure !