[Assam] Canada's extremes: Seal fights, clothing optional beaches; celibate Bahai youth

Tue Sep 5 15:48:15 EDT 2006

Hi,

  Yesterday was a holiday in Canada so I wanted to explore the sea front down from the Univ ( www.ubc.ca ) where I am staying and saw the huts of the Native Americans who live on islands in the Pacific Ocean close to here. http://www.publicaffairs.ubc.ca/ubcreports/2004/04sep02/forestry.html Then saw a flight of steps leading down to the ocean front but was curious about two things : One that seal pups are around and that clothing is optional (illegal in USA) . 

  http://www.gvrd.bc.ca/parks/PacificSpirit.htm

  Down below most were dressed somewhat but few were in baby-suits mainly guys strutting their stuff. This is a very gay-firendly city I'm told -so seemed like gays . 

  Thus, Initially after sitting for a few minutes I turned to go back up the steps but seeing the breath-taking view I of the sea I returned to walk about two hours. 

  Damn these chaps - the nature is from others as well. I might be the only South Asian around (I saw lots of them in the Univ swimming pool later) but I am not going to let them cheat me out of the nature. 

  On the map I got down at trail 4 on top left and walked on roacks and sea to the breakwater opp. trail six -and about 200 yards on the breakwater rocks out in the sea -with slippers in my hand clambering over rocks -all alone -  where I saw the seals with fish in their mouth fighting with each other
  http://www.gvrd.bc.ca/parks/maps/Pacificspiritmap.pdf (Trail map) 

   (like dogs snatching bread from each other or like kites snatching pakoras in the sky) in the sea -just a few feet from me . Ofcourse, after seeing a few nude females as well (there were children as well) those in bikinis and swim-suits seemed like nuns. Nonetheless it was less dramatic than one sees in pics etc -no illegal activities I mean :-) 

   I did see quite a few East Asians here. Mostly giggling clothed girls avoiding looking at the naked white guys deliberately facing them.

  I stood out like a sore thumb or like James Bond - in full formals -Raymond ("the complete man") tailored  full sleeved white striped shirt , wrinkle resistant cotton gray tailored pants-all from India. Actually these were my last unsoiled clothes since my T-shirts and Jeans had been put in the paid washing machines yesterday. I was wading in the sea -since there were only cliffs in most places and barefoot over rocks going out into the sea -like a jetty of sorts.

  Anyhow an Indian esp a Hindu/Jains can draw solace in the ancient traiditons of India where Naked Sadhus and Naked dieties -both male and female are revered. So a natural place does not necessariliy have to be the haunt of baser people aping the bulls and cows in Indian streets - only in their body language etc no action. Anyhow it is a challenge one has top face -like going to worship the divine in a Khajuraho temple with its erotic imagery on the outside (I have never been to Khajuraho). However, I would like to view the scenary once again and see the natural elements of Canadian landscape which perhaps inspired Canada based Deepa Mehta to make sexually charged , extremely controversial (in India) films like Fire, Earth and Water. 

  I did visit a city based beach/sea front last week with my Harvard classmate , her mother, her husband, their child - where people seemed more civilized. It is a like an Indian city with no flyovers, no metro-trams-subways --only cosy rolling roads around the mountain backed sea bay --like Udaipur -the City of Lakes in India.

  It might surprise many that Bahai followers including my classmate and her husband, and their parents have to take a vow of chastity (till marriage) and abstinence from alchohol and smoking. They met while studying at Vancouver Island's Bahia school
  http://www.maxwell.bc.ca/index.php I did mention my visit later on. Some photos of our city based English Beach later on after uploading from the camera.

  Any comments?

  Umesh

  ----------------------------------------------
  Naked jain sadhus http://www.hermitary.com/articles/digambara.html

  Female Indian sadhus http://www.womeninworldhistory.com/essay-07-05.html
  & http://www.adolphus.nl/sadhus/sadhvi.html

  Indian Sadhus http://www.tomvater.com/sadhu.html

  Naked in Ashes - 2006 movie http://www.frimmin.com/2006/04/30/naked-in-ashes/

  an interesting book online http://www.anandamayi.org/devotees/inthesteps.htm

  Naga Sadhus in Kumbha Mela 2001 -in cold winter
   http://www.stephen-knapp.com/kumbha_mela_photos_group_three.htm
  (I was there.) 

Umesh Sharma
5121 Lackawanna ST
College Park, MD 20740 USA

Current temp. address: 5649 Yalta Place , Vancouver, Canada

 1-202-215-4328 [Cell Phone]
Canada # (607) 221-9433

Ed.M. - International Education Policy
Harvard Graduate School of Education,
Harvard University,
Class of 2005

weblog: http://jaipurschool.bihu.in/

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