It was a long journey before I finally reached my destination. One thing I learned is, it is the journey and not the destination that counts.. For me the journey spanned several countries and about a decade of time. Whilst I never knew exactly where I would end up, when the day came that I finally found my spot, I knew it RIGHT away! It was one of the happiest days of my life, and quite unexpected!
To link back to the story so far ... I had just visited the Earthship HQ in Taos New Mexico after doing my 5 year vision plan. This was a three step process that we went through as a group to vision and detail exactly how we want our lives to look in 5 years time. This process ended with us having 5 or so affirmations that we said to ourselves. It is a really powerful thing to do, and if you didn't see the last part please do check it out (after this part of course!)
Once I returned from Taos, things changed quickly and I sold up everything I owned, and moved to India! Landing back in India is always a joy, especially after a few years. Just the smell of that Indian air on a hot day is enough to wake you up from any mental slumber. The air in the cities is like persistent smelling salt! I started my new life in India near the city of Bangalore.. in a place called Puttaparthy. There is an Ashram there that I like very much and decided to live next to it in a rented apartment and settle down with a view to somehow building an Earthship somewhere there. I had basically decided to do this in Puttaparthy because it was one of the places i could call home.
I lived there for around 3 months, and never found my spot or real way to proceed. It just didn't feel 100% right, and I wasn't making any real progress. At around April 2006 I went to a place called Kodaikanal. This was a blissful little hill-station. It sits at around 2,000m / 6,500 Ft in elevation and overlooks the plains of India. It is a very small and simple place with clean air, streams and waterfalls. forests and endless views. It also has a great abundance and diversity of nature in all its forms! I spent a few months there, and had many good times meeting travelers and locals and living simply. I still had my web development job going on with London .. and so I somehow managed to squeeze that all in to living in the jungle on a terrible 2G mobile Internet connection.
I noticed that quite a few of my friends would speak of this place called Karuna, and were going to check it out. They would leave 'for a few days' .. and never come back.. I was kind of curious, but also just way too settled to really bother going to see where they were going to. I had many good times, and finally it felt time to leave and return to Puttaparthy. It was a long journey which involved a 4 hour bus ride, then a 12 hour train ride, then another 5 hour bus ride! Bangalore train station was on the way, and I landed up on the platform at around 4am, bleary eyed and holding all my possessions in various bags and luggage. I was also dressed all in white, which is quite common for me.
I had a 4 hour wait on the platform and was completely exhausted. I found a little spot near a wall and kept all my bags close by. Sitting there dozing off and head falling down, I was distracted by a man to my right. He was asking me something, but wasn't making much sense. It sounded like half English, and half gobbledygook! I asked him again to please repeat himself. He again mumbled something, and then suddenly I got a weird feeling. A little voice came into my head and told me to check my left side. I immediately looked left and saw this old very dirty looking man with his hand IN MY MAIN CARIER BAG! This carrier bag also contained my main wallet and money bag. Since I was traveling back i had EVERYTHING with me. I had ALL my ID, passport, money, credit cards, US Green Card, .. THE LOT! All in that bag.. And this guy had his hands right on it! I immediately shouted at him and he slowly withdrew. He seemed so oblivious that he doing anything wrong. Lucky for him I am not a violent person.. and just grabbed all my stuff and stood up and walked further down the platform. Good timing too, now my train was arriving in just 10 minutes. Phew that was lucky.. or was it.. During those 10 minutes I was very cautious as you can imagine. I was much more awake now, and the train came and I got straight on it. After finding my seat, I immediately looked for my main wallet to check my ticket and plans. I put my hand into the carrier bag. It wasn't there?! What!? Impossible! Totally impossible! How this happened is something that until today I have no answer for. I can only guess these guys were totally professional and somehow robbed me even after I caught them red handed and was on guard.. AMAZING.. or destiny.. Who can say for sure.. but looking back i would HAVE to say destiny.
This was a pretty tense situation. I landed up at 5am in a train station somewhere in South India with absolutely no way to pay for anything or do anything much at all! Luckily i still had my flip phone and I called a taxi driver who I knew to come and pick me up! That is one of the amazing things in India.. whenever i have come unstuck, things have always worked out so well, and so easily. More or less! So the drama unfolded and I managed to get emergency money from American Express who were gracious enough to cover me even without ID! No idea how that even happened! I was able to get some cash out from a bank that they organized. I then went and got a temporary emergency passport from the UK Consulate in Chennai. They were SO helpful and kind and did their best to fix my problem. Here was the thing! They told me I had to return to Kodaikanal to get a Police certificate to confirm my passport had been stolen. I could have done this in Bangalore, but they said to do it in Kodaikanal which was much nicer and also a bit closer than Bangalore. So back I went to Kodaikanal! Just as I was setting off I got an email from an old friend Omer. He was one of the people who had previously disappeared to this Karuna Place. His email said that he had found this amazing place called Karuna, and that I HAD to come and check it out! I was feeling so preoccupied with my whole drama that I said no, and i had no time to hang out as i was trying to get back to the UK to get my affairs straight. BUT, he was very insistent! In the end I agreed and by the time I got to Kodaikanal he was keen to greet me. I got my police letter done straight away, and was basically all set to leave India, so I happily drove with Omer on our motorbikes to this mysterious Karuna.
We arrived on a beautiful sunny day, and all i can say is.. it was love at first sight! When you know, you know.. . and i knew!! Instantly! THIS WAS THE PLACE!!!! Finally I had reached my destination and knew it in every cell of my being. I didn't know all the details.. All i knew was that we were allowed to rent some land and build. Also with India being India, especially rural India, there would be no intervention, planning officers, building regs, or any bureaucracy at all! I could just pay a very small amount of money and build. It was so beautiful here and had SUCH potential that I was basically just blissed out with joy for a very long time after that day!
Karuna Farm, Kodaikanal
I only stayed 2 nights, and then had to go and head to the UK to get my life in order. On the way I lost my shoes as well whilst climbing onto the roof of a bus as there was no space left inside. Before climbing the ladder i had put them on the ground but the bus left suddenly and without any warming. I hadn't been in the UK for around 5 years and when I arrived I was sure they would probably give me a pretty hard time carrying an Indian shopping bag, no shoes and a temporary passport. I was greeted as customs by a nice Indian man, who asked me a few questions and then let me right in! I had no money or cash left by then, and so i just jumped on a train to Brighton. When i got off the train and got to the ticket box and was asked "tickets please".. i just said 'no' .. and carried on walking. I think my appearance and aura were so out of the ordinary that they didn't even see me walk past! All dressed in white, glowing like a little Ghandi with no shoes and an old Indian shopping bag! lol.
So to wrap this saga up nicely,.. it all worked out! I managed to have a great time dancing and sleeping on the beach and was in a kind of euphoric joy to know I would soon be returning to start my dream.
Finally Arriving at Karuna Farm, India
I made it back in light-speed, and brought everything I had from Puttaparthy. I was ALL IN! i started out by renting a small cottage that was one of several guest houses. I lived in that cottage for a total of 2 years and learned a lot during that time about self sufficient living. The whole of Karuna Farm is totally off grid, and the cottage i had rented had zero amenities. The toilet was a huge open pit with some wood over it. There was no power at all, no running water, taps, kitchen, or shower. I didn't know it then, but I was in the perfect position to start learning the basics about off grid living!
I met a guy called Eddie, who was originally from Auroville. He was also visiting Karuna and was planning to build a second home here for when it is too hot in Auroville. Eddie knew all kinds of alternative energy people and hooked me up with some guys who sent me some solar panels and boxes and wires! I knew a bit about 12Volt batteries and wiring from installing car stereos in my youth! Actually the wiring of solar systems is particularly easy if you understand the basics. Its not much harder than wiring a plug! I got some batteries from town, and an inverter and solar charge controller came with the panels. The day it came to hooking it all up was very exciting.
It took a few hours to do, and near the end of the installation a nice little event happened. I was excitedly fixing the last of the wires when i heard a VERY loud buzzing start from overhead. It got louder and louder until I saw a huge gray cloud of bees swarming over head. The entire cloud was dense enough to shade the sun, and the sound was unforgettable! IT was like a message from the bees! I think they approved of my solar panels! They moved on, and I was happy they left me to it! It didn't take too much drama to install, and by the night time I had power and normal 220V plug sockets ready to plug my laptop and lights into.
A NOTE ABOUT SOLAR POWER!
Anyone who has used solar power in a house, built and designed to work efficiently, will testify that it is one of the best options low maintenance sustainable power. The cottage I was staying in needed only the most basic power. I had no fridge, cooking was with a gas stove, etc. The only thing i really needed was lights and some gadget charging! This kind of usage is very low and so I was quite comfortable with a pretty small system that costed about 500 USD (Indian price!).
Those who try to run a normal conventional power sucking house on solar power will most likely struggle to keep up with demand. A 'normal' house requires a lot of power for heating, cooling and also to run the appliances in the home. When using solar power, you also have to choose the right appliances! A key example is using a laptop instead of a desktop computer. I can power around 20 Mac Book Pros on the same amount of power as a decent desktop computer! I heat my water with solar and gas as backup. Lighting is from energy efficient warm white light LEDs, and my hoover is a cordless lithium ion machine. When you choose ALL the right appliances you can bring your energy demand down by 100s of times! Most people considering switching to solar should probably first invest in energy efficient appliances so that they can do much better with even fewer panels and batteries!
As time went on, i installed more amenities. It took around a year and a half until i had a sink with a tap and a shower. I really started from the very basics! I took things VERy slowly.. so slowly in fact that it took me a full 2 years to even choose a plot within Karuna to build on. There were various plots, and i had no idea which one to choose as each one was stunning in its own way. Finally one day, the owner came with me and suggested a plot. I went with him, took a look at the view and said, Ill TAke it!!! A lifetime lease, no real legal security, but ill take it, in a heartbeat!
The View From The Plot
Next came an unexpected gift that led to my first build experience, the Dome!
My good friend Omer who had brought me to Karuna had decided that he was not going to settle there after all. He had already gone to the effort of making a metal frame that was the shape of a geodesic dome that some people cover with canvas and use like a tent or futuristic yurt or something. He had it made from several metal pipes that could be easily bolted together. He said he could put it together in half an hour and just wanted to try it out somewhere. So we came to my plot and cleared out an area near the edge of it. He got the spanners out and proceeded to erect this frame in no time. When he was done, he looked very happy as it all fitted together properly! I also liked it! Right there and then whilst looking at this frame i decided i would buy it from him and use it to build a little dome. That would be where i lived whilst i built the Earthship! I would then be able to live right next to the build and also save money on paying rent in the cottage.
SO that was that.. I started pretty quickly and used our local labor to do the work. I had a slightly adventurous idea of making the top part all in glass triangles so there would be plenty of light. And so began my learning experience and learning curve about building in India! I had probably the worst maisoners in town! The absolute most useless alcoholic carpenters, and basically no one had a clue what they were doing. This was not least because none of them had ever seen or done anything like this before. Nevertheless, I guided them all with my crazy gesturing and pointing and step by step, and slowly and painfully we made progress. I decided to do a ferro-cement cover on the frame, which means that you cover the frame with a metal netting and then put a thin layer of cement on it, around 1 inch. It isn't really very eco, nor does it perform well on hot or cold days and nights! It is solid, fast, and effective though and was the choice i made.
It was pretty much a good success, all except for those skylights! The carpenters has fitted the frames really badly, and at every corner the roof leaked when it rained. It was a nightmare for me during storms as i had leaks above my bed, electrical outlets, and pretty much everywhere. Finally after some time and countless bottles of silicon, i decided to make a large roof structure to cover the whole thing as well as some outdoor patio area. Phewph! This is how it turned out!!
The Dome! My first build and home!
This was a very important process. I'm so glad I got to learn and make mistakes on this small project before i started my Earthship build. I think the best way to learn is to just try something rather than do a course. You will always learn more when you are forced to think for yourself and come up with your own solutions. This was very much the case for me. I had NO one to talk to or ask technical details about. Luckily i JUST about had Internet on my flimsy 2G connection!
It's probably worth mentioning that self building is one thing. . Self building in India is another thing, and self building in India in a remote location with no decent materials or labor is another thing yet! Luckily i had infinite patience with my workers messing up and being really useless. The degree of stupidity that I have witnessed is pretty mind boggling. Not to disrespect them too! I love these guys.. they always try their best.. but their best is from a mentality of a VERY simple village person with absolutely no care in the world for aesthetics or longevity. I am going to spare you the details here, although this would make for a hilarious book all on its own! A catalog of incredible and never ending screw ups!
As you can probably tell, I was in no rush to start building my Earthship. It was in fact nearly 4 years before i actually started building from the day I arrived at Karuna! Once I had the Dome i still just sort of waited and waited until i felt the time had come to start. Interestingly what FINALLY prompted me to actually start preparing and building my Earthship was an American girl. She had heard some of my story and said so simply to me that she thought the time had come and I should start. It was really weird, but something clicked and suddenly I said YES, it is time!
The most exciting and interesting part of this Diary is next! in part 5 i will share with you how I started planning this mammoth project, what preparations i made, and how i got the help I needed to pull it off!
I hope you have enjoyed reading my journey to my destiny! This wasn't a very technical post, but I will be making up for that very shortly!!
READ PARTS 1-3 HERE:
Part 1
Diary of a first time Eco builder Part 1 | The creation of my life’s dream, a totally off-grid self sufficient home - Earthship Karuna
Part 2
The Remarkable Diary of an Earthship Eco Builder Chapter #2. The dream was born.
Part 3
The Remarkable Diary of an Eco Builder Part 3: HOW TO ACCOMPLISH ANYTHING IN LIFE!
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