The Princess's Riding School

2 weeks ago we started taking private horse-riding lessons at the Princess Acadamy Riding School. It was really fun, because I got to "trot" on the first day! We bought our own riding helmets, and now, every Saturday after school, we change into jeans, get into a rickshaw, and drive to the "Palace Grounds." It's on the palace grounds, because all of the horses are owned by the Princess of Mysore who actually lives in Bangalore, not Mysore. We haven't met her, but I hope I do someday. Each Saturday we also get to see two other girls, Darcy and Sylvie, who are also taking lessons. It pretty cool that Darcy is my age, and Sylvie is about Sylvie's age.... Also, how many Sylvies have we ever met? None... but here's one in Bangalore! They are from Holland, the UK and Canada... sort of. They move around alot.

All of my horse instructors are very nice. The main guy is named Munawar, and another nice teacher is Bobbin who is from Darjeeling. When I ride the instructors show me how to push "up-down-up-down," which is called posting... I think.... I also have to work on keeping my back straight, holding the reins a different way than in America. We are riding on English saddles, which feels a little more "out and loose" so you have to balance better. Western saddles "hold you on" more, and are a little easier. Also the saddles here do not have a horn, so you just need to hold the reins and balance.

My instructor holds my horse on a lead rope, and I trot around him in circles. Sometimes I go faster or slower, and even "canter" for a little bit. When that happens, I feel really excited! But I also feel a bit tired, when I'm posting for so long. Soon I'm hoping to do what Darcy does, which is to trot without a lead rope, anywhere she wants in the corral. She's been riding for much longer than me.

Some of the horses are a special kind called a Marwari Horse. They have ears that curl in at the tips. We feel pretty lucky to ride them, because they only live in certain parts of India, and are a pretty rare type. If you are interested, here are a few links about Marwari Horses (#1, #2, #3) from Adonia and Uncle Kook.

I get to ride for about 30 minutes each time, and I REALLY love it!!! This is one of the things that I'll probably miss the most when I go home to El Portal.

-by Eliza