Hey!
1. I went there in september/october so definitely did not need a sleeping bag. Don't know about January, but you can reach out to them by email and ask.
2. Cash at the end of the retreat, I gave them nepali rupees which is the currency in nepal. They don't check what you give and don't ask for something specific, though, so I'm sure other currencies would work as well. You just slip it into an envelope on your parting meeting with the nun and put it into a box.
3. The labels aren't fixed, but know that this center is very strict and traditional mahasi-style practice. They literally expect you to mentally, verbally note and label everything you do for the whole day, and to perform every action that you do during the day between your 12-14 hours of formal practice a day in slow motion (that's a thing there — you will realize when you get there that the yogis move so slowly that they will take up to minutes to drink water). If you miss sessions they will notice and let you know that that is not cool. If you start practicing in your room (I brought a meditation cushion there and sometimes would do sessions in my room), they will eventually notice and let you know that that's not cool. If you talk with other retreatants... Etc., you get the point. They won't assess your meditative level upon arrival and will give you a little booklet of instructions, which will be most of the training that everyone receives (everyone receives the same), until you start having daily interviews, after your first three days of practice. They will expect you to bow three times at the beginning and ending of interviews (these last 10 min). If you don't give the kind of answer they want to hear (ie, describe sensations in the way they themselves would), they will let you know that that's not the way to do it and is not serious meditation. They may expect beginner level descriptions from you, and if you don't provide that in the beginning, they won't adapt to you, but it will have to be the other way around. This and the whole hierarchy thing can be very frustrating, depending on one's background and preferences.
4. You have to keep track of your own sessions, but it's easy, as there are clocks in the meditation halls, and people are all doing the same schedule. Except for people in equanimity, who just sit hovering over the meditation hall for hours on end, and breeze around only to get to or from the dining hall ;)
Best wishes, and hopefully the style of this center will suit you, as 3 months is a long time.
Olivier
ps: Report back when you are done!
