I've been in Rishikesh for over 2 weeks now. It's the yoga capital of the world and it's full of ashrams. It's sits on the Ganges River surrounded by lush green mountains that are full of monkeys. There are temples and bathing ghats lining the riverside. Rishikesh is a very spiritual place for the Hindu religion. One of the temples 13 levels, getting narrower as they go up. It looks like a giant wedding cake. Each level is full of huge statues of different Hindu Gods, bells, and people praying. The Hindu religion has hundreds and hundreds of gods. Two huge suspension bridges cross the river. They are pedestrian only, and they're always busy. It sometimes takes 20 minutes to cross the bridge. It's a loud and busy place, full of Indian and foreign tourists. It's also full of sadhus or babas. These are spiritual seekers who renounce the material world to seek spiritual evolution. They wear orange robes and are literally everywhere here.
The Ganges River is considered a sacred and holy river. They say if you bathe in it you will wash away a lifetime of sins. I attended a fire ceremony at the Shiva temple. They have the ceremony every night, and there are so many people there. The temple sits on the river looking out onto the river and a huge statue of Shiva. They sang, chanted, made offerings to the fire, and passed around big dishes of fire to cleanse the crowd with the smoke. People get little dishes full of offerings, light them, and float them on the river with their prayers. There was even a Hindu wedding there the night I attended! It was so beautiful to witness such a sacred Hindu ceremony watching an amazing sunset over the Ganges.
When I arrived I met a girl from Mexico, Ana, and a couple of Indian guys and we all went white water rafting in the Ganges. It was so much fun! Some of the rapids were huge! It was such a rush! We stopped at a big rock and I somehow mustered the courage to jump off into the water. I even went swimming a little bit so I guess that I've washed away all of my sins!
I went to the ashram where the Beatles stayed. It has been long deserted, and is now only ruins. The grounds are huge. They're full of different buildings and courtyards. It was fun to go exploring and imagine what it must have once been like there.
There's a beautiful hike about 3 km outside of town. The trail leads up through the beautiful green forest to a series of waterfalls. It's amazing! You can go swimming in the waterfalls and sit underneath them to get a natural massage. I've been on the hike and gone swimming there 3 times. It's been really hot here and it's so refreshing. The men go swimming in their skimpy little underwear and the women have to go fully clothed. It's weird swimming in clothes, but you adjust. They dry pretty fast. If you continue to hike up a steep path past the waterfalls you can go to this tiny village. It's surrounded by rice fields and green forest. There's amazing view and you can see the river and Rishikesh from the top. It's a long steep hike up the mountain and isn't accessible by cars. It's so remote and completely secluded. The people who live there have to do that hike down and back to get anything from the outside.
I've been staying in the Anand Prakash yoga ashram for the past couple of weeks and it's been so nice. It is a quiet and peaceful oasis away from all of the noise. It has beautiful gardens, and amazing views of the mountains. My room is nice and clean. I have my own balcony overlooking the garden. The people are great and so is the energy of the place. I've made lots of friends from all over the world, and I love the staff. We're like a big happy family. They even have 3 cows and a dog named Yogini. We eat all of our meals together sitting in the dining hall at little individual tables on the floor with huge windows looking out at the mountains. The food is really good, and it's all vegetarian. Everyone has their own plate and utensils that we wash after every meal. We do 2 yoga classes per day for 1 hour and 45 minutes. We wake up at 5:30 am everyday for our first yoga class. It's traditional hatha yoga so we do a lot of mantra (chanting) and pranayama (breathing exercises). We have kirtan 3 times a week and the guy who leads it has a beautiful voice and plays the drum. We also have fire puja every morning which is a fire ceremony with singing and praying. The discipline has been great for me. I've never done this much yoga in my life! I usually do it maybe 2 times a week, but never twice a day! All of the accommodations, classes, and food is about $9 per day!
Every time I go anywhere here, I have Indian tourists ask to take my picture with their whole family. Little kids want to shake my hand and say hello. I even had one little boy give me a flower. I feel like a celebrity just for being white. It's really weird. I usually humor them. There's going to be a lot of random pictures of me floating around India. It can be annoying sometimes. Like the time I was packed into an auto rickshaw with my friend and 4 men. One of them asked if he could take our picture and we reluctantly agreed. He took a picture with his phone and then his other friend started taking pictures with his phone, then another guy pulled out a huge camera, and the 4th guy pulled out a video camera! We were stuck in the rickshaw surrounded by these guys taking our pictures and videotaping us. It was really annoying so we pulled out our cameras and started taking pictures of them, so I have some hilarious extreme close ups of some random Indian guys.
I made friends with a local restaurant owner here. His name is Amit. He took me to a temple that sits on top of a mountain with amazing views. It was a beautiful and fun ride on the back of his motorcycle. He also knows a lot about herbs and plant medicine and took me to a medicinal botanical garden. It was so pretty and peaceful. He told me about all the plants and we tasted an smelled all the different herbs. It was a lot of fun.
I went to the Ayurvedic doctor here. He's the doctor that all of my local friends recommended. His grandfather and father were both Ayurvedic doctors. He took my pulse, and looked at my tongue. He knew what I was there for before I even said one word. It was amazing! I got 2 months worth of a bunch of herbs for less than $20. I'm also friends with my yoga teacher at the ashram who is getting his PhD in yoga, and he insisted on giving me a couple of acupressure treatments for free. I had a sore shoulder. He pressed a point on my foot that was really sensitive and then asked me if I was having problems with my right shoulder! It's amazing what you can find out about the body through poking your feet!
There's a huge Shiva festival going on here right now. Thousands and thousands of men wearing all orange are pouring into the city for this festival. They walk from miles around. It's getting more and more crowded every day. I love Rishikesh so much! It's going to be hard to leave, but I think it's time to move on. I've had such an amazing time here!
Saturday, July 11, 2009
Friday, June 26, 2009
Corbett Tiger Reserve
I had to take the government bus to get to Ramnagar, near Corbett Tiger Reserve. The bus had no AC, and it was hot! They pack people on even if there are no seats available. There are people crammed together and many people even have to stand. At one bus station I even saw a crowd of people rushing to get onto a bus literally pushing and shoving each other out of the way. It was a 7 hour bus ride each way, and I was lucky enough to have a seat both times. It was a great way to experience India! I was the only westerner on the bus. I love looking out the window while travelling here. You can catch a glimpse into people's lives. I travelled through many rural areas, and many Muslim villages. There were as many ox or horse drawn carriages on the road as there were cars. I've seen many crowded market places with street stalls selling all kinds of foods and crowds of people rushing around. I've seen families gathered around a fire cooking, women carrying huge bundles on their heads, people lining up to get water from a pump, or young boys playing by the road, or women washing clothes in a river. There is never a dull moment while travelling here.
There's a lot of suffering here. I've seen many slums. Small communities of make shift shelters and tents. These shelters are made of sticks, plastic, and sometimes metal. I can't believe the poverty here. I've never seen anything like it. Little children covered in dirt, with matted hair, and half naked, running around with no shoes. These people literally have nothing. It's heartbreaking. They can't even afford shoes, and don't even have enough water to bathe. I've seen many very elderly people, and very young children begging for money. I've seen sidewalks packed full of people in rags trying to sleep in the shade. There's many beggars without limbs living on the streets. There's garbage everywhere here. Everyone litters. I've seen huge piles of garbage that go on for miles. There's gutters full of raw sewage. I've seen people who were manually digging out the foundation for a building. Young women and men carrying loads of heavy rocks on their heads all day in the hot sun. People who break rocks with a hammer all day to make gravel. It's interesting because one person's job might be to break rocks, another person's job is to sell bananas, or souvenirs. People spend all day just hoping that they sell enough, bananas for example, to make enough money. That's why so many people try so hard to sell you things on the streets.
Life is so hard for so many people here! It seems like with so much poverty and so many people that it's just a rat race for survival for many people here. Even animals have to suffer a lot. Horses and ox carrying heavy loads in the hot sun or skinny dogs, cats, and cows trying to find scraps of food amongst the garbage on the streets. Seeing all of these things has made me so much more grateful for all of the abundance I have in my life, and for simple things that are easy to take for granted, like shoes. We are all really so blessed compared to the majority of the people in the world. 40% of the population here lives on less than $1 a day. So many children have to go to work at such a young age, because their families just can't afford to feed them. It's not all suffering though. There's so many beautiful people and things here as well. In fact, many people seem quicker to smile, laugh, or sing than most of the people in the US would be, even though they have so much less. India is such a place of extremes and dualities. I've seen the most beautiful things of my life here, and the most disturbing things. It's hot and cold, happy and sad, rich and poor. That's what makes it such an interesting and beautiful place.
I stayed at a nice resort full of rich Indians at Corbett. It had a swimming pool, which I didn't get to enter because women are required to wear special Indian swimming costumes which I didn't have, and I didn't want to buy. I didn't see any women in the pool while I was there. I don't think that women swim very often here. The swimming costumes are conservative. Long shorts/jumpsuits. The resort was full of paths lined with beautiful flowers that smelled amazing! There was a floral fragrance in the air in the evenings. There were mango and guava trees. It was on a river on the edge of the jungle. It was like a peaceful oasis, but there wasn't a lot to do. I spent a lot of time laying in the hammock and reading. I also crossed the river and went on a little walk in the forest with a tour guide friend that I met named Rishap. We both got our feet wet crossing the river. It was fun!
The reason I went to Corbett was to go on a safari. I've always wanted to go on a safari. I left at 5:00 am. I had a driver and a guide. I was the only one in my jeep! It was amazing! I had a very successful safari. I saw so much wild life! I have to give all of the credit to my guide. He's been doing safaris for 12 years and knew where to go and what to look for. He had a great eye for spotting wildlife. He even pointed out tiger tracks in the road several times. They were huge! Apparently, early morning is the best time to see wild life. The Tiger Reserve was beautiful. It's exactly what I would imagine a jungle to look like. There were a lot of trees in some places, tall grasses in others, watering holes, and it was very dry. Monsoon hasn't hit yet. Some of the animals that I saw were; an owl, 2 eagles, a buzzard, storks, king fishers, horn beaks, tons of peacocks, and many other exotic birds, 2 types of monkeys, 3 types of deer, and a wild boar. I saw all of this within a 3 hour time period. There was wildlife everywhere!
Just when I was giving up hope on seeing a tiger, we saw one! It was so exciting! It was a small tiger. My guide said it was about 1 1/2 years old. It was walking slowly in the distance coming in and out of view, but when it was in view I could see it perfectly. It walked up a hill and laid down in the shade next to a big termite hill. We watched it for 5-10 minutes. My guide said that I was very lucky to have seen a tiger. He only sees one about every 3 days, and he goes on safari twice a day every day. There are 160 tigers in the reserve, but they're very territorial and there are only 12 tigers in the area we were in. I really am so lucky! It was so cool seeing all of that exotic wildlife in their natural habitat. It was well worth by trip to Corbett Tiger Reserve!
There's a lot of suffering here. I've seen many slums. Small communities of make shift shelters and tents. These shelters are made of sticks, plastic, and sometimes metal. I can't believe the poverty here. I've never seen anything like it. Little children covered in dirt, with matted hair, and half naked, running around with no shoes. These people literally have nothing. It's heartbreaking. They can't even afford shoes, and don't even have enough water to bathe. I've seen many very elderly people, and very young children begging for money. I've seen sidewalks packed full of people in rags trying to sleep in the shade. There's many beggars without limbs living on the streets. There's garbage everywhere here. Everyone litters. I've seen huge piles of garbage that go on for miles. There's gutters full of raw sewage. I've seen people who were manually digging out the foundation for a building. Young women and men carrying loads of heavy rocks on their heads all day in the hot sun. People who break rocks with a hammer all day to make gravel. It's interesting because one person's job might be to break rocks, another person's job is to sell bananas, or souvenirs. People spend all day just hoping that they sell enough, bananas for example, to make enough money. That's why so many people try so hard to sell you things on the streets.
Life is so hard for so many people here! It seems like with so much poverty and so many people that it's just a rat race for survival for many people here. Even animals have to suffer a lot. Horses and ox carrying heavy loads in the hot sun or skinny dogs, cats, and cows trying to find scraps of food amongst the garbage on the streets. Seeing all of these things has made me so much more grateful for all of the abundance I have in my life, and for simple things that are easy to take for granted, like shoes. We are all really so blessed compared to the majority of the people in the world. 40% of the population here lives on less than $1 a day. So many children have to go to work at such a young age, because their families just can't afford to feed them. It's not all suffering though. There's so many beautiful people and things here as well. In fact, many people seem quicker to smile, laugh, or sing than most of the people in the US would be, even though they have so much less. India is such a place of extremes and dualities. I've seen the most beautiful things of my life here, and the most disturbing things. It's hot and cold, happy and sad, rich and poor. That's what makes it such an interesting and beautiful place.
I stayed at a nice resort full of rich Indians at Corbett. It had a swimming pool, which I didn't get to enter because women are required to wear special Indian swimming costumes which I didn't have, and I didn't want to buy. I didn't see any women in the pool while I was there. I don't think that women swim very often here. The swimming costumes are conservative. Long shorts/jumpsuits. The resort was full of paths lined with beautiful flowers that smelled amazing! There was a floral fragrance in the air in the evenings. There were mango and guava trees. It was on a river on the edge of the jungle. It was like a peaceful oasis, but there wasn't a lot to do. I spent a lot of time laying in the hammock and reading. I also crossed the river and went on a little walk in the forest with a tour guide friend that I met named Rishap. We both got our feet wet crossing the river. It was fun!
The reason I went to Corbett was to go on a safari. I've always wanted to go on a safari. I left at 5:00 am. I had a driver and a guide. I was the only one in my jeep! It was amazing! I had a very successful safari. I saw so much wild life! I have to give all of the credit to my guide. He's been doing safaris for 12 years and knew where to go and what to look for. He had a great eye for spotting wildlife. He even pointed out tiger tracks in the road several times. They were huge! Apparently, early morning is the best time to see wild life. The Tiger Reserve was beautiful. It's exactly what I would imagine a jungle to look like. There were a lot of trees in some places, tall grasses in others, watering holes, and it was very dry. Monsoon hasn't hit yet. Some of the animals that I saw were; an owl, 2 eagles, a buzzard, storks, king fishers, horn beaks, tons of peacocks, and many other exotic birds, 2 types of monkeys, 3 types of deer, and a wild boar. I saw all of this within a 3 hour time period. There was wildlife everywhere!
Just when I was giving up hope on seeing a tiger, we saw one! It was so exciting! It was a small tiger. My guide said it was about 1 1/2 years old. It was walking slowly in the distance coming in and out of view, but when it was in view I could see it perfectly. It walked up a hill and laid down in the shade next to a big termite hill. We watched it for 5-10 minutes. My guide said that I was very lucky to have seen a tiger. He only sees one about every 3 days, and he goes on safari twice a day every day. There are 160 tigers in the reserve, but they're very territorial and there are only 12 tigers in the area we were in. I really am so lucky! It was so cool seeing all of that exotic wildlife in their natural habitat. It was well worth by trip to Corbett Tiger Reserve!
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Manali
Manali is a beautiful town. It's high in the mountains. It's in the middle of green pine forests, and is in a valley right on a huge river. It's much more lush and green than Ladakh. I stayed at a guest house in Old Manali. It's a big backpacker place and is full of tourists from all over the world. It sits on steep hills with narrow roads. I was planning on going trekking while I was there, but I had injured my foot by jumping off of something so I wasn't able to do much. I couldn't think of a better place to just be. I ate a lot, wandered around town, and soaked up the beautiful surroundings.
I spent a lot of time with my new friends Max and Angelina. We went to an open mic one night and saw some really amazing musicians. We were regulars at a Mexican restaurant near our guest house (yes there was a Mexican restaurant). I also made friends with some Indian shop owners Ram and Sunny. They have a jewelery store that sells jewelery that they make themselves with beads and gemstones, tribal jewelery, and poi swings. They spend the summers in Manali and the winters in Goa. We spent a lot of time hanging out with them in their store listening to Indian music. They are amazing at playing the didgeridoo! I even made my own bracelet! They had us over one night to hang out and watch Slumdog Millionaire. They were the best hosts. They brought us food and drinks, and even offered to let us stay the night if we were tired.
One day Angelina and I went and visited a temple in the small neighboring village of Vishish. It was a beautiful temple made of intricately carved wood. Inside the temple was a private room with a natural hot springs bath. There is a separate area for men and women. We soaked in the hot springs that is believed to be sacred holy water. It was full of women from other parts of Asia, and poor Indian women bathing their children in the hot water. The women were topless and the richer Indian women are so conservative and modest that they would just enter to quickly dip a toe in the water or scoop up a handful to put on their children's heads. After soaking we covered our hair with scarves and went up and rang a bell at the temple entrance and then knelt down to be blessed with the water and have an orange mark put on our foreheads. This is very common in worship in India.
While I was there I had another Indian shop owner try to cast a love spell on me. I bought a ring from him, and he told me that I would fall in love with him within 2 hours. I didn't fall in love with him but had to visit the store again with my friends. He insisted on having us sit and have a tea. He proceeded to hit on me the whole time. He begged me to come back later. It was awkward when I refused. When I went to leave I sat on what I thought was a bench outside that was covered with cushions and my ass went straight through a glass case! What a perfect way to end an already weird experience! LOL I steered clear of that shop for the rest of my time in Manali.
I also got threading done while I was there. It's the Indian form of hair removal. They use a piece of thread to remove body hair. I'm not exactly sure how they do it, but it works! They claim it's better than waxing for the skin. I didn't see a huge difference, but it was a great experience!
I also saw a yak. They're huge and weird. They are usually white or black with long hair. Yak cheese is good. It reminds me of goat cheese.
Manali was beautiful, fun, and relaxing!!
I spent a lot of time with my new friends Max and Angelina. We went to an open mic one night and saw some really amazing musicians. We were regulars at a Mexican restaurant near our guest house (yes there was a Mexican restaurant). I also made friends with some Indian shop owners Ram and Sunny. They have a jewelery store that sells jewelery that they make themselves with beads and gemstones, tribal jewelery, and poi swings. They spend the summers in Manali and the winters in Goa. We spent a lot of time hanging out with them in their store listening to Indian music. They are amazing at playing the didgeridoo! I even made my own bracelet! They had us over one night to hang out and watch Slumdog Millionaire. They were the best hosts. They brought us food and drinks, and even offered to let us stay the night if we were tired.
One day Angelina and I went and visited a temple in the small neighboring village of Vishish. It was a beautiful temple made of intricately carved wood. Inside the temple was a private room with a natural hot springs bath. There is a separate area for men and women. We soaked in the hot springs that is believed to be sacred holy water. It was full of women from other parts of Asia, and poor Indian women bathing their children in the hot water. The women were topless and the richer Indian women are so conservative and modest that they would just enter to quickly dip a toe in the water or scoop up a handful to put on their children's heads. After soaking we covered our hair with scarves and went up and rang a bell at the temple entrance and then knelt down to be blessed with the water and have an orange mark put on our foreheads. This is very common in worship in India.
While I was there I had another Indian shop owner try to cast a love spell on me. I bought a ring from him, and he told me that I would fall in love with him within 2 hours. I didn't fall in love with him but had to visit the store again with my friends. He insisted on having us sit and have a tea. He proceeded to hit on me the whole time. He begged me to come back later. It was awkward when I refused. When I went to leave I sat on what I thought was a bench outside that was covered with cushions and my ass went straight through a glass case! What a perfect way to end an already weird experience! LOL I steered clear of that shop for the rest of my time in Manali.
I also got threading done while I was there. It's the Indian form of hair removal. They use a piece of thread to remove body hair. I'm not exactly sure how they do it, but it works! They claim it's better than waxing for the skin. I didn't see a huge difference, but it was a great experience!
I also saw a yak. They're huge and weird. They are usually white or black with long hair. Yak cheese is good. It reminds me of goat cheese.
Manali was beautiful, fun, and relaxing!!
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Leh
This is the third time I've tried to write this blog, but I keep losing it because the power goes out. Three times is a charm!
The bus trips to and from Leh, Ladakh went over some of the highest mountain passes in the world. We crossed a few passes that were over 17,000 ft and one that was over 18,000 feet! They were narrow, windy roads that were full of pot holes. They weren't even paved in places and there were huge cliffs with no guard rails! At one point during the journey I saw another bus that was hanging halfway off of a cliff over a river! I felt so bad for the people on that bus. They were all just standing on the side of the road on the top of a mountain in the middle of nowhere in the freezing cold as we just cruised by. Scary! It definitely challenged my fear of heights at times, but it was so well worth it. I have never seen more beautiful scenery in my life! Words cannot even begin to describe how amazing it was!
I didn't even open my book the entire 2 days because every corner we turned offered an even more spectacular view! I tried to take some pictures out the window, but the don't even begin to capture massive scale of the mountains. We traversed up to the very top of the mountains. We were literally in the clouds! We passed through huge fields of glaciers that started melting into raging rivers. There were green valleys with goats and sheep grazing, and dry deserts where nothing grew but there were huge jagged rocky mountains everywhere. We were above tree line for the majority of the trip. We passed by huge cliff faces with little huts built right into the side of the mountain and people wrapped in thick blankets and shawls. We drove through the biggest canyon I have ever seen! We stopped in, Drass, the second coldest inhabited place in the world! The coldest is Siberia. We stopped for the night in Kragil a small little mountain town. We were only there long enough to eat and sleep a few hours before leaving again early the next morning. The mountains changed constantly. I saw glaciers and dry desert and everything in between. At one point there were huge walls of snow that were taller than the bus on either side of the road. In one canyon that we drove through I saw over 30 waterfalls! I've never seen so many waterfalls in my life! It was amazing!
We arrived in Leh late Saturday afternoon. I found a cute little guest house with a window overlooking a beautiful garden run by a cute elderly Tibetan couple. Leh is 11,500 feet. It was freezing there at night. I had to wear long underwear every night, and I had to buy a hat and gloves. It's in a very dry valley surrounded by mountain peaks, and little farming villages. There are temple ruins, ancient palaces, and monastaries everywhere in Ladakh. Leh is a magical, beautiful, and very spiritual place. Prayer flags are flying everywhere. Over the streets, bridges, and all of the homes. An ancient palace ruin sits on a mountain overlooking the town, and on the other side a huge white stupa towers over the town.
It's another Tibetan community full of Tibetan refugees. There aren't nearly as many monks here as there were in Dharamsala, but there are some. It's definitely a different culture here, so high in the mountains. Life is hard for these people who have to grow all of their food in the few short summer months for the entire year! In the winter electricity is fleeting and entire families huddle into one room of their tiny homes to conserve heat for the entire long winter! If it's this cold in June, I can't imagine how cold the winters are. The mountain passes to get to Leh are only open for 3-4 months a year, and even then they're extemely treacherous.
The first day I was here I walked up the huge flight of stairs to the top of the mountain where the huge stupa towers over the valley. The views at the top were spectacular. The stupa itself is spectacular. It's name is Shanti Stupa. You can walk up a huge staircase and walk around the entire stupa. It's covered in intricate, colorful paintings and 4 huge statues depicting the Buddha in several different stages of his life. I then went into the prayer chamber. The Buddhists certainly know how to surround themselves with beautiful things. All of their sacred paces and monastaries are covered with colorful tanka paintings, fabrics, cushions, and flags. They have beautiful alters and statues of deities. They keep candles and incense burning, and you can feel how sacred it is the second you walk in. Not one inch is uncovered.
After visiting Shanti Stupa, I met a German girl named Nina and we went on a walk down a dirt road through ancient ruins, and a little farm town to the top of another hill with another smaller stupa. The farm villages have stone walls lining all of the streets and separating the fields. Their homes are flat huts, made of stone. Every town has at least one huge prayer wheel. When I walk through these villages I feel like I'm going back in time. I spent all day walking through the villages and countryside surrounded by the mountains. At the end of the day I somehow lost Nina, so I walked back to town by myself.
The next day I hired a driver with a young couple from California who I met on the bus from Srinagar. We visited 2 monastaries, and a palace ruin on the outskirts of town. This is such a magical place. There are sacred places everywhere here. We went to Hemis that is a beautiful monestary covered in colorful painting and filled with sacred statues and prayer wheels. We visited a museum there that was full of ancient artifacts from Ladakh Buddhism. We saw clothing, locks, gem embedded golden statues, jewelery, weapons, instruments, paintings, books, tea pots, and much more. It was so cool and I could really imagine what life in this culture might have been like so many years ago.
We visited another monastary named Thiksey that sits on a mountain overlooking a beautiful valley with snow capped peaks surrounding it in every direction. Again it was beautiful, colorful, sacred, and intricitely decorated. One of these monastaries was built in the 1400s and the other was built in the 1600s. We spent a lot of time exploring all of the different rooms, bending down to get through the tiny doorways. We visited libraries, prayer halls, and a roof top with amazing views. We saw 2 Buddhas that were 3 stories high! We visited a crumbling palace ruin called Shey Palace. It sits on top of a mountain. We went to the very top. We had to climb a little bit in spots, but when we got up to the top we were the only ones up there. It was magical standing on top of those ancient palace ruins with beautiful views all around and prayer flags blowing in the wind.
The next day I visited 2 more monastaries by myself. The first one I visited was Spituk. It was an older and less preserved monastary. I was the only person there. The old monks who live there and are the caretakers were so cute. One of them invited me to sit down in one of the rooms with 21 statues of Tara. I sat on the floor and petted his cat. He made me tea and I sat while he chanted softly while watering plants and tidying up. He was so sweet! The next place I visited was Stok Palace. Again, I had the whole place to myself. Another monk took me on a tour through their smaller museum that was broken up into 4 different rooms. He smiled while trying to explain everything to me in broken English. I spent some time just sitting and soaking in the views before going back to town. Leh is amazing and I probably would have spent more time there if it wasn't so cold! I didn't want to buy a lot of warm clothes since I would be in much hotter places for the rest of my trip, so after 5 days I decided to move on, but it was a very special place and I had a beautiful time there!
The bus trips to and from Leh, Ladakh went over some of the highest mountain passes in the world. We crossed a few passes that were over 17,000 ft and one that was over 18,000 feet! They were narrow, windy roads that were full of pot holes. They weren't even paved in places and there were huge cliffs with no guard rails! At one point during the journey I saw another bus that was hanging halfway off of a cliff over a river! I felt so bad for the people on that bus. They were all just standing on the side of the road on the top of a mountain in the middle of nowhere in the freezing cold as we just cruised by. Scary! It definitely challenged my fear of heights at times, but it was so well worth it. I have never seen more beautiful scenery in my life! Words cannot even begin to describe how amazing it was!
I didn't even open my book the entire 2 days because every corner we turned offered an even more spectacular view! I tried to take some pictures out the window, but the don't even begin to capture massive scale of the mountains. We traversed up to the very top of the mountains. We were literally in the clouds! We passed through huge fields of glaciers that started melting into raging rivers. There were green valleys with goats and sheep grazing, and dry deserts where nothing grew but there were huge jagged rocky mountains everywhere. We were above tree line for the majority of the trip. We passed by huge cliff faces with little huts built right into the side of the mountain and people wrapped in thick blankets and shawls. We drove through the biggest canyon I have ever seen! We stopped in, Drass, the second coldest inhabited place in the world! The coldest is Siberia. We stopped for the night in Kragil a small little mountain town. We were only there long enough to eat and sleep a few hours before leaving again early the next morning. The mountains changed constantly. I saw glaciers and dry desert and everything in between. At one point there were huge walls of snow that were taller than the bus on either side of the road. In one canyon that we drove through I saw over 30 waterfalls! I've never seen so many waterfalls in my life! It was amazing!
We arrived in Leh late Saturday afternoon. I found a cute little guest house with a window overlooking a beautiful garden run by a cute elderly Tibetan couple. Leh is 11,500 feet. It was freezing there at night. I had to wear long underwear every night, and I had to buy a hat and gloves. It's in a very dry valley surrounded by mountain peaks, and little farming villages. There are temple ruins, ancient palaces, and monastaries everywhere in Ladakh. Leh is a magical, beautiful, and very spiritual place. Prayer flags are flying everywhere. Over the streets, bridges, and all of the homes. An ancient palace ruin sits on a mountain overlooking the town, and on the other side a huge white stupa towers over the town.
It's another Tibetan community full of Tibetan refugees. There aren't nearly as many monks here as there were in Dharamsala, but there are some. It's definitely a different culture here, so high in the mountains. Life is hard for these people who have to grow all of their food in the few short summer months for the entire year! In the winter electricity is fleeting and entire families huddle into one room of their tiny homes to conserve heat for the entire long winter! If it's this cold in June, I can't imagine how cold the winters are. The mountain passes to get to Leh are only open for 3-4 months a year, and even then they're extemely treacherous.
The first day I was here I walked up the huge flight of stairs to the top of the mountain where the huge stupa towers over the valley. The views at the top were spectacular. The stupa itself is spectacular. It's name is Shanti Stupa. You can walk up a huge staircase and walk around the entire stupa. It's covered in intricate, colorful paintings and 4 huge statues depicting the Buddha in several different stages of his life. I then went into the prayer chamber. The Buddhists certainly know how to surround themselves with beautiful things. All of their sacred paces and monastaries are covered with colorful tanka paintings, fabrics, cushions, and flags. They have beautiful alters and statues of deities. They keep candles and incense burning, and you can feel how sacred it is the second you walk in. Not one inch is uncovered.
After visiting Shanti Stupa, I met a German girl named Nina and we went on a walk down a dirt road through ancient ruins, and a little farm town to the top of another hill with another smaller stupa. The farm villages have stone walls lining all of the streets and separating the fields. Their homes are flat huts, made of stone. Every town has at least one huge prayer wheel. When I walk through these villages I feel like I'm going back in time. I spent all day walking through the villages and countryside surrounded by the mountains. At the end of the day I somehow lost Nina, so I walked back to town by myself.
The next day I hired a driver with a young couple from California who I met on the bus from Srinagar. We visited 2 monastaries, and a palace ruin on the outskirts of town. This is such a magical place. There are sacred places everywhere here. We went to Hemis that is a beautiful monestary covered in colorful painting and filled with sacred statues and prayer wheels. We visited a museum there that was full of ancient artifacts from Ladakh Buddhism. We saw clothing, locks, gem embedded golden statues, jewelery, weapons, instruments, paintings, books, tea pots, and much more. It was so cool and I could really imagine what life in this culture might have been like so many years ago.
We visited another monastary named Thiksey that sits on a mountain overlooking a beautiful valley with snow capped peaks surrounding it in every direction. Again it was beautiful, colorful, sacred, and intricitely decorated. One of these monastaries was built in the 1400s and the other was built in the 1600s. We spent a lot of time exploring all of the different rooms, bending down to get through the tiny doorways. We visited libraries, prayer halls, and a roof top with amazing views. We saw 2 Buddhas that were 3 stories high! We visited a crumbling palace ruin called Shey Palace. It sits on top of a mountain. We went to the very top. We had to climb a little bit in spots, but when we got up to the top we were the only ones up there. It was magical standing on top of those ancient palace ruins with beautiful views all around and prayer flags blowing in the wind.
The next day I visited 2 more monastaries by myself. The first one I visited was Spituk. It was an older and less preserved monastary. I was the only person there. The old monks who live there and are the caretakers were so cute. One of them invited me to sit down in one of the rooms with 21 statues of Tara. I sat on the floor and petted his cat. He made me tea and I sat while he chanted softly while watering plants and tidying up. He was so sweet! The next place I visited was Stok Palace. Again, I had the whole place to myself. Another monk took me on a tour through their smaller museum that was broken up into 4 different rooms. He smiled while trying to explain everything to me in broken English. I spent some time just sitting and soaking in the views before going back to town. Leh is amazing and I probably would have spent more time there if it wasn't so cold! I didn't want to buy a lot of warm clothes since I would be in much hotter places for the rest of my trip, so after 5 days I decided to move on, but it was a very special place and I had a beautiful time there!
Sunday, June 7, 2009
Kashmir
We were planning on leaving for Kashmir last Monday, but Sunday afternoon Jhon called and said that his dad was ready to go right then. Of course, I had stuff all over my room and wet clothes hanging up to dry. I had to scramble around and pack while they were all waiting for me to leave!
We went down the mountain in a little van with 6 people packed in. The driver was flying down the road and we almost hit a cow and a bus! We made it the car dealership where Majeed, Jhon's dad, got his new car. We hit the road at about 10 pm and drove all night long with Bollywood music blaring on the stereo. It was a much more comfortable ride with only 4 of us in the car. I said goodbye to Jhon at the car dealership. He had to stay behind to watch the shop. When we entered into Kashmir we had to stop at several checkpoints, and there was a huge military presence. When the sun came up it was an amazingly beautiful drive through the mountains. Even in the rural areas it seems like there are still people everywhere by the sides of the road. I've even seen several people squatting by the side of the road! There's never a dull moment looking out the window while travelling in India!
We reached Srinagar at about 10 am the next day. I stayed in the house with Majeed, his wife Gudie, Jhon's twin brother Rafiq, their sister Sabine, and their grandma. They were so sweet and insisted that I have the only room with a bed. They don't use much furniture. They eat, sleep, and watch TV on the carpet covered floor with pillows. Everyone has to take off their shoes before coming into the house.
It was so great to a glimpse into the day to day life of another culture. I didn't eat out once in the entire 4 days I was there. Gudie prepared every meal and Kashmiri food is delicious! When we went on outings during the day she packed us a picnic lunch. I love how close and family oriented they are in India. The aunt, uncle, and cousins live a few houses down the street and they spend a lot of time together coming and going from each others houses. The whole family ate dinner together every night. They eat with their hands and wash their hands in a big bowl of water before and after eating. Eating rice with you fingers is definitely a challenge. I think it takes a lot of practice!
Kashmir is a Muslim state and very conservative. All of the women wear hijab to cover their hair. They wear salwar kameez with long sleeves and pants. About 1/3 of the women wear full burqas It's a long black headpiece that covers their entire face. It's fascinating to see these women walking around. It makes me so curious. You can't tell if there young or old. There's absolutely nothing that distinguishes them as an individual. I wonder what their lives are like. It makes me extremely grateful to have the freedoms that I do as a woman. Many of the men where long white tunics and little white hats. Every day, 5 times a day, a song/prayer plays loudly over speakers that you can hear everywhere in the city. The first one is at about 5 am and the last one is around 9 pm. This is a reminder that it's time to pray. There is military in full uniform, with guns, everywhere in Srinagar. They're literally on every street corner. It was definitely a drastically different vibe!
I just happened to be in the city while a strike was going on and political tensions were very high. You could feel it in the air. Apparently the army is corrupt. Some army members raped and murdered 3 women. The army refused to cooperate with the government to punish the culprits. The government responded by enforcing a citywide strike. The entire city was shut down, shops were closed. There were riots every day. Groups of people gathered and threw huge rocks at cars in protest. It definitely was not a good time to be a tourist in that city. Several times, I saw huge stones in the road as evidence of the riots. I wasn't able to find a place that was open to access the internet. I tried to get money out of the ATM one day and tried 5 different machines and still couldn't get money out! I was so glad to have local hosts.
Srinagar is still a beautiful city. It's surrounded by mountains. Dal Lake, the largest lake in India, is in the center of the city. The white mosque sits on top of a hill by the lake. There are rice and saffron fields on the outskirts of town. It's a shame that there are so many political tensions there. The family went out of their way to entertain me and make me feel at home. Rafiq helped me to find a working ATM. Sabine and I did henna on each others hands. Gudie and the grandma served me food and tea all day long. They were so amazing and I am so grateful to have had a home stay experience!
Majeed acted as a tour guide for me. The first day we drove to the mountain town of Pahargang. It was a beautiful drive up the mountain to a little village in a valley surrounded by snow capped peaks. There are herds of goats and sheep everywhere in the mountains here, being herded down the middle of the road by men with sticks. Real life shepherds! We ate our picnic under a tree by the river. We took an hour long pony ride on a trail that went along a river and through meadows and forests. It was so beautiful!
The next day we drove to the ski resort town of Gulmarg. It has the highest gondola in Asia! We rode the gondola to the top of a mountain. Majeed waited for me while I hiked up the steep and rocky incline in flip flops. I climbed to where there was still snow, and fields of purple and yellow flowers. Along the way an 11 year old Indian girl latched onto me. She wanted a picture with me and then insisted that I hike with her and her dad and little brother. She was so cute! She was jabbering away at me in Hindi like I could understand, and then she asked me for me phone number. When I got back down Majeed and I ate out picnic on a blanket, basking in the sun, and enjoying the spectacular views!
The next day Majeed was scared to drive his new car because of the riots. He arranged for a shikara, a long boat, to pick us up in a canal just down the street from his house. We road the boat through canals in the old part of the city with beautiful old stone houses and bridges. The canals were lined with water lilies. There were exotic birds and huge dragonflies everywhere. The mountains were surrounding us and the sky was blue. It was so peaceful and I dangled my feet off the side of the boat in the water. We went through a marketplace where stores open out into the water and you can drive the boat right up to the door of the store. We went around Dal Lake which was filled with amazing house boats. They are huge flat boats that are made with intricately carved walnut wood. They are floating palaces that are beautiful works of art!
I couldn't really do anymore sightseeing because of the strikes so I said goodbye to the family and left the next morning. They were more than generous, and I'll always be grateful to them for opening their home to me and providing me with such an amazing experience. Kashmir was an intense and amazing experience!
We went down the mountain in a little van with 6 people packed in. The driver was flying down the road and we almost hit a cow and a bus! We made it the car dealership where Majeed, Jhon's dad, got his new car. We hit the road at about 10 pm and drove all night long with Bollywood music blaring on the stereo. It was a much more comfortable ride with only 4 of us in the car. I said goodbye to Jhon at the car dealership. He had to stay behind to watch the shop. When we entered into Kashmir we had to stop at several checkpoints, and there was a huge military presence. When the sun came up it was an amazingly beautiful drive through the mountains. Even in the rural areas it seems like there are still people everywhere by the sides of the road. I've even seen several people squatting by the side of the road! There's never a dull moment looking out the window while travelling in India!
We reached Srinagar at about 10 am the next day. I stayed in the house with Majeed, his wife Gudie, Jhon's twin brother Rafiq, their sister Sabine, and their grandma. They were so sweet and insisted that I have the only room with a bed. They don't use much furniture. They eat, sleep, and watch TV on the carpet covered floor with pillows. Everyone has to take off their shoes before coming into the house.
It was so great to a glimpse into the day to day life of another culture. I didn't eat out once in the entire 4 days I was there. Gudie prepared every meal and Kashmiri food is delicious! When we went on outings during the day she packed us a picnic lunch. I love how close and family oriented they are in India. The aunt, uncle, and cousins live a few houses down the street and they spend a lot of time together coming and going from each others houses. The whole family ate dinner together every night. They eat with their hands and wash their hands in a big bowl of water before and after eating. Eating rice with you fingers is definitely a challenge. I think it takes a lot of practice!
Kashmir is a Muslim state and very conservative. All of the women wear hijab to cover their hair. They wear salwar kameez with long sleeves and pants. About 1/3 of the women wear full burqas It's a long black headpiece that covers their entire face. It's fascinating to see these women walking around. It makes me so curious. You can't tell if there young or old. There's absolutely nothing that distinguishes them as an individual. I wonder what their lives are like. It makes me extremely grateful to have the freedoms that I do as a woman. Many of the men where long white tunics and little white hats. Every day, 5 times a day, a song/prayer plays loudly over speakers that you can hear everywhere in the city. The first one is at about 5 am and the last one is around 9 pm. This is a reminder that it's time to pray. There is military in full uniform, with guns, everywhere in Srinagar. They're literally on every street corner. It was definitely a drastically different vibe!
I just happened to be in the city while a strike was going on and political tensions were very high. You could feel it in the air. Apparently the army is corrupt. Some army members raped and murdered 3 women. The army refused to cooperate with the government to punish the culprits. The government responded by enforcing a citywide strike. The entire city was shut down, shops were closed. There were riots every day. Groups of people gathered and threw huge rocks at cars in protest. It definitely was not a good time to be a tourist in that city. Several times, I saw huge stones in the road as evidence of the riots. I wasn't able to find a place that was open to access the internet. I tried to get money out of the ATM one day and tried 5 different machines and still couldn't get money out! I was so glad to have local hosts.
Srinagar is still a beautiful city. It's surrounded by mountains. Dal Lake, the largest lake in India, is in the center of the city. The white mosque sits on top of a hill by the lake. There are rice and saffron fields on the outskirts of town. It's a shame that there are so many political tensions there. The family went out of their way to entertain me and make me feel at home. Rafiq helped me to find a working ATM. Sabine and I did henna on each others hands. Gudie and the grandma served me food and tea all day long. They were so amazing and I am so grateful to have had a home stay experience!
Majeed acted as a tour guide for me. The first day we drove to the mountain town of Pahargang. It was a beautiful drive up the mountain to a little village in a valley surrounded by snow capped peaks. There are herds of goats and sheep everywhere in the mountains here, being herded down the middle of the road by men with sticks. Real life shepherds! We ate our picnic under a tree by the river. We took an hour long pony ride on a trail that went along a river and through meadows and forests. It was so beautiful!
The next day we drove to the ski resort town of Gulmarg. It has the highest gondola in Asia! We rode the gondola to the top of a mountain. Majeed waited for me while I hiked up the steep and rocky incline in flip flops. I climbed to where there was still snow, and fields of purple and yellow flowers. Along the way an 11 year old Indian girl latched onto me. She wanted a picture with me and then insisted that I hike with her and her dad and little brother. She was so cute! She was jabbering away at me in Hindi like I could understand, and then she asked me for me phone number. When I got back down Majeed and I ate out picnic on a blanket, basking in the sun, and enjoying the spectacular views!
The next day Majeed was scared to drive his new car because of the riots. He arranged for a shikara, a long boat, to pick us up in a canal just down the street from his house. We road the boat through canals in the old part of the city with beautiful old stone houses and bridges. The canals were lined with water lilies. There were exotic birds and huge dragonflies everywhere. The mountains were surrounding us and the sky was blue. It was so peaceful and I dangled my feet off the side of the boat in the water. We went through a marketplace where stores open out into the water and you can drive the boat right up to the door of the store. We went around Dal Lake which was filled with amazing house boats. They are huge flat boats that are made with intricately carved walnut wood. They are floating palaces that are beautiful works of art!
I couldn't really do anymore sightseeing because of the strikes so I said goodbye to the family and left the next morning. They were more than generous, and I'll always be grateful to them for opening their home to me and providing me with such an amazing experience. Kashmir was an intense and amazing experience!
Friday, May 29, 2009
Monkeys and the Dalhi Lama!
The past couple of days I've done a lot of walking. I've walked to a few nearby towns. I walked to Bhagsu and then continued up a steep hill to a beautiful waterfall. I found a quiet place by a clear pool to read my book, and climbed around on the rocks a little bit. Yesterday, I went to the little town, Dharamkot, I had lunch at a restaurant with a beautiful view overlooking the valley. On the walk back the road was lined with tons of monkeys. Some of them were eating garbage out of a dumpster! They weren't afraid of me at all. I was able to get really close to them and I got some great pictures! Monkeys are everywhere here!
I went to the temple the other day and there were hundreds of Tibetan people lining the road. After about 10 minutes security vehicles drove by followed by a car with the Dalhi Lama inside! He was only about 6 feet away, smiling and waving to all of the people! It was so exciting to be able to see him, even if it was just briefly throught the window of a car. Again, I just happened to be in the right place at the right time!
I've spent some more time at the temple. The ceremony has been going on all week. Today is the last day. It's the first week of April in the Tibetan calender, and it's an auspicious time for the Tibetan's bc it is the month that the Buddha was born. They chant Om mani pad me hung with their mala beads. They count the number of rounds they do, and then the monks come around and take down the numbers. That's about the extent of what I know about the ceremony, but it has been a beautiful thing to witness. Yesterday, a group of old Tibetan women gave me a cushion to sit on and a blanket to wrap around my shoulders. They were so sweet. They insisted that I take the cushion and sit with them!
I received an Ayurvedic massage the other day. It was definitely a unique experience. A little Indian woman lathered me down with oil (including in my hair), rubbed me down, and karate chopped my entire body! It was unlike any other massage I've ever received. It was only $10 for an hour!
I've just been enjoying the beautiful views, eagles soaring over the valley. I've never drank so much tea in my life! I've had it 2 or 3 times a day. My room is very cute and cozy. It's down a narrow alley off of one of the main roads in town. It's clean and quiet, and has a western toilet! I'm going to the Tibet museum today, and I'm leaving tomorrow or Sunday to go to Kashmir with Jhon's dad, Majit. He just got a new car and is excited about driving me in it!
I went to the temple the other day and there were hundreds of Tibetan people lining the road. After about 10 minutes security vehicles drove by followed by a car with the Dalhi Lama inside! He was only about 6 feet away, smiling and waving to all of the people! It was so exciting to be able to see him, even if it was just briefly throught the window of a car. Again, I just happened to be in the right place at the right time!
I've spent some more time at the temple. The ceremony has been going on all week. Today is the last day. It's the first week of April in the Tibetan calender, and it's an auspicious time for the Tibetan's bc it is the month that the Buddha was born. They chant Om mani pad me hung with their mala beads. They count the number of rounds they do, and then the monks come around and take down the numbers. That's about the extent of what I know about the ceremony, but it has been a beautiful thing to witness. Yesterday, a group of old Tibetan women gave me a cushion to sit on and a blanket to wrap around my shoulders. They were so sweet. They insisted that I take the cushion and sit with them!
I received an Ayurvedic massage the other day. It was definitely a unique experience. A little Indian woman lathered me down with oil (including in my hair), rubbed me down, and karate chopped my entire body! It was unlike any other massage I've ever received. It was only $10 for an hour!
I've just been enjoying the beautiful views, eagles soaring over the valley. I've never drank so much tea in my life! I've had it 2 or 3 times a day. My room is very cute and cozy. It's down a narrow alley off of one of the main roads in town. It's clean and quiet, and has a western toilet! I'm going to the Tibet museum today, and I'm leaving tomorrow or Sunday to go to Kashmir with Jhon's dad, Majit. He just got a new car and is excited about driving me in it!
Monday, May 25, 2009
Dharamsala
Because my bag didn't arrive until Thursday night, the train tickets were sold out. I ended up having to take a rickety overnight bus. There wasn't much leg room, but it did have AC. Of course that was the day that my "Delhi belly" hit. I was sick the entire day, and couldn't eat anything. It was a long trip to say the least and I didn't sleep much, but it wasn't all bad. I ended up sitting next to a 29 year old woman named Preetha. We had an instant connection. She is a very unconventional, open minded, beautiful, and independent Indian woman. She was travelling by herself for a long weekend vacation. Travelling alone is unheard of for Indian women. We had so much in common. We're both single, live alone, read the same books, and have very similar beliefs. We had great deep conversations all night long. It was a great distraction from my stomach problem!
Our bus left over two hours after the scheduled time. As we were leaving Delhi a horrible smell hit. I looked out the window and saw a mountain of garbage like I could have never imagined. It was very disturbing. It took forever to get out of the city. Delhi is huge! It was a long bumpy trip with a lot of windy roads going up to the mountains. The bus only stopped twice on 13 hour journey. On one of our stops, I broke out in a sweat and felt like I was going to pass out. Preetha was an angel. She totally looked after me, bought me soda, and made sure that I was OK. At one point Preetha had to go to the bathroom so bad that we had to have the driver stop by the side of the road, and yes we went in the bushes. What are you going to do? When we started up the mountains and the road started getting really windy, I didn't know if I was going to make it, but then the sun started to come up. I saw the sunrise in the Himalayas. It was beautiful! The mountains are as majestic as I imagined them. We even saw dozens of monkeys by the side of the road. There were even tiny little babies in their mothers arms. They were so cute!
I made it in one piece, without any pooping accidents. :) My friend Glenn had introduced my to his good friend Jhon via email. (Thanks Glenn!) Jhon and his dad live in Dharamsala and own a cute little jewelry shop with beautiful gems and minerals. Really great stuff! When I arrived at the bus station Jhon was there to meet me. He had reserved a room for me at a cute little guest house and took me straight there to drop off my stuff, shower, and take a nap. I was exhausted and still not feeling well so I was so relieved to be off of that bus! Jhon and his dad are SO sweet and have totally taken me under their wing.
After I rested for awhile I went and walked around a little bit. I was finally able to eat a little bit of Tibetan food which is much milder than Indian and really good! Dharamsala is a beautiful, peaceful, and magical place. It's very cool here and it rains often. It's a nice change after the intensity and heat of Delhi. The narrow streets are lined with people selling beautiful jewelry, tapestries, statues, rugs, clothes, and much more! It's full of great restaurants with all different types of food. I haven't paid more than $3 for a meal. It is a Tibetan community so there is a nice mix of Tibetan people, Indian people, and tourists from all over. There are monks literally everywhere in their maroon robes. There's a monk at the computer next to me right now! The monks are all ages from as young as probably 5 to wrinkled and hunched over. The mountains are massive and the town is surrounded by snow capped peaks. Colorful prayer flags are hung everywhere. Huge eagles or hawks (I'm not sure which) soar circling over the town all day long. The town is so high the birds are very low and very close. It's amazing! The Tibetan people are beautiful and always have a huge smile.
I've already had so many amazing experiences I don't even know where to start. There's the little moments like watching the sunset over the Himalayas with Preetha while petting the stray dogs. Sitting at a rooftop restaurant with the sound of monks chanting, while the eagles are circling over my head, beautiful view of the mountains jutting up in every direction. Sharing a cup of Kashmir tea with Jhon or his dad in their little shop. Discovering a nest of baby birds in a whole in a rock wall. Walking and talking with 2 adorable monks with huge smiles who want to practice their English. They even gave me their cell phone number! Every day I meet nice interesting and helpful people. Every moment has been magical.
Today I started the day with an Ashtanga yoga class. It was taught by an amazing grey haired yogi named Vijay. He is definitely the "real deal", a real yoga master. I couldn't believe how strong and flexible he was! He did stuff that I have never seen anyone do before and he did it effortlessly. The class was only $5 and he had 2 assistants who were going around and giving adjustments for the entire class.
After yoga I walked up to the temple. The temple is a beautiful building with huge statues of the Buddha, Green Tara, and other deities. The walls are covered in intricate and colorful Buddhist paintings. Platforms filled with candles burn all day long. There are huge prayer wheels that people are constantly spinning. Of course it is surrounded by spectacular views. Much of temple is open air. Today I just "happened" to show up during sacred Buddhist ceremony.
It seemed like every monk in town was there. There were hundreds of them. They were all seated on the floor facing an alter in the center of the temple. Tibetan people from the community sat surrounding them, all facing the center. I not only got to observe this sacred ceremony, but I also participated in it! I took my seat surrounded by very old Tibetan men and women, with deeply creased faces and smiling eyes. We sat there and prayed and meditated. The monks would sing mantras over the speakers, then silence. I could hear the old men next to me praying and chanting softly. Everyone was using their mandala beads, or spinning prayer wheels. At some point the monks came around and poured tea for everyone (hundreds of people) out of huge silver pots. The tea seemed more like hot milk than tea.
It was one of the most beautiful experiences I have ever had in my life. I sat there for over 2 hours, breeze blowing, the old Tibetan men offering me their cushions and smiling warmly at me. I don't know how all of those elderly people were able to sit so long. As I prayed and meditated with these beautiful, peaceful people I cried several times. I'm tearing up as I write this. I can't even imagine how much hardship these people have seen in their lives, yet they maintain a peaceful and open heart. It was more than inspirational. Being in that beautiful energy, and being able to participate was an honor. As I prayed today and I will continue to pray. I pray for peace, to Free Tibet, and to give these peaceful people their country back!!
After the ceremony all of the monks and people went and walked around this long sacred path, completely lined with prayer wheels of all sizes. It was covered with more prayer flags than I have ever seen and in the center is a sacred shrine. The trail is probably about 1 km and people of all ages walked together spinning the wheels and laboring up the steep hill back to the top. Words cannot even begin to describe how beautiful, colorful, magical, and especially spiritual the whole experience was.
It been a great experience so far, to say the least, and I've only been gone a week! Now I'm going to Jhon's house. He's cooking dinner for me tonight. I can't express how grateful and blessed I feel. This is a dream come true!
Our bus left over two hours after the scheduled time. As we were leaving Delhi a horrible smell hit. I looked out the window and saw a mountain of garbage like I could have never imagined. It was very disturbing. It took forever to get out of the city. Delhi is huge! It was a long bumpy trip with a lot of windy roads going up to the mountains. The bus only stopped twice on 13 hour journey. On one of our stops, I broke out in a sweat and felt like I was going to pass out. Preetha was an angel. She totally looked after me, bought me soda, and made sure that I was OK. At one point Preetha had to go to the bathroom so bad that we had to have the driver stop by the side of the road, and yes we went in the bushes. What are you going to do? When we started up the mountains and the road started getting really windy, I didn't know if I was going to make it, but then the sun started to come up. I saw the sunrise in the Himalayas. It was beautiful! The mountains are as majestic as I imagined them. We even saw dozens of monkeys by the side of the road. There were even tiny little babies in their mothers arms. They were so cute!
I made it in one piece, without any pooping accidents. :) My friend Glenn had introduced my to his good friend Jhon via email. (Thanks Glenn!) Jhon and his dad live in Dharamsala and own a cute little jewelry shop with beautiful gems and minerals. Really great stuff! When I arrived at the bus station Jhon was there to meet me. He had reserved a room for me at a cute little guest house and took me straight there to drop off my stuff, shower, and take a nap. I was exhausted and still not feeling well so I was so relieved to be off of that bus! Jhon and his dad are SO sweet and have totally taken me under their wing.
After I rested for awhile I went and walked around a little bit. I was finally able to eat a little bit of Tibetan food which is much milder than Indian and really good! Dharamsala is a beautiful, peaceful, and magical place. It's very cool here and it rains often. It's a nice change after the intensity and heat of Delhi. The narrow streets are lined with people selling beautiful jewelry, tapestries, statues, rugs, clothes, and much more! It's full of great restaurants with all different types of food. I haven't paid more than $3 for a meal. It is a Tibetan community so there is a nice mix of Tibetan people, Indian people, and tourists from all over. There are monks literally everywhere in their maroon robes. There's a monk at the computer next to me right now! The monks are all ages from as young as probably 5 to wrinkled and hunched over. The mountains are massive and the town is surrounded by snow capped peaks. Colorful prayer flags are hung everywhere. Huge eagles or hawks (I'm not sure which) soar circling over the town all day long. The town is so high the birds are very low and very close. It's amazing! The Tibetan people are beautiful and always have a huge smile.
I've already had so many amazing experiences I don't even know where to start. There's the little moments like watching the sunset over the Himalayas with Preetha while petting the stray dogs. Sitting at a rooftop restaurant with the sound of monks chanting, while the eagles are circling over my head, beautiful view of the mountains jutting up in every direction. Sharing a cup of Kashmir tea with Jhon or his dad in their little shop. Discovering a nest of baby birds in a whole in a rock wall. Walking and talking with 2 adorable monks with huge smiles who want to practice their English. They even gave me their cell phone number! Every day I meet nice interesting and helpful people. Every moment has been magical.
Today I started the day with an Ashtanga yoga class. It was taught by an amazing grey haired yogi named Vijay. He is definitely the "real deal", a real yoga master. I couldn't believe how strong and flexible he was! He did stuff that I have never seen anyone do before and he did it effortlessly. The class was only $5 and he had 2 assistants who were going around and giving adjustments for the entire class.
After yoga I walked up to the temple. The temple is a beautiful building with huge statues of the Buddha, Green Tara, and other deities. The walls are covered in intricate and colorful Buddhist paintings. Platforms filled with candles burn all day long. There are huge prayer wheels that people are constantly spinning. Of course it is surrounded by spectacular views. Much of temple is open air. Today I just "happened" to show up during sacred Buddhist ceremony.
It seemed like every monk in town was there. There were hundreds of them. They were all seated on the floor facing an alter in the center of the temple. Tibetan people from the community sat surrounding them, all facing the center. I not only got to observe this sacred ceremony, but I also participated in it! I took my seat surrounded by very old Tibetan men and women, with deeply creased faces and smiling eyes. We sat there and prayed and meditated. The monks would sing mantras over the speakers, then silence. I could hear the old men next to me praying and chanting softly. Everyone was using their mandala beads, or spinning prayer wheels. At some point the monks came around and poured tea for everyone (hundreds of people) out of huge silver pots. The tea seemed more like hot milk than tea.
It was one of the most beautiful experiences I have ever had in my life. I sat there for over 2 hours, breeze blowing, the old Tibetan men offering me their cushions and smiling warmly at me. I don't know how all of those elderly people were able to sit so long. As I prayed and meditated with these beautiful, peaceful people I cried several times. I'm tearing up as I write this. I can't even imagine how much hardship these people have seen in their lives, yet they maintain a peaceful and open heart. It was more than inspirational. Being in that beautiful energy, and being able to participate was an honor. As I prayed today and I will continue to pray. I pray for peace, to Free Tibet, and to give these peaceful people their country back!!
After the ceremony all of the monks and people went and walked around this long sacred path, completely lined with prayer wheels of all sizes. It was covered with more prayer flags than I have ever seen and in the center is a sacred shrine. The trail is probably about 1 km and people of all ages walked together spinning the wheels and laboring up the steep hill back to the top. Words cannot even begin to describe how beautiful, colorful, magical, and especially spiritual the whole experience was.
It been a great experience so far, to say the least, and I've only been gone a week! Now I'm going to Jhon's house. He's cooking dinner for me tonight. I can't express how grateful and blessed I feel. This is a dream come true!
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