INFORMATION

To break up all my blog entries of heavy facts, Sadhus and goat pictures, here are some international events you may not be aware of.

PLEA FOR NEPAL

A busy Thamel street

On the way to New Road

Nepal, which by the way is safe, and wonderful as ever, is open for business.  If you have been thinking of visiting Nepal don’t hesitate.  The after shocks have stopped, and there are lots of great hotel deals.  Although there are some fallen buildings in Kathmandu, the destruction is spotty (yes some people are still living in tents), but most buildings are in fine shape. Much of the Durbar Squares are still standing and beautiful as ever (so far I have visited the Monkey Temple, the Boudnanath Stupa and both Kathmandu and Paten’s Durbar squares).  

Kathmandu Durbar Square - standing with a little help

Patan Durbar Square 

Kathmandu: Sheva Temple, reputed to have been built out
of the wooden of one tree.

One of the Loveliness temples in Patan

I just spoke to a couple that just finished their trek of the Annapurna Circuit and they said it was safe and extraordinary as ever. The major amount of devastation has been in the mountain villages. The donations to big organizations go to rebuild the old Durbar Square edifices, however groups of Kathmanduans have banded together to help rebuild mountain village people’s countryside homes (check out Hotel Ganesh Himal’s Facebook page to see what groups are doing). These resilient Nepalese people are still just as nice as ever, and eager to have you as guests in Nepal.

The wonderful museum and Palace in Paten are open for tourists to enjoy

NOW ON TO SILLY BUT TRUE

Another event you may not be aware of is that Nepal is having a Betel Nut scandal.  Betel nuts are being shipped via India to Nepal then shipped back to India labeled as a Nepalese product.  Why is this happening?  To avoid a 113 percent India betel nut duty.  If the betel nuts are labeled from Nepal there is only a 13 percent duty.  So far this year, 3.00 billion Rupees worth of betel nuts have been shipped into Nepal (there are 100 Nepali rupees to the US dollar), and 2.4 billion Rupees worth of betel nuts have been shipped back to India.  The Nepal Dept. of Agriculture has counted every producing and non producing betel nut tree in the country, even those at private houses and claim there is no way Nepal could produce anywhere near the amount of betel nuts exported to India from Nepal.  Ah! Well. Could this become an international scandal?  I understand betel nuts are used in some Indian cigarettes.  Whether this is true or not, I have no idea.  But I hope that ‘Bloody Mary’ from the play  ‘South Pacific’ is making a buck out of this.

 I confess am traveling for the first time with a folding toothbrush and it works super. 

 

Folding toothbrush closed

Openned 

Here in Nepal, Jane’s secret life includes feeding a cat daily on the hotel terrace and they are both getting along just fine.

 (Cat picture to come)

There you have it, some Asiatic deep mysteries solved while you are waiting for the heavy stuff to reappear on THE ETERNAL TRAVELER.  Comments, please

NEXT: LEH, LADAKH

MCLEOD GANJ, TCV, and NORBULINGKA

MCLEOD GANJ, TCV and NORBULINGKA

Meleod Ganj temple in the village centre

And you think you have traffic problems.

Mcleod is much like a very small international village inhabited by Buddhist monks and nuns, Hindu tourists, western Buddhists and general tourists from almost every country in the world.  The bus pick up and drop off area at the entry to Mcleod Ganj is now a big auto traffic jam, and the roads are packed with cars and trucks carrying people, goods and services through out its small rectangular center and beyond on the roads and lanes that spider out from the center.  Added to this are lots of dogs, an occasional cow, and a bull, who like clockwork, ambles once around the main rectangular daily.  

 

Street shoe repair man napping in the middle of the day.

I always stay on a side road on a hill overlooking the Dalai Lama’s Temple at Pema Thang if it has rooms.  The location is out of the mainstream yet still inside the town.  Mcleod Ganj is a good eating town, with SHARPARD’S TASTE BUD for great cappuccino – so Jane tells me – and excellent breakfast choices.  For lunch I hangout at GREEN’S RESTAURANT AND GUESTHOUSE for their tasty veg sandwiches (I could eat one every day) and good WIFI.  

Terrace at Green's Restaurant

At NICKS ITALIAN RESTAURANT, they have one of the best Chocolate sauce Brownie Ice cream sundaes I have ever eaten (I have been known to arrive at my hotel secure my room and immediately head for their sundae before all my other endeavors of the day).  As for the best restaurant in town, head for THE MIDDLE GROUND. 

A man sleeping outside The Middle Ground restaurant

It has the most delicious food around, and a great atmosphere. Once I took my friends Janie and Shaggie there, they would eat nowhere else except for the pizzas at the NAMGAYAL 

And it's all true

A list of some its most delicious pizzas

CAFE. This restaurant use to be housed at the Dalai Lama’s temple but since the Dalai Lama gave up the leadership of the government, the new ‘Tibetan Government in Exile,’ ask the restaurant to move and it did.  It is now located in the famous old  OM HOTEL and has brought its decor with it.  The Pizzas are the best I have ever tasted in the whole world – bar none – no kidding!  Yummy.  And I could eat one every day.  You ain’t eaten pizza till you had it at the MANGAYAL CAFÉ.  (Jane says I’m a ‘foodie,’ whether it is true or not???? But I do enjoy eating well).

Mcleod Ganj offers everything to the more adventurous traveler, whether you prefer a religious experience, a lesson in the horrific history of the Tibetans, or a major Tibetan cultural experience; Ayurveda health massages, cooking lessons, a meditation retreat, lessons in the Tibetan Language, long interesting walks in the countryside, often to other villages, the sighting of an occasional monkey and/or friendly dogs, it’s all here. Although most of the restaurants are alcohol free, you can even get a drink at the Black Cat Restaurant if you have an outrageous thirst. 

Hillside view of Mcleod Ganj

Jane and a goat on a mountside walk

A Sadu and me on a mountain walk to another village

Roadside musicians playing "Oh Susanna."

TCV or the TIBETAN CHILDTEN’S VILLAGE

The TCV is one of the most wonderful learning centers I have ever encountered. In 1961, the Dalai Lama and his staff realized the incredible need for a school/and home for Tibetan children within the 100,000 families who had flew from Tibet with him in 1959, after his exodus from his home in Lhasa, Tibet.  Many families exited the country soon after the Dalai Lama’s escape and many other Tibetan families had a need to send their children over the Chinese/Tibetan border so that the youngsters could get a decent education.  

Morning snack time

Although the Chinese government claimed that 99% of all children within their borders got an education, a number of years ago I read that only 34% of Tibetan children were getting proper schooling within the Chinese educational system.  Therefore Tibetan parents would send their children across the Himalayas to Nepal with adult Tibetans who safeguarded them until they were safely out of Chinese occupied Tibet.  Then the children would be transferred to Mcleod Ganj to TCV where the children would be loved by people who cared, and given a good education.

A sign on the school wall

Upper primary library

In 1961, the Dalai Lama’s elder sister began the TCV schools with a nursery school until her death in 1964.  Then her younger sister took over the directorship of the nursery school, which has grown into 5 children’s villages, 7 residential schools, 6-day schools; 9-day care centers and 3 vocational schools in Tibetan enclaves around India.  There is also an outreach scholarship program, which supports university educations for graduates from these schools, to colleges and universities though out the world.

 

Another view of the library

One of the playing fields

Fifthteen little beds with hand made quilts for 15 little people

A resting pet wearing his red collar

Today most of the current staff is graduates of the TCV system, and work to further the education and Tibetan culture among all the students in the schools.  The main center in Mcleod Ganj has 1700 students, ages three to high school seniors.  There are living quarters for these students with house parents, and older children are assigned as ‘big brothers and sisters’ to the younger new comers. There are three libraries with book in both Tibetan and English on the campus, as well as all the standard educational facilities necessary for a well round academic environment. This little community even has its pet dogs who live with and are taken care of by the children an their house parents.

Another playing field

The TCV schools are run all on donations, and every cent is spent directly toward the welfare and education of the children. A $40.00 a month donation supports the full cost of the needs and education of one individual child.  This child will write you monthly letters and you can visit him or her at any time.  This is truly a donation that is used for the child at the fullest, and appreciated by each child who receives your help.  If you are interested in learning more about this program see the following addresses below:

Website: www.tcv.org.in

Phone number: (91) 01892-221348, 220356

Or you can email: headoffice@tcv.org.in

NORBULINKA

Shaggy walking in the garden

Jane and Shaggy with two attendants at the Entry

Jane just inside the entry preparing to take a picture

Norbulinka Institute is named after the Dalai Lama’s former summer palace in Lhasa, Tibet.  It is located in Daharamsala and is the cultural arts center of the Tibetan community where a visitor can watch artisans hand paint a  ‘THANGKA,’ or create any number of beautiful works of art using the old Tibetan artistic traditions. 

Artist hand painting a Thangka

Beautiful hand made bed cover

Prayer flags in the garden

There is also a lovely hotel set in the beautifully landscaped grounds, and a restaurant set among the gardens surrounding the workshops. 

Inside the Buddhist Temple

Dolls in the Doll Museum

Dining on a garden terrace

Lastly there is a wonderful temple, a doll museum of the different Tibetan outfits and life styles, a museum display of beautiful Thangkas, and a small simple summer retreat for the Dalai Lama much like he had during his boyhood years.

Shaggy in front of an old  weaving machine

 

One of many prayer wheels through out the garden

Small lake surrounded by a garden walkway

Website: www.norbulingka.org

Will give just a small overview of the beautiful items they sell in their shop, (the bedding is fantastic – not shown on line – I think you’d need to ask), as well as their hotel and rooms, and the classes they offer in traditional Tibetan artisanship.

MCLEOD GANJ and the DALAI LAMA'S BIRTHDAY

MCLEOD GANJ

Pleasantly, my behavior during our ride from Old Manali to Mcleod Ganj was much more graceful than during my former car adventure.  We were off to be present for the Dalai Lama’s 80^th birthday. Reservations had been made at my favorite hotel, the Pema Thang, but we were only allowed to stay for three night as the Tibetan Government in Exile had rented the whole hotel for visiting monks who had come from far and near to celebrate the auspicious day.  

My backside room at the top at Pama Thang

The Annex jus down the way 

One of the views from the two hotels

For the next 10-days we stayed  on the same hill, my favorite location, at the Annex.  Not as nice a hotel as Pema Thang, but with lovely Kashmiri innkeepers and a nice roof top restaurant where Jane could have a morning coffee and meet other interesting travelers. 

Although, when someone speaks of the 14^th Dalai Lama, they refer to his residence as Dharamshala, India, however he really resides on a large hill within the lower Himalayas in which Mcleod Ganj is nestled.  His has a modest house above his temple with an Indian military outpost and a Tibetan old people’s home on the backside of his mountain enclave. 

 

The view of the Dalai Lama's house from my Pema Thang room

The view of the Temple and the Dalai Lama's hill from
my Pema Thang room

In 1959, after a major military invasion by the Chinese, at age 23, the Dalai Lama escaped from Tibet by riding with an escort through the Himalayas and arriving on the Eastern side of India in the state of Assam.  All six of his escort, on their return to Lhasa, was brutally gunned down by the Chinese military. I have been told he stayed at the Black Hat sect’s of Tibetan Buddhism's Monastery of Rumtek, until he was allowed by the Indian government to set up his Tibetan Government in Exile in Dharamshala/Mcleod Ganj.  This has grown into the world center for Tibetan Buddhism outside of Tibet itself.  'His Holiness' is till considered a refugee by the Indian Government and any Tibetans who join him or have joined him over the years are also are still considered refugees by India. 

The Indian Government has been very protective of ‘His Holiness,’ a title he is known by in Tibet, and by his followers throughout the world.   Besides the main Indian center of Tibetan Buddhism in Mcleod Ganj there is also an enormous enclave in southwest India north of Mysore.  The famous Sara Monastery located outside of Lhasa has been replicated here and monks from all over the world come to study Buddhist teachings.  

The Dalai Lama's seat and dais inside the Temple

The Buddha Behind the Dalai Lama's seat and dais in the Temple

Yet China, unable to control the growth, belief, and spirit of the religion both inside and outside Tibet, manipulates countries about their attitude toward the Dalai Lama.  Example: recently the Dalai Lama has been refused entry into South Africa, for an international conference, a country that has large Chinese investments, 

This season Jane and I were in Mcleod Ganj for the 80^th birthday celebration of the Dalai Lama.  The 80^th year is considered an auspicious year for any individual in Tibetan Buddhism but so much more so for the Yellow Hat Sect leader of international Buddhism. On July 6th ‘His Holiness’s birthday will be celebrated by Buddhists through out the world.  But here on Mcleod Ganj the celebration was held on June 21^st through the 23th.  The Temple was packed with well over 5000 people. Shops and restaurants closed, street stalls were empty and for three days the Tibetan Community held one big birthday party at the main Temple. 

Whenever the Dalai Lama is in residence at the Mcleod Ganj Temple no cameras, or cellphones are allow, so I have no pictures of the ceremony.  There are also both Indian military and his own personal armed guards to protect his holiness from assassination, yet this security is so low key one almost doesn’t notice its presence.  Both one’s bag and person are searched before you may enter the temple during his presence there. 

Puting up decorations inside the temple for the big day

Monks practicing critical thinking in the temple courtyard
clapping there hands together to make their point

The birthday activities consisted of birthday greetings from important India central and state government representatives, as well as international governments guests from Canada and Italy to name a few.  There were Tibetan cultural dances, singers and music as well the outstanding elementary school drum and bagpipe band from the wonderful Tibetan Children’s Village (TCV – school – more about that later).  During the morning events volunteers wandered among the crowd handing out Tibetan bread and pouring Butter Tea for those who wished to partake.  Boxes of marvelous typical Tibetan candies were next shared with everyone as a mid morning snack.  At two o’clock delicious box lunches, bottles of water and fresh mangos were given to everyone – and I mean all 50000 or more celebrates.  One thing I have learned is that a Buddhist NEVER lets another go hungry. 

Outside decorations  and crowds for the Dalai Lama's return from
Australia

Jane sitting with her Tibentan friends waiting for 'His
Holiness" to return

A cow who walked through before the Dalai Lama arrived

'His Holiness' arriving home from Australia for his birthday celebration

After more dances, speeches, a speech by the Dalai Lama and more entertainment, the first day’s festivities ended about four P.M. 

The second day lasted even longer until early evening.  That was the day the oracle in an elaborate costume who danced about, making mystical sounds.  Soon his enormous hat gear was removed and he went into a trance and had to be lifted horizontal from the floor. Once out of that part of his trance, he spoke.  He spoke for a long time.  The only thing conveyed to me from his long speech, to the chagrin of the Chinese I'm sure, was that he would live another 20 or 30 years.

A beautiful prayer wheel, typical of the wheels one finds through out the Buddhist world

A view of Mcleod Ganj from an opposite hillside

Although there were celebrations on the third day, these were only for members of the Tibetan community who were also born in the Amdo, the Dalai Lama’s original home providence of Tibet. Special badges were handed out to those who could attend. ‘His Holiness’ skipped this event, but I understand from Amdo friends that they all had a very good time. 

NEXT: MCLEOD GANJ, the town, TCV and NORBULINGKA