I made a friend a few days ago sitting in the cafe out of the rain.
It's hard because I want to be conversational right away, meet everyone, and talk, but I know that's going to take some time , especially for the Tibetan people living here to see that I am here to stay, not just passing through.

I still get homesick in the mornings, but I'm really enjoying class, and feel like I can do this. I'm already having simple conversations.

Finished up my first week of Tibetan in Bir.
Most of the people here are from Kham, or eastern Tibet.
Every morning, we spend four hours reading, writing, and speaking.
I never even fall asleep!
The afternoons are free to eat, talk, meet people, and study.
I gave some of the people in my program a "tour" today of one of the monasteries--
There was a beautiful set of thankas hanging on the wall depicting the terma cycle of Chogyur Lingpa, a mid-19th century major terton.

This past week, the monks were having a drubchen. This means "Great Accumulation or Practice," which is where the monks do Sadhana and ritual for several days to one week. They are in the temple all day and night. They go in shifts, so when some are taking a break, others keep the mantras and prayers going. The feeling inside is very intense. Imagine actually living in a Thangka painting.
Sometimes, all of the main monks are on break, so the lay people sitting in spinning their prayer wheels take over mantra recitation. I love seeing this integration of monastic and lay life.
What we are really not seeing at the museum is the wall murals. As far as a monastery goes, they really form the strongest visual statement. Most walls are covered floor to ceiling with depictions of Lamas, Deities, stories, and more.
Being here doesnt feel like being with a dying culture. There are many many young monks, the art is constantly being commissioned, and while some outer forms are changing (khampas in blue jeans), I've still seen groups of people singing and dancing in purely tibetan style for the Dalai Lama's birthday.
Today was guru rinpoche day-- there was some great cham dancing in the afternoon.
Settling in yet still a little sad. Hope all is well.

First day of class in Bir

We had our first lesson today. The instructor, Pema Langdrol, is extremely nice. I've been walking around talking to everybody in Tibetan and asking how to say things-- my reading is doing ok, but my speaking needs a little work . Reading and speaking have little to nothing in common!

Class will be four hours a day, with time in the afternoon to practice, relax, and study. The town is very quiet-- although at night there are a lot of dogs barking. I'm excited to discover more and hopefully make some local friends.

Although the culture is different, the people are still people. There are five other students in my class-- all of them are very nice. I look forward to learning with them.

In the background are beautiful wooded mountains. The air is cleaner here. I will write more about the days as they unfold!

Leaving Dharamsala

I'm leaving Dharamsala today to make my way to Bir, where I'll begin the program.
Dharamsala, despite being somewhat in the middle of nowhere, is very busy. The whole town is set up for tourists. There are a lot of bars, shops selling tibetan stuff, restaurants, and traffic. I hear Bir is a bit more peaceful-- I'm still feeling pangs of homesickness but I'm excited to begin class and be in a little less hectic environment.

Arrived in Dharamsala

I'm here and safe. Very high up in the mountains-- went up and up and up a windy road, to find this town in the middle of nowhere! Right out of the window is a view of a huge mist covered valley with snow peaks in the background. I made a nice friend on the bus-- she works with Tibetan Art at the British Museum. I visited the National Museum in Delhi yesterday-- really amazing art. I thought of all the Rubinites. I'll be here until Sunday, then I venture onwards to Bir!

(these are twitter style updates for now-- I'll write more description when I'm a little less jetlagged and disorientated!)

First Day

i'm back in Majnu-Ka-Tilla, the Tibetan refugee section of Delhi. It's far away.

The funny thing about returning to a far away place again and again is that no matter how far away you are, you're still you.

If you think about it, sixteen hours on a plane is actually not that much to fly halfway across the world.

Right now, I'm pretty jetlagged. My previous two times here I was out the door right away trying to explore Delhi while I'm here. This time I'm going to take it easy.

Apparently the monsoon started two days ago, but it hasn't rained yet.

I'll be taking a 12 hour trip to Dharamsala tomorrow evening, from where I'll make my way to Bir. Classes start on Monday.

All is well-- hoping everyone is doing well too :)

Spending the Night in Ye Olde Englande

A Haiku from Overnight in the waiting room at Heathrowe Airport:

My connecting flight
Was missed-- Not my fault, really!
Buddha says: "Relax."

Ah!

Ah! Ah! Ah!

I get up in four hours to get to JFK.

My plane has a stop in Heathrow then on to Delhi.

I took a taxi to Penn Station because I'm leaving from home (NJ), and the traffic was so bad around times square I decided to get out walk with all my bags and a pie.

It was so crowded and overwhelming, and all I could think about was how Delhi is 10x more intense.

INDJA

Part deux

Off for now.