Dalai Lama

Everyone has been telling us since we arrived that the only place in India that we should go at this time of year is the far north where the elevation brings more manageable temperatures. We spent a couple weeks in the desert and South India confirming that and then decided to take the advise. We jumped on an overnight bus from Delhi and headed up to the North – not quite to the confluence of Kasmir, Pakistan, Nepal, and Tibet but real close (50km)

Our first stop, Dharamsala is best known as Tibet in Exile. We showed up at a good time. Guess who's in town? You betcha, Dalai Lama himself along with at least a thousand Tibetan monks attending his teachings. We had two choices – shave our heads, purchase a maroon robe and prayer beads to sneak into a session. Or the lesser, settle for watching a "grand entrance" by the Dali Lama to his teachings. We opted for the second and exchanged waves with him. The buzz on the street is "Have you seen him?" "Free tibet!" and "Save chinese enslaved Tibetan leaders!".

Amie and I are signed up today for a Tibetan bread baking class. That should be interesting.

-steve-