I'm in love with McLeod Ganj.
The Dalai Llama's town and the sanctuary that Tibetan refugees have fled to since the war, McLeod Ganj sits high among the clouds under towering Himalayan peaks. It's all pine trees, steep narrow roads and gorgeous wee Tibetan cafe's, and it also has an air of sadness about it. I can't help noticing the "Free Tibet" signs posted around the place. There's heaps of short-term volunteering opportunities dotted around the place, and one that caught my eye was teaching casual english to women refugees who have recently fled their homeland. I'm going to check it out later today. I can see myself spending weeks here, going on hikes around the mountains and taking classes on tibetan cooking and buddhism!! uh oh...
To catch up on the last few days, Varanasi was chaotic and hot, but still beautiful. You can't help but feel how important this city is spiritually to the Indian people, and this is reflected in the labyrinth of temples and religious men. We took a boat ride along the ganges and saw people burning bodies by the side of the river. I was grateful for the breeze that carried any scary smells away.
From Varanasi we headed back to Delhi for a night, and I got accosted my a crazy spiritual fortune teller, who yelled "Your mother's name is Robyn and your favourite colour is yellow" from across the street. Intrigued, and a little bit freaked out, I sat down for a chai and a chat with him. Stoking his white whiskers and wobbling his head as he spoke, he told me that my spirit is the "same-same" as my mother's and that I have come to India to find freedom and clarity. He said that I am on a long road of self-discovery, that from November I will peace, and that I have a good heart. I was pretty stoked with my first Indian spiritual experience, and it only cost me NZ $6.50!
Early the next morning we caught the bus up to Amristar, home of the Golden Temple and the Sikh relgion. The golden temple is the equivalent of Mecca for the Sikhs, and is a huge white-marble place with a floating golden palace in the middle. Its breathtaking, and it was interesting to learn about some of the Sikh religion while I was there. The Sikhs believe that everybody is equal, and it is a very open, welcoming religion. Seeing the temple is free, as is food - they have a massive kitchen where they feed 100,000 people 24 hours everyday. They also have free dorm rooms for anybody who wants to stay, which are basic but clean. We stayed in the dorm rooms with other religious pilgrims, and it was amazing! We gave a donation in the end to show how much we appreciated their hospitality. Now i'm on the hunt for a book explaining more of their religion. Not that i'm becoming a Sikh or anything, I just think there's a lot of cool morals and principals embedded in the way they live.
Well, i'm off for a coffee and a walk around...the temperature here is in the low 20's, and it's so refreshing to walk the streets and not be covered in sweat! Hopefully will get to see the Dalai Llama in the next few days.
