Tuesday 12th October - McLeod Ganj is the
home town of his holiness the 14th Dalai Lama and the Tibetan government in
exile. China invaded Tibet in 1949. By 1959 they had illegally occupied the
whole of Tibet. The Dalai lama escaped into exile into India followed by 85,000
refugees. There is still a steady stream of tibetans leaving Tibet over the
mountains, so the colonies in northern india keep growing. The figure is now in
excess of 111,000 refugees in various neighbouring countries. Over the period
of China's occupation, they killed 1.2 million tibetans and destroyed 6000
ancient religious and cultural monuments. At the monastery there is a poignant
museum to Tibet's plight. Photographs depict the struggles both during and
after. It is terrible to think that Tibet will almost certainly never be
restored, despite the constant attempts by the Dalai lama and his people. China
will never allow any other form of rule other than its own communist regime.
The Dalai lama doesn't do many personal audiences
unfortunately, other than for Tibetan refugees and anyone with a serious
reason, such as Michael Palin! My family have been known to call me Jeff Palin,
so I wonder if I could get an interview as his brother?
Breakfast at Green's restaurant with the
lovely fresh air, the sun shining and birds singing away, is a great way to
start the day.
It is quite a contrast to move from Punjab
where letting your hair grow as long as possible is part of the Sikh faith, and
shaving is abnormal, to the neighbouring state of Himachal Pradesh, where it is
normal to have no hair, being part of the Buddhist belief. Even the female
Buddhists shave their heads. One of the joys in life is to let stubble grow,
just for the pleasure of visiting Akhi in his small hairdressers in McLeod Ganj
for a shave. For 80 rupees, I came out transformed from Neanderthal to human,
complete with massage. Shame that Shiera cannot be transformed for that
price... Nobody can work miracles...heehee!
While out to find something to eat we were stopped
by a guy selling tickets to a 'Lion man of Tibet' show at the Kailash
restaurant (5:30pm on tuedays). Instead of carrying on with our walk we went
there to see what it was about. The same guy selling the tickets was the 'Lion
Man'. He was a refugee from Tibet in 1988 and told his story followed by some
traditional songs and dance. It was bizarre to say the least, and some of his
performance was like a man possessed and on drugs. It was supposed to be an
interpretation of some mountain gorilla or lion behaviour or maybe Shiera
during her cycle. Either way, it was freaky!
Wednesday 13th Oct - It is nice when you have time to just take it
easy, and move only if you want to. The sun shines early and the view down the
valley from our window is awesome. After a lazy start we headed of to Bhangsa
village along the wonderfully scenic Bhangsa road. Eagles soar overhead, and
mountain goats roam around as well as some cheeky baboons. A trio of strangely
dressed guys passed us, with their hair tied into a an upward fountain shape
and clusters of drop earrings. A family sat by the road playing traditional
instrument which resounded around the hills in an eerie way. An easy walk albeit hilly. Lunch break was at
the lovely Monastery café, perched up a slope with a nice view. All healthy and
simple food. We even played chess over lunch. Shiera beat me…I had to let her
win so she felt good… well that’s my excuse!
I remembered from my last visit that it is a
must to visit the Tsuglagkhang monastery
complex at around 2pm onwards for a great piece of Tibetan theatre. The
Buddhist monks have an open air debate session where each point is sealed with
a resounding slap of their hands and a stamp of the feet. With many debates
going on simultaneously, and even some foreigners who have converted to
Buddhism taking part with enthusiasm, it makes for a great entertaining hour,
which finishes about 3:30pm.
Another treat...a continuous stream of treats
lately!... Coffee at the 'Coffee top' on temple road, with the excellent 'Arty'
finishing each coffee off with a personalized design in the froth on top. He
showed us some of his artwork on his laptop. It is amazing how creative you can
be with a cocktail stick and some froth! Coupled with some of the best cakes in
town, it takes some beating.
Dinner at Carpe
Diem...I think one of the best restaurants around. Awesome Mexican food
finished off with the interesting 'God save the queen' dessert, and great
friendly staff. They even sell their own healthy muesli mix for takeaway
(Rs400/kg). We eat there again the next night and had Thai this time. We have
been spoilt for food recently and hope this continues as we move further into
the mountains tomorrow.
Friday 15th October - Next destination
is Manali. But we hope to make a stop in Kullu on the way as the Dussedra
festival happens on the 17th October, and it should be a great place
to celebrate it. We have been sorting out our luggage and stocking up on some
warm clothes. The choice here in McLeod Ganj is nice, and the prices
reasonable. We have gathered lots of souvenirs which are taking up too much
space. The problem is the cost of shipping. From India, the only choice is Air.
Nobody seems to offer sea, which would be much cheaper. Will keep looking.
That’s it for now…
