Second Chances

Woman selling marigolds to adorn alters of various gods

Dilli Hat- A tourist market... but hey, I had fun!

Sidewalk art

The Delhi metro system is wonderful

At "Lodi- The Garden Restaurant" a swank outdoor dining spot where Jav got asparagus rosotto and I had sundried tomato shrimp!

So.. I decided that since Delhi was only a five hour express train away from Dosarka that I would give it a second chance. I LOVE THE BIG CITY. I would never want to live in Delhi but it is a great place to reccuperate from the 104 degree temperatures (in an airconditioned "hotel" room) and curry/masala overload. We took the metro, went shopping, and wined and dined. It was wonderful.

Tibetan Lady with prayer beads

Tibetan monks participating in Buddhist chant and movement ritual

View of the valley

These guys rule the town

You will see Tibetan monks throught this region of India

Moth on a thistle

This lady looks almost prehistoric to me.. she was just snoozing in the middle of the road.

McLeod Ganj

Himalayas

Wheat harvest

This is the second round of photos that I have from McLeod Ganj (the home of the Dalai Lama). When we went the last time it was the Tibetan New Year (Losar) and everything was closed. Not to mention the heat has been killing us in the low lands so it was nice to gain some altitude.

While we were there we tried to get a Tibetan astrological chart made at the astrologist's office of the Dalai Lama however the waiting list was extremely long. They said it would take almost 6 months to even apply for the chart to be made. It made me sad that sacred things like that are now turning into comodities and that I was actually buying into it. On a lighter note, we took a Tibetan cooking class from an amazing man who escaped from Tibet about 12 years ago. He left with only one other person in the height of winter (mid January). It took him 28 days to cross the Himalayan mountain range and seek refuge in Nepal. His entire family is still in Tibet, they have limited contact because all interaction is highly monitored. Nonetheless, he met his wife in McLeod and now has a son who is almost two-years-old. You could see the sadness in his eyes when he was telling his story but you could also see graditude. He told us, "You can ask me anything" which for me implied a sense of pride that he escaped Chinese tyranny and began anew in the safe haven of the Dalai Lama. For him, teaching Tibetan cuisine is carrying on his heritage and culture so that it will never die... he was given a second chance by the Indian government and is doing everything he can to hold onto his culture.