Dharamsala, Himachal Pradesh

From Amritsar we headed back into the Himalayas towards Dharamsala, home of the Tibetan Government in Exile and His Holiness, the Dalai Lama. The flat fertile lands of Punjab gradually gave way to the mountains of Himachal Pradesh where houses and fields perched on the mountain side. We planned to stay for two days, but as soon as we arrived and got to wander the small town we decided to stay a little longer. In the end, we ended up staying ten days in order to take a few courses and see His Holiness in person.

The Government in Exile and the Dalai Lama actually live in a town called McLeod Ganj, high up the mountain above the predominantly Hindu town of Dharamsala (though McLeod Ganj is almost always referred to as "Dharamsala" as well). It's a lovely little mountain town with lots of excellent restaurants, shopping, and, of course, monks and Tibetans wandering around.

We found a nice little guest house not far from the center which had stunning views of the valley and surrounding mountains:

Wandering the streets there were all sorts of ads for things to do – teaching English conversation class, Buddhism, yoga, cooking and travel writing classes to name a few.  

We decided to do volunteer with a local NGO and simply spending an hour and a half every day with Tibetans helping them better their English. The experience was humbling – all of the class members had made their way from Tibet to Dharamsala, some legally using their “Chinese” passport, many illegally, making the long and dangerous trek over the Himalayas from their homeland. All of them were inspiring for their desire for a peaceful solution to the Tibetan situation and their love for the Dalai Lama.

Like these Tibetan exiles, the Dalai Lama lives in Dharamsala (when he's not touring the world).  This is is residence:

The nearby temple and surrounding pavilion is equally modest.

While we were in Dharamsala, we were lucky enough to attend a teaching by the Dalai Lama at the temple.  Unfortunately, no cameras were allowed in. The place was packed to capacity and we managed to squeeze our way into some seats in the open on the upper deck. The adoration and veneration of the Dalai Lama by the locals and visiting Buddhists from all over was an amazing sight to see. Unfortunately, the Himalayan weather was playing against us with driving rain and bitterly cold winds. Despite the free Tibetan bread and warm butter tea provided by the monks, after the first session out in the open, we took shelter in a local cafe to warm up and follow the teaching from a more comfortable spot with our FM radios.

We also explored the surrounding area, walking further up the mountain to the town of Dharamkot with its narrow paths, waterfall, and prayer flag covered hilltop.  

The views back to McLeod Ganj from the upper road were pretty good as well.

We also stumbled upon a local “sports day” where two local Tibetan schools were competing against each other in something akin to handball – it was a popular attraction in town with everyone cheering on their side.

During our stay Nick did a travel writing course with a well published travel writer and we both did a photography course with the local AP photographer. More on these to follow!

Sorry for the long post! We'll leave you with this thought from a plaque in the temple: