We drove all night from Amritsar up to Dharmsala over winding, bumpy, and very cold roads to arrive shivering at 2 or 3 in the morning. The hotel we stayed in was very nice, my room was the "luxury suite." Unfortunately it was a luxury suit without running water... The other rooms had no hot water, our room had no water at all. That didn't really matter though since we all crawled into bed and passed out. The next morning the water was fixed (sort of) and we bundled up to head out.
Dharmsala maybe my favorite place in India. It's beautiful, peaceful, and the weather was perfect for my Vermonter body. It's no wonder that Dharmsala is now the refuge home to the Dalai Lama and hundreds of other Tibetan Buddhists. We walked up to a waterfall in the morning and then proceeded to the ashram where His Holiness the Dalai Lama lives. Where we spent time watching the monks pray and go about their daily routines. It was an extremely moving experience for everyone but Serenity, more than anyone was affected. Serenity was born and raised a Tibetan Buddhist in Korea by a Korean mother and an Italia father who is now a professor in Florida specializing in Buddhism. The rest of the afternoon and evening were spent wandering around the city shopping and exploring. We ate lots and lots of momos which are Tibetan dumplings you can get on the side of the road either steamed or fried.
The next morning we were scheduled to leave but first we got up early and went back to the ashram to join the monks in their morning prayer. I found it kind of difficult to sit still for so long but it was an experience totally worth it, the Dalai Lama was even in attendance! I can now say that I prayed with the Dalai Lama!
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| Prayer wheels in the ashram. |
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| Monks chatting in the late morning. |
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| A view from the wrap around porch at the ashram. |
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