Our neighbours

We've been a little snap happy over the views from our house. When the mist and clouds come rolling in and we are either in them or above them its just beautiful!!!



And the sunsets are pretty good too!!!

There are still a few monkeys around, even though we live in a more inner city area rather than forests. I still think they are really cute even when they sneak into our room to steal mangoes, or scare the begeebez out of me when I step out of the bathroom (there was a really big one that scared me so much I fell over and then locked myself in the bathroom. Finally I came out armed with the toilet brush but it was gone......)

These are the three little ninos that live downstairs. The boy on the left is a bit younger and not as shy as the older girls. He is the one that walks into our room if the door is open to play with the bowl or Free's toaster. We banned him from playing with the toaster that lead to a small tanty..... we just giggled at him and he soon gave up and left.

I was showing one of the little girls how a pro skips from my 'Jump Rope for Heart' days when I was in year 7. She didn't understand a word I said but skipping transcends all languages.

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More recently we have been attending His Holiness Dalai Lama's teachings. After that we are not sure what we will do next...... Will keep you posted!

Trijang Rinpoche's stupa

We've been here since February and hadn't walked up to the incredibly peaceful area behind Tushita where there is a stupa of Trijang Rinpoche (junior tutor to HH Dalai Lama) and home to many meditators.... until now.

I walked up there with Free and Julie as the mists of the monsoon rolled in (well, hmm, we took at taxi to Tushita - only because of time restriction....).

The little white speck on the top of the hill on the left is Tushita. You can see the town of McLeod Ganj to the right.

Free and Julie.



The misty road that took us to the stupas.



The entrance of this special place is lined with prayer flags (lung-ta).



Trijang Rinpoche's stupa is to the right.





It is not a traditional style Tibetan stupa. More east asian.....



This is one of the many meditator huts that are sprinkled around.



They are very simple and would be freezing in winter.

I couldn't believe how peaceful it was up there. My mind seemed to clear as we walked around and I left realising how busy my mind had become.

Walking home in the mist.

Rob snapping up some street scenes from our of the window of this first floor restaurant.

Rob talking to the guys at Tushita about the website he helped them create. He had it on loadspeaker....... he's not yelling at them.

Tiiram posing for his facebook photo!

Free, Rob and Tiiram thinking about VB...... You become so Aussie when you get together with other Aussies......

I love these kind of photos. Between Tiiram and Julie is Tiff.



This is me laughing about Julies Irish cousin....

And finally, this is Yeshe and Nigan as they departed McLeod Ganj. They are headed for Australia!! They are covered in katas, a white scarf that is offered as a farewell and good luck gesture.

Views from our house

View number 1: 'Out of the kitchen window'. From here I can watch people washing clothes, dishes, themselves (they stay clothed!).... The lower house on the right has recently put up some new iron sheets just in time for monsoon (which is just around the corner.....eeeek). It's also a great spot for watching monkies tease the little white dogs that guard each roof top.

View number 2: 'The storm'. Rob took these just the right moment!







View number 3: 'The clouds rolling in'. Yep, monsoon is coming!

View number 4: 'The rent inspector'. This little tike turns up in our room most mornings. He lives downstairs with his parents and two sisters. He speaks to us in Tibetan and we speak to him in English but we understand each other completely. He is sooooo cute!

This isn't our house but it might as well be.... We eat here alot. This is a (mostly) Aussie crew - its weird how you do that. Rob, Free, Julie, me and Margaret. I love the Manga-esk painting in the background.

Picnics, Buddhist art, new apartment and hiding from hail

After four wonderful months at Tushita, Rob and I have moved on to a student lifestyle again. We go to a few Buddhist Philosophy classes in the morning and then spend the rest of the afternoon hanging out! It's great.

We had a small picnic on Sabine's beautiful lawn (the best I've seen in India) to mark the occasion.

Ollie, Rob, Sabine, Maya, Fred, me and Pieta


Sabine, Maya and Fred


Rob, Chogu, Sabine, Kalu and Maya


Me, Pieta, Tashi and Venerable Sopa

This is the foundation of the new building. Except for the cement mixer, this building has thus far all been done using muscle and sweat!!!

Rob and I visited Norbulingka with our own personal tour guide, Corey (fellow Aussie and lover of all thing elven), who used to work there. Norbulingka is set in beautiful gardens and aims to preserve Tibetan culture such as statue making, thanka painting etc.

The statue making area is a little bit away from the rest of Norbulingka and we would have completely missed it if it wasn't for our fearless guide.

I wonder if this head will belong to the body below.....? Two physical features of a Buddha include long ear lobes and right turning hairs. These physical features represent internal attainments, which I can't quite remember...... I think the long ear lobes represent the Buddha listening to all being without exception and the hair represents the Buddhas complete control over his mind..... Maybe.... Check out HH Dalai Lamas ears next time you see him....

It's hard to do full lotus when you're wooden.


The big statue near Rob will be sent to Tibet. It seems that this place, here in India, is preserving Tibetan culture better then in Tibet???

There are paintings of all the Dalai Lama's throughout history on the upper walls of the main gompa. Unusually the 13th and 14th (current) Dalai Lama's have been painted with the actual faces. These painters are so talented that they can paint traditional Tibetan style or life like.

Another great part about having our tour guide was that we got to see inside HH Dalai Lamas room. He has a room here, always ready, even though he has only visited once. The grounds are set out like his summer palace back in Tibet.

Below are a few pics of our cute, small, very green little place (please don't mistake this room for HHDL!).





Rob, Tiiram (Free's little bro) and I were stuck in a restaurant as a hail storm past over. Below is the view out of the window of the resturant. There is a little vegie stall right there.

They were pretty happy to be stuck inside. More time to eat cake!