MCLEOD GANJ [DHARAMSALA]
Mcleod Ganj was a bit of an after thought - a “wait, the Dalai Lama lives where…hmmm maybe I’ll go there” thought. So maybe it was the low expectations but I think the three days I spend in McLeod Ganj were the best of the entire trip. My flight was delayed but fortunately not cancelled on the spot as befell a few others in the departures waiting room. The flight was worth the trip alone - there was virtually no one else on the plane so I sat in a window seat with Himalaya views. The mountains stretched for a single line as far as the eye could see.
On arrival I picked up a monk’s contact info and caught a ride with my new friend Bowers since we were both heading to Misty Wood hotel. I then took an afternoon stroll around town - this was a walk where the map “not to scale” was actually a favorable surprise - McLeod Ganj is actually much smaller than I anticipated and the hotel was less than a five minute walk to the far end of town. I saw 15 monks enjoy a noodle lunch so with no other place in mind joined them at the nearest table. After lunch I was going to drink a Kingfisher at McClos’ rooftop bar but something about drinking in the early afternoon at the Tibetan capital in exile did not feel quite right - I had a pot of tea instead.
On arrival I picked up a monk’s contact info and caught a ride with my new friend Bowers since we were both heading to Misty Wood hotel. I then took an afternoon stroll around town - this was a walk where the map “not to scale” was actually a favorable surprise - McLeod Ganj is actually much smaller than I anticipated and the hotel was less than a five minute walk to the far end of town. I saw 15 monks enjoy a noodle lunch so with no other place in mind joined them at the nearest table. After lunch I was going to drink a Kingfisher at McClos’ rooftop bar but something about drinking in the early afternoon at the Tibetan capital in exile did not feel quite right - I had a pot of tea instead.
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On the walk back to the hotel I stopped at a temple complex and the Dalai Lama’s residence. The Dalai Lama was in town but on a ten day silent meditative trance. I walked around the temple complex and it’s possible to walk right up pedestal and pillow the Dalai Lama preaches from - so long as you remove your shoes first. In addition to the temples the complex contained a school and other Tibetan administrative functions.
For dinner Bowers and I headed to the Gaden Schartse monastery. While we waited for dinner to be prepared we sat with several monks performing their evening prayer chants. I think the meal of momos and soup were the best I’ve had - proper thickness of noodle and tasty filling as well. Surprisingly the Gaden Schartse monastery has a satellite location in Long Beach, CA, so whenever I’m back in Los Angeles I know a good place to eat momos and discuss Buddhist thought - probably in that order.
For dinner Bowers and I headed to the Gaden Schartse monastery. While we waited for dinner to be prepared we sat with several monks performing their evening prayer chants. I think the meal of momos and soup were the best I’ve had - proper thickness of noodle and tasty filling as well. Surprisingly the Gaden Schartse monastery has a satellite location in Long Beach, CA, so whenever I’m back in Los Angeles I know a good place to eat momos and discuss Buddhist thought - probably in that order.
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That night I sat around a campfire and planned the next days’ hiking activities with other hostel guests. The following morning four of us set out for a three hour hike to Triun. We were at a high altitude but the hike was relatively flat and only slightly complicated by some snow on the trail near the final destination. We had a group dinner of fried momos and Thukpa at the Peace Cafe.
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The next day the hiking group explored the rest of McCleod Ganj which included the Tibet Government in Exile complex. There were several buildings and a Tibet Library had access to view books and historical manuscripts - unfortunately nothing was in English but the writing was beautiful. I hoped to be able to take a class but the daily teachings would not resume until March.
I went coffee hopping in the afternoon at Moonpeak and Mandela. It wound up raining most of the day - fortunately not snow and fortunately the flight the next day was not cancelled. The owner of the hotel made a home cooked meal of daal, rice, veggies, and roti for the group of us that had been hanging out together
I went coffee hopping in the afternoon at Moonpeak and Mandela. It wound up raining most of the day - fortunately not snow and fortunately the flight the next day was not cancelled. The owner of the hotel made a home cooked meal of daal, rice, veggies, and roti for the group of us that had been hanging out together
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For additional McLeod Ganj photos see FLICKR ALBUM.