Spring Valley Resort Dharamsala

... went back to the hotel for more layers......resorted to at least 4 and my walking boots to walk into town for dinner and I was just about warm. Hit Jimmy's and had comfort food..nice bowl of soup and a jacket potato! Suitably warmed up headed back to hotel. The walk down is now a doddle the walk up still gets me at the second really steep bit but that is an improvement.<br><br>This is what I call a really good day!<br><br>

... from a distance of about 2kms. Ropeway is being installed from Dharamshala to this place.<br><br>War Memorial<br><br>Set amidst beautiful surroundings; this memorial is built near the entry point to Dharamshala to commemorate the memory of those who fought valiantly for the defence of the motherland<br><br>Kunal Pathri<br><br>A level 3kms. Walk from Kotwali Bazaar leads up to the rock temple of the local goddess.<br><br>Kareri<br><br>22kms. From Kotwali ...

... fire ceremony, some slapping monks, and a trip around the Dali Lama's residence. Hooper was obsessed with getting some prayer flags but had a hard time finding a shop that sold any. Ben on the other hand, just stole a prayer flag from the Dali Lama's garden. "But it was already on the ground, dude!" Yeah, tell that to karma.<br>(Ben here... I did not steal prayer flags!!!! If anyone has to worry about Karma it's Dave!)

... traveled the Himalayas trying to reach exile in India. Hundreds of people showed up for this candlelight vigil and showing - quite an impressive crowd and place to be! Later in the week, we visited Gyuto Monastery, home of the Karmapa (basically #3 in the power structure of Tibetan Buddhism). Though he didn't speak that day, he did give out blessings and we were blessed by this young, yet devout and holy ...

... ill, quite ill in fact. Navigating Indian toilets on a moving train with an upset stomach was not my favorite experience. My stomach has gotten progressively more upset and I haven't eaten more than a few ginger snaps in 2 days. Almost half the group is sick from the same awful stomach ache which has left many of us bedridden, dehydrated, weak, and a bit lonely. I am starting to feel better, although I still cannot stay standing for more than a few hours. It is a ...

... Breakfast was so good! The cooks made indian style french toast- with tons of spices and instead of syrup we had orange marmalade. Sooo amazingly good! After breakfast we went to our placements. My placement is a day care named Anganwadi Ther and the kids are between 2-3 1/2 . They are so adorable and the teacher is really nice. She has taught the kids a lot. As I have found out, the problem here in India is that the teacher's in the schools are not really reliable and often ...

... from our final destination we popped a tire...luckily for us we had a spare and a flashlight (thanks dad!) . When we arrived in upper Dharamsala (the village of Mcloud Gange) we nursed our nerves with a well deserved hard apple cider, a drink typical to this state of India and much appreciated after 2 weeks in no meat, no alcohol holy cities. P.S. pictures coming soon when we can find internet that allows uploads : )

... at the center in Phitsanoluk, a few months back. I had been planning on sitting the course starting June 1st in Bodhgaya, but I wasn't sure if it was a good idea, so I wanted to speak to a teacher about serving instead, but was convinced at the last minute by the course manager to sit as I had originally planned. This it turned out, was not the best decision. The energy of Bodhgaya and whatever was coming up for me was just too intense ...

... Sitz der tibetischen Exilregierung. Moenche und Menschen. Viele von beiden. Der Dalai Lama ist leider nicht da aber sonst allerlei spirituelles Getuemmel. Von Agama-Yoga bis Zen-Mediation. Und ich mache seit zwei Wochen einen intensiven Yogakurs, haenge mit meinen Yogafreunden ab und trinke Chai. Was soll man sonst auch in Indien tun. Zur Tibetfrage: Die haerteren tibetischen Proteste haben inzwischen aufgehoert ...

So Dharamkot is a little himalayan mountain town, next to Tushita meditation center where i did the retreat + volunteered in november, above McLeod Ganj where the Dalai Lama lives and runs his govt in exile. Think green mountains with layered plantations of a type of green wheat that flowers yellow, connifer+pine trees, little footpaths going up and down the hills through ppls farming land. It was very tranquil. We arrived in McLeod Ganj v early in the morning and took an ...