amandamciyer

[amandamciyer]

This is Dharamshala. The hillside city where the Tibetan government in exhile lives and where the Dalai Lama resides. I did not know much about Tibet or Dharamshala prior to this visit and this city taught me so much. 

Getting into the city proved challenging due to traffic issues and parking bans but the several hour wait in the hill roads was worth it. 

At the temple on the way up to the falls was the first time I was stopped and asked to be in a photo with someone. I did not understand. I thought that he wanted me to take his photo but the word selfie is universal and because I hadn’t expected this and wasn’t sure how to respond I agreed if Ram could also be in the photo. Ram talked to the young man and he was a local and I guess was just fascinated and wanted proof of seeing a white woman.

There was a local pool near the temple which had many many kids playing in it. There were street kids begging me for money, running hands down my back and saying “miss you’re skin is so pretty”. I felt very uncomfortable for many reasons but when I kept moving they left me alone. There were many white tourists in Dharamshala compared to the other hill stations. Dharamshala is known for yoga teaching houses and camps and also for Buddhist work shops and teachings. 

We hiked just north of our hotel to Bhagsunag falls. It was a beautiful hike on a busy path. Monks were bathing and cleaning their maroon robes in the flatter estuaries below the waterfall. We stopped for ice cream on the way because why not? We hiked across the falls and up to a small temple where several goats stood watch and grazed on the mountain grasses. 

We hiked up higher into the mountain houses and smaller hostels to have kombucha that was recommended to us by Ram’s cousin. I don’t know what herbs were in it but it was a little sweet and definitely refreshing after a humid and tiring hike. We saw cows and monkeys sharing a meal of garbage on our hike back down. 

We were lucky enough to be in Dharamshala when the Dalai Lama was present to do one of his biannual teachings at his temple. We went early in the morning and sat on the floor among monks, local buddhists and tourists and listened via a radio translation to the 3 hour teaching on compassion and meditation. It was spiritual, calming and also a big test of my patience and adaptability. I am not used to sitting on the ground and unable to reposition for several hours. I cried from pain and yet I felt like I cried from the passion and hope that the Dalai Lama teaches as well. I saw him on a big screen for most of the service but I saw him with my own two eyes on his way out of the temple and I have to say that he is an inspiring man. I feel very thankful for this experience and inspired to adopt some buddhist ideals into my life to try to be the best person I can. The world needs us all to be the best we can to each other. Learning about Tibet and the Dalai Lama’s history was not something I knew that I needed but this trip taught me to be open and I really took a lot away from my learning and experiences in Dharamshala. 

The night street markets had beautiful shawls and jewellery shopping. The momos were delicious. The hindu temple across from the open air tibetan food restaurant was colourful and beautiful to look at. Dharamshala was a feast for the eyes and soul. I would love to return here again. 

[amandamciyer]

I was super excited to see these monkeys. It was my first time seeing them in the wild. On the street of Dalhousie we saw this mother macaque with a baby hanging off her belly. I was happy to see them but also wary of them getting too close since Ram had warned me of their stealing tendencies. I happily watched them in the trees and on the street from my hotel window every morning. 

When we were tired of riding the hilly and twisting roads we stayed in. Ram taught me how to play Carrom. It is a board game where you flick checker sized pieces across the board to get in the corner holes, similar to pool or billiards. It reminded me of Crokinole. We used to play crokinole with my cousins at Christmas time in my grandparents basement. I was no match for Ram’s expertise but I improved over the course of the trip. We had a tournament later in the trip but Ram’s brother and cousins. 

[amandamciyer]

The hill station of Kajjiar has a central clearing with a small lake which is known as the “Mini Switzerland of India”. The lake area had cows grazing and a nice mountain view. There were pony rides, room for picnics and lots of tourists enjoying the space, green grass and fresh air. Due to the summer season the lake was more of a pond/puddle sized body of water. Canadians really are spoiled with our abundance of fresh water. 

We stopped along the drive back from Kajjiar to another hill station called Dalhousie. On the side of the road there are many paths and hikes to more remote temples in the area. We hiked to a Shiva temple which took about 30 minutes of hiking with beautiful valley views. There was an elderly woman herding her buffalo along this path. I was the only white tourist here and attracted attention from every other hiker and the children begging for money and trying to sell juice boxes and snacks at the start of the hike. This shepherd woman intrigued me. She wore a green flowy outfit and was completely comfortable in her surroundings. I smiled at her and she gave my a huge toothless grin back. The simple kindness of a smile meant so much to me. The human experience is touching in many ways other than language. I could not communicate with her and we didn’t attempt to but her smile I will remember forever. 

At the Shiva temple we removed our shoes and viewed the inner sanctum parts and enjoyed the Himalayan view. Then we shared a Thums up from the snack shack there. Thums up is a masala flavoured cola that is reminiscent of Coke and Dr. Pepper combined with some unidentifiable je ne sais quoi. Ram remembers sharing Thums up with friends and cousins as a treat when he was a kid. It was yummy and helped the sunny and warm hike back to the car. There were some lovely wildflowers and butterflies on the hike there. 

[amandamciyer]

Himalayas 

This is the Kajjiar area of the Himalayas in Himachal Pradesh. We had a hired driver who drove for ~8 hours through winding mountain roads with no guard rails and a need for speed to reach these beautiful views. We stayed at the hotel pictured and went on an early morning hike to the point of the mountain we were on. The Apple Orchard family farm was there. We had a simple forest hike, walked through some hillside farms burning manure and some which had thatched roofs. There were some cattle and goats on the farms and some small plots of corn and vegetables growing. The Apple Orchard grew many fruits and gave us a great tour. The father insisted on taking these engagement like photos for us. It was a bit awkward but he was so excited and meant well. We were there around 0630 so we were alone and we sat and had fresh mint tea with him and his son Krish. His teenage daughter watched us from a little ways away and his wife was making breakfast in the house. They were so kind and offered us food. We sat and Ram spoke in broken Hindi to them. We told them about Canada and our wedding on my parent’s farm. He told us about the black bears and wildlife in the region. He is very proud of his farm and I can imagine would never go very far from it. It has a spectacular Himalayan view and is on the tip of the peninsula. The soil is fertile and he grows the golden apple which the region is known for. He beamed with pride when telling us about them. His garden had large flourishing rose bushes and hydrangeas, herbs like mint and tulsi (holy basil), fruit trees and some corn. I am unsure if there had ever been a caucasion tourist there before. The kids were shy but curious about me. I eventually got to ask the kids their age and name and they showed me their pet rabbits. This was a special moment to start our trip. I felt welcomed and the fresh air and views were magnificent. My initial fear of isolation up this mountain had receded and I was enjoying the human connection with friendly farmers that were like my farm family back home.