Taking the Bull by the Horns (literally..in my leg)

I went with Michael & Linda and another Aussie English teacher named Suzie to Palampur on Saturday. They were shopping for school supplies and misc. electronics (iron, heater, etc...). It's about 45 min from Bir...along the narrow and bumpy mountain road.
Before we left Bir we went to the new Dzongsar Institute, just down the road from the Deer Park (where I'm staying). Deer Park is the old Dzongsar Institute (which they outgrew). Seeing the new monastary was so great- it's HUGE! I can't imagine how they fit into the old temple. The new temple has an altar with Buddha Shakyamuni sitting roughly 1 story tall..the Buddha at Deer Park is about 10 feet tall....so you get the idea...there was a major upgrade when they moved.
We ate a delicious Indian meal and had ICE CREAM (pistachio..mmm). We also had a cup of chai with the stationary/office supply store owner.
I was walking to meet back up with everyone and passed a bull on the road (with very worn down horns)- he turned his head right as I was walking by and knocked his horn into my knee cap. *OW* Then, we were walking back up the hill and I passed the same bull and he hit me AGAIN! This time on the other leg on my thigh. I was a little curious about his intentions after the 2nd encounter. I have a nice looking bruise on my knee, but I'm fine otherwise.
Yesterday was beautiful, sunny and warm with some afternoon showers. Today it's bright and beautiful, again. There was a paraglider going by Deer Park this afternoon (they jump from the next town, Billing, and land in Bir).
I met 2 American women at Deer Park yesterday and we've been visiting. Amy and her mom is here with her. Amy came to work on a novel (in a cheap place to live) and has been here before. We're pretty close in age, which is nice because most of my new friends are more "mature" in age. :)
I will be heading to Dharmasala on Wednesday and returning on Sunday. I decided to go for only HH Dalai Lama's first teaching because I don't want to miss the beginning of the teachings at Deer Park (since they're a month long). I have been studying/practicing writing Tibetan on my own and a woman from Deer Park is going to help me put together a self-study program until there are teachers available to tutor me.
Actually, I found out that I am the first and only full-time student at Deer Park here for the Nalanda Studies Program. It's great! It's their first year of the program, so they're very grateful I'm here. There is an guy here from the Czech Republic who is about my age, too, but he's staying in a house behind Deer Park and he's only coming to a few classes while he's here.
I started doing afternoon meditation (yesterday the thunderstorm came through while I was in the temple alone- the sounds were amazing)...I was feeling really distracted by the sights and sounds and people when I first got here, but I'm really feeling focused on studying and doing my meditation practice.
I went for a walk this morning about 30 min. down the road from Bir, passed all the tea fields and rice paddies...the array of green and the sight of mountains as far as you can see is just amazing. I thought I would be overwhelmed by the beauty of this place, but I think I've been here before (past lives), so it actually feels quite comfortable. I crossed a foot bridge over a rocky river (no railing, just a few slats of wood on 2 logs)- I wasn't too scared. I used to be pretty afraid of heights, but I think I'm letting go of a lot of my old neurosis.
I'm off to get tea and visit a tailor with Amy and her mom (forgot her name). I hear you can get cheap fabric in Dharmasala and the tailor charges about 80 rupees (about $2 US) to make a Tibetan-style shirt.
Also, Monday is the day to settle with the office at Deer Park- I paid for 6 days of lodging, 3 meals per day and a full load of laundry- total 1660 rupees ($37 US). At this rate, I may be able to move to Berkeley to be near Rinpoche a lot sooner than I thought...of course I must experience many moments between now and then...so we'll see. :)
LOVE.