Down & Out
I'm writing by hand because I can't get to a computer. I've been sick for 2 days and I finally experienced an Indian doctor. Friday night (12/ 19) I felt feverish and after going to bed, it got worse. I'll spare you the gory details, but let's just say I was up several times heading for the bathroom and I almost fainted when I stood up b/c of my fever.
Saturday a.m. I went to the doctor. One of my conversation partners (cute one), escorted me. I was given 3 mystery meds and sent home. I spent all day in bed, mostly sleeping. Meghan was so sweet to me and cooked me rice and veg. soup (broth). Rosita, my German classmate, came to see me and brought me some powdered electrolytes for my water. My fever finally broke Saturday night.
Sunday a.m. I felt immediately better. Meghan brought me ginger ale (Schweppes brand, but also written in Arabic script!) and Gatorade. She cooked me a poached egg and some more rice. I am so grateful to be surrounded by such caring people!
Rishikesh
I had a free weekend so I decided to visit my friend, Momoko (whom I met at Deer Park in September), at her home in Rishikesh. It's about 2 hours from the Library so I arrived for lunch on Saturday (12/12?) and she had cooked a tasty, Indian-style rice dish with paneer (soft cheese) and fake meat!! Yum!!
Her house is so cute. It's about 500 feet from the Ganges River. Rishikesh is most famously known for the Maharajah b/c The Beatles lived there with him for a short time. They allegedly wrote The White Album there. It's also called, "The Yoga Capital of the World," and is full of Hindu ashrams (places to live, study and practice Hinduism). Momoko lived at an ashram for years, but now has this amazing house. It's 3 levels, the top is just an open space w/ a bench, to look at the amazing view of the Ganges and a National forest on the other side. The second level is where I stayed. There's a room with a kitchen and a bathroom. She said her mother likes to cook for herself when she visits from Japan. There is also another, unfinished, room.
On the ground level, when you first walk in, there's a sitting room. It's a very simple, Japanese-style room. Then, there's the dining room, the kitchen, an office and Momoko's bedroom. Outside, there's a beautiful rose garden, also a simple Japanese-style. You can see the Ganges river from all levels because she's at the top of a small hill.
Momoko gave me the tour of the city, it's fairly small. There are 2 suspension bridges over the river. There are tons of places to eat & shop. They seem to cater to the "typical" tourist in India. I would probably call them a "backpacker" or "hippie" in the States. There's also a lot of stores selling Hindu statues and Indian music.
We ate dinner at an amazing Korean restaurant. Rishikesh is a Hindu city, so they're not allowed (by law) to serve meat! We had veg/tofu soup and veg sushi. Yum!
Sunday we walked on the foot path by the river. It's winter here, so the river is almost completely still and it's a light emerald color, just stunning. There are ashrams and some homes alongside the river and also a line of trees. We went back into town for lunch and ate at a continental restaurant. We split a veggie burger (w/ fries!) & a veg "sizzler" (basically, tofu & veg w/ sauce). We went to a "German" bakery (run by Nepalis) for dessert. We split an apple crumble & a piece of chocolate cake. It was amazing. We walked for a bit and I bought a yoga mat and some knitted socks with a split in them- for wearing with flip-flops!
I hopped on the bus & headed back to Dehra Dun. It was full, so I had to stand for half the ride. I finally sat by 2 young girls (20) from New Zealand. They're volunteering at a special needs school just outside of Dehra Dun. We split an auto-rickshaw to the main bus stand & I took my own rickshaw back to the Library.
Misc
Rachel, Canada, left, so I moved into her room. It's awesome! It's warmer and has a small balcony, a desk & a colorful rug. She's coming back at the end of January so she left her electric tea kettle for me! It looks (and feels) "college- dormy," quite fitting, given I'm studying here. My class is going well. I can't believe how much I've learned in one month! I really feel like I'm getting a solid foundation in Tibetan.
Music to My Ears
Wednesday (12/17?), I went to a Tibetan concert in the Tibetan Colony. I went w/ 2 of my conversation partners. It was in the same place as the function for HH Dalai Lama's Nobel Peace Prize celebration. There were 6 performers, 2 of them only sang once. There was one girl. They all sang over pre-recorded instrumentals. The sound and lighting were pretty bad, but the singers were good. They were singing about freeing Tibet from China (I was getting the translation from my friends). There were all different age groups in the audience. Surprisingly, no one was dancing or even bobbing their head to the music. Usually, Tibetans are into music. I don't think they were too impressed. There were also a lot of people who didn't come in b/c it was 100 rupees ($2)- an expensive ticket price.
Oh-la-la
HH Chetsang Rinpoche (who lives here at the Library) went to Holland and returned this week. It has been bustling around the Library ever since. A woman named Heather also arrived. She teaches Tibetan at a university in Paris and has been doing written translation (and teaching) for 30 years. She has so many amazing stories about her time travelling in Tibet, I hope I can visit someday.
Reflection
This time last year I was in Vermont because my cousin, Katelyn, had passed away. Thomas & Beth (her parents) are very special to me, so I went to help them out if I could. It was such a jarring call to receive.
I had spoken to Kate during the spring when Tom & Beth asked me. She was trying to stop using drugs & I had been sober for about 6 months by then. It's so hard to believe it's been a year.
At the memorial service, Thomas played a Tibetan bell, which I hear here on a daily basis. It reminds me of how interdependent everything is. Now, I'm sitting in India in my Vermont t-shirt I bought on my first visit to Vermont to see my cousins (it has a cow on it... and I'm in the country where the cow is holy).
I'm feel grateful for where I am, but also would love to be home for the holidays. I am, however, beginning to understand why people call India, "Mother India." Her nurturing qualities, along with the wrathful lessons you're given, are educating on so many levels. It's a blend of the most raw poverty you'll ever see and blatant wealth. Holy and spiritual places and spiritual materialism. Filth and garbage and breathtaking beauty.
It's the epitome of tantra- experiencing medicine when you've eaten poison.
Gerry
I called my great-aunt, Gerry, to say goodbye. She's on Hospice and has been calling people in our family. I've never done that before. She's in a wonderful mental space and is completely accepting her death. I have also been thinking about my cousins and how they might be feeling about their grandmother dying. I really hope they're okay.
Night Creatures
I have the strangest ants living in my bathroom. They only come out at night. They're looking for water so they run around & they have disproportionately longer back legs, so they move strangely. Their legs are longer than American black ants, but their bodies are about the same. I actually think they're pretty cute. I'm taking precautions not to drown them or crush them, but sadly, some haven't made it.
It's quite sad to think about being born into an existence where survival is your only objective. I mean, scientifically that's ours, too, but we've also got some fringe benefits...like consciousness. Running non-stop to find water and avoiding predators (i.e. my big feet), but chasing the very thing that in the end will kill you. I am so grateful to be human.
"Oh the Weather Out side's Delightful-but the Cow Dung Smell is Frightful..."
Today (12/23) I ventured into town, a tiring activity even in my best health, but I had a list & was ready for it!
I decided to buy small (edible) gifts for my teachers & conversation partners, something for HH Chetsang Rinpoche (who lives here) & Meghan (for her nurturing me so much). I first went to the ATM, which feels like I hit the jackpot b/c of the exchange rate. 10,000 rupees= $100 USD.
My cute conversation partner (they all have nicknames now) was already in town so he helped me shop. We first went to the street market, Palton Bazaar. I bought 5 small, delicious Indian breads- their version of fruit cake (but actually worth eating). Then, we went to a fruit stand & had a basket put together for HH. This was one of the funniest things to watch. An Indian father-son team trying to cellophane wrap & tape this basket of fruit. I just kept thinking of the shrink wrap gun & my days at Nordstrom.
Next, we went to the ritzier area of Rajpur Road, to the infamous Kumar Store. This is where you come to find food, cosmetics & various things from abroad. Needless to say, we love it, although I've only bought peppermint tea & English cookies there- which is exactly what I bought today! I had almost made it out the door when the clerk held up the saddest looking fake X-mas tree, a box of assorted ornaments and literally begged me to buy them. The idea had crossed my mind several times, so it was an easy push over the edge. Next thing I know, I'm toting this Indian-version of a Charlie Brown's Christmas tree (maybe 18" tall), ornaments, bags of food & a 6 foot Tibetan monk in his robes- laughing at me. As we're heading up the street in search of X-mas lights (I found tinsel)- a man wearing saffron robes (Hindu), w/ his face painted orange, is collecting (i.e. begging) money for an offering to gods. He starts hissing & jumping around, which startles me, so I walk faster. My conversation partner gets stopped by him and the guy puts an orange smudge on his forehead, between his eyes- which puts me into hysterics (laughing). The sight of a Tibetan monk in robes w/ a Hindu mark on his face...with all this X-mas stuff...
Oh, what an Indian Christmas experience...
Christmas
I set up my tree immediately. It's tiny, w/ tiny ornaments. I put it on my desk w/ a red shawl as the tree skirt. I put all the little presents my family sent me under there. I found X-mas lights and my little tree looks like a flashing disco ball more than anything else. On X-mas, I received my 2nd box of presents, this one from my grandparents- THANK YOU!
At lunch, I asked Meghan, Heather, Christina & Rosita if they wanted to go to see HH w/ me. I was going to give him the fruit basket I bought. They said yes & that they'd bring something, too.
Normally, you go to see HH in his sitting room in his house. It's maybe a 5 or 10 minute affair and then it's over.
I showed up with Rosita (Germany) at 4:30 & the other girls were in HH's private kitchen warming up sauce for the plum pudding cake Heather had bought. His cook gave us Japanese candy while we waited to see him (he was visiting with another group). Meghan put the sauce & cake on a tray & stuck a beautiful garnish on top of the cake. Christina (Norway) had hand roasted almonds with melted sugar (yum!). We followed his attendant towards the house (the kitchen is in a separate building next door), but made a turn heading towards the back of the house in the garden!
HH was standing by a table on a patio overlooking the valley below. There were so many beautiful flowers and the sun was beginning to set. We sat w/ HH at the table and were served tea & shared the cake! I was so surprised!
HH was talking about new pieces of history he's found about Tibet- he's working on a book (Meghan's translating into English & Heather came to help). It was fascinating. He's uncovered facts about Tibet no one knew before.
We sat for about 45 minutes & then he had another engagement, so we left. We hurried to change for dinner b/c our taxi was waiting. Mr. Narendar, our usual driver, is always a bit early. We headed downtown to eat at our favorite restaurant, Black Pepper.
St. Francis church was covered in X-mas lights. They use them here for weddings, but unlike the U.S. tradition, they drape them over the ENTIRE house- like pin-stripes! We also so a few beggars dressed like Santa and some stores with lights. It was busy and crazy downtown!
Black Pepper was busy, which it never is. They had a X-mas tree, but were playing American hip-hop music. We went to Baskin Robbins for dessert and they had X-mas music on.
My parents called me & when I was home we opened presents together over the phone. It was morning for them and night for me. :)
Sick- Version 2.0
Friday (12/26) I ate a bad egg for dinner, or at least I think that's the culprit. I woke up at 1 am sick (in the worst ways). India truly takes the western body to extreme places.
Meghan had an open house, X-mas party on Saturday (12/27), but I was too tired to go...even though it's just upstairs from my room. My cute conversation partner came to make me hot water, but ended up holding my hair for me while I had my head in my bucket- how humbling.
I have to say, I am so grateful to be sick here, surrounded by so many caring people!
Ladakhi Losar
Ladakh is a region of India that's way way up in the northwest- next to Tibet. They have their own language (similar to Tibetan- written the same) & their own customs (a cross between India & Tibetan). I've heard the climate is the closest to Tibet- outside of Tibet. It's very high mountains, dry and very very cold.
Yesterday (12/28) was their new year (losar in Tibetan). I missed the celebration b/c I was recovering, but today they had more festivities!
All the monks and nuns and HH went to the monastery's college for a tea party. I even received a hand delivered invitation! :) (everyone did- haha) HH came for the first hour and there were some traditional dances & more modern dances performed. They were so clearly influenced by Indian and Tibetan-styles of music and dance- it's really beautiful. Except for 2 old men, all the dancers were in modern clothing (jeans, etc...)- it's what most young people here wear these days. I can't help but wish they wore traditional clothes, but it's also selfish to not want them to "modernize." It was a fun day, none-the-less!
New Year's Eve
Tonight we have another tea party with HH. It's from 11:30pm-about 12:30am. I feel like such an old lady- I will probably go to bed at 9 (my bedtime) and wake up around 11:30 to go....I'll let you know how it is!
If you've actually read ALL this, thanks for sticking with it :)
I am so overwhelmed by gratitude today, reflecting on this last year and the last few years...I just can't believe I'm here and doing what I want to do...thank you to everyone for supporting me! I love you so dearly.
Many Blessings on this New Year!
LOVE
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