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Published: October 21st 2008
Monday, October 20, 2008
I have been here for two full days now and have seen so much and done so much. I’m taking as much as India in as possible and loving every bit of it. I have not experienced the angry mass of people, the pungent odor, or the dirtiness that people talk about. The program and staff have also been amazing so far. They are going above and beyond with every aspect. I continue to be impressed over and over again with the entire experience.
This morning we had a local professor give a talk on Indian history. Although we are all still pretty jet lagged and tired, he kept our attention with a very interesting presentation. Somehow he managed to summarize the complicated history of India into an hour and a half session. It was very neat to hear about the highlights from someone who was clearly very educated and well spoken.
As I said before, this whole experience continues to impress me and seems to get better every second. While still excited about the previous night’s events with the wedding, I expected to have a quiet, uneventful flight on the way to Dharamsala. Everyone
was settled in their seats waiting for take off when I looked up and saw my roommate (several rows up) turn around and mouth the name: Dalai Lama. I figured she must have just brought him up in conversation since we were on his way to his resting spot. Just by chance I turned around and saw some Buddhist monks. These were the first monks I have seen so far so I was pretty excited. As I was turning around to face forward again, I saw a monk move into sight from behind someone else. I did the quickest double take I have ever done, and quickly confirmed that yes, I was on the same flight as the Dalai Lama!
Like most of the other volunteers on the flight, I am not a Buddhist. However, we definitely all felt his presence. It is very difficult to explain the feeling that came over all of us but suddenly we were all hyper and whispering like children. There is just something about him ... he has a very tranquil, kind, and peaceful aura. We asked the Dalai Lama’s “bodyguards” if we could get a picture with him but unfortunately they declined
without even asking him. However, as you can see, I took it upon myself to follow him around and take pictures.
After landing and the Dalai Lama’s exit, I thought to myself: “Wow it cannot get any better than this.” And then I looked up. The Himalayans are absolutely gorgeous. Like always, the pictures do not do it justice. Landing into Dharamsala was like a breath of fresh air. Although I liked Delhi, it was nice to breath the air off the mountains and take in the quiet atmosphere. This may sound strange but when we were driving up to the flats, the only thing I was thinking was: “I love this place, 4 weeks is definitely not long enough”. This was before we got to the flats. I feel like I am living in luxury (Indian luxury of course). We have a beautiful view from our balcony and the inside of the apartments are incredible. The roads are rough, steep, and very windy (very much like Saba), which adds to the uniqueness of this place.
My placement starts tomorrow (Tuesday). I will try to write again very soon as I will probably have a lot to say!
Dalai Lama's reception at airport
Those are incense burning, not smoke.xoxo
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jessica
non-member comment
this is amazing!!! :)