Priceless!

Things I've been lucky enough to do in the last few days:

1. Receive a huge hug and a white scarf (kata, or blessing) from the owner of the Hotel Shree Tibet, who said I was "very, very nice girl." This is a Tibetan tradition bestowed upon guests, holy men, and statues of deities. (Aside: At the monestary here in Mcleod Ganj, it looks as if deities also get offerings of food, such as boxes of Chips Ahoy. No kidding.)
2. Sit on a 12-hour bus ride next to an elderly monk who made sure that his wool blanket covered us both from head to toe.
3. Sit in the courtyard between the Dalai Lama's residence and his monestary and watch Buddhist monks debate each other for over an hour. They debated in pairs, one standing and one sitting. I have no idea what they were debating, but the debates were loud and animated--each point was emphasized with a dramatic hand clap from the standing monk, his hands just inches from the nose of the sitting monk. They yelled, clapped, laughed, and pushed each other around in fun...a far cry from the usual vision of silent or chanting monks. I have video, which I've been trying to load for an hour now but I don't think it will work. The connection here is just too slow. So for now, you'll just have to take my word for it; it was one of the coolest things I've ever seen. The girl sitting next to me put it best, "There isn't anywhere else in the world I'd rather be right now."
   
   Namaste!