Julley! Returning from amazing India

Julley, a word in the Himalayan Ladakhi language similar to the Italian Ciao; used for hello, good to see you, good bye, take care; said as speaker raises hand over the third eye region of the forehead as a sign of greeting and respect.

Just back after a month excursion that took me up to Ladakh, the northern kingdom of India and the Himalayan/Zanskar mountain ranges. 

Traveling with a small group of 3 other volunteers to the Siddhartha School, a private Buddhist school serving students ages 3-18 in the village of Stok, we embarked one  a non-stop marathon travel itinerary, leaving Boston, MA on June 24 and arriving at 11,500 feet in Leh, India via Amsterdam and New Delhi, on June 26 at 7:00 am.   

The order of day 1 was rest and acclimatize so in this way, the exhaustion of our journey worked in our favor.  By dinner time, we were just able to amble out for a meal, slowly making our way through the capital city of Leh to the scrumptious Tibetan Kitchen Restaurant, an old favorite from my previous trip in 2005.    The next day, we hired a taxi to take us up to the Shanti Stupa, built by a group of Japanese Buddhists; it sits high on a hillside overlooking the city and was out of our capacity on day 2 to reach by foot.  The view is stupendous and the artwork vividly details scenes from the Buddha's life and awakening.  

Day 3 we felt more adventuresome and undertook a 3 hour drive out to Alchi, a 14th century Buddhist gompa (monastery) and Likir from the same era, home to an unusually situated outdoor 8 story high Maitreya Buddha, the Buddha of the future.  We beheld the stunning artwork, frescoes still amazingly preserved after hundreds of years, spun prayer wheels and made friends with the lamas at Likir. 

Literally.  We are friends on Facebook now!  Welcome to the 21st century of global connection.

My traveling companions: Scott, a 50 year old motorcycle riding, multifaceted writer and bird watching Buddhist shaman; Madeline, a 22 year old Art/French major just popped out of the Bates College bubble, artist on the magical mystery tour with new found soulmate Myla, a creative, witty 20 year old feminist, American studies major at Carleton, who happens to be from Brunswick, a town nearby my home in Bowdoin, Maine.   So, we were a mixed media crew but with synergy and chemistry that, indeed, blended well.  

By day 4 we were ready to follow our binding thread to the village of Stok.  We were all primarily in to India to volunteer in one way or another at the Siddhartha School and now that we had adjusted to the air at 11,500 feet we could begin to establish a schedule to teach.  I brought 5 digital cameras to teach photography to the students and staff, and the two young women brought supplies to teach art and science.  Scott, as a member of the board of directors and sponsor to a young student, had his own initiatives to undertake.  So, on Monday it was off to school.

That is an update on the beginnings, more adventures high in the Himalayas to follow...stay tuned and Go Love.

Lisa