Tibetan Settlements

As I went back and read some of what I have posted over the last week, it would seem that our adventure is going terribly. Rotting dogs and crazed hordes of temple-goers were almost all that I wrote about. But this is only half the story---and since it's such good story material, I had to include it. There are more relaxed aspects of our trip.

Take, for example, our present location. Bylakuppe is the largest settlement of Tibetan refugees in India. This place has such a beautiful scenery and landscape, I feel lucky to be here. In the background of the image below is the Sakya Monastery, one of the more modest monasteries in the settlements. We are spending a few days at their guest-house.

UPDATE: Many readers have sent requests for information about how to stay at this guest house. I am not providing any information other than to note that Bylakuppe is a refugee settlement, and it is the policy of the Indian government that foreigners are not allowed to stay in such areas unless they obtain a permit in advance. So far as I know, the only place to obtain such a permit is in Delhi.

It feels in many ways that we are not in India anymore. The Tibetans are lovely and very nice, and thankfully they hardly notice us. I have commented previously about the kind of staring and oogling we receive in India. It's quite overwhelming sometimes, and we have seen none of it here. These people are more "cool" as in "too cool for school." Small groups of young monks scoot around on motorbikes and look very stylish in their Nike footwear. It's all kind of surreal. And they are not interested in us.

I mentioned that we're staying here for a couple of days. This has become somewhat of a pattern for us. We'll bike for a long day and then find a place we like and stay for at least two nights. We have used the time here in Bylakuppe to do some serious relaxation and recuperation. I have finished my second book (a trashy novel) and Monica has finished her third. Unstructured time. Down time.

As I look back, I spent the last five years on my first real job, getting my Master's Degree, an experiment with homeownership, the flowering of my relationship with Monica. In the last year we had the fortune of having Monica's sister stay with us. This trip to India is, more than I had expected, a chance to look back on that and reflect on the changes in myself. When I stop and think about it, I have not had this much unstructured time since before I went to college. Ten years ago I was rambling around the American wilderness, looking for rocks and mountains to climb. I think that I have grown since then, but I can't quite be sure.

Our next destination is the Honey Valley Estates, a lovely mountain hotel located in the Kodagu region of western Karnataka. We'll use the place as a basecamp for an ascent of the area's highest mountain, or maybe strolls through the neighboring coffee plantations. Life sure is rough.