Dharamsala – Or is it Tibet?

For the final organized trip for the Lauder Hindi track, we were off to Dharamsala, Himachal Pradesh.  For various reasons, what was a Lauder event turned into an optional trip, however I wasn’t going to miss the chance to visit the home of the Dalai Lama.  Dharamsala is where the Dalai Lama has taken exile and a number of Tibetans have followed him.  In order to get to Dharamsala, we hopped onto an overnight train and then took a 3 hour taxi to get to Mcleod Ganj (the touristy part of Dharamsala).

Now before I talk about Dharamsala itself, let me tell you a little about Indian trains.  The overnight trains are a lot of fun – you get your own little section, you play cards, read a book, gossip for a while and then go to sleep in bunk beds (stacked in sets of 3 beds).  Now the less enjoyable part is after you’ve gone to sleep.  The train makes a few stops along the way and then you have random people coming into your section turning on your lights.  Or trying to steal your pillow.  Or pulling out your phone charger to charge their own phone (don’t ask me why they can’t charge it in their own damn section).  In any case – all of this happened to my poor friend who was desperately trying to get some sleep and not only did it wake him up each time but the rest of us too!  Can’t we have a little bit of common courtesy please?!?

In any case, after arriving in Dharamsala, we decided to take a trek to the Bhagsu waterfall.  We were given very vague instructions on how to get there so before we knew it we were going off road on the mountain.  It was all good fun though as we found a few mountain goats who took quite the liking to us and followed us along the way.  The goats were uber cute and mostly harmless.  Well, apart from when they decided to fight, ramming into each other head to head!  The waterfall itself was scenic but nothing incredibly amazing (I do come from Canada which just happens to have the largest natural waterfall in the world – perhaps I’m a little biased?).  What I did find spectacular though was how the clouds went in and out of the peaks and valleys – it made for some phenomenal views.

The next day, we went to the Norbulingka Institute.  The chaos that is India completely disappeared in this small compound.  The grass looked greener, the air seemed fresher and there was a relaxing peacefulness about the place – well, until the mosquitos started feasting on my ankles!  Regardless, it was a very enjoyable monastery.

Over the next couple of days, I also hit up the 17^th Karmapa monastery, the Tsuglangkhang complex (where the Dalai Lama lives) and another temple that’s hidden away in the forest.  I accidently came up on this temple wandering on a small path through the forest and still have no idea what it’s called.  I actually found it more fascinating than the one in the Tsuglangkhang complex, so anyone going there please go check it out – walk down the road around the backside of the Tsuglangkhang complex (it’s a 15-20 minute walk).

The trip to Dharamsala wouldn’t be complete without mentioning the food.  The Peace Café surely has the best brownies in all of India!  It was so good that I went back there a second time just for the brownie!  Other than that, I found the Tibetan and Bhutanese food quite enjoyable – momos, thukpa and thenthuk.  Overall, Dharamsala made for a very enjoyable low-key weekend, exactly what I need before heading back to Philadelphia for the Wharton MBA pre-term.