Whilrwind Wedding Week

I bounced my way into McLeod Ganj this morning, home of the Tibetan government in exile and H.H. the Dalai Lama. Traveling from Rishikesh, our luxury bus turned sports car sped through the night north from Uttarakhand to Himachal Pradesh. Of course, we made a few chai stops along the way - always a bizarre feeling going from wild driving to calming chai.

A random stop at a roadside Dhaba along the way

I've only been here for half a day but I'm already in love with McLeod Ganj. Rishikesh feels like India -  McLeod Ganj feels like Tibet. McLeod Ganj is upper Dharamsala, Dharamsala proper filling the valley below McLeod Ganj's enlightened perch. It's quiet and quaint, and much cleaner than Rishikesh. Many of the people are Tibetan and the influence of its' culture permeates the town.

At the onset of my decision to travel to India, I knew I wanted to come to McLeod Ganj. Interested in Buddhism and searching for Himalayan panoramas, it seemed there was no better place to visit on the planet (except for maybe Tibet itself).  I soon learned that the Dalai Lama was giving a teaching at his home temple towards the end of October. After arriving in Rishikesh and my plans for Arunachal Pradesh developed, I was really excited when it appeared I could time my visit to McLeod Ganj to coincide with the Dalai Lama's teaching from Oct. 29-31st.

Arriving at 6:30am this morning sans housing arrangements,  I soon realized that I might have made a mistake not booking a place to stay in advanced. My professor from UCSB who I consulted when planning my trip to India recommended I stay at the Tibetan Ashoka Guesthouse, owned by former personal physician to the Dalai Lama, world-renowned Dr. Yeshi Dhonden. The only caveat was that they don't allow advance reservations. Finding my way to the slightly hidden guesthouse, the lady at the desk told me there was only one room available at the moment and there were many people in line ahead of me. After quickly checking out another guesthouse nearby run by a Tibetan monastery that was booked for the next three days, I scrambled to find a place to set my belongings down, tired from the restless overnight journey. Most of the Lonely Planet recommendations were booked and it appeared that arriving to McLeod Ganj on the eve of a Dalai Lama teaching without a guesthouse arrangement was not a great move. In the midst of sorting out my living situation, I found the Security Office for the Tibetan Government in Exile where one has to register to get a seat in the temple for the teaching. Two passport photos and a short questionnaire later, I had my registration card - much easier than I anticipated, but still glad I showed up with plenty of time to spare.

My registration card with some Tibetan love on my wall

After sorting out my registration, just for good measure I went back to the Ashoka Guesthouse to double-check that there were no rooms available  As I was walking in, a lady was checking out! I ended up with a top-story room with lots of sun that opens to the main balcony with views of Himalayan peaks and Dharamsala valley.

My abode...room #17

The view from the deck of the Tibetan Ashoka guesthouse

I'm sitting in a hip restaurant, finally relaxing after a crazy past few days.


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Monday, Oct. 22nd, was the end of the 6-day Durga Puja holiday. Of course, there was a feast to celebrate and myself, Flow, Ganesh, and Arvind were invited to lunch at Master Ji's "flat" just above my apartment. I was excited for my first true homemade Indian feast, but a bit scared. Indian's love to eat! What started out reasonable turned into insanity - at any sight of my plate empty of one dish or the other, it was immediately replenished. This happened over and over again, no thanks to Flow who was egging on Master Ji and his family serving us! I'm not sure if I've ever been that full before...

Just the beginning....

On Tuesday, I guided a full-day trip on the Ganga - a really fun 36km stretch of big-volume class III rapids. With only one boat needed, I was appointed trip leader with Rakesh, my good buddy, our safety kayaker. It's a bit interesting to to trip lead a trip when you can't communicate with half of the team (driver, gear manager, etc). Nonetheless, the trip went great...enjoy the short video I put together of our trip shot from a GoPro on my helmet.

                                         

After rafting, it was wedding time. For Hindus, marriages are not allowed from mid-July to mid-October. The third week in October was the first week for weddings in nearly 4 months (this mainly has to do with weddings not taking place during the monsoon). Furthermore, Wednesday was the Hindu holiday Dussehra - making it the most popular day for weddings all year. Downtown Rishikesh was lit up by weddings and on the way to Mahveer's pre-wedding party on Tuesday night, we must have passed 30 or 40 other weddings. It's wild to think that for these two or three days, the 23rd-25th, almost everyone in Rishikesh was surely attending a wedding somewhere. Tuesday was essentially the bachelor party as Mahveer's soon-to-be wife celebrated with her family elsewhere. I won't go into details but I will say that towards the end of the night, as everyone was in full-on party mode, I walked outside to check out where the loud Indian dance music was coming from. It was initially quite shocking to find a group of 30 Indian men full-on dancing together, not a woman in sight. They really love to dance, and they really love to dance with each other!

After a slow start the next morning, I took it easy in preparation for the real deal. Picking up our starched and pressed Kurta Pajamas, it was fun to get into the spirit of wedding season in India. Around 7:30pm, we met in the Red Chilli office to capture what felt like Halloween for all of us foreigners.

Goofy foreigners

Weddings in India (or at least Rishikesh) during this time are held outside in big squares contained by open-roofed tents of traditional Indian design. "Christmas" lights mark the entrances and the events are vivid and colorful affairs. As we entered Mahveer's wedding, it was a hodge-podge of tradition and modernity. On one hand, you had Mahveer and his now wife, Vera sitting on a stage, Vera dressing in a flashy traditional Saree as family members and friends all took their turns congratulating the newly-weds and taking photos.
The couple kept a straight face during the procession as part of tradition, showing that the couple understands the immensity of marriage and all that comes with it. On the other hand, you had small kids dancing their hearts out to blaring new-age Indian dance music in jeans and t-shirts. There was heaps of food and we all eat way too much.

Veer & Vera

Arvind, mob boss of Rishikesh, decided that we should leave Veer's wedding and make an appearance at the wedding on the most popular night to get married in Rishikesh. The couple's parents and relatives were big businessmen and politicians. While there is a lot of poverty in India, there is also a lot of wealth. This wedding was immense even for U.S. standards. There must have been over 20 Indian dishes to eat, endless sweets, and enough sparkle from the women's Sarees to light up the city on their own. It made Veer's wedding seem very local and it was interesting to see the difference wealth and power makes in India - a country where it takes more than just a good person to obtain to riches and influence (baksheesh anyone? :) ).

Thursday I woke up late again and went downtown to mail some postcards. Total cost to mail four postcards from India to the U.S. - 60 rupees, $1.20. I don't understand how it is cheaper to mail a postcard from India to the U.S. than it is to mail a postcard across town back in the States. I hope they make it!

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The Dalai Lama's teaching is quickly approached and I'm looking forward to spending the next few days recovering from all the madness of this past week while hunting and poking around McLeod Ganj - there's lots I want to do. After the teachings, I plan to meet up with Red Chilli co-owner Vipin and do some paragliding in Bir, a small town east of Dharamsala. Jumping of Himalayan passes and flying down into the valleys below - yes please! From Bir, I'll travel to Manali to catch what is supposed to be an absolutely beautiful place before it gets too cold. My plan is to make it back to Rishikesh just in time for Diwali, a.k.a. the fireworks of Fourth of July & the gifting of Christmas jammed into one holiday, multiplied to Indian proportions.

I'll write again as I explore more of McLeod Ganj. I'm off to find a book or two from the Tibetan Library so I can learn a bit about what the Dalai Lama is going to talk about and catch up on some needed sleep. Until next time...