Finshing my relates about our October holidays: Dharamsala/Mc Leod Ganj

Ok, this is my thrid and last related about our October Holidays, to catch up with the two other places visited, visit my Manali and Delhi posts written in the past days.

Now, let's focus on Dharamsala/Mc Leaod Ganj.

Before coming to Dharamsala/Mc Leaod Ganj I must admit I hardly new 1 % of what this place was all about. What a shame - but yes ... I knew that the Dalai Lama and its tibetean community lived there but I was really far away of understanding what the real conditions of their exile were and what the Dalai Lama's real mission was. While being there and having a better glimpse of that, we remembered the "furor" that had the last visit of the Dalai Lama to Colombia and how in our country the majority of the people certainly see in the Dalai Lama only a "peace and love messenger" sometimes "guru", which again is really far way of what he really stands for.

Before you askyourself about it, no, unfortunately we did not see the Dalai Lama, same day that we arrived he left to Japan for some days. Nebertheless, we never really checkd prior coming if he would be there or not.

Street of Mc Lead Ganj

Mc Leod Ganj is exactly the town where the Dalai Lama House and main Temple is. The town is basically upper Dharamsala and is the tourist hub. It is full of backpackers and hippy style tourists. I make the disclaimer that there is nothing wrong with that, but what concerned me a bit is that some people gave the impression be playing to dress or act like that, just because they were there and they felt like being part of the Dharamsala tourist culture. But again it's my personal, most probably wrong, impression.

We stayed 3 days in Mc Leod Ganj. One day of course we focused in visiting the Dalai Lama House and Temple. Awesome in essence, the temple however was very simple, at least much less luxurious or ostentous that what I had imagine.


Halls inside the Dalai Lama Temple


Buddha - Dalai Lama Temple

From the temple itself you have nice views of Mc Lead Ganj itself. You see some local people praying on the floor, as well you see many monks in sort of class rooms around the temple.

Dalai Lama Temple


Next day we explored the town, bought some buddist realted books, visited the Tibetean Museum and even saw a great documental about a group of Tibeteans that reached Mc Leod Ganj after a painful experience crossing the HImalayas. I advice all people to please visit this museum inside the Temple, is amazingly simple, even small but very contundet in its messages.


View from Dalai Lama Temple

One of the most amazing experiences however we had the next day, when we joined the morning payers of local buddist.

These people with rosaries in hand walk a small hill every morning, going up and down, praying while they do it until they reach the temple up there. It all happens at 6.00 - 6.30 a.m., perfect time to also see the sunrise from the hills. This same day we also went to the so called Holy Lake, a very small lake near the town.

Temple whete the locals go every early morning


Prayer Wheels


Explanation of the mani prayer wheel: A prayer wheel is a wheel on a spindle, and on the wheel are written or encapsulated prayers or mantras. According to the Tibetan Buddhist belief, spinning such a wheel will have much the same effect as orally reciting the prayers

In difference to Manali, of course Dharamsala/Mc Leaod Ganj is rather an cultural (spiritual for those who really do it seriously) than a natural experience, it's a town of beautiful sunsets and sunrises and loaded by traditions and costumers from a nation (Tibet) that even if are not in India by its own desire, do the best every day to deal with their reality and have an amazing optimism that one day, there will be a free Tibet.

Sunrise in Mc Leaod Ganj