Monday, 22 April 2013

Monasteries, Monks and Markets

19 APRIL 2013 Had an interesting day today in and around Gangtok. Set off after breakfast to Rumtek Monastery. It was a slower journey there than expected because today is a holy day in Buddhism and Hinduism, and there was a steady stream of traffic trying to get up a narrow road, wi some vehicles trying to travel down in the opposite direction. At the entrance gate we had to hand in our passports, before walking past a series of curio shops, fluttering prayer flags and numerous prayer wheels, to reach the monastery. A superficial search ensued, before we were able to go in. Rumtek is the main monastery for one of the schools of Buddhism and was established in this area when they fled Tibet after the Chinese invasion. Unlike the ancient and relatively plainly styled buildings we had seen in Delhi, Jaipur and Agra, the monastery was multi-coloured and bright, and obviously a much newer structure, having been built in the 1960s. THE COLOURFUL MONASTERY We were able to go inside, although again had to take our shoes off, and unfortunately were not able to take photographs inside. The relics of the 16th Gywala Karmapa, who died in 1981, are housed in a golden reliquary. The monks were unfortunately extremely reluctant to be photographed, and so I was left only with some distant, quickly grabbed shots. THE VIEW OF A MONK We also visited a nearby Stupa, which again houses various documents and important relics. We failed to really understand what Buddhism is all about, and the same applied to,this building, although it appears to be intended to provide protection for the local population. Children are sent by their parents, who select one of their sons, at the age of 5. They are then educated at the monastery, although much of the education appears to be directly related to Buddhism, with very little in the way of a general education. With this as their background, they are expected at the age of 17, to make their final decision, and if they choose to follow the life of a monk, they are then permanently live a monastic life. They could, or would, only leave under very exceptional circumstances, such as the need to care for parents. Leaving under any other circumstances would be considered to bring dishonour on their family. We also visited the Institute of Tibetology, which was not particularly interesting, and in the afternoon visited another, smaller monastery, Enchery Monastery, which is an older building, constructed in the early 1900s, and is more specifically linked to the town of Gangtok. After this we then visited the local shopping area. At first this was disappointing as we wherein the crowded Mahatma Gandhi Marg, which is relatively new, although not modern by Western standards. We then moved on to the colourful bazaars below it, which was much more interesting. However, the real interest came when we went into the local market, a massive 4 storey building, with the first two floors devoted to fruit and vegetables, with clothing, furniture, and carpets above. The range of fruit and vegetables was stunning, with many that we had neither seen, nor indeed heard of before. They were displayed in a colourful manner, and were a dream to photograph. It was also incredibly refreshing to have local people who were happy to have a photograph taken without demanding money as in the first part of our holiday in Rajasthan. In fact they were asking for a photograph to betaken, posing happily and engaging and smiling, and enjoying looking at the back of the camera to see the finished product, laughing and joking with their friends and with me. VEGETABLE SELLER href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEoTRkDeoyLIEEX9yhm-TKC46vW8DrziF6O56uzhnQwg5TazVemZXgz1jGNK1hFvffhLauV6vUIgkS2eSPH6VBpia9pHZBqCLKKOhh8j_GDaP15f7JfTaIvcJviVsU6uhUH9EgzV6pjgkf/s1600/_DSC8867.jpg" imageanchor="1" > INDIAN B&Q Not only where the market stall holders happy for photos to be taken, but also others walking around the market, and wherever we walked people would acknowledge us and smile at us in a very friendly manner. After a walk back to the hotel, we were able to sit outside and enjoy "afternoon tea", and later dinner. We actually had a good meal, a complete contrast to last night, when we were served pork which was inedible. As we started to eat the skies opened, and we were treated to torrential rain and an impressive thunderstorm. Hopefully it will mean once again that we have good weather tomorrow, a thought that I took with me as I settled down for an early night with the alarm set for 4am, with the plan being to visit Tashi viewpoint and hopefully a good sun rise over Khangchendzonga range, Khanchendzonga being the third highest mountain in the world at 8586 metres. 20 APRIL 2013 Well, that was a waste of time. Got up just before 4am and was leaving hotel by 4.15, but it was very cloudy and as it became slightly lighter, it was clear that there was not going to be a significant sun rise. That's how it turned out to be when I was set up at Tashi viewpoint, as there were heavy clouds and mist rolling down into the valley. Headed back to hotel for about 6am and discovered that even if I had stayed in bed that I wouldn't have had much more sleep. Cherith was disturbed at 4.30 by a hammering on the front door of the hotel, and a blaring of a car horn. Then she was further disturbed at 5.40. We had been woken early the previous morning, and it sounded as though there were a gang of school boys playing football outside our bedroom window. When we got up and looked out of the window, we discovered that there was a large football stadium on the other side of the 20yard wide strip of lawn outside our window. It was a beautiful stadium with lovely mountain scenery in the background, but very noisy and about 150 children and adults were training. OUR EARLY MORNING ALARM CALL This morning the first noise was a bugle call at 5.40, followed by a practice session with a PA system, and then a full blown training, fitness, aerobic session which continued until just after 7am, accompanied by the instructor on the PA system, and lots of military style manoeuvres and shouting by a group of almost 200 people taking part. We will certainly be advising that this is a hotel that should be taken off the list. Left the hotel at 9am to head, initially in rainy weather, out of Sikkim with further bureaucracy and paper work, and on to Kalimpong, where the sun was trying to shine. Kalimpong used to be the resting place for traders coming out of China on the Silk Road, to trade their silk with the Maharajas in India. Although still a typical Indian town, with dust, rubble, dirt, noise and chaos, it did again appear to have slightly more substantial buildings. We got out of the vehicle and wandered through the town, and eventually into the outdoor market, held every Saturday. Like the indoor market we went round yesterday, it was a fantastic experience and a real assault on all of our senses - well at least sight, smell, touch and sound, although we didn't actually taste anything. There were vegetables and fruits in huge quantities, with many we didn't recognise, although Abishek kept us well informed. There were spices, lentils and beans, nuts and the occasional chicken in a basket awaiting its fate. It was great to watch and photograph the traders weighing out their wares on old fashioned balance scales, and men and women carrying huge loads, which were carried supported by a piece of material around their forehead and balanced on their backs. SELLING VEGETABLES - APPROVED BY WEIGHTS AND MEASURES? CHOOSE YOUR CHICKEN DINNER FOR TONIGHT NEPALESE STYLE RING PIERCINGS COLOURFUL SPICES MARKET PORTER About 2pm we headed to our hotel, Orchid Retreat, a little way outside of the town. Although basic, as is likely to be the case for all hotels in this area, it is comfortable and clean. We had a few sandwiches for lunch, before a wander around their lovely natural and rambling gardens, trying to avoid standing on a variety of species of orchids which were growing wild on the paths, and at the same time observing some of the many variety of birds, many of which we had never seen before. We spent the rest of the afternoon recovering from an early start, reading our books, observing another spectacular thunderstorm, and then again enjoying a well cooked and spiced Indian meal. 21 APRIL 2013 A lazy day today. Woken early, but this time by bird song and the occasional dog barking. After a leisurely breakfast, we set off at 10am to visit another monastery and this time I was allowed to take photographs of the very colourful and ornate interior. A FOLLOWER OF BUDDHISM We then visited two nurseries, the second of which contained a fantastic collection of flowering cacti, of all shapes and sizes. A final visit to another monastery, again with interior photographs, before returning to our hotel for a lazy afternoon, reading, bird watching, dozing and then watching the torrential rain. The weather is unseasonably wet, and as the day drew on, the rain got heavier. It was fantastic to watch the dark, threatening clouds moving across the sky and mingling with the mist raising from the valley. Our views across to Kalimpong were great, and then completely disappeared as the rain closed in. Another good meal, with very different cuisine to the earlier part of our trip. As with many other aspects of the area there is a strong influence from nearby Tibet, Nepal and China. An early night and ready to move on to Darjeeling tomorrow, and presumably a few cups of tea.

No comments:

Post a Comment