Friday

Hey folks,
Thanks for the kind words to everyone who commented! it was starting to feel like I was writing to myself!

So today is friday and I'm still sick.. Its not terrible, just a bad head cold. BUT, I took this opportunity to explore Tibetan Medicine. I went to the Men Tsee Kong clinic a few days ago and saw a traditional Tibetan doctor. The way that Tibetan Medicine works is they talk to you and read your pulse to tell whats wrong. By reading your pulse they can literally figure out what is happening in your body, the causes, and how to fix it. Its pretty crazy. So the doctor and another younger Tibetan woman who I assumed was an apprentice doctor both read my pulse while asking questions about the sickness. They then gave me a series of Tibetan medicine that I have to take after each meal for 1 week. I have 3 different medicines, I take a different one after each meal. They are small brown pills that I crush up and then eat with hot water or tea. They taste terrible, very bitter, but at the same time, they're made out of plants collected in Tibet and Ladakh in the Himalayas. Theres no chemicals in Tibetan medicine! You also need to have faith in the medicine for it to work. They say you normally get worse before you get better while taking Tibetan medicine because instead of treating symptoms it teaches your body how to fight the sickness. So hence I am still sick! But hopefully it will be done soon.

So Renee brought up an important point about Nepal that has the potential to impact my semester. The Maoists, who have been working with the Nepali government for the past two years have withdrawn from the government and are beginning "three weeks of street protests." They are upset because, among many other things, the government has refused to abolish the monarchy before the upcoming national elections. SO, this, paired with the bombings in Kathmandu two weeks ago, may result in a change of plan for us. SIT is still figuring out if we will be allowed to go, it may be too dangerous, but we'll see how the next few weeks go. Unfortunately, if we can't go to Nepal, then we won't go to Tibet either, because it is much more difficult and expensive to go to Tibet without going through Nepal. So if we are unable to go to Nepal, we will probably go to Bhutan instead. While I would be really disappointed to not go to Tibet, Bhutan would be a pretty incredible experience. It is still within the realm of Tibetan civilization, and it is the home of Gross National Happiness.

Anyway, that is the latest update from me. Still plugging along! I promise I'll get some more pictures up soon! This is the only one I have because I used it in a paper I just turned in. It is the front of the Tsuglagkhang Temple at Namgyal Monastery. The steps face the front entrance to His Holiness the Dalai Lama's compound. Speaking of His Holiness, we are going to receive teachings from him in October! And we're trying hard to get a private audience as well...


Peace,
Sam

Tibetan:
Aa gi lobtra re = That is a school
Nga tso lobtruk re = We are students
Nga tso trom la dro gi yin = We are going to the market
Nga po-ke yakpo yew! = Tibetan is good! :)