Please all replys to woolsey@chocodog.com hi pals Reaction to my first email has been swift and gratifying The first reply came from Mongolia and others from Finland and Italy. Ahab may have an answer to our memory problems. Because of the cost the Library has cut internet use down to two hours a day so if you don't get a reply it doesn't mean I didn't read and enjoy. thanks again to Mickey for doing the harder work Last Sunday I went up to McLeod and the swearIing mass of humanity has to be described: monks of all ages in thier maroon robes circle the central stupa, Tibetans the elder ladies in traditional dress the young in jeans the Indian tourists wearing there finest clothes in mostly lite pastels The westerners in a mishmash of Tibetan Indian and hippy styles in a kaleidoscope of bright colors making my wildest dress a wall flower. Here a lady in white Sufi dress there a guy with red and orange horizontal striped pants and a loud green Tibetan shirt another as an orange sadhu Piercing this crowd are motorcycles, three wheel mini cabs, tourist vans, personal cars of Indian tourists and the occasional Bus. add the decrepit beggars working this crowd to complete the picture. The above does not to justice to the scene .When I first came here in 81 the Hotel Tibet was the most impressive building here now it is dwarfed on all sides by at least one storey and the building continues up and up. Further down the hill on land that used to be mud slide zones are now covered with guest houses and this an area of infrequent earthquakes.I have been here for a couple very minor ones Always something new, this morning on the way to breakfast there was a small troop of monkeys sat on the wall near the gate. As I past them about six feet away I'm sure I was more worried about them then they me. Monkeys are not rare here you see them on the edge of the forest or running along the cables down in the market. Hanuman the Hindu monkey god is reviered here and in past bus drivers used to stop and feed a troop a couple loaves of bread for luck. Think I have seen 3 different types. a second troop has appeared the are grey with much longer tails than the light brown ones and have tufted ears Among other things the library has a world class museum and as such is considered a holy place by Tibetans. To gain merit it is circled (clockwise) all day and late into the night mostly by the elderly often with thier grandchildren but people of all ages take part. They chat recite prayers and keep track of the number of circuits (cora). Even I make a few rounds now and then-can't hurt. The Library has gotten a new director since I was here last, Lhakdor, formally of the Private Office and a translator for the Dalai Lama has assumed command. He provides much needed leadership and direction. something we have lacked for the last few years. It is a hard job will little funding and increasing costs. The hardest part is keeping our young scholars who are caught is a trap. On one hand it is an honor to work for the Library on the other if the government in exile can make a deal with china they really can't go back. The prospects of a job in India are slim so they must go west. so one is teaching at U. of Indiana another getting a Masters at Harvard his replacement goes to the stales next year for higher studies. our western reference Librarian' s wife is in Canada so he will go fairly soon and so it goes. Monsoon is officially over the mountains have lost thier vail of rain clouds and can be seen clearly ours is green to the summit those behind are grey rock with a very slight dusting of snow. the sky is that non polluted blue during the day and a vast panorama of stars at night. Warm almost hot during the day cool at night what more could you ask for. Hopefully this will last tiI the middle of December On a more a sober note saw a sign that other day that our taxi association is the largest union in the state and I believe it. Between the official tourist taxis and vans, the red stripe jeeps which cram 10 people plus the driver for local routes, plus some Iocal buses you have 50 percent of the traffic. of which almost half of the tourist vans zip about empty. oh almost forgot the little 3 wheelers of which there maybe 40, which unless your behind one are are a minor hassle. Got a rap about Tibetan Incense the other day.the real contains 63 separate ingredients some extremely hard to find like musk and an unnamed small animal shell. My informant derided most a Tibetan incense made in exile and claimed Potata Incense is the closest to the traditional In the last century they had mourning Stationary that had a black black stripe around the edge. Please think of this email as having such a stripe. this is for Barry Taylor known to many as BT a fixture at Frans Pub. He was good man and a long time friend (first met in 66) he lived at the house for a couple years, never a problem but I admit he probably snuck a couple dope deals past me. a good guiter player in his time he played in a few local bands and with John Lee Hooker's band on the west coast for a while. an honest drug dealer (a rare thing) a deadly pool player. I remember his passion rock collecting and spent hours listening to his stories about them. I was proud to to add a couple fossils to his collection. True he fell into the bottle in the last few years but think that came when he forgot his dreams and got a real job. 9 to 5 can do that to you and even then he was a good loyal worker. When I get home I will have a beer and a toke to his memory.May we meet next time around. one month down be well peace jim the Library website is www.ltwa.net for pics of the area www.tibetsites.com/gallery/index.htm complements of out web master this later site has a mass of pictures of not only Dharamsala but the surrounding Tibetan monasteries Quite a collection unfortunately not labeled -- Jim Woolsey 6 Stoney Hill New Hope PA 18938-1216 USA (215) 862-5806 all reply to woolsey@chocodog.com please First a correction from Thupten Rikey in Finland "Sita returned to Ram on Diwali day, rather than Parvati to Shiav! The latter reunion is known as Shivaratri and this festival takes place in the spring." Oct 23rd was upper TCV (Tibetan Childrens Village) Day I joined thousands in attendance for the opening ceremonies. The Dalai Lama spoke-didn't even know he was back -though about what I have no clue. The hit in my mind was abort 350 first and second graders singing and doing arm gestures-too much a few always out of sync but trying so hard. after them the Tibetans singing and dancing in full costume paled. This boarding school has thousands of kids mostly sent by thier parents from Tibet. a terrible journey trying to dodge the Chinese army which has been highlighted in the news lately. self defend indeed that news led to a large march the next day by hundreds of Tibetans protesting the killing of at least one nun trying to flee. Understand those that made it out will be here in a few days. unfortunately the government in exile here has been very low keyed about this incident so far which I can't understand seems tailor made for the cause.Its a shame that they equate nonviolence with inaction sorry to rant on the monkey front saw a very large grey one (found out thier Langurs, not monkeys who live normally high in the mountains and only come down in the winter) sitting on a railing his tail must have been 3 feet long he calmly swatted at the dogs trying in full voice to dislodge him. People say they consider stareing at them in the eye they take as a challenge else pretty passive personally I wouldn't get near them when they bare thier teeth and grunt it's scarey! the little redish brown ones look cute and scatter easily but who knows yesterday my old Tai Chi teacher showed up after removing 34 viri from his computer give him a load of ebooks the look on his face as he looked Thru a Chinese Language History of china made my collecting feel worthwhile. I must hunt for more on return. Perhaps I can get a xmas present from my IRC pals. Had forgotten new many younger Tibetans read Chinese better then English. The only thing I have to say about the election results is about time !! i'm so lucky to have a wide network of friends thanks to email. I could never feel so plugged in with snail mail. Remember when I used to have questions for Colin in New Zealand would send them by mail and by the time I got on answer from him I had forgotten the question. I didn't realize how many Tibetans have washing machines. I broke down and asked someone to please wash my laundry no problem she said, but later got Kidnapped on the way to deliver it by another machine under the guise of looking at a broken computer. Now that I have a room in the "scholars" block, am away from the communal washing spots hand so clothes washing is no fun. Now I don't get the chance to watch Raju (called by me the fish) at work. He is a Hindu kid who minds the two year old daughter (a real sweetheart) of our book sales lady. Never have I seen anyone have so much fun washing his clothes. I've seen him spend hours on a pair of pants. He turns the mundane into an art. a real nice kid always with a smile. wensday night one of the Tibetan Thanks painter is marrying a Russian lady he has been living with for a couple years. Should be a big bash. the combination of Russians and Tibetans should be great fun. Stay tuned I didn't realize how many Tibetans have washing machines. I broke down and asked someone to please wash my laundry no problem she said, but later got Kidnapped on the way to deliver it by another machine under the guise of looking at a broken computer. Now that I have a room in the "scholars" block, am away from the communal washing spots Now hand clothes washing is no fun. Now I don't get the chance to watch Raju (called by me the fish) at work. He is a Hindu kid who minds the two year old daughter ( a real sweetheart) of our book sales lady. Never have I seen anyone have so much fun washing his clothes. I've seen him spend hours on a pair of pants. a real nice kid. The welding started after work the card games started before the happy couple arrived. I hid out with the DJ's out of the way. the couple arrived the bride has a previous 9 year old daughter who a couple years ago was into lizards and now is into white rats she has 2 at least one of which is always with her though this time I didn't see either. Anyway both mother and daughter beamed. Groom looked nervous. The scarf (Kata) ceremony went off without a hitch.Then food and serious drink. The beat and volume of the music went up.The Russians out numbered 3 to 1 hit the dance floor. Some good dancers the best a plain lady who seemed to have no bones. the Tibetans kept on gambling though a couple joined in.Had some beers and around 10 headed home. Was more tame then I expected but good fun Was going to send this before Thanksgiving but forgot the date thought it was this week so a belated turkey day to you all. Wonder how many people remember the name of the Indian who spoke English and taught the pilgrims how to farm. To my shame I don't. Got the tickets for the train for a large part of my trip to Nepal The rest of the travel is catch as catch can. Leave here on Dec. 19 should get back Jan 5 or 6 depending on my luck. about 2 and a half days of travel each way with luck. I hope everyone is well and warm peace Jim -- Jim Woolsey 6 Stoney Hill New Hope PA 18938-1216 USA (215) 862-5806 Please all replys to woolsey@chocodog.com from George Price: "I think the Indian who met the Pilgrims was Squanto or something close" others confirmed his answer. check him out the other day a young Tibetan activist set himself a fire outside the hotel of the Chinese President Hu. Thankfully Indian police saved him with only burns to his legs The next day I asked people what the reaction would be here in Dharamsala and was told "no reaction". I was stunned Yesterday went to Naddi which is a couple miles from Tibetan childrens village it is on a ridge and on one side looks down on the plains and on the other up to the mountains from there you can see the back of our mountain and the tumble of those behind it. a great view though being diminished by construction of small hotels and tea stalls. Then stopped by the sacred Dal Lake and watched push petal plastic boats with duck and dragon heads slowly moving about in about 2 feet of water. one section aboiI as people feed bread to the coy (carp). The Lower hills are covered with pine trees with snow covered mountains behind and the overall picture makes one happy to be here even as I laugh at the boats later this week the Library is hosting a two day conference on history. Normally not a big thing but the Dalai Lama is going to address this one so everyone is going crazy making everything pretty even the banner has been done twice and the name tags reworked endlessly. More to come! at the some time we are experimenting with IPcop a Linux router to bring our network under control. Next to change all computers over to states Ips then comes all the rules. Will be interesting the history conference started this morning with as much pomp as the library could muster-speeches by the Prime Minister and the Dalai Lama were the highlights of the opening. The library staff assembled before 8 am and were put in a separate room to watch the going-ons on TV. thought great I can sneak out when the speeches (in Tibetan) begin but when they had extra seats in the main room I got stuck for the 2 hours. . The best part for me was having lunch with Jampa Samten who was one of the original computer students and now is the librarian at Sarnth (a big deal). 2 other former students also attended This mornings BBC headline is that the dollar has hit a 14 year low against major currencies. that it is almost 2 dollars to the pound (can remember when it was almost one to one). They also said it is going down further. Makes me feel lucky that my food allowance is in rupees (never thought I'd say that)! Lets hope the asian countries don't decide to dump their stash of dollars soon Cloudy the last 2 days and rain tonight the temp. is dropping guess this could be the start of winter. if its raining here it is snowing on the top of our mountain. Will see in the morning how far down it came. The rain continues hard this morning and lasts all day and into the night so I guess this is the start -- a couple weeks early. Well this is the price to pay for a beautiful fall but today clear sunny and warmer the mountains behind are now solid white with traces on the top of ours the only hassle is no power and our ups has run out so everybody is milling around in The sun. power finally comes back after five The other day on the way to breakfast a brown monkey troop was back again in full force, from about 8 babys to a large bull and on a high branch 2 mating. he would tap her on the back - she would bend over - he would give her four or five quick strokes then turn away - she would then start grooming him - a couple minutes of this and he would tap her again-repeat repeat til I was around the corner. see a few brown ones almost almost every day lately. the Langurs are higher up mostly saw a bunch playing with a few dogs up at Dal Lake - - each in turn would climb down to the ground -- attract the attention of the dogs and run to and up another tree. They would take turns doing this and drove the dogs crazy making them run round and round. I marveled at thier game a week to go to the trip to Nepal so I will send this out with Holiday good wishes and hopes for a better 07 to you all. May the music be good and friendships better. be well peace Jim Please all replys to woolsey@chocodog.com thought I would start this when I got back from Nepal and start about the trip but No -- breaking News - OM my old Sadhu buddy is alive he showed up today! He was missing last trip and i was told he died but seems he gave up the little temple he started and hit the road Now he is back and set up in the Hindu temple across the valley. a quick smoke and had to go back to work but with the promise of a longer one on my return The Trip Caught the 2:50 bus (4 - 5 hours)to Patankot in the best seat a down hill run of about 50 miles SIow with stops for tea nature and food. Patankot is on the edge of the Punjab (the best farm land in India and homeland to the Sikhs) flat with many army bases-it has 2 train stations and naturally I needed the.smaller one on the other side of town so after a short bike rickshaw ride later arrive at Chakki Bank station to wait 4 hours for the train to Gorahpur (3-4 hours from the Nepali border) which takes 24 hours. It makes a quick 5 minute stop at 12:25 in the morning right on time a train comes in the Loudspeaker blares some hindi I ask some Indians if this is train to Gorahpur With a yes I leap aboard after finding my car and we're off. Within 1O minutes I find that I'm on a train going to Pune the opposite direction. My thoughts at the time were unprintable What have I gotten myself into the conductor who has a passenger to translate for him suggests getting off at next stop and talking to the station master. I slink off the train an hour later with a few others including the guys who told me it was the right train and find him explain my problem and wait 15 minutes later he returns and tells me that the proper train will make a special stop and pick us up and 10 minutes later it does.miracle talk about a change of spirit unbelievable (may the gods bless the Indian Train system whatever its faults.) spend all day looking at fields of sisle on a flat plain and after midnight arrive at Gorahpur the bus run from here to Sonauli on the border is feared by the Tibetans and Nepali's for the attempts at bribes from the bus people, army and police. Within a couple of minutes of leaving the packed station I am stopped by the police I tell them I'm looking for bus to the border they let me go but a couple minutes later stop me again and say their boss wants to talk to me (I fear the worst though carrying no drugs) the boss says no buses til morning but admits no rooms either I say that I would rather try and push to be the border when it opens he understands and within 5 minutes I'm on a bus to the border Its the middle of the night no traffic so by 3AM I reach the border. Indian customs are sleeping on their tables I find an empty bench and lay down and try to sleep. a while later this Greek couple show up scream yell and demand to get their passports stamped. Customs complain but comply and I sneak my passport in after them. I cross into Nepal and prepare to do the bench sleep thing outside Nepali customs when a guy walks out and cheerfully gives me a visa. a couple cups of tea and 3 prices later I catch the first bus of the morning to Kathmandu feeling good. Like all buses in this part of asia the buses are beat but with strong engines. the seats are close together and I need an aisle seat to have a chance. as the haze burns off it turns into a warm day. it may be an express bus but people get on and off about every 20 minutes We zoom across the plains for a while and then up and over the foothills into a valley and after a tea brake we turn and follow a rich green color river on the Japan Nepal Highway. a true 2 lanes and much improved since my last trip. Its amazing where the Nepalis will farm every few miles we see the bridges they are famous for (these of steel though) for 3 hours we look down on the river as we slowly climb and then start the sharper up to get us up and over the lip and into the Kathmandu valley The building in the valley is constant and overwhelming the population of Nepal has doubled in the last 20 years and the troubles have driven most of this increase to the cities.we get to Ring Road ( this road used to be completely outside the city and is now deeply embedded within it) and spend the next hour and a half going 3 miles to the bus station gridlock Dharamsala to Kathmandu in 10 minutes less then 2 days.a new personal record I head into town to the Kathmandu Lodge down near Durbar Square (one of the great historic areas of the city) only to find it has closed it have stayed there every trip since 81 some great times To see it turned into a propane Distributor was heart breaking but at least its only afternoon the middle of night would have been a real hassle so I head of to the inaptly named "Freak street" to get a room. in the middle of a 4 block walk I run into a street curio seller I know from past trips. Within is minutes i have a room up in the back away from the street at the Century Lodge Nice people open since 72 the owner has an aviary on the roof (a beautiful golden headed rooster with brilliant read and blue feathers with his 2 hens, many parakeets, a crow who looked like he had 2 beaks, a dozen phesants and my favorites "coil" ground mostly bird with a Zorro mask). Later that night found my favorite Tibetan Restaurant has been replaced by a Nepali one called Freaky Deakys it played county and western standards reset to regale and in the midst of it "Rain drops keep falling on my head" straight by B.J.Thomas definitely not freaky with that comment and a couple more about the serving of Tibetan food my first day was finished. It is taking me longer to write up this trip then take it so the daily blow by blow account is over. No major hassles there or on the return trip i passed on the medicine someone needed it, found most of the people I knew from previous trips. They have had a tough time during the troubles (a power struggle between the King, government and the Maoists -none of which really care about the people, they just want to get and stay rich like politicians everywhere) there seems to be a loss of innocence since the murder of the old king and his family (on the street this is blamed on the new king and his hated son the crown prince). The wealth difference between the elite and the poor is widening This can be seen by the increase in motorcycles charging up the narrow streets of the old sections of town but most still walk. Now all want to go to USA and get rich In their minds they will get dollar wages and pay rupee expenses. all see tourists as the only other hope (they pay a lot for plastic junk and too much in general) With the average Nepali aged right around 20 and little industry i think the on going population explosion coupled with India on one side and China on the other doom it not to get out of the pit and will be swallowed up by either at some point a real shame In the section i stay in you cant go 2 blocks in any direction without coming across.a temple shrine or other place of Devotion either hindu or buddhist and many have been both at different times.Kathmandu hasn't been plundered for almost 900 years I love it but the traffic and its pollution are too much in summer must be hell at this time of year the days are warm and the nights are cool (ok for sleeping outside most of the time says Ram this battered but cool for it street guy I've known for years and who I usually have tea with in the morning in the mostly fake curio market) maybe more later a mellow couple weeks and now im back in a clear but cold Dharamsala. I hope everybody had good holidays and are charging into the new year be home in 3 months be well peace Jim Please all replys to woolsey@chocodog.com It is with great sadness that I found that Lisa Pruess (at one point years ago she lived in an apt. next door) from the NH-S library died suddenly she was always very helpfull on my book searches and on top of that I just learned that captain E 's son Michael has also died and I send my condolences to both his parents I have just changed mail programs after many years. Pegasus Mail is going under and as I'm using Thunderbird (brother to fireflox) on at my stick when I'm too lazy to take my Tablet to office to check my mail decided to switch to it full time. It has a decent address book built in so transfering my addressbook from Pegasus (minimal at best) was not a big thing but then combined it with my old Sidekick database data (also had for years but so old a pain to use any more) and found most of the information in it was sadly out of date so please send any current address info including phone numbers and names of dogs wives and kids you dare to send, to me while I'm here so the updating will Be relatively painless send to woolsey@ chocodog.com - - -this includes secondary recievers of this rap that I know and next trip you'll get your own copy! please don't bug Mickey While I was in Kathmandu I had a couple of memorable dinners with Roberto Vitali who lives most of the year there He and his wife took me to an Italian restaurant (Marco Polo) where we ate with an old Italian friend of his who manages it - Great northern Italian food. Not cheap but worth it (thankfully a guest). never the Knew there were so many Italian ex-pats in Kathmandu . By the way nobody I have told the trip to has ever heard of trains making stops like mine did to pick up wayward passengers saw the movie "Milarepa" directed by one of the actors from "the cup" is in Tibetan with English subtitles.Takes Mila's life up to where he renounces the world The second part is due in 2009 Beautiful scenery but think it will be hard for people who don't know the story to follow.as with all religions figures the balance between the man and the message is hard to find. In this case the lack of depth in the man doesn't allow the real impact of the message. There are every type of cycle and scooter zooming around here my favorite i see every morning on my way to breakfast its a classic silver Royal Enfield Thunderbird complete with the origional saddlebags and dual mirrors with gauges and turn signals in separate chrome cans. it is the closest thing you will find in India to an old harley -- Sweet as the weather here seems to be warming up (no heavy clothing needed during the sunny daytime) its time to say a few words about the effect of global warming on this area. We rely on the snow pack on the upper mountains for water and this year except for some snow there in early December nothing. There is hope that this will happen in February, traditionally Losar (Tibetan New year Feb 18-20) has rotten weather and we can only hope it remains so, if not the crops and the people will suffer in May and June before monsoon and nobody knows what the effects will be on it. Much of Asia depends on the Himalayas for water and its lack could derail both the economys of India and China. I shudder at what both countries would do to ensure its supply Makes me thankful that I have no kids to look at me and ask why I did little to combat global warming and only have to look forward to having tropical beach front property in New Hope. Heard a southern US senator on BBC still claim that global warming had not been proved Very sad made me feel ashamed The US makes up five percent of the worlds population and emits 25 percent of the green house gases ban SUVs or tax them as they deserve. I'm not claiming to be innocent however lord knows how much my flights home on April 11 will emit on a lighter note Tibetan new years (Losar) starts Feb 18 and will be celebrated for 3 days. 2007 is The fire-pig year part of a 60 year cycle. all Tibetan's birthdays are traditionally celebrated at Losar and is the one time of year they let there hair down if they ever do it will he reported in full. be well peace Jim First send any replys to woolsey@chocodog.com please not to Mickey In reply to my rant on global warming I received an email which said in part "there is a huge body of evidence that suggests global warming is a political not a scientific issue -- and MANY scientists are on the side of thinking it is rubbish" and "You can't take any one point in the world and make generalizations from that point". The last point I agree with completely but I hope the the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report from the UN released today puts an end to the science says its rubbish part. read http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/6321351.stm which contains a link to a pdf of the report. I agree with with the political issue part however and it gives me a chance to rant some more. Western governments point there fingers at the up and coming countries and say if we cut back you have to also, in reply comes we want the lifestyle you already have and you started this to get where you are now. So nothing happens and future generations will bear the effects of this bickering. We in the US are the biggest polluters on the planet and should cut back the most. Which brings me to my greatest peeve - bio fuel -instead of telling the country to cut back on its fuel use the shrub tells us that turning food into bio fuel will save the day (Try to tell that to the poor of Mexico). Nothing about public transportation, more fuel efficient cars or reducing urban spread so people have jobs closer to home. This is just another way of giving more cash to agra-business and keeps the oil and car companies smiling It can't work instead we should set an example of how to reduce green house gases and pass that tech on to everybody else. Instead of being the bully of the world we must have the vision and act on it to get the planet out of This mess. yes it will reduce our lifestyle and make things more expensive but we can't be in denial and pass this on to future generations. It could be to late Gaia protects its self well we got a little rain and the power to my room went out for 2 days guess That shows me something - - hope for more rain or better snow (3 inches of snow here mean 3 feet 2500 feet higher up ) I went to the Cultural Printings Press the other to buy some more Milarepa comicbooks (some of your must have read mine) and not only are they out of them but say they will not reprint .a real shame the best teaching source on the power of mind focus i know. usually get 10 or so each trip probly have 3 left. If I can't change there minds i will scan and make an ebook on my return remind me if you have an interest Today marks 2 months til I return and a week til Losar the weather has finally turned rotten a day and night and another day of rain we spent yesterday in a cloud of it. great we need the water and much higher up snow for the spring. water for most was down to a hour in the morning and the same night so the hotels are trucking it in Monday rain and the snow is starting to hold on the top of our mountain hopefully snow here tomorrow. Nope just rotten weather til the day before Losar for background to Losar see this short article http://www.phayul.com/news/article.aspx?id=15588&article=Celebrating+Tibetan +New+Year&t=1&c=1 Not being a gambler my outlets for fun are limited during Losar to food and drink. the first days treat turned out to be dried Yak meat good stuff with a couple beers.3 or 4 visits and a stuffed me waddled home for a needed rest. 2nd day morning tea and Kopse in generous amounts and the at noon up to near TCV to what turned out to be a marathon meal with Dhetan mainly cooked by a young nun from his home village in Tibet for five and a half hours he incessantly forced food on me Til my gut hurt from the pressure then another half hour of turning down even more food Started out the third day almost afraid of a repeat of the 2nd and knowing I would have dinner with Tsenam whose wife is a great cook and proved it once again a great way to finish up So here we are in the Fire Pig year which is more auspicious to the Chinese then the Tibetans but celebrated with equal amounts of fireworks The dogs are terrified found one that snuck into my room to hide But its not over as I was trying to finish this up a large jug of Chang (Tibetans beer) arrived It will have to wait til the weekend to be consumed Would rather make a fool of myself when i don't have to go to work the next day. so if you out ors the towns this weekend raise a glass for me and I certainly do the same for you be warm and well peace Jim First send any replys to woolsey@chocodog.com please not to bother Mickey he has an album to make and i want to hear it Well wed. is my houses birthday bought it on the 28th of February in 1973 Best thing i ever did in my life it has made all this possible and i promise it new steps yesterday (march 3) was the Hindu holiday of Holi -the holiday of color celebrated by people throwing baloons of colored powder in water or worse at each other. So i took the day off from wandering and will go out for supplies today. The place is really filling up as the Dalai Lama's teachings start today it is said that all hotel and guesthouse rooms are filled Its money time for the locals and the taxi drivers have been practicing traffic jams to get ready Went out Sunday Holi still on for the kids but adults seem to be out of bounds except that the bus i was on. got attacked by some old kids who couldn't read the calendar, escaped unmarked but some were not so lucky Mcleod Gang was packed thousands of monks and westerners with a fair number of Indian tourists mixed in. It was spring until the night before Tibetan Uprising Day (March 10) then it rained for 4 days almost constantly naturally turning us back into winter but it looks like its over and we could back to spring in a few days. at least the Langurs think so they are moving back up the mountain saw about 40 resting this morning (the families in the center trees and young adult lookouts at a distance). The monkeys kept there distance - No love between the two groups it seems. They stayed a second day and I guess headed farther up. The bird migrations are underway as well But back to Tibetan Uprising Day - on this date in 1959 the Dalai Lama fled Lhasa into exile (a very important day here). after the Dalai Lama's speech there is a march down the hill and thru town for more speeches. when i first came here its was a strictly Tibetan march but lately westerners are united to join. Some years back I was invited to march but felt uncomfortable and bailed out at the gate S0 this year I didn't go up for the speech as it was pouring down (most started up at 7) and headed out in full rain gear and umbrella about 10:30 to the gate and a place on the dry step outside my breakfast spot and waited for the march. Its cold and the rain is coming down. about 45 minutes later the shops put thier steel shudders down and here they come many thousands of soaked Tibetans with banners, signs and some with umbrellas (including many school kids i almost cryed for them) chanting slogans in Tibetan and English. a few westerners among them who looked dazed by it all but taking many pictures. Most of the people who had gathered with me undercover including a bunch of monks moved out into the rain to join. For almost an hour they passed the feeling is raw pain -they want to go home with freedom most grew up in exile many of the kids at upper TCV were born in tibet and were snuck out for an education by thier parents at great risk. Then it was over andnow drained of emotion i pulled up the shudder opened my umbrella and headed home in the rain to dry off and reflect. The Chinese have done nothing to theTibetans that we didn't do to the American Indians. i have such mixed emotions about the Tibetan's problem. I want them to be free but they don't understand freedom - they don't allow decent at the very least - the inaction of the Tibetan Gov. in exile pains me - the power of the monasteries makes me understand why they are where thier at and how they got here. I guess you'll have to catch me late at the for for my current feelings as they change from day to day anyway this is the last of these raps for this trip as I will be home April 11. I hope you enjoyed and hopefully the next trip here will be fall 2008.I would like to thank Mickey once again for his help.May you and yours be well and in good spirits and remain that way peace Jim Jim Woolsey 12/3/08 to Jessica, joe, john.toney, JONKUZMA, Joseph.Crum, Kathryn, kcbusyb, kizzysabscar, knight, lalee24, Maple, maracuda, Marc, Mariana, me, migquiroz, uncamikey, miranda, monster, Mountain, mspeiser3, mzavoda, newhoperjp, Pam Well friends I'm back in India safe and sound the flight was a breeze. turned out took 12:30 hours airtime and an hour on the ground waiting to take off. the good life. the stews served dinner and then hid til a couple hours before landing. only a couple dozen westerners and few in Delhi after an uncomfortable night bus trip up to Dharamsala its great. The Library gave me a good room many friends am now settled in Life is good and also mellow as I ran into my charas connection the second day here If yen don't want to be included in getting these occasional raps reply If you know anyone who would like to to be on the list send to them The weather report is warm days and cool nights our mountain is green to the summit. the row behind it have snow just the peaks of those behind them show. The vista is inspiring and makes one feel small and insignificant. We have a huge building project going on there is a great pit in front of the library where a new building is underway three stories with at around one and a half below grade its gonna be two thirds the size of the main building but for now is a big hole with concrete pillars for the first floor sticking up and tons of stone being moved. Standing at the top I feel like the pharaoh watching a pyramid being built.no machines labor intensive mostly women in colorful saris carrying steel pans of rock or earth on thier heads from here to there in a line endlessly the 2 nights I miss so far are the night the Phillies won the series (have to admit I was in transit for most of it - -got mostly box scores and really feel like I missed out) the other was election night at the bar (I can only hope that Sarah enjoyed it enough for both of us - - -here where we're 10 and a half hours ahead of New Hope was up early Friday morning listening to the BBC for election results --- great) there is no way we can know what Obama is going to do but I'm proud of America to elect him. from my conversations he seems to be the international choice but it seems impossible that he can live up to the hype and hope that people have for him.they seem to think that America has got it right for a change. I hope so because tough times seem to be coming the life on credit is over and naturally the little guy has to cover the rich ones. Greed has ended the life style of the west. the monkeys have returned, for the first two weeks they were gone. When you see the tree branches move with no wind you know they are around. then they will pop out had one pass me while I walked to the gate for breakfast the other morning he was less than sheets from me and he/she could have cared less. One of the smaller is missing a right paw but doesn't slow down. I finally figured out how to make a list in thunderbird (a great mail program) I really realize how much I owe Mick for handling this for the last few trips. So out it goes tomorrow sorry for the delay I hate to end this on a somber note but Joyce Murdock, who is probably the longest serving westerner here (has been in India for 58 years) is dying. She is from New Zealand and was Krishnamurti's secretary at the Thesophical Society when the Dalai and Pachen lamas came to India in 56. She moved to Dharamsala soon after the Tibetans did and for the most part has been here ever since. She has great respect from the Dalai Lama on down (though most fear her direct way). she is tough and her passing will be the same. Now unable to move and with Tibetan nurses day and night she is unable to let go --- sad ,I hope I learn something from This. Last month 4 security people come down and carried her to an Audience with the Dalai Lama (not an easy task ).I visit her a couple times a week and will miss her when she passes as she was always good to me even baking me birthday cakes when I was here during monsoon much to the astonishment of the Tibetans living around me. hope to do better next time peace Jim May you and yours be well and in good spirits Heard the Brooks gig was great... next year I will attend I hope today as I walked down into town saw the Langurs (larger then the monkeys grey instead of Brown with long tails and white Beards) for the first time this trip. as you might remember they live higher up and only come down when the weather is going to get bad so I guess we better look out. But so far only two days of rain in six weeks and the water problem is getting tight some places are only getting 2 hours a day. the last two trips winter has started later and later (am not sure if global warming is causing the season to slip but of so there are going to be very hard times in Asia as these mountains collect and store the water for billions of people between here and China.) Looks like the trip to Nepal is off and will goto Darjeeling and Sikkim the middle of Febuary_ for two weeks. Now breakout your maps. along the north of India you will find Nepal looking like a hotdog on its side a little east of it is Bhutan shaped like an egg between them is Sikkim now a part of India shaped like a small pearl. I haven't been there since 1985 and am sure it has undergone many changes which I plan to see. I first went there in 81 with Pietro (who by the way just putout a beautiful book in Italian on Tibet.... just sorry I can't read it) more on the trip as it comes together I really don't know how hard the economy is going to hurt. But I feel this is the chance for America to retool itself. Heavy industry is gone or going so I think small mom and pop companies using the computer tools and taking advantage of the internet can invent and manufacture the things our reduced expectation economy needs. Small things that make the tech we already have save us time and give us more time away from that tech (to de-stress our lives) an updated mousetrap so to say. Obama has the chance to lead a new" new deal" not to have the world to march to our drum but to clean up our own act perhaps starting with health care then public transportation (in the name of global warming) and our education system (as well parents must assume some responsibility for teaching thier children the difference between right and wrong and not expect the community to do it for them --- teachers must be able to teach). if we have the money to bail out the car industry, banks and so on, this must be done. Here there is building everywhere. Our new building is going up slowly with trucks dropping off the raw materials and using only a gas powered cement mixer to put it up. I see groups of donkeys carrying building materials to off road sites. But all is not rosey the roads are jammed with tiny new cars turning any crossroad into a mess the roads are too narrow and the annual monsoon makes sure they are always in disrepair. But you still see flowers in bloom, most trees are green and the air is clean so how can I complain. I'm so lucky to get this chance before going back to the different beauty of New Hope To be embraced in two so different cultural settings is a rare gift. I wish it for all. It's hard to hate what you understand. Well we got a few days of rain but not enough. The backdrop mountains are loosing a little snow.... but the days are warm and beautiful just glad i'm not going to be here in May when they have no water. Think Joyce is going to live and I think she hates the idea.... and in all honesty it must be tough-all ready to go in your mind and your body says no. Am going to leave for Sikkim the night of February 13 and return to work on March 2 so I will be out of contact during that time-actually only seven working days the cleanup day before Losar. (hehe___5 days off for Tibetan New Year) more in the next mail as I want to get this out. also as email has been shuffled around for the last week to let those who tried to email me during the last week or so that i'm still hanging out. peace Jim Greetings my friends my this find you well and in good spirits. a slow Monday holiday afternoon was getting ready to tell you the story of the building of the second floor on our new building. Then the sound of an explosion. Grabed a jacket and went up to see what was going on. Tibetans running everywhere the second floor of one of the oldest staff quarter buildings on fire. luckily the first floor was stone so mainly the mostly wooden second floor was affected (monks quarters) Knew the geshe in the middle was in New Zealand. Worried about the retired Thanka Painting Master but people said everybody got out and so I joined the sandbag moving line along with monks, male and female Tibetans and a few youngsters. found out the kids could more sandbags faster then me but needed to do something. It fire truck from town arrived in decent time considering its an Indian Holiday and knocked the flames down Was about to move to the stuff of the first floor for people when they carried the body of the painting Master out. The gas explosion had trapped him in his rooms. Ven. Sangay Yeshi was 86 (he started the Library Painting school and it closed on his retirement) and even though he spoke no English over the the last 20+ years we had become friends of a sort. He would gesture about my beard (his was just wisp of one) and my pipe. four years ago he was so obese that he couldn't make it up and down the steps without help. a task I was always ready to aid him in as I always felt bad seeing him sitting in his window watching everything. Between that trip and the last he lost a lot of weight and started struggling up and down the steps on his own. By this trip he had lost a lot more weight and with a cane made decent time and came down everyday. The first time I saw him this time I cheered when he got to the bottom and he raised his cane and did a little shuffle dance. Then went off to do a few cora abound the Library was so proud for him and now he is gone. The place will not be the same. the second floor will have to wait for another day. the next day the staff was in shock, me with them. after lunch there was an hour prayer chanting lead by our monks and then they sent us home. That evening there was the Tibetan version of a viewing. Luckily the nun in my office prepped me for it. The cremation was very early the next morning (5:30). Got up in time, was doing a few cora wondering what and where this was going to happen, when Norbu (you might remember she used to be in the computer section) took me in hand and with some other library ladies and monks was taken to the cremation ground in somebodies (not from library) car. there was a sign in Hindi above the cremation spot that was pointed out to me the Translation is "Death is the Truth." The body arrived and was placed on the bier surrounded by wood and covered by something flammable (think it was butter) as the monks (ours and others from his monastery) started chanting for a positive rebirth The Master's youngest students circled the bier 3 times clockwise with a torch and lit the wood. after the ceremony I was dreading a long uphill walk (think about many V2 hills in a row) when Norbu said get in this car and was dropped back at the library. Other staff were still walking in over an hour later. Nothing got done at work that morning and after lunch we were told that an ex Indian Prime Minister had died and were given the afternoon off. I went to bed and slept like a log and woke up remembering that sign. Earlier last week the second floor of the new building was poured. before this happened a temporary floor was erected held up by bamboo poles between the already poured columns with channels inserted for the beams. Then a mass of rebar was knitted together and tubes for the ceiling lights set. on the big day a second gas powered cements mixes was brought it and about 30 people started filling them another 25 hoisted the result and starting from the for end spread and finished a maybe 4 inch thick slab. Took almost 12 hours finishing under lights. hard work watched them finish and cheered the job well done with congrats to the few workers I slightly know. The concrete must dry for a month before they can strip the form and do it again for the next floor. Just read a great article on Tibetan New Year (Losar) this year you can find it at: http://www.phayul.com/news/article.aspx?id=23740&t=1&c=4 I end on another sad note... Piero's father just died. a wine expert and a gentleman from the old school, he introduced me to the way of Italian life and the art it contains; will never forget his telling me --- Italian artists have filled all the museums of the world. I want you to go to Florence for a couple days and see what we have left. I did and have mentally thanked him numerous times since! sad There will be a hole in my future trips to Italy. Am off to Sikkim on the 13th and will be out of touch till March 2... lets hope all goes well --- stay tuned peace Jim a few days back and i'm beginning to catch up on my sleep. It went well.... first I left on the night bus to Delhi (12 hours) spent Saturday wandering around Delhi and left late that night on a 30 hour train trip to Siliguri (around 800 miles) arriving around 5 am Monday morning. Caught a shared Taxi (most are indian made and called Sumo's they seat 10 plus driver. Luggage on the roof and seem to go anywhere) to Gangtok (70 miles about 4 hours) in Sikkim a beautiful trip on terrible roads but a true 2 lanes. it is much easier to go to Sikkim now then the old days (used to take 3 months to get a permit for 4 days) you still need a permit but you can get it at the border in a matter of minutes (good for 14 day) The road snakes up valleys looking down at a green colored river crossing numerous small bridges. Here the climate is almost tropical very green bamboo and scattered flowers. The river is low and those running into it have little flow at this time of year. the sight of a future large metal Buddha being fabricated in 3 eight to ten foot high sections was the high point. When finished and put on its throne if should be over forty feet high. a masterful example of metal work I was impressed and luckily got another chance to see if again later on my way to West Sikkim. the closer we got to Gangtok the more built built up it became and the new Gangtok extends farther out then when I was there 23 years ago. The two things that stand out are the number of taxis which seem to have replaced buses as the means of transportation. the other is the number of hotels seems every other building is now a hotel and most not cheap. M. G. Marg has been redone with benches around a long center filled with flowers even a new statue of Mahatma Gandhi and now sports the fancy shopping area and is probably the largest flat area in the city. The old Green Hotel on it is not for hippies any more and the old lobby is now a travel agency. Looked for the Tenzing and Tenzing Garage an old standout on the walk down to the Institute of Tibetology and found that now its an upscale clothes store selling Levi's. Now a cable car goes up and down the mountain. As anIndian man told me this is the safest place in India: little crime, good security and no beggars. Spent 3 days at Tibetology most of the time answering computer questions. Its much changed and looks beautiful. the old librarian has past as well as the last 2 directors. The last time I went to Sikkim in 85 west Sikkim was out of bounds so I looked foreword to going there so I caught a shared Taxi to Pelling - another five hour trip up and down the valleys (where they are working on the roads are signs saying" inconvience deeply regretted " and there are lots of these signs). We work our way up to 6800 feet then back down a mile and then back up to Pelling also at 6800 feet a beautiful ride even as the roads get narrower. Pelling sits on the ridge and I'm sure that in the fall it must have great views of the higher mountains near by but now as the temperature rises there is a white blanket in front of them. On the way got tantalizing peeks at some of them with just a veil in front. a half an hour walk away along a bamboo and fir lined road is the Buddhists Nyingma Monastery called Pemayangtse one of the oldest in Sikkim and I was luckily able to be see the cham (religious) dances they were putting on.as they had sent some monks back to Tibet to learn the proper steps it was a unique display centering on an overlarge figure of Malakala. the area is mellow I wouldn't mind going bark ---- but I realize after Gangtok that you can never go back to the places of memory after such a long gap. and it was to be proven again when I got to Darjeeling but a great ride to it. I took a shared Taxi down from the ridge to the valley below then along the side of it to Jorethang which is the closest exit point to Darjeeling. Tea and within 40 minutes I'm on my way out and up. the road shrinks to one lane and thru endless tea fields we ascend six thousand feet stopping four times to refill the radiator including a tea break (5 hours for 36 km.) into the North Point section of Darjeeling. and to the crush of the heart of the city. My main reason for coming here is to visit the grave of Alexander Csoma De Koros la Hungarian when mainly walked to India and who started Tibetan studies with a Tibetan-English Dictionary, Grammer and Analysis of Tibetan Buddhist holy books. It seemed that the first day of Losar (Tibetan New year) was the right day for it. The grave was easier to find then expected and I sat down in front a if to commune with him. The golden orange mini stupa that marks it has a wall behind it and the political plaques which once adorned it have been moved there. Most contain lies and mistruths ie. he never got to Tibet and did not start Hungarian-Indian friendship. The best and probably the first is the one from his co-laborers at the Asiatic society of Bengal. anyway sat there for a couple hours, smoked a bit and rapped with the cemetery caretaker April 11 will mark 225 years since his birth. That done if was time to check out Darjeeling unlike Gangtok it was covered with say no to Losar signs and banners. The wide walking ramps that tie the city together have street venders occupying at least half of each. Grenary's the great pastry shop now has an internet cafe in the front and when I went if use it was informed that it had no connection the Oxford Book shop now also sells tea the locals cry about the crush and shake thier heads about the movement to make this area into a new state called Gorkhaland. Was lucky to miss any strikes and shutdowns and made if back to Siliguri to catch the train back to Delhi (arrived 5 hours late). a rush to catch a bus back to Dharamsala and home at 6:30 am. a shower, breakfast and back to work! Will fill in any weak points in this narrative when I see you in a little more than a month but want to get this out before March 10 (Tibetan uprising Day). be well peace Jim Since I have returned The langurs have shown up a couple of times on my way to breakfast. I like to see them and they act smarter then the monkeys maybe its their white beards, they just seem cooler and more athletic. In the interesting vehicle category... the other day saw a motorscooter with 2 extra almost full sized wheels on the back sharing the axle but a foot or so outboard of the fender. why --- tracton, stability, big loads no idea? But the 3 wheel Paiggio with cycle handlebars, closed in cab and a truck bed in a solar version would be the car for me Today the library seriously ran out of water not even enough for tea. we have had no more than five days with any rain since I arrived in October. Sometimes it looks like rain but nothing. so it had to happen sooner or later. I was hoping it could hang on till I left....... no luck. luckily I had just done my wash so I have clean clothes for March 10 (Tibetan Uprising Day) last time I was here it rained heavily and it was heart braking to watch those kids march down the hill in a real downpour... stay tuned to this one! So the sun came up walked out to the gate.Finding my breakfast spot open I sloped to fill up and then with 3 monks caught a cab up to the temple Crowded but found a space in the back. Tibetans running to and fro to get the best spots, westerners with huge TV cameras and almost as large still ones and a marching band set the scene. Read an english translation a the Dalai Lamas speech to come which you can find here: http://www.phayul.com/news/article.aspx?c=2&t=1&id=24082&article=The+Statement+of+His+Holiness+the+Dalai+Lama+on+the+Fiftieth+Anniversary+of+the+Tibetan+National+Uprising+Day Out came the dignitaries the Karmapa, Sakya Trizin and the Dalai Lama. The crowd emotionally sang the national anthem and a hymn. the speeches were not too long and at the conclusion snuck out quickly to avoid the crush of the start of the march down the hill. I took the shortcut to a great lookout spot where I could watch the first elements make the first big turn. 20 minutes later here they come Led by a couple motorcycles festooned with Tibetan flags. Meg-horns blared out and the crowd answered with emotion ..... great. . finishing the shortcut I came out a head of them and hurried down to the same spot I had breakfast, sat down and waited for the full show. First came an old man with a Tibetan flag stuck into his day pack and as soon as he moved down out of sight the mass of people (Tibetans of all ages and some westerners) protesting China's treatment of Tibetans in Tibet at the top of thier lungs. for more than half an hour they past then suddenly it seemed it was over here though the cry echoed up from below. On the walk home I could peer down and see them marching thru town. Within an hour the BBC was giving thier commentary on the shortwave. We now have water rationing and hour or so in the morning and 2 in the evenings and this is only March. Its a long time till Monsoon in July. Spring is here flowers and Trees are blooming Its warm enough I don't need a jacket to go to breakfast at 7:45 AM Today I ran into Alex, a Russian Thanka painter who at one point long ago had the room next to mine, and he informed me that Abbot Samaev died a couple years ago in a car acident some of you might remember him staying at the house a couple times in the early 90's. I remember him comming to the bar on Halloween in his robes (figured that was the one night nobody would notice his robes and he only drank orange juice ) and hanging out with the Locals... good fun. always dreamed of visiting him and his monasteries in Buryatia which is east of Lake Baykal (the deepest lake in the world) in Southern Siberia. He was a good man and I feel depressed that I will not have the chance to meet him again. Well finally some rain, not enough to makeup for winter but a start. Looked down at the river last weekend and it was barely a stream. Good news but we need more! and a few days later we got another decent storm but the day before took a motorcycle with one of the staff over to and up the other side of the valley. this finger is not built up and has a great view not only of our side but also the plains and more of the range. while we were there thousands of white butterflies (perhaps moths) were migrating toward our side forming a seemingly endless stream. a treat This is the last letter of this trip and you can find out about the trip home in person I hope! Leave here the night of 13th on a bus for Delhi arrive the morning of 14th spend the day, head to the airport to catch a 12:30 AM flight to Kennedy get there about 6 AM get into the city and catch the 9:30 bus to New Hope hopefully to catch a late brunch at Duck Soup. Burned out but smiling May you all stay well and in good spirits till the next trip peace Jim ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: jim woolsey Date: Fri, Nov 19, 2010 at 11:32 AM Subject: Letter from India 2010 1 To: mickey am back at the library in India and all is well a mellow trip thanks to Andy getting me to the bus. The Metro (mostly a subway system that is being expanded rapidly making it easy and fast to get around) from the airport in Delhi downtown is not finished but found a bus. Came up after one night so to miss Obama's visit Just before my departure my mail address book took or dump and many addresses were lost so if you you find someone who is not on the list please pass this on to them and ask them to send me an email to get back on-Mickey is taking on the job of spreading this out. So don't bug him and any complaints should be sent to me woolsey@chocodog.com The first impression here is the massive construction the new staff building replacing that which replaces that which burned during the last trip should be finished in a couple months. It has an extra story and is massive compared to the old one. the building that was coming up last trip is finished and I am impressed. It is beautiful and will allow the museum to be enlarged. Outside the library there are at least 5 large building projects going on mostly CTA staff quarters. as usual many changes to one staff with most of those leaving going to America. The core of my friends are still here and its great to see them. More kids and how they grow Some people have asked me to include pictures in these raps. Now I have never had any luck with cameras so for the time being I'm going to include a ?website to try to get around this: the Library is http://ltwa.net/library/ the son of one of the library staff just died and as I am no good at reciting prayers in Tibetan thought I would take the opportunity to visit Joyce at the hospital. she was lying there unresponsive with an oxygen mask on _ _ _ _ the nurse said she stopped eating 3 or 4 days ago; was crushed and thought sometimes the dead have it better than the living the monkey report sees Langurs out mean the gate. It is early for them to come down to this level and may mean a hard winter for us. the regular monkeys are also around but stay well clear of the Langurs which are much larger (langurs were used to scare off the monkeys at the Commonwealth. Games). The prices for everything have gone up at an alarming (at least to me) rate Which coupled with the dollars decline (when I left last time it was 49.5 rupees to dollar now about 44) shows the decline of the US.The drop in the the dollar is a government plan to try to aid exports in a vain attempt to save jobs-this is the same trick China is using. In other international money matters it seems that within the next couple of years the Euro should crash as more European countries are unable to meet their debts-first Greece now Ireland next Spain and Portugal with others close behind. Germany can't bail them all out. Now if I could afford the airfare life would be sweet. Just back from giving blood for Joyce at the western Tibetan hospital. 2 hours of up and down finding out that our blood is compatible and 10 minutes to give it. Have mixed emotions about the whole thing The doctors and nurses are trying so hard to keep her alive. Buddhism holds that all life is precious and this life as a human most of all it is not in their nature to let her go which is why the transfusions as a last hope but deep down I think she wants to die. Please if you think that even someone you have faith in has told you that you are going to die get a second opinion. This applies to everything a Lesson I hope I have learned from this 2 year drama (thanks Joyce) On a lighter note Saturday I went to visit my old Tai Chi teacher, Dhetan, who since I saw him last has married a lady from his village in Tibet and has a shy daughter (don't think she is used to people who look like me) and spent a year in Taiwan studying now he is back translating Chinese to Tibetan for the security department. a good time. I really miss those nites of practice. peace Jim jim woolsey 11/28/10 to me the first letter from India is always a real hassle. trying to send a message to more than a hundred people seems to jam Comcast's mail system. Perhaps they think I'm trying to spam. Whatever Thankfully Mickey has bailed me out again. He is relaying these raps for me so reply to me ( woolsey@chocodog.com ) and not him as he has enough hassles fishing. a couple days with rain has covered the mountains behind us with snow -- beautiful and hopefully that cases the worries of water shortages in the spring. as there was really no winter the last couple years this may be a sign that we are going to get a real winter this year (real for us means a couple 3 or 4 inches snows with more cold rains). they tell me that monsoon was the heaviest this year in memory and the roads and trails show It. So called Tibetan weather experts claim that we will get a real winter this year. If so I'm ready. India has changed its visa rules since the last trip I was informed at the airport Even with my multiple entry visa if you leave India you cannot return within 60 days. How does this impact me? first no more two week trips to Nepal for Xmas (not that I want to go anyway as its going from bad to worse there --- power shortages, transport hassles and over crowding) but with the release of Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest in Burma my desire to go there has increased. In the past she stated that tourists should not go. she is a remarkable woman who I first met in 1986 with her late husband in Simla at the Indian Institute for advanced Study (the ex summer palace of the Raj ...a massive building of teak and stone). I always enjoyed her articulate conversations. she was and is the ideal Buddhist woman. after she won the Nobel Peace Prize in 91, my good Quaker mother realizing that I had met 2 Prize winners took me off her shit list. I would like to go to Burma and thank her. Hopefully her release starts a slow change toward a non capitalist form of democracy that gives more power to the people! I'm sad to relay the passing of Henry Lindenmeyr an old friend. sculptor, car buff and humanitarian I used to help him out with his Mac until his eye problems forced him to give if up. anything I ever learned about the Mac was to help him out. another part of classic New Hope gone. Turkey day has come and gone. Black Friday too but what I was sorry to miss was Peter's party and Hartford at J+P's. Here it was business as usual People ask me what I miss most about being in India. It's not the food, Beer, or even heat ...its live music I have many gigs of music on my computer so its not music but live music the being there the sync of audience and band. the vibe of the experience is why I will be back in the spring. I once spent 19 months traveling round the world never again will I be without live music that long. among the replys to my first rap most asked for an update on Joyce. To be honest I have avoided visiting the hospital. To painful I have known her for more than 20 years and will try to give her a real bio when its all over heard this morning that the Dalai Lama privately came down to the hospital yesterday to see her. as my informant said with regret it can't be long now. With 3 wins and a draw last night Barnsley my English football team is having its best season in years. We get little American sports so I have adapted and spend Saturday nights listening to my wavering short wave radio trying to hear the half and full times scores if I can stay awake We are now up to mid table which if we can remain here will be a good season. always best to end on a good note so be in good health and spirits peace Jim jim woolsey 12/22/10 to me the craze here is a game called carrom It is played by staff, monks and thanka painters With great cheers by those looking . _ _on lunch brake after work till the canteen closes. the young monks sneak in to play when everybody else has gone home. So I looked in up here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carrom So much for figuring out the rules they seem to be different in every country. another gift (like Buddhism) from India to Tibet. The report about the Dalai Lama visiting Joyce has been disproved by a nurse at the western Tibetan hospital who stated that he came to get a xray and everything is fine with his health. as far as I know she continues to hang on. We are in the middle of a very rare 3 day weekend Friday was Nobel Peace Prize day --- celebrated here since the Dalai Lama won in 1989. I'm sure the Chinese especially this year consider this another a western manipulation of their policies. I think that his winning marks the transition of the exile Tibetans from being considered a cult to being hip and the toast of Hollywood. It has certainly changed the economy in the area. The hills are now filled with hotels and guest houses who cry when the Dalai Lama doesn't give winter teachings and smile when he does. an example of the smiles occurred last week when he gave a 3 day teaching to a horde of Mongolian pilgrims (at least 4 to 500 some say many more) this was preceded by a one day lecture by our director on what was going to happen. got my first hint of the goings on when going to breakfast their were Mongols lining up for its start at 11. They crammed the conference hall and another large hall (where they could listen only). A quick rethink was needed and for the 6 days of afternoon post teachings giving an explanation of what had gone on, remote video was provided. It was equally well attended. Another similar event is planned for next year with even more expected. Buddhism is not dead in The USSR. at the same time we had a great clear out of old and obsolete computer junk. 9 pin monitors went, 8088 boxes gone (saw a box That I had marked win 3.1 works. many years ago). watched the hammering of a bunch of harddrives of less than a gig with a heavy heart remembering the pain of acquiring this now junk. oh how we begged ----at least the Indians who bought it all seemed happy. I then started to put the nonworking stuff left back into working order and still at it. I must me getting old for most of my life death was always somewhere up the road Now it seems all around me. I feel i'm just heading into the dead zone from which there is no escape. I probably should have realized this much younger but with the superiority of too much book learning and not enough practice I dismissed the idea. but my eyes have been opened by the passing of friends and coworkers this week alone Gene Smith (one of the greatest friends of Tibetan Libraries), one of our retired monks and not least Gretchen Nye daughter of Bill Nye, a lady who always was working for a liberal cause. Now that's not a Knock as I was proud to join her in a few of them. Know she will be missed on future battle-lines! The hardest part about being in the dead zone is seeing that your once proud accomplishments can no-way measure up to most gone before. The price of charas has gone up to about $13 for a fat 10 grams down in the market (Locals) and double that plus in Mcleod Gang (Tourists]. My man, remember the tea seller of the last few trips, he has now quit the tea business and is dealing to Locals in another area. Was hard to find as I was looking in the wrong place finally put right by a local. Merry Christmas indeed! And may you and yours have great holidays with good health and a calm mind. May next year live up to its potential and the little guys and little womens load be lightened around the globe peace jim ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: jim woolsey Date: Thu, Jan 20, 2011 at 5:37 AM Subject: Letter from India 2010 4 To: mickey you might remember the nurse I helped get a job in the UK. She is expecting the first grandchild for friends of mine. They are going to England for the birth. But this this is about the saga of getting a visa to go. the letter of invitation is the easiest part. Pay and Bank records for 3 years are needed for both sides, letters from both employers and because the smiling future grandparents are refugees without Indian passports the security Department of the Tibetan Government in Exile is involved and a couple more forms needed. a half inch of paper for each is summited in person in Delhi with bank drafts for the fees. Because they have made the trip before just one more trip to Delhi is needed as no interview is required. Now they have the visas but its not over yet. India requires a Local security check to give permission to come back and a couple more forms. More hassles with tickets and the lucky couple are ready to leave on January 1st if the weather cooperates. If i had to go through this I would never leave New Hope. Am hearing that town is being hammered by a heavy snowstorm. Sorry to miss it I know its a real hassle but usually the music and community come together for a great time at the bar. I'm ready for these times with my down gloves and hood. oh well maybe next year here the weather has gotten cooler but the sun still warms the mornings and early afternoons till it goes over the mountain. No rain yet so everything is good. I spoke too soon a couple days later we had more then 24 hours of straight rain and through a slight Break in the clouds yesterday morning you could see snow on the top of our mountain ---- today should be better. And it is beneath a cloudless sky the backdrop mountains have a thick coat and ours has traces of snow down to the waterfall. It is a good thing upper TCV (Tibetan Childrens Village) school is on break cause if no snow still must be very cold. Here the sun shines brightly but has little heat I went over to the hospital yesterday to see Joyce at the request of a Tibetan friend. I past the new buildings and walls going up quickly and noted with surprise that they had a large new backhoe ?then thru the gate and after a game of dodge ball with a few taxis walked up the steps of the hospital with a heavy heart. she has been moved up a floor. On entering I was amazed her head was up her blue eyes open and looking right at me - I had a moment of hope and then It hit me hard she wasn't seeing, made not a sound, and didn't move at all.... it crushed me makes me understand the will of the body to live, not needing machines or drips of advanced medicine or even senses, but on veg soup spoonful by spoonful Reading some academic crap about Kerouac's "On the Road " and it occurs to me that I was the perfect teen age reader of it. Hitchhiking to school thinking I really wanted to be somewhere else. Sitting here in Dharamsala I owe him a debt. who world of thunk it. I believed the trip and for me it worked. a lucky lad in many ways. This was to prepare for Supper and my nightly rap with 4 twelve year old future waitress's (you always have to sing for your supper) its good fun. They are on winter break from school and go back the end of February. Funny That they go back before Losar ( Tibetan New Year) must make Losar much easier if your kids are away at Tibetan Boarding school. Just before I left I watched Verizon guys stringing Fiber optical cable near the house and they said it was going past my mansion. Must be hooked up by now. hope its fast and they have some cheap deals in the spring. 3 more friends gone--- tough but I'll mourn in private. Snow. . . rained one whole day and night with intermittent power loss then woke up in the morning with about a inch and a half of snow. even without snow shovels the next day it was gone and the sun back out. The mountain is covered it white. Good times Just got an email saying the happy grandparents have just welcomed a baby daughter into the world. This is the news I've been wailing for to finish this rap. Hope you all are staying warm and in good health especially Mountain John. peace Jim --------- Forwarded message ---------- From: jim woolsey Date: Fri, Feb 4, 2011 at 9:16 PM Subject: Letter from India 5 To: mickey yesterday was India's Independence Day (no big thing) but it also marks two years since the fire at the library. all traces are gone and the replacement building bigger and taller is supposed to be finished by Losar (5 weeks) the Loss of the thanka painting master sticks in my mind. he was a gentile monk one of the few great painters to get out of Tibet. He had gotten so heavy in the past that he couldn't make it up and down the steps without help. Then he would sit in his window and watch everything that moved. Sometimes I would help him up or down The trip before last he started losing weight and at the start of the last trip he walked down the steps then raised his cane over his head and did a little shuffle dance to show off his new mobility to me. I clapped and cheered so happy for him. He didn't speak any English and once and a while one of us world grab someone to translate and we would converse about the weather and other minor things. ? ?I heard the yelling in my room and arrived on the scene flames were shooting out the second story windows. The only thing I could do was get in line passing sand bags to be dumped on the fire. Other Tibetans poured buckets of water from above. No one was sure what had happened and then the shock set in as his body was carried down the steps. I was disgusted as while all this was going on westerners were running around taking pictures and getting in the way. the other night the canteen was too crowded for our English class and I suggested that we wait till it cleared out. But the girls dragged me outside and we held class under a light until there was room inside. almost froze but I guess they like the class and that made me feel proud. I will really miss them when they go back to school. Hope their teachers don't mind that I taught them mostly slang. We talked about how they got to India. Two are sisters and their mother lead them all to India. It seems that in 2007 they left a small farm village of 300 in Amdo (the north-east of traditional Tibet) and by truck and Jeep got close to the Nepal border. Then they walked 2 or 3 hours over the border they commented that they were lucky some walked 3 months. Must be a tough trip when your nine. Woke up to a very loud noise like someone dropping rocks on the tin roof of my kitchen. Rushed out to see what was going on and found four monkeys sitting in a tree laughing at me. In the past very few monkeys have hung out here and lately they have hidden out of sight but I guess they are back in force as I saw a couple more roaming around the next day. used to see many down in towns swinging on the power and telephone lines and generally harassing the street merchants but not lately. But the monkeys aren't the only wildlife to worry about as I found out today. was walking down from McLeod Gang this afternoon I stopped at a wide spot in the road. _ . . gazed out at the magnificent view _ . . took out a doughnut and took a bite _ . . _ felt something slide gently across my hat and a raptor (I think an eagle) had my doughnut in its claws and was flying out over the valley. I was untouched and amazed. The rest of the way down I try'd to figure out where it learned the trick . I'm sure most of you will hear a more colorful version of this story again and again. Sorry in advance. Hearing about the weather back home makes me humble about the weather here which is mostly great. the mountains have small clouds around them in an otherwise clear sky. True the sun doesn't give out as much heat now but how can I complain. I hope you are all warm and healthy. May this give you a smile peace Jim jim woolsey 3/1/11 to me The weather has been wet which is a good thing if you want water in the spring. No snow here but the mountains that tower behind us are white and majestic. Beautiful My girl students went back to school last Sunday and already I miss them. think I learned more than I taught But Losar is the 5.6 and 7th and it seems their is more excitement this year than usual. why I'm not sure but looks like fun this is followed next Thursday by Tibetan Uprising Day (March 10) which is the Day that the Dalai Lama started into exile in 1959. Losar is Tibetan New Year and in the cycle of years it is the Metal Rabbit Year (read that the Mayans also thought that their is a rabbit on the face of the moon). Chinese new year was a month ago which kinda shows how close Tibet is to China. Amdo (in the east of Tibet bordering China) where the girls are from call the Chinese one as the little new year and the Tibetan one as the big. Many of my friends are scattering all over India and beyond to celebrate with so many holidays close together the number of leave days needed is small. Will go to Detain's house on the second day to celebrate with him and his family. This is the one time of the year that the Tibetans let their hair down and party and I plan to join them. Just got an email saying that George Masselos an old friend and the man there had me bring his wife's ashes back to India is 1994 has died. He led a long productive life and if there is another may he pick up where he left off. a good man. Sorry that this is so short but have been reading alot, trying to take advantage of our western reference section. So Happy Losar and if you need an excuse to party this weekend join us and remember the plite of the Tibetans peace Jim jim woolsey 3/31/11 to me Well its back to real work tomorrow, Losar and March 10th are over, let me try to recap. Despite the rumors of a library party it never happened. the card games went on for 3 days pretty much around the clock in a couple of rooms in the top floor of the new staff building (which is finished but the occupancy permit hasn't appeared 'guess the right people haven't gotten their payoff or they want too much) Naturally all the Restaurants in the area are closed but on the first day our canteen manager ( Lhamo mother of 2 of my former students) caught me and sent me off with an over flowing plate. On the second day went up to TCV (Tibetan Children Village) to spend the afternoon with my former Tai chi teacher and his family. Was a beautiful day a marked change from the weeks before. I was stuffed with 2 meals in 4 hours and despite protests walked back to enjoy the forest and the weather (a fair hike but mostly down hill) The Sunday before I had helped make Khapsey at Tenzin's house and on the third day returned to see the results of our labor. Endless food washed down with chang (homemade rice beer) sweet with low proof. Amid Tibetans and Indians, elderly grandparents to babies I added a western element to the throng. a beautiful day and a great time. Then we had 2 days of half hearted work then Uprising Day This was the 52 anniversary of the Dalai Lama's flight from Tibet in 1959. the main point of his speech this year was to call on the elected government in exile to assume the political duties of the Dalai Lama, who will retain his religious role. This makes the election on March 20th for the new Kalon Tripa (prime minister) extra important. The Tibetans who have all faith in the Dalai Lama will not take this news easily. The following protest march down the hill did not have the usual classes of TCV (not in session until the 14th) marching but also not the usual rain. But more adults than usual, monks, nuns and civilians marched in waves thoroughly snarling traffic for half an hour. I have to interrupt this account as I'm engrossed with the problems of the middle east and Japan. In the former we have a horrible example of mans inhumanity to his fellow man and the terrible cost of power. this coupled with the rest of the worlds governments inability to deal with it. Then nature proved that it has more power then man can imagine. a triple whammy on Japan. I'm glued to my shortwave radio as the nuclear problems grow. Its effect on the wests economy will be massive over the coming years. a prayer for the Japanese people Yesterday I received word that my long time charas dealer died the day before. Raju had been sick for 3 days at least it was relatively quick. I have been going to him for about 15 years. He never had a word of English but it was never a hassle. I will miss in more ways then the obvious. a library wedding a real bash which lasted all night much drink, good conversation and endless card games The bride, the cashier here, radiant and the groom, in charge of the book storerooms held it together. Left around ten mellow with my first beers in months.... headed back to my room with a smile. a good time. Sometimes is great to be the token westerner Will be home in less than 3 weeks. hard to believe that I've been here more than 5 months already. Its been good for my soul. But ready for some good music. Will he home on the 20th to deal with the house and enjoy another spring. Hope you enjoyed the raps and there will be another batch in a couple years. I wish you all good health and positive minds peace Jim