Tashi delig (Peace and good luck to you)

For the past year or so, three other ALTs and I have been doing yoga at my apartment, just from a few videos. Today I tried my first yoga class in India...and it was a bit of a shock! Instead of the gentle relaxing hour of stretching I had anticipated, I was struggling through an intense two-and-a-half hour class, complete with all kinds of handstands, headstands, crazy contortions and more downward-dog positions than you can possibly imagine! I'm afraid those Monday night sessions with our little Westside Yoga Club just didn't prepare me for the real thing! I was pretty self-conscious too, as I was placed right at the front, and the helper had to come over and fix my position for almost every move! Didn't help that he kept laughing at me...

After breakfast, this young Tibetan man stopped me in the street and asked to have a chat over tea. He told me some amazing stories about how he came to India...how he escaped at night and climbed over the mountains for about three weeks. He had very little food and for two days, there was no water...he told me how he would drink the little water he could find in the yaks' footprints. Of course he had to be so careful, often moving at night, with no flashlight, and even with a guide, sometimes his group got lost, and sometimes they were shot at and chased by the Chinese police. It's so tragic that the Chinese are still in Tibet, repressing the people and their religion. It makes me ashamed to be Chinese.

After tea, he took me to the temple and explained all sorts of things. I'm so glad he was there, because I wouldn't have understood the significance of it all. Watched monks chanting, and later on, the young monks gathered in the courtyard to debate. That was really cool to watch...they got into some quite heated arguments, and the air was full of the sound of clapping, which they do after finishing their retort. Khonchok, my new friend, used to be a monk, so he was able to tell me quite a lot.

McLeod Ganj is becoming more and more touristy...there is even a Baskin Robbins! Everywhere there are rich merchants whipping around in their flash cars, blasting their horns, money-hungry shopowners and loads of hippie Western tourists. But still there is something special in this little town in the middle of the mountains, and it is because of the Tibetan people. All of them are refugees, like Khonchok, and many of them have left their families behind. They have endured so many hardships, and yet they are still so peaceful and have no hatred in their hearts. Of all the people in this multi-cultural town, the Tibetan people have been the kindest, warmest and most welcoming. While I was shopping, many merchants tried to lure me into their shops, but the Tibetan people, mostly older ladies wearing their colourful aprons, just returned my smile and said hello. Before my yoga class, I happened to look into a kindergarten and there were lots of little Tibetan kids, dressed in their little scarlet sweaters, happily learning in their own language. What a shame they had to come all the way to India to do so.