Let's try this again!!!

Two Students

This is a picture from school. The campus looks down upon Thimphu Valley. Below is Thimphu town. Can you imagine that this is my commute each day. 30 minutes up and 30 minutes down. It is approximately a 2,000 foot difference and a great deal cooler at school! On clear days, the very high mountains are visible in the distance. But during the rainy season, they rarely show themselves.

Three random boys out playing after lunch. Of course, they wanted their picture taken. You would never know that they begged me to take their picture. It looks more like a mug shot to me!

Okay, for all of you that want to know about my teaching, here are some photos. These jokers are Class V. They are out of uniform today because they have HPE (gym class). There are 45 of them packed into this classroom. They keep all their belongs in their backpacks and change books as the classes change, every 50 minutes. The teachers rotate into the classes. Never again will I ever complain about classrooms in the US not being large enough. Please note how narrow the aisle is. I can barely walk in between the desks. That being said, I love these kids.

This is class VII. There are only 37 of them in this classroom. They are considerably more mature and wiser. I enjoy teaching this class.

Class III students during lunch time. They are standing on the area in between the three main buildings. This space is used for assembly each and every morning.

Lunchtime students. Note the hills in the background. Yes, I am in the Himalayas.

More students after lunch. The building behind these students houses the science lab on the ground floor and the library on the top floor, or at least that is what they call it.

Om Mani Padme Hum carved into a rock at Tango Monastery. Today was a holiday, Lord Buddha's First Sermon, so a friend and I went to Tango. This is the mantra that people chant while walking or sitting and praying. One translation of this is: in dependence on the practice of a path which is an invisible union of method and wisdom, you can transform your impure body, speech, and mind into the pure exalted body, speech, and mind of a Buddha.

This is Tango. It is not only a monastery but also a Buddhist College. As with most monasteries, they are located away from towns in order to allow for focus on the teachings of Buddha. This monastery is home to a famous reincarnate, however, I have forgotten which one. I was able to see him today while some of the monks were chanting. He is about 17 years old and was recognized as a reincarnate when he was only 4. Hopefully, I will come back here before I leave, and I will be able to be blessed by him.

The true King of the Monastery.

I still can't believe that he doesn't fall from up there!

In this picture there are 2 small buildings. I did not travel down to them, but I believe them to be a meditation hut (the top one) and a small house.

Close up of the two small building. Note that they are built into the existing rock wall.

This picture is very unclear. It was taken from the road after I walked down from Tango. In the far bottom right corner, you can see a few people. The blue tarp is just something to give the reader some perspective on how steep the hill was. It was about an hour walk, basically zig zagging all the way up.

On the rock coming down from Tango. I am guessing that it reads Welcome to Tango Monastery and Buddhist College, but since I cannot read this script, I am only guessing.

Some more pictures from Bhutan

Two students

This is a picture from school. The campus looks down upon Thimphu Valley. Below is Thimphu town. Can you imagine that this is my commute each day. 30 minutes up and 30 minutes down. It is approximately a 2,000 foot difference and a great deal cooler at school! On clear days, the very high mountains are visible in the distance. But during the rainy season, they rarely show themselves.

Three random boys out playing after lunch. Of course, they wanted their picture taken. You would never know that they begged me to take their picture. It looks more like a mug shot to me!

Okay, for all of you that want to know about my teaching, here are some photos. These jokers are Class V. They are out of uniform today because they have HPE (gym class). There are 45 of them packed into this classroom. They keep all their belongs in their backpacks and change books as the classes change, every 50 minutes. The teachers rotate into the classes. Never again will I ever complain about classrooms in the US not being large enough. Please note how narrow the aisle is. I can barely walk in between the desks. That being said, I love these kids.

This is class VII. There are only 37 of them in this classroom. They are considerably more mature and wiser. I enjoy teaching this class.

Class VII trying to look "natural".

Class III students during lunch time. They are standing on the area in between the three main buildings. This space is used for assembly each and every morning.

Lunchtime students. Note the hills in the background. Yes, I am in the Himalayas.

More students after lunch. The building behind these students houses the science lab on the ground floor and the library on the top floor, or at least that is what they call it.

Om Mani Padme Hum carved into a rock at Tango Monastery. Today was a holiday, Lord Buddha's First Sermon, so a friend and I went to Tango. This is the mantra that people chant while walking or sitting and praying. One translation of this is: in dependence on the practice of a path which is an invisible union of method and wisdom, you can transform your impure body, speech, and mind into the pure exalted body, speech, and mind of a Buddha.

This is Tango. It is not only a monastery but also a Buddhist College. As with most monasteries, they are located away from towns in order to allow for focus on the teachings of Buddha. This monastery is home to a famous reincarnate, however, I have forgotten which one. I was able to see him today while some of the monks were chanting. He is about 17 years old and was recognized as a reincarnate when he was only 4. Hopefully, I will come back here before I leave, and I will be able to be blessed by him.

The true King of the Monastery.

I still can't believe that he doesn't fall from up there!

In this picture there are 2 small buildings. I did not travel down to them, but I believe them to be a meditation hut (the top one) and a small house.

Close up of the two small building. Note that they are built into the existing rock wall.

This picture is very unclear. It was taken from the road after I walked down from Tango. In the far bottom right corner, you can see a few people. The blue tarp is just something to give the reader some perspective on how steep the hill was. It was about an hour walk, basically zig zagging all the way up.

On the rock coming down from Tango. I am guessing that it reads Welcome to Tango Monastery and Buddhist College, but since I cannot read this script, I am only guessing.

TA DA some pictures!!!!!

As mid-term exams progressed, there were fewer and fewer students, until finally only classes 7 and 8 were around. Therefore the "big kids" managed to play on the equipment designated for the smaller children. I kept saying to them, "big students gone mad!!!!"

This is Jakar Dzong in Bumthang, where I spent my summer vacation (all 2 weeks of it!!!)

These are pics of the Bumthang Valley. It is one of 2 glacial valleys in Bhutan. The other valley is Pobjikha where the Black Neck Cranes hangout.

The next pics are at Kurjey Lhakhang. It is a very sacred spot in Bhutan. The first religious leader of the area was Guru Rimpoche. He, of course, had special powers. At Kurjey, it is said that he meditated in a cave. His meditation skills were so advanced that he was able to leave his shadow on the wall of the cave, which can still be seen today. Therefore, the word Kurjey literally means body print.

This building holds the cave which contains the body print.

Entrace to the Royal Palace in Bumthang. Needless to say, I was not invited.

Okay, so I have been a little busy.....

Well, this adventure is now officially 1/2 over. There were times when I was ready to throw in the towel, but amazingly enough, I am still here. The thing that has helped me make a mental shift into a better space was the fact that I finally got a 2 week vacation from my 5 1/2 and sometimes 5 3/4 work days. So let me tell you about my vacation.

One of the many frustrating issues here is the lack of time to travel. People that tend to embark on adventures like this are basically travelers and love to explore. So, being confined for such a long time was torture. But I finally made it to the "summer vacation." I had planned to meet another teacher friend in Bumthang but she ended up coming to Thimphu because she had a ride. She arrived on Saturday and we spent the next three days catching up and seeing Thimphu. On Tuesday, we boarded a coaster bus and traveled 10 hours to Bumthang, a lovely wide valley with many historically significant and religious sights to see. We stayed at the River Lodge, which is owned by a former teacher and principal who had studied in Canada many years ago. He was the most gracious host. He made sure that we had transportation wherever we wanted to go and that we were not lacking anything.

One day, we went to KurJey Lhakhang, Jambey Lhakhang and another Lhakhang that Pema Lingpa built. (If you don't know, Pema Lingpa lived in the 1500s and was a reincarnate of Guru Rimpoche). Kurje or Kurjey is a large monastic complex that houses a cave where Guru Rimpoche meditated. It is said that his meditation abilities were so strong that he often left his shadow on walls after he had left. So, Kur means print and Je means body, thus the name of this Lhakhang. I didn't really see the body print, but I am told it is there. Jambey Lhakhang is one of the oldest in all of Bhutan. In Tamshing, the one that Pema Lingpa built, there are paintings that are attributed to him as well as an iron cape thing that it is said he made in a short amount of time. If you are able to put on the iron cape and walk around the inside of the Lhakhang three times, some of your sins will disappear. Needless to say I could barely pick it up!!!

The next day we traveled to the Tang Valley. It is said to be one of the most beautiful in all of Bhutan and I believe it. It really does look just like Zermat. The terraced fields in different shades of green dotted with farm houses was very picturesque. I saw many people harvesting wheat. They hold two sticks in their hands and place the sticks below the tops of the shafts. Then they squeeze the sticks together and yank up the tops which proceed to break off. The people then place the tops in the baskets on their backs. Automation has not yet reached central, or any other part of Bhutan.

We wrapped up the trip with a puja at the lodge. 35 monks appeared on the last day to read the 28 books of Buddha's writing on wisdom. It was quite interesting being in the dining hall when they all silently entered, formed a line to get their food, sat down, prayed, eat in silence, finished at the same time and then left. I think I had my mouth hanging open the whole time.

After returning from Bumthang, I was lucky enough to attend a four day workshop on Special Ed. What a treat! (You all know how much I love events like this!) This was such an eye-opening experience. I learned that Bhutan is just getting their sp ed program off the ground. They have 7 or 8 pilot schools, with some of the schools specializing in specific disorders. To see where the country has come, and knowing where they are headed, and being able to give a little input, was just amazing. I hope they continue down the collaborative path they have chosen. It is what will be best for the students.

So that is what I have been up to. Sorry no pictures because I am not very technologically inclined. I will post again soon.

Issues?

The dichotomy of living in Bhutan became so very apparent to me today, I just could hardly take it. I was in town to view a Football match played on blacktop, here is to called Footsal or something like that. After the game, I had some errands to do so I went shopping. I stopped at a cafe that is frequented by ex-pats all the time. Some of the people I recognized, others I did not. I sat facing the big picture windows. In one corner were 4 Americans chatting about where to go and what to do here in Bhutan. They decided that they would hike up to Buddha Point today and then on to Punakha and some fly fishing. It was obvious that money was not an issue and they were here as tourist. Their affluence was rather apparent and a bit sickening. In the other corner was a monk who I know. This monk is from California and is spear-heading drug rehabilitation in Bhutan, especially in Thimphu. A family of three generations came in and sat down. The monk started laying out all the possible options for the teenager at the table in terms of centers that could help him. Sitting there listening to both conversations just reaffirmed to me the state that Bhutan is in and how cautious the government must be with the future. On one hard, the country needs and wants tourists; on the other hand, with western ways come western problems. I guess only time will tell how this fledgling Democracy addresses it's issues.

Your kira is matching you, Madam.

Okay, so it has been a while since I last blogged, and people have started to talk. My excuse is that I lent my camera to a friend, and I don't really think that people want to hear my dribble. But anyway, here goes my dribble.

The other day, I got out of the carpool and started walking down the long driveway. A teenager was walking on the road and said hello. (Teenagers are extremely eager to speak English since they have practiced so much in school.) I responded back to him and he replied, "Your kira is matching you, Madam." Now I'm not really sure exactly what he meant, but I am assuming that his comment meant that he thought I looked good in my kira. (For those of you that don't know what a kira is, a kira is the women's traditional dress which includes a fancy long skirt wrapped around a few times, a silk blouse and a nice jacket. For pictures, google it.) I responded with a thank you and went on my way home.

Yesterday, Rinchen, the mother of the house, asked if I wanted to go with her. Since I am feeling the loss of a car right now, I, of course, said yes. Well, we ended up going through Thimphu, past the Dzong, past the Royal Grandmother's Palace, where the Fourth King was born, up to the end of the road to Jigme Dorji National Park. It was truly a wonderful ride. The reason for going was to "drop off" 108 little handmade chortens which were made by the monks during last month's Puja. We systematically placed them in spots that would not be effected by any rain or snow. Apparently during the Puja, good vibes were placed in these little ceramic things, and now the good vibes are travelling the universe. While we were at the park, I noticed to monasteries. Actually, only one is a monastry, Cheri Monastry, the other is a buddist college. Both are placed on the side of a mountain. Next time I will remember to take my camera!

When we returned home, two friends of Rinchen were waiting for our return. They happen to both be monks. One of them has been given the task of teaching health and nutrition to the monks of Bhutan. The thinking is that if the monks are taught about proper health and hygene, then they can turn around and help the people in their communities. Pretty good plan if you ask me. Needless to say, it was quite an enjoyable day.

I promise to post (WITH PICTURES) again soon.

Sending my thoughts and prayers to the Country and citizens of Japan.