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Merry Christmas and a Happy Losar (New Years), I have had an interesting month and a half since arriving back in Ladakh in early November. I will give the highlights here. But, first, I have some things I would like to mention, of which you may be interested. 1. A few of you have asked for me to purchase souvenirs to bring back home next summer. This offer still stands. I will be doing the bulk of my shopping in June and July and will be bringing small things back with my luggage. If anyone wants larger items (no one has asked yet for anything too large) I will have them shipped from here to your home address. Refer to my last long email as to what items are here, and please get any further requests to me by the end of May. This is part 5, so if you missed any of my other emails, also let me know. 2. It is still not too late to come out here and trek with me next summer on my remote Rupshu/Karnak trek in July (it is too late to sign on for the February ice trek, though). The Rupshu Trek is in a part of Ladakh that is supposed to be spectacular. AND, horses carry the majority of the camping gear and food. Two weeks ago, I went and had tea with two ponymen and have secured the services of their 7 horses for three weeks in July. (sealed the deals with 8 cups of tea!) So, I can have up to about 10 trekkers on this hike. I have 2 so far. Please tell any friends who like to hike. 3. If you want to visit, but not trek, May or June are the best months. Please let me know, and I'll arrange accommodations, and itineraries if you want to get out and sightsee. If you come, though, be aware that you'll need a day or two to rest up due to the altitude here. 4. When I leave here in August, I have not yet decided whether to go the Atlantic route via Europe or the Pacific route via Asia. If you live outside the U.S. and want me to visit, please let me know. By March, I need to be purchasing a ticket home. 5. Finally, a reminder that I post regularly on the Backpacker website. You can go to backpacker.com on the internet. From the home page, go to "community" and then "trail talk" I post under the name "burntfoot" in the "storytelling" forums. You can also go to www.oktrails.com A friend on this site has most of my stories posted in one place. Or, if you want me to email you specific stories, let me know.This list is as follows:
Now, to tell you about my last two months. It got COLD in Ladakh, but not as cold as usual, I am told. Still, without central heat in my place, it took awhile to get used to. I have a propane room heater (bukari) which brings the temperature up to 50 or 55. This is good for the mornings or evenings. And, it isn't bad. Daytime highs are around 30 or maybe 40 on a good day. Low temperatures drop to zero or below. But, I sleep in a warm sleeping bag, and by the time I left there on the 27th, it still hadn't gotten below freezing inside my room. The biggest problem was washing my hair. I have to go outside and to the next apartment where Shiva (my best friend here - computer teacher at the school) and I share a common kitchen. I have to boil water on the stove, and then mix it with cold in a bucket and pour it over my head. This is in a cold bathroom with concrete floors. Compare it to Colorado or Wisconsin if you were to wash your hair in the garage. I still have the lady who cooks for me, but she is lazy. Though she does good laundry and carries buckets of water for me (faucets are off until about April or May), the food is the main worry. What she cooks is good, and another lady has been coaching her. But, it is always the same. The week before I left, on her grocery list was mutton, which I got. She then made thukpa (mutton/noodle soup), which was excellent. But, after complimenting her, I got it again the next three nights! School went until December 4th. We now have off until early March. It is too cold without heat in the classrooms, so our long break is this time of year. That last week, my toes were near frostbite every day! But, since school closed and before Christmas celebrations, it was boring. Power is only on from 5-11PM at night. During this time I have to do internet (when working), and anything else using power. The rest of the day there was nothing to do. That is why I went to Choglamsar and sought out the ponymen I had had on previous treks. Despite no house numbers, I found 2 of the 3 I was looking for. During November, my main project was to put together a Christmas program at the school for the 30th of that month. In the states, I like 6 weeks for a program, and 3 for a sing-along. But, I was asked for a full-fledged program complete with drama. So, I put together a family-style drama set in a Ladakhi home for Christmas and in it told the meaning of Christmas and the traditions found in America and Europe. A choir of 50 kids sang the songs, and I had about 10 guitar players, as well as 5 actors on stage. It actually went off very well. I was told later that one 10-year old Muslim girl in the program later told her parents that she wanted to become a Christian because they have gifts and Christmas trees. The program went so well, in fact, that the television and radio stations heard about it and wanted us. We began rehearsals for that 5 days after vacation began, and rehearsed for a week. Instead of a drama, we sang the same songs and added the Hindi and Ladakhi languages for Silent Night and O Come All Ye Faithful. Using the same script from the drama, I shifted it into a narrator form, and older students in grade 10 translated it into Ladakhi for the television and radio. We taped both shows back to back on the same day. They were aired on the 23rd and 24th, respectively, and everyone had positives to say about the show and the children. I was later told that this is the first time our school has been on television. The kids were so poised and confident, and a couple narrators did better than the TV announcer who introduced us. About the same time as we began rehearsals, was the Muslim Eid holiday. I went to two homes for that, after being given invitations, and had a great time and a feast of food. I also got several of my questions about how they sight a "new" moon marking the end of Ramadan, and other things. All Christians and Buddhists visit Muslim homes during Eid. All Muslims and Christians visit Buddhists during Losar (the Tibetan New Years), and all Buddhists and Muslims visit Christian homes during Christmas. A busy month. Our Christmas holiday in Leh is a big celebration lasting 7 days. The first three days (21, 22, 23) are spent Christmas caroling. In these three days, we visit virtually every church family and sing. We are then invited inside for prayer and food. And, these homes try to outdo the other with their sweets and other food. In fact, the only advice given to me beforehand was not to eat too much at the first house, no matter how hungry I am. Because by the end of the evening, we have hurting stomachs and are literally pushing plates away from the hostess as she tries to offer us more food! The homes, themselves, are quite fancy. They have mattresses 2 1/2 to 3 feet wide by 6 feet long. On these are Tibetan style carpets. In front of these are tables that are about 1 1/2 feet high and either brightly painted or carved with varnish. I'm bringing back two tables and carpets when I return and dumping my old living room furniture! On the 24th, we have a respite from the food. On this day, we had a 2-hour Christmas Eve church service with special music, an excellent skit with a message by our children, and a message by pastor. Except for the message (of course - this place is Buddhist and Muslim), the service was taped and telecast by the Srinigar television station. A good time, though. Afterwards, all of the singles had a potluck at our pastor's home. On Christmas Day, we had a short 30 minute worship service, and then all the Christian families hurried off to their homes. On this day, the beggars descend upon the church and are given rupees and sweets by the congregation members. It is the only time I've ever seen them there. And, most are from Bihar, not Ladakh! The rest of the day, all the Christian homes are visited by the Buddhists and Muslims. As I was alone, pastor Elijah had me stay at his house. He is very well known and respected in the community, so it was amazing to see the people who visited him. I met the head of the Hill Council in Leh (local council), the first Ladakhi parliment member in Delhi who was there for 12 years, two men who had climbed Everest, the head of the education department in Ladakh, the principal from the Islamia school and the principal from the SECMOL alternative school at the same time (that was an interesting arguement I'm glad I didn't miss), several relatives of Elijahs (including a cousin who is Muslim and another who is Buddhist), the self-made man who is owner of the only filling station in town, the head of the television and radio station, and at least two military generals! Others I can't remember at this time. My only friend that I invited that showed up was the guy who ran my favorite internet shop. On December 26th, Kima (assistant pastor and my age) and I went visiting homes. We went to virtually every home that we had been to here in Leh caroling on those three nights. I kept track and had 17 cups of tea that day - 14 cups of milk tea, and 3 of butter tea. This meant 17 homes. Then for dinner, we were invited to Allison's house. Allison is a single lady from Singapore that works with students at the school. Kima and I didn't think when we accepted this invitation, though, and again had aching stomachs. Delhi airport was fogged in and closed for 9 hours on the 26th, so I decided to fly on the 27th instead of the 28th just in case. Had I stayed in Leh, I would have gone to the village of Shey (6 homes), Sabu (2 homes) and Choglamsar (1 home) visiting and having tea and too much food. But, better to come here and start getting used to avoiding scams again in Delhi! I am heading soon to Mumbai (Bombay), Goa, Bangalore, Kerela, the southern tip of India, and Madras. I will answer ALL EMAIL written to me, but my next long letter will be at the end of January after I have visited all of the above. Have a safe and happy Losar! Keith |
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