chris

The scenery is stark and absolutely incredible, almost ridiculous. Indescribable. As are the villages that are perched on hills or hidden in valleys surrounded by terraced fields as best to use the glacial melt that they use as irrigation water. The village we entered today sort of resembles a medieval village---a maze of stonewalls with endless small wooden or tin doors leading to the enormous white villas that every Ladkhi villages consists of.

We spend the majority of time in the kitchen, the warmest room in the house cause I'm endlessly cold all the time (I've made the stove a constant companion). I'm currently sitting on a rug ("stan" in Ladkhi) next to the window looking over the village square and write this on a low red wooden table covered with cups of cha (ladkhi chai) of which I drink at least 15 cups a day and biscuit from my family in Phey. There is nothing I will miss more than the tea drinking habit.

Every day the elder children of this village trek a 2 hour trek over a pass to go to school and back again. This daily walk is what we will be calling our "trek" tomorrow. Pitiful of us isn't it? I realized this as I walked down toward this village today --the question to ask is NOT: Is it is interesting? but is it useful? Otherwise-what's the point?

-Caroline

We are back in Leh for a brief moment after our fabulous trek in the Sham side of Ladakh. This region is actually located north of Leh, but as it is several thousand feet lower than the rest of Ladakh, it is commonly referred to as "lower Ladakh". Our group was able to see firsthand how a small difference in altitude can completely alter the growing season and lifestyles of the local peoples! At points we visited villages above 12,000 feet and they had not even started to fertilize their fields yet, while at other times we passed through villages below 10,000 feet and the fields had already been plowed, planted, and were starting to turn a shade of bright green.

This mini-trek allowed the group to focus on Ladakhi homestays, rural agricultural life, and development in remote areas – all issues that we will touch on in the larger trek, but we felt that experiencing them first hand was much more beneficial. Hiking from village to village as a Ladakhi, living, eating, and cooking as a Ladakhi, and viewing the landscape as both a visitor and a Ladakhi gave us great insight as to why this place is so special.

After continuing our journey down the road to Tingmosgong, we again were privileged enough to help out the local community by planting trees at a recently established school. As you may have noticed from the pictures posted, the landscape up here can be quite barren! To add a little character and give the students greatly needed shade, trees were planted around the perimeter of the school's property. After a full day's work, we successfully planted 28 trees and received many blessings from the school's chairman, Mr. Morup. To top things off, the male and female students split into two groups and each stayed in a monastery and nunnery on our way back to Leh. I think others have commented on our experiences there, so I will sign off for now!

As directors we are greatly anticipating the upcoming trek, as it provides a lot of time for reflection on all of the amazing activities that have taken place over the last three months. We will of course fill you in on the details when we return!

Jullay from Cam

"Jullay! I hope this message finds everyone well. This is Cam and the group calling from the Markha Valley. We are having an excellent trek so far. We started at Chillin and went past several other small villages on the route. Then we had a long day getting to Markha. Yesterday we had a shorter day walking up to Hang-ka. We are carefully looking at the snow conditions as we go and evaluating the route. For now, it looks like we will head up the Marka Valley and possibily do a day hike up the Zanur-Karpo then head east and go out over the pass not far from Hemis Monastery. The conditions here are good and we are having an excellent time. We will call you in another three days."

To the group: "Does anyone have anything that they would like to say?" People say "hello".

"We are just packing up now and getting ready to head off. We have had great weather thus far with lots of sun, but today is a bit overcast so it is a little colder. Everyone is doing fine with the elevation. The cooks, guides and horses are all great. Everyone is healthy. We'll call you again in a couple of days. Bye for now."

Tomorrow, we head out to Hemis Monastery and will spend the day there exploring this site (the largest monastery in Ladakh). Tomorrow night we will take a bus to Leh and then over the next few days will be in touch. I imagine that it will be a real shock to fly back to Delhi soon after being in this environment. But everyone really enjoyed the trek and spirits are high.

One special request: Please post a Happy Birthday to Melissa’s brother for her. (Happy birthday!) We will be in touch again soon.

Erin.

We're back after a wonderful 8 days in the mountains! All semester Frank has been talking about taking a zip line over a roaring river... this is how our trek began. We loaded any combination of four people or backpacks into a rickety old wooden box approx. 4ft x 4ft, and 3ft tall, and sent the box zipping over the Indus to the opposite bank where we met Dorjee and Dorjee and our horses.

We were quite the entourage--10 students, 3 leaders, Namgial our local coordinator, Pemba the Nepali cook, the two Dorjees our horsemen, and "the boys" Norboo, Samten, and Stanzin. Our days varied from strolling through villages in the Markka Valley to route finding up alternative passes where we battled both heat exhaustion and whiteout blizzard conditions within the span of 10 minutes. "Take the snow out of your hats and put your down jackets on everybody!" shouted Erin as we neared the halfway point of the Kangmarula pass.

About 20 minutes down the other side of the mountain we saw the horses and the Dorjees waiting for us. This was odd because they had reached the top nearly an hour before we did. The problem was that we all had to cross a snow field which was too dangerous for the horses to traverse without a path. Cam, Erin, and "the Boys" were the first to make the path. The rest of us waited while the horses attempted to cross. These horses looked like bunnies as they hopped, first their front two legs and then the rear two, through chest deep snow with 100-200lbs of luggage strapped to their backs. One horse tried to head straight down the mountainside. Three of the Ladkhi men ran to stop him and shouldered him back up to the path with all of their might. At this point we were out of radio contact with Cam who was within eyesight, but couldn't be heard over the howling wind, so we were all a little nervous as to what was happening below. After a successful cross by all, Cam and I headed down the valley to find the best route through the rocks and snow. About 40 minutes down, we found our first water source and decided to break for some more food. The second half of the day was as incredible as the first. We continued to walk through landscapes that varied as much as the weather--undulating snow covered frozen rivers, muddy rocky snowmelt, and incredible green and red rock canyons...The scenery was something else! I walked the last hour with Knight, Melissa, and Lauren who stopped every hundred meters to take a photo of the colorful walls. We got to camp that last night and everyone was BEAT!

The following day we only had a 2 hour hike to the road where we were met by our "mini bus." Everyone hiked these last two hours solo in order to reflect on the past three months we've had together (well, two for me and Cam). I just cannot believe we're in our final week. It has been such a fantastic semester, and such a pleasure to lead this group! They are all such individuals and yet work so well together. On top of that, they are the most intellectual bunch that Cam, Erin, or I have ever led, which has allowed us leaders to learn so much. We sit down with them and feel like we are back in a college classroom. All three of us are getting nostalgic already and we haven't even left!

The students are spending one last night in Phey with their homestay families.

Here's the plan for our final days:

May 6--Last day in Leh.

May 7--6am fly to Delhi. Omelets at our favorite roadside omelet stand with Amit. Exchange luggage at Peter Sonam's house to pare down for our two days in Rajistan. Leave on the 3pm train to Jaipur, Rajistan.

May 8--Sight see/explore/shop/try to stay cool in Jaipur, all planned by our "Rajistan Committee" Caroline, Katie, and Liz.

May 9--More exploring and sweating. Leave on the 4pm train to Delhi. Arrive in late evening at the Likir House in Lajpat Nagar.

May 10--Last free day in Delhi.

May 11--Final moments! Afternoon surprise for the students, and a late night of dancing and goodbyes before heading to the airport at about 3am.

May 12--Reunion with families and friends back in the States!

Hope all is well back home!

Jullay,
Sarah

So our stay in Ladakh has almost come to a close. It's hard to imagine that we've only been here for a month. I feel that I've learned so much and grown in so many directions. My family in Phey really redefined for me what it means to be part of a family. The care and responsibility each member of the family felt toward each other and, even me, really blew my mind. It's really a shame that that kind of nurture has nearly dissapeared in the west. Exposure to such awesome and stunning natural formations really effected me here in Ladakh. The trek was an opportunity for me to really connect to myself and nature. The memories of gurgling streams, joyous mountains, and bowing trees carry with them a feeling of peace.

If I were to compare my body to the infinite empty space,
It is an existence as small as a particle of dust
My heart feels the empty space in its entirety and embraces it.
With each and every breath
I become one with the empty space.
Just as there is an empty space that exists outside my body
There is one that exists inside my body.
Since both empty spaces are connected
We are tightly embracing the empty space from inside and out.
All living things have their noses buried deep into this empty space
Receiving life from its greatness.
If the great empty space outside falls ill
It only follows that the small empty space inside falls ill.

One of the most important things that I've come to understand better from being in Ladakh is how important my own actions are and how they effect the world around me. Realizing, on some level, my interdependence with the rest of the universe really stimulates in me a desire to positively affect the world.

Lauren

We have really entered the final stage of our semester as we have left Ladakh and are now in the sweltering state of Rajasthan!

As we expected, the Markha valley trek proved to be an unparalleled experience for the group. The extra bonding time, the wonderful food, the opportunities to reflect during the days, passing through remote villages, the terrain testing our stamina, the stars, the altitude, the laughter. In all aspects the trek was meaningful, demanding, and truly a culminating experience for our time in Ladakh! Everyone performed exceptionally and eventually we all learned the basics of backcountry travel - risk management in a group setting, packing a daypack to be prepared for all weather conditions, Leave No Trace philosophy, high altitude travel and health, and the importance of communication while hiking with a party of 14 people!

After our tremendous day crossing the Kongmarula pass in a snowstorm, everyone's spirits had peaked and there was an enormous sense of accomplishment in each student's smile. It was a wonderful blue sky day when we returned to Leh. We stopped by Hemis Monastery on our way back, soaking up our last glimpses of this deeply rooted Buddhist culture in the northwestern Himalaya. This monastery is one of the largest and richest in Ladakh, with many prayer rooms and gathering halls for the monks to complete their daily rituals. It was a wonderful way to re-enter civilization and Ladakhi culture, to really remember that we are still in this mystical landscape and culture of Ladakh (when you are surrounded by only mountains for so long, you sometimes forget!). Namgial presented the history of both the monastery and the Drugpa Kagyu sect of Tibetan Buddhism. This gompa visit really allowed us to summarize our time spent exploring this school of thought over the last two months and helped us realize how much we have all learned!

The next morning the return trip to Leh was not as easy as expected! Sarah, Erin, and I designed a little photo-scavenger hunt involving important sites and places surrounding Leh. Before returning to the guesthouse, the students were asked to complete certain tasks around Leh and document the experience with photos - such as visiting Sankar Gompa, Shanti Stupa, the vegetable market, a school, etc. The group excelled as usual and completed the objectives before noon, coming back to Dorje Guesthouse with wide smiles and hilarious photos.

After a free afternoon of shopping and exploring downtown Leh, we gathered at sunset to debrief our time in Ladakh and share "what we had learned" the past month. It was a very special time for the students and especially for Sarah and I, as we have spent most of the last year in Ladakh and feel very connected to the Ladakhi people and culture. The profound reflections and insights that the students shared with the group all made us take a step back and truly realize what a unique society we were lucky enough to have participated in the last month. As a group we had questioned so much and learned a great deal about this place, about our own culture, and about ourselves. Over the month we were forced to redefine our understanding of development, modernization, prosperity, happiness, community, and social relationships - all difficult questions and concepts that we were trying to grasp as individuals, as a group of students, and as Americans!

The students all commented on their expectations of Ladakh versus their actual experiences here. Katie was surprised by the abundance of imported laborers from Nepal and central India, many students were humbled by the long distances villagers had to travel to their fields or the children had to travel to school each day, Lauren was surprised by how everyone depends on each other and how each family harmoniously works together in all aspects of daily life, Momo was surprised by the combination of Western and Indian influences that are impacting traditional Ladakhi culture, Frank was surprised by the lack of religious freedom within Buddhist families, Caitlin was amazed that telephones were not an essential part of daily life, and Melissa appreciated the vast cultural differences between Ladakh, northern, and southern India. On a larger scale, the entire group felt that they had really become 'close' since their arrival in Ladakh, which everyone was happy about! Although the discussion lasted only an hour, by sharing our experiences and reflections we all came to a greater understanding of why we had journeyed to Ladakh in the first place and what incredible life lessons we were leaving with.

Our final dinner of momos in Leh was meant to be a goodbye dinner to our good friend Namgial, but it turned out to be much more. After we all shared memories of Namgial and thanked him for his enthusiasm, knowledge, and friendship, the discussion turned towards future PVI groups in Ladakh and the possibility of this group collaborating in some way to 'give back' to Ladakh, or India. The students were dismayed with the idea of returning home to our daily lives and forgetting about this experience, the group, and most importantly, the people we have encountered during our semester. There were many ideas thrown out about how we could practically work together after our return to the US, with everyone acknowledging how busy our lives will be and how easy it is to loose contact and motivation. The idea of a website was agreed upon for everyone to stay in touch and keep formulating ideas and initiatives. There is much more talking to do in these last days to finalize things, but keep your eyes out for this ambitious group of students!

The next morning we departed Leh on an early flight for Delhi. Everyone had reservations about leaving, but many were optimistic that they would return someday in the future to continue tackling these often overwhelming issues of cultural preservation and modernization. Delhi welcomed us with heat so great that when the wind was blowing on your face it felt like a hairdryer! The train to Rajasthan was a colorful re-entry to chaotic India and as a group we were drained upon arrival. Too many miles covered and too many sights for just one day!

We have a couple of relaxing days in Rajasthan to shop, sightsee, and complete some final discussions about our time in India and our expectations for when we return home. It will be so sad for me to leave this group of students. We have all learned so much from each other and shared so many experiences this semester that I fear separation. We will write more on our activities these last few days, and I cannot believe it is just four more until we arrive home!

Namaskar all,

Cam

After an afternoon of some random, last minute shopping, Knight, Katie, Caitlin and I had arranged to meet at 6:45 to take a rikshaw to our hotel so we could be back by 7, the time the leaders had arranged for the group to meet and then go out to dinner. Seeing as how the 4 of us had somehow neglected to establish a meeting place, I was quite lucky to happen to find Knight in one of the shops at this time; neither of us had any idea where Katie and/or Caitlin were. When it became 6:50, we decided that Katie and Caitlin could get back by themselves, so we stopped looking for them and started worrying more about getting ourselves back.

Finding a phone booth involved walking around some more asking random Indians if they could direct us to a phone booth and having them respond that they didn't know where one was and then try to sell us things (that had actually been going on the whole time). Finally, a nice police officer got rid of some of the merchants for us and then directed us to a phone booth. This particular STD (they call phone booths STD's here, don't ask me why) had 3 phones: 2 that didn't work and one that sort of did. We of course got to the one that worked last; Knight dialed Erin's number, and I then did my best to take down the address of the hotel from her. The quality of the reception was such that I was forced to ask Erin to repeat herself several times and was still left unsure of whether or not I had the right thing written down. As it would turn out, I had made a crucial mistake in the address (I had an 8 instead of an A), but this would not become apparent until much later. To make up for a potential mistake like this, we also had the name of a movie theatre that was supposedly pretty close to our hotel and also the name of the restaurant the group was going to in case we were so late that we would just have to meet them there.

Seeing as how the address I had wasn't totally correct, it now occurs to me that any rikshaw walla who would have told us he knew where this place was must have been lying, since the place I wrote down doesn't entirely exist. Most were kind enough to be honest that they didn't know, but one finally told us he knew where the restaurant was. We got into the rikshaw after some bargaining, drove around for a few minutes, and then stopped outside of a complex. He wouldn't take us inside the complex, because it was "not possible"- this is a clear indication that they're scamming you, especially considering there were quite a few other rikshaws inside the complex. We got out and walked around for a while asking people where this restaurant was. It turns out he took us to a complex that contained a south Indian restaurant, but not the one we were looking for at all. So we got into another rikshaw and drove around for a few minutes before running out of gas- we didn't pay him. Then we asked a ton more rikshaw wallas, one of whom turned the piece of paper I had the address written on upside down, clearly indicating he couldn't read English thus making it obvious that he was lying when we said he knew this place. We finally found one nice enough to admit that he didn't know where it was but take us in his rikshaw and drive us around anyway.

Knight and I were in this last rikshaw for maybe half an hour driving past things we'd never seen before, discussing the very real possibility that this was all an elaborate dream. The rikshaw walla stopped maybe 10 or 15 times along the way to check the address on the piece of paper and also to ask random people on the street if they knew where we were going. Somehow, we magically ended up kind of near where we were supposed to be, near enough that one of the random people who was asked where our hotel was knew enough to point out that it was probably "A" and not "8." You might think this helped us out more than it really did- we still couldn't find the hotel. At this point, we shouldn't have gone to the hotel anyway, because everyone would obviously be at the restaurant. It was 8:00, an hour past our meeting time. So finally, someone else told us where this restaurant was, and we got to the restaurant. Quite apart from being understandably pissed at our hour-late arrival, the entire group was kind enough to sing happy birthday to us the minute we finally stepped into the restaurant, despite the fact that it wasn't even any of our birthdays. I love our group. And I love India, even when it makes me an hour late for something.

Hannah

We are busy as all running around and trying to make this end GREAT...... Our hands are covered in Henna, we are about to meet for a closing ceremony, then.... a surprise Bollywood dancing lesson with a professional instructor, dinner, dancing, and the airport. Things are going GREAT. Really. We are having a fabulous time and I cannot believe it is the 11th!

Erin

We've been doing a lot of traveling in the past week. We came out of the mountains in Marka Valley into Leh. From Leh we flew to Delhi and that same day we caught a train to Jaipur, Rajastan. We stayed there for two nights and then trained it on back to Delhi where we have been doing some serious shopping, packing for the plane home tomorrow in the early morning.

Both Delhi and Rajastan have left me perspiring more than I thought humanly possible, especially without even exerting myself. On the train to and from Rajastan I fell asleep on the leather train seats and woke up drenched in my own sweat. Conveniently, it means visiting the toilet less, because I just sweat out all the fluids I take in.

I like Delhi more each time we return. The heat has been a little hard to deal with, but it can be managed with a little bit of strategy (i.e. shop in the heat, then recuperate at an air conditioned restaurant, back into the heat, then duck into an air conditioned ATM booth, then into the heat for a little while longer, buy an ice cream cone and soon after that the heat of the day should be over). Despite the heat, I feel like I could stay here a while longer; I will miss India when I get home.

There are many things about India that I will miss, especially all the ridiculous things that make you say "We're in India". For example, when your servers at a restaurant are passed out from too much bhong lassi, when your host family talks constantly and openly about your "stomach problems", or when your rickshaw driver takes you all over Delhi before delivering you to the place you need to be.

I just started to appreciate Indian food, although it's a bit too late. I will miss channa masala, curd, and gulab jamon. I am looking forward to our last-night-bash and the Indian food for dinner. I am sure it will be the perfect way to end the semester, although I am sad to say that it is nearly over.

-Caitlin

We are leaving for the airport in about 7 hours. This evening we have a final dinner planned and then we thought we might end the night with a little Bollywood dance party! We have had many great discussions about returning home and what to expect, about what we have gained from our time here, and about how we will continue to learn about ourselves and the world when we get back to the states. This has been an unforgettable semester and we cannot wait to share it with all of you in just 48 hrs!

See you soon, Cam

pizza at L&B's, the legendary Brooklyn pizzeria that Frank had been talking about for weeks

My family and Cam's family met us in the airport (with American flag sweaters and red, white, and blue streamers). We had those delicious cheese burgers we've been dreaming about for the past year, but somehow they just didn't taste as good as the thought of them does from Ladakh.

Well, I'm starting to get tired here, so I will say good night. Knight and Lauren, hope you two are feeling better! Erin, enjoy your first americano tomorrow! I hope you all sleep like kings and queens in your clean cozy beds (I know I will!).

Miss you guys. Love, Sarah

P.S. Will all of you send me your contact info ( szp.stewart@gmail.com ) and I will compile a list for everyone. Also, as you are going through your pictures with your families and friends, don't forget to pick out your favorite one (make sure it is of something Indian, Ladakhi, or Tibetan...not of group members) and send 13 copies (4 x 6) to me at:

43 Forest Glen Road
Longmeadow MA 01106

I'm leaving for Oregon on June 1, so if it won't reach me my then, hold off, and I will send my new address when I have it!