well i just disovered i cant post my blog from 2 weeks ago and i cant remeber what happned 2 weeks ago but im sure its not importnat.

well last weekend i stayed at daisys hostel in sibury for sunday night and just looked around mcleod ganj and daramsala a bit more. then on monday mornnign i had my turn at getting sick in india. so i spent 2.5 days in bed throwing up which was really annoying cos i came alll the way there to see the place and couldnt actaulyl get out of bed. but on wednesyday i managed to go to daramsaa for some chai and a bit of a wander around and on thrusday daisy and i went to norbilinka. its a center which was established to preserve tibetan culture, with thanga (i cant spell) paiting workshops and metal sculpting. there was a museum with dolls in it that displayed the different areas of tibet and the culture within; how the people look, the lcothing they wear, and the different ceremonies perfored. the shop in the center was amazing it sold absolutely stunning chupas, tops, hand embroidered cushions and all sorts of amazing pieces. daisy said it was the kind of shop you'd find on oxford st. the garden in the center was certainly not what i expected in india. it was a lush tropical garden with flowing water features and prayer flags everywhere.

in the afternoon we met julia and we went to see the dalai lamas temple. some monks were doing Puja (prayer) at the time so we went into the viewing area of the tmeple and sat and listened. it was really nice just to sit and listen to them chanting and playing the cymbols, bells, and drums. the museum inside the temple was fantastic. itwas pictures and videos of the time in tibet from china's invastion. some of the stories told by people taken to labor camps showed the brutality of china's invasion. i learnt that when china invaded the tibetan army consisted of only 6000 men with limited amory and stood absolutly no chance against the hundreds of thousands of chinese troops. i then caught the bus back to manali which was 1000 times better because i paid the extra $4 and got a comfy coach with proper everything!!

now im in rainy manali with only 9 days left at my placement. today is the school picnic at the art galler in naggar, but its a little bit wet so im not sure if it still going ahead.

xxxx