A world (mostly) unchanged

The first impression you get wherever you go in Tibet is of the genuine age of the culture. It hit us the moment we drove from the airport when we saw yaks and cows wandering next to the side of the road, tended by women with wooden sticks – in much the same way as it has been for generations.

 

This morning, we went to the Summer Palace of the Dalai Lama. On the outside, we saw people tending the grounds. They were using the same kind of broom/rakes that they have used for centuries. Several people commented that the old fashioned stuff sure seemed to work better than the manufactured tools that we pay $20+ for at Home Depot or Target.

 

 

Another sign of how things never change… the guards at the summer palace. They are not all human. The monks also use guard dogs who just look so perfect for the part of a Tibetan guard dog. The dogs are big and shaggy and seem mostly peaceful. I was assured though that if things got out of hand, they would pounce into action. They were patrolling the roof outside a building built by the 8^th Dalai Lama.

 

 

 

Here is a pic of the entire group at the entrance to the Summer Palace residence that was built for the 14^th Dalai Lama. The entire Summer Palace was built by the 7^th Dalai Lama in the 1750s. It was used by all the Dalai Lamas over the years until the 14^th Dalai Lama had to flee it in 1959 because he was afraid that China would kill or kidnap him. Still, the monks who work here prepare things every day as if the Dalai Lama will return that day. It is more than a little bit sad.

 

 

Finally, a picture of a young boy who has just become a monk. He will spend his entire life as a monk, a great honor for him and his family. Still, a tough choice for a family to make when a child is only 5 or 6 years old – to give their child away and see him only rarely after that.