The
long transit to the far side of the world: two long flights, a train ride,
and, now, endless convoy rides in Mahindra “jeeps” into the “hill country”
enroute to the Spiti Valley of the Himalaya.
The events following
arrival of a jet-lagged group in Simla, a “house call” on officialdom, and
setting up a lecture in the IGMC medical college despite lack of my bags
left for ready access” in Delhi, and then another convoy to Narkanda, Himachal.
A full “academic
day” at Indira Ghandi Medical College at Simla after a courtesy call on
the “King of Kinnaur” and then rounds and patient presentations at the medical
school before the road trip to Narkanda.
The road trip up
along the raging Sutlej River to the village of Sangla in the Kinnaur Valley,
a brief stop in Rampur, and lunch at Bagha Nagi (parts of the NAHPTA—Jakri
hydro power projects) and a climb up to 700-year-old Fort Kangro, seat of
power of Raja Sahib, whom we visited on a house call yesterday.
A good day starts
with a high altitude run, then the long, long ride out of Sangla and Kinnaur,
entering “restricted area” at Jangi, with multiple waits for blasting loose
avalanches, and finally arrival at Tabo Monastery.
The first clinic day in Tabo starts with a run along the much disputed
“Chinese border”: it also brings to a head the problem of our biggest noncontributor
and his ambitions toward being the author of my experience.
After a stormy night,
the second clinic day in Tabo begins with a run with Jim Blixen, and continues
with further resolution of authority and authorship.
The
half day of travel between Tabo and the Pin Valley with a stop in Dhankar
Monastery begins with a busy clinic afternoon in remote Sagnam, Pin Valley.
A full day of busy clinic patients ends in the cultural program from
the grateful residents of Sagnam, before we turn in to our tents.
The
final clinic morning in Sagnam, Pin Valley, before we ride the bus to Kaza
and forward to a visit at Kibber, the world’s highest year-round village,
and to Ki monastery, where all systems breakdown in photography and computer
keyboards, as we make rounds in Kaza hospital and hold final professor’s
tutorials for those students not too busy to come for evaluation.
The
long and winding road—actually, the endless Himalayan “highway”— from Kaza
to Manali in fourteen hours, through both Kunzum-la and Rohtang passes,
avalanches, carved through glaciers and fording snow melt torrents, ends
in a Manali traffic jam.
The
full day in Manali, when I can make the rounds of the ususal places and
meet some interesting people
Midnight in Manali---the
cover letter for our brief Manali stay on arriv al from Spiti and preceding
our long drive to Dharamsala.
Yet another
all-day bus ride from Manali, through Mandi to Dharamsala to arrive in the
Bhagsu in MacLeod Ganj for a day in our penultimate destination.
A good day in McLeod Ganj began with a good run and then had me spending
time sheltered from a torrential rain in the palace of His Holiness the
Dali Lama XIV and his secretary, in attempt to set up appointments and exchanges,
then an attempt to email from Dharamsala, and a shopping trip for purchases
for one-year-old twins, before a hike up to see Mount Triund and return
in a “Free Tibet” parade.
A
great run in the early morning precedes an eventful last half day in McLeod
Ganj, as we decamp from the Hotel Bhagsu and ride the bus to Chandrigarh
.
The penultimate destination before the globe-girdling return from Chandigarh
through Delhi homeward: an early boulevard run and a Rock Garden tour before
the A/C bus to Indira Ghandi International.
The
letter for the Dali Lama’ss personal secretary, regarding our medical missions
and the subject of Panetics.