Death Ceremony Event and Drubseng Rinpoche blessings 

In the morning, we all walked together to a Tibetan monastery, in the Tibetan refugee settlement, where there was a big gathering. The main purpose of this event was a ceremony for the dead. We first observed the ceremony for the dead, and we brought our khatas for a blessing  by Drubseng Rinpoche. 

One interesting aspect of the ceremony was the distribution of scrolls -- the words of the Buddha -- to the participants, to carry around the monastery. People with a scroll would loop the monastery and then, near the entrance again, lean the scrolls to tap the heads of elders, waiting along the sidelines. The ceremony concluded with the return of the scriptures to their rightful place in the monastery. 

This immersive experience allowed us to see the deeply rooted Tibetan spiritual devotion and traditions. Ceremonies for the dead are very important in Tibetan culture. 

After the memorial ceremony, we waited for Drubseng Rinpoche to arrive. We each extended a khata to him. He carefully took each and placed it around our necks, as a sign of his blessing and protection. It was a moment of connection and gratitude, as we felt the warmth and kindness of Drubseng  Rinpoche. 

After the blessing, we removed our shoes as a mark of respect and entered the monastery. As we went inside the temple, we had the opportunity to hear Drubseng Rinpoche speak Buddhist wisdom to us in English. It was an inspiring talk. I (Ana) felt moved by his words. He is like a motivational speaker to the Tibetan people. I enjoyed his presence and felt welcomed and respected by everyone around me. It was such a spiritual moment. 

I hope our blog captures Tibetan culture, religion, and spirituality -- some knowledge of Tibetan traditions and customs, and enhance understanding. I hope to convey the importance of the ceremony for the dead in Tibetan culture, as a way to honor and remember the deceased, as well as the importance of receiving an important blessing, such as from Drubseng Rinpoche. 

Tibetan Medical Center and Tashiling Tibetan Settlement

We also visited the settlement’s museum, which was right next to the large store selling rugs made by the settlement residents. I was impressed by the historical detail that was recorded through the image gallery. You could definitely see how the settlement had changed, from a tent camp in 1966 to the built-up brick buildings that fit in with the rest of the city’s architecture. 

The narratives explained the way the refugees survived the mountain passages out of Tibet, the way they settled into Nepal, and the way Tibet is today.

Last Day at Basic Monastery School  

At 9:30 am this morning, we headed to the monastery school and watched their morning line up ceremony before the students headed to class. The morning ceremony compasses with hand and feet movement and chanting. As I ( Ana) arrived at the 7th-grade classroom, the students greeted me with warm smiles and eagerly invited us to join them in their seats. 

The first subject for today was Tibetan language. I (Ana) just observed and simply watched the students as they engaged in their learning while the professor was teaching from the book . After Tibetan language, it was time for English class. Unfortunately, the professor was absent, so I (Ana)  took charge of the lesson. I (Ana) taught the students about proverbs, and recited a play based on lesson 7. It was a very interactive and fun lesson where I (Ana) gave each student a character to play for the script called ‘The Price Of Eggs’ and facilitated a discussion about the chapter, going over any difficulties they encountered along the way. I guided them to deliver their words with passion and enthusiasm. I (Ana) also helped them with pronunciation and made sure they said the words correctly. The class is full of energy and enthusiasm as everyone actively participates in the learning process. In addition to the lesson, students learned proverbs such as "Never judge a book by its back." Being a volunteer at this monastery school is such an amazing and rewarding experience, and I felt accomplished for today since I (Ana) was up volunteering for 6 hours knowing that I (Ana) had made a positive impact by engaging 7th graders with English and helping them with their education. After English class, it was time for physical education. We, including the professor, also played football, also known as soccer and a game that looked like musical chairs without music, where the person in the middle says the direction such as left or right and the middle tries to find a seat before someone else gets it.  At noon it was lunch and I (Ana) decided to join and eat with them. After lunch, I (Ana) was supervising the 7th graders for two classes where the two professors were absent. I (Ana) took them to the library to read some books and we learned about ritual objects and deities of Buddhism and Hinduism which was fascinating. After our time in the library, the last subject of the day was Nepali language. During the class, I (Ana) observed and watched as the students engaged in their lessons as the professor engaged and all the students recited words from the book and noticed how much engagement the students put into their classes. I (Ana) felt inspired by their learning, eagerness, and compassion in their studies. Overall, the 7th grade students were filled with insight of dedication of learning, passion, and engagement throughout the whole class from beginning to end. I (Ana) hope this blog attracts tourist people that want to visit Pokhara, Nepal to visit Monastery schools to volunteer, donate, and help these hard working students and make a difference in their lives.  

Last Day at Basic Monastery School 

Today was our last day of teaching at the Basic Monastery School in Pokhara. I (David) will miss the kids in Class 3 a lot. Since we have been with the kids for a little over a week now, I actually feel pretty connected with them. 

We started off the day learning Social Studies. The teacher would speak Tibetan but add parts in English so that I could feel included in the lesson. I would chime in whenever he needed help with an English word. 

The next period was Health and Science. Today was actually the first day the Health and Science teacher has been here for Class 3. Apparently, that teacher was sick and in the hospital for the past week, so luckily he feels better now. I was super impressed with the students since they were learning about matter and the different forms: solid, liquid, and gas. The teacher spoke only English for the whole class and some of the concepts might be quite confusing if you did not have a firm understanding of English. 

Also, I am super bummed about leaving today since I learned that this Friday, the school will be having a badminton tournament. A lot of my kids will be participating and will be practicing for the tournament for the days leading up to the tournament. I wish we could stay to watch or help them practice, but I am also equally excited to start the process of making our way home. 

To celebrate my last day, we all decided to go outside and play. They were supposed to be learning Tibetan, but the kids managed to convince the Tibetan teacher to let us have a free period. We were outside playing a mixture of football, Duck Duck Goose, and Pokemon. 

I really enjoyed playing games and talking about Pokemon with the kids. I feel like one of the main reasons I got as close to the kids as I did was due to also liking Pokemon. We had a blast going through all of our favorite Pokemon, and they even drew Snorlax on the board since I told them Snorlax was my favorite. 

As a goodbye gift, one of them drew a picture of me. I absolutely love the picture! It was funny watching them give me the picture since the kids noticed that the picture was missing my glasses so they quickly drew them on and handed me the picture. I will definitely miss the school and all my Class 3 children, but I know for a fact that they are learning a lot and are in good hands.

Karma's Restaurant

We dropped by Karma’s restaurant for the last time today. I (David) would say that a theme of this trip has been flexibility and rolling with the punches. That being said, Karma’s fresh momos and shapalep were among the few consistent things we had during our stay in Pokhara. 

Karma and her sisters have welcomed us with open arms throughout our entire stay. We got amazing food every night and the restaurant really felt like a second home. 

Karma gave everyone a khata and prayer flag as a going-away gift. I wish Karma and her sisters nothing but the best, and her kitchen will be the number one restaurant I will recommend to anyone going to Nepal!