Rain, Sleet And Snow

It is about 7pm in Manali.

This morning we went to a buddist school to perform physicals on all the students. The building was old and decrepid and very cold!!!! I don't know how the students live there in these conditions. Many of the windows were broken and the common room was open to the outdoors. Despite that the children were all cheerful and happy to see us. They were timid at first, but when we photographed them and showed them the pics on our digital cams, they smiled and happily posed for many more. They were so adorable. Wait till you see the pics.

Since it was so cold (and because we wanted to take advantage of our time in Manali), we cranked through the physicals and were done with ~170 exams by 2pm. We then headed back to the hotel for lunch, followed by an afternoon of shopping and walking around town.

Manali is surrounded by snow-capped peaks- very beautiful. But the weather has been rather harsh. The day started wih sleet, followed by rain, and now it is snowing. Brrrr! The hotel is unheated except for tiny space heaters in the rooms. Last night I heard a buzz and then saw smoke rising from our heater. We got it replaced. We need to leave it on for most of the day because that is the only way our clothes will dry.

Purchases so far have included scarves, hats, gloves, and socks. All wool.

Tomorrow we leave for a buddhist monastery where we will reside for 2 days in their guest house. It is unheated too. No space heaters. Afterwards we will camp for 6 nights. Yikes! Whatever doesn't kill us makes us stronger!

It is awesome to have Harry and Anjum here to share this experience.

Love to all,
Karin