In Gangtok 29 November

Kiran and Kush picked us up at 9 am and drove us to the Rumtek Monastery; a distance of 24 kms. This is a black hat monastery which was built in the early 1960s when the 16^th Karmapa left Tibet and took refuge in Sikkim safe from the invading Chinese. It is an excellent example of Tibetan monastic architecture, reputedly replicating the Kagyurpa Monastery in Tsurphu, Tibet. It is home to unique scriptures and rare objects. Towering over the monastery is the Nalanda Institute for Higher Buddhist studies and up a flight of stairs to the right of the monastery is a stupa which contains the remains of the 16^th Karmapa. The top level of the monastery is supposed to be home to the 17^th Karmapa but this is now a controversial and political dilemma. Two boys have been selected to fill this role. Eighty percent of the followers support one of the boys and the other 20 percent namely Chinese, support the second boy. The 80% boy is supported by the Dalai Lama and currently lives in the same area as the Dalai Lama. The Indian government is staying out of it as they don't want to upset the Chinese. It seems Buddhism is never far from political controversy.

Next on the tour was the Namgyal Institute of Tibetology which has a rich collection of Tibetan Books on Buddhism, over 200 icons and tangka tapestries. One series of tangkas depicted the life of Buddha in pictures so to speak. Very interesting place which is a must visit for scholars of Buddhism.

Then onto the Enchey Monastery which is a red hat monastery built earlier than 1812. This is 3 kms from Gangtok. It is set on a ridge covered in conifers and festooned with prayer and memorial flags. Legend suggests that the founder was known for his tantric flying powers and set up a small hermitage on the spot after flying in from a hill in south Sikkim. This monastery was damaged by an earthquake in September 2011, at 7.9 on the Richter scale.

Next off to the Craft Museum which is a very interesting concept attempting to preserve local crafts from all regions of Sikkim. We saw wood carving and painting, weaving especially on a backstrap loom, thangka painting, embroidery, basket ware, etc. Once back at the hotel, we went to the market again, where we tried sweets and masala chai in a sweet shop. There were several sweet shops in the shopping mall/market. I found a cyber cafe and checked out communications from home and we purchased a bottle of the famous Sikkim beer for 45 rups (less than $1).

Also on this day we visited the Do-drul Chorten which is a Stupa built in 1945 by the Venerable Trulshi Rinpoche, head of the Nyingma order of Tibetan Buddhism to invoke the gods to keep peace and tranquility in the State.  It is the shape of a white bell and has 108 prayer wheels.

Outside the monasteries and stupas, the daily grind never ceases.