They are scheduled to arrive in Newark at 4:25am (April 7) aboard Continental flight #83. They will change planes in Newark to CO flight #91, which is scheduled to arrive at LAX at 9:34am.

After our discussion, we headed to the amazing Janpath Disctrict. Why is it amazing you ask? Well, because shopping is all we did. Some of us emptied our wallets in the first hour we were there. While others shopped till they dropped. But we (the Sophomores) happened to have fallen in the first category and had another two hours to spare. So, what did we do? We spent our time in an air-conditioned McDonalds and shared a nice chocolate dipped ice cream cone. Unfortunately, after a little over an hour, we were kicked out for playing cards and probably loitering.

After our unfortunate event, we had lunch at Saravana Bhavan, which happens to have a branch in Sunnyvale, California! Our lunch was filled with delicious Southern Indian delicacies. We then proceeded to return to the World Buddhist Center.
Now, we struggle to fit all of our new purchases in our suitcases and are sad to depart. Our experience has allowed us to open our eyes and mind to an entire new culture. We all long for a nice hot shower and this time we won't take it for granted. We're all so excited to return home to our families and share our wonderful and adventurous stories!!

Greetings from Agra, India! Today after a rather strenuous night on the sleeper train, we arrived at our hotel and were all thrilled to discover it was truly luxurious and clean. We were rushed off to a late breakfast/brunch and soon after, we began our journey to the long awaited visit to the Taj. From afar, some of us initially thought the Taj was only as much as our postcards and pictures. However, as we began walking towards it we realized how momentous and beautiful it is in person. The entire building is made of stunning white marble and is embellished with semi-precious stones. In person, these beauties are beyond explanation. Apparently, some king decided to build it in memory of his beloved wife. It made me think, "hmm I want someone to build me a palace out of marble and gems to prove their love to me!". After a guided tour we were given free time to get all our cheesy pictures taken. It was quite the sight and we can't wait to take your breath away with all the pictures we took!

- Julie

p.s. Laura and Diana, we miss you!!!!

After gorging ourselves with delicious pancake-like potato bread, we meet our tour guide of the day. He is a tall lanky man dressed in light blue, topped with a navy turban, and completed with a long beard. His eyes are lazy, his voice soft, and his English is truly eloquent. He leads us into some random hotel and after hiking to the roof we enjoy a roof-top view of the Golden Temple. The Golden Temple is literally what its name describes. It is pure gold temple surrounded by a square pool of bright blue water. We learn that the water represents the movement and inconsistency of the outer-self while the gold temple represents the peace of one's inner-self. We walk to the temple and after removing our shoes and covering our heads in headscarves we enter the temple. We walk around the pool of water where men bathe and we end our visit by wading into the water ourselves.

- Charlotte

This morning we said thank you and good-bye to our homestay families. It was sad and touching. We got in the cars and made our way to Amritsar. We stopped for lunch - it was paradise on the side of the road in India! Then we drove and arrived at Waga Border between Pakistan and India where we watched the daily flag-lowering ceremony. People were chanting "Hindustan Zindabad"! Now we are eating dinner and watching the cricket World Cup. We hope India wins!

More soon on thoughts from the Golden Temple.

--Collective group post

Hello families this is Julie and Mirannda and we are here to tell you a little bit about our experiences in our homestay! We have an Amala (Mother), a Pala (Father), and an Ajala (Sister). They are very kind and loving to their host students. Our family has been hosting students for many years and our Amala speaks impeccable English. She is patient when we try to learn new things and she has even taught us some Tibetan words. Now we try to speak Tibetan around the house, words like simbodo (delicious), tojeche (thank you), and nyaljay (blanket). We say simbodo the most because our Amala is an amazing cook. We eat breakfast and dinner with our family every day. Last night she prepared Vegetable Momos for dinner which are like dumplings. Amala taught Julie how to stuff and fold the Momos. Julie made one or two but our Amala and Pala made at least 30 and they each had a different style of folding them. After they were cooked we sat around the table and ate them with some egg soup. The food was simbodo! Before bed we can take showers using a bucket system that consists of a large bucket filled with water and a smaller bucket to pour the water on your body. These homes are nothing like the ours at home but we feel very comfortable in them. Our family is loving and we will miss them very much. (Don't worry they will never replace you!)

Love,
Julie and Mirannda

Today was such a busy and fascinating day! Everyone started out eating breakfast with their homestay families and then met up at the hotel together. The teachers were very relieved to hear that everyone has had an amazing time with their amalas and palas as girls were arguing who had the cuter brother or sister.

After everyone arrived, we piled into cars (a common activity here) and we headed to Tibetan Parliament. Peter-la described how the Tibetan government works and how they have departments very similar to ones at home- housing, health and safety, etc.- that help with the Tibetans in D-sala. We were allowed to go inside and saw where Parliament meets.

We got back into the cars and continued to drive down the mountain to Norblungka which is like an artisan workshop where they make absolutely beautiful works of art. My pala works there, which I did not know at the time, so I was very surprised to see him drive up on his motorcycle. We went inside and it is absolutely beautiful with prayer flags everywhere. We took tours of the different work areas where they create clothing and beautifully detailed woodwork, metalwork, paintings, and puppets. We then went into the temple there and went to the place His Holiness, the Dalai Lama, stays a couple of days a year. We were allowed to go inside and we also took some photos in front of the foothills of the Himalayas which some of us believe are not aptly name as they put the mountains at home to shame.

After eating a delicious Tibetan breakfast, our group headed over to hear a speaker from the Tibetan Youth Congress (TYC), Tenzin Chokeyla. She talked to us about the situation in Tibet and the organization that she represents. TYC is the oldest and largest political movement associated with the struggle for Tibetan independence. Despite the Dalai Lama's advocation of the Middle Way, TYC has not changed its principle and still strives for independence for Tibet.

Okay. Give us a minute to compose ourselves before relaying this next bit of information. We realize that this is going to be going up on April Fools, but we are not kidding when we say that we saw His Holiness the Dalai Lama in his car and HE WAVED AT US! Not even caps lock can encompass the level of excitement that we felt at that moment. The Dalai Lama was going to Delhi from his residence in D'sala and so we lined the streets with hundreds of other people to catch a glimpse of him. It was unbelievable!!!

Waking up before sunrise we struggled to quickly pack our things and make our way to D'sala. At about 4:50am we were downstairs loading four cars full of students and luggage to make our ten hour journey to the home of the Dalai Lama.

On our way, we briefly stopped for breakfast and had a chance to stretch our legs. Afterwards we loaded back in to the cars and made another stop at a Punjab Village and interacted with the women and children. We were welcomed with open arms and danced with one another. The children were ecstatic to see us and took advantage of the opportunity of being in front of the camera and taking tons of photos with us. We introduced ourselves to one another and quickly bonded with one another over dance and an attempt to converse with each other. Just as we were in the middle of taking our photos it was time to continue our trip to D'sala.

When we arrived at our home we quickly refreshed ourselves and went out to dinner. Before dinner was served the power went out, and we took advantage of the intimate candle light dinner and made the best of returning back to a blacked out hotel room.

Veronica

The group reached the cooler temperatures of the Himalayan foothills and the dense pine forests surrounding the Dalai Lama's home-in-exile in the early evening, just in time for dinner and a good night's rest. Today they are diving in to learn firsthand about Tibetan culture.

John

The group in front of India Gate

Hi everyone!

We've just finished our first full day in New & Old Delhi and we're absolutely exhausted. We started our morning by eating breakfast together and enjoying REAL chai tea - not the Starbucks fake. Afterwards we gathered together and had Deborah and Peter introduce us to the culture and what we should expect. Piling in 5 separate cars, we made our way to the Jama Masjid Temple, saw the prophet Mohammed's slippers, footprint, and a hair from his beard, then climbed a 150 step minaret. After having taken a billion photos with friends, we made our way back to meet with Deborah and Peter where we were surprised to find out that we were going to ride a rickshaw to the Red Fort. At the Red Fort we were given a brief history followed by time to take more photos and gather ourselves before lunch. For our first Indian meal we ate in New Delhi where each and every one of us devoured our food until we were stuffed. With a full stomach we drove to the India Gate and were confronted by starving children and beggars. During our ride from location to location we were faced by children extending a sad hand pleading for money. Our hearts were pulled at and we were filled with several different emotions that did not correspond. After visiting the India Gate we made our way to FabIndia for some SHOPPING! The hand woven clothing we found was stunning. From the designs to delicacy of each salwar or any attire sold, it was an experience to remember.

Veronica & Brittany

When you last saw your dearly beloved children, wide-eyed and anxious, at LAX, we can guarantee we were a lot better rested and clean but are no less happy now. We have arrived in Delhi, safe and sound, after a two long flights and an exhilarating driving experience. Driving in Delhi is very much an interpretive dance, you're just praying everyone knows the right moves. We are staying the night in the World Buddhist Center and our neighbors are Buddhist monks. We are very lucky to be staying here and everyone is incredibly warm (in all meanings of the word) and welcoming.

One of our favorite things about India so far is the smell that instantly hit us as we walked out the airport. The most accurate description that people have agreed upon is a mixture of red clay, incense, asphalt after rain, and burning wood.

The drive, while thrilling, was eye-opening and some girls were shocked to see a Mercedes Benz dealership juxtaposed with an abandoned, worn-down building. Another surprise was that the majority of the ads around Delhi were in English, which is slightly comforting but took time to realize how strange it is.

Our guides, Peter and Deborah, met us at the airport and are really friendly and helpful.We had a light meal when we arrived at the Center and everyone has retreated to their rooms. Tomorrow we have been invited to join meditation before breakfast which many people are excited about. We are so excited to explore Delhi tomorrow in the daylight and would love to tell y'all more, but we are falling over with exhaustion at the keyboard.

Namaste!

-Mirannda H. and Charis R.