Because the Tibetans are refugees
from China - many of whom made harrowing, dangerous journeys across the
Himalayan Mountains - there is considerable anti-China sentiment in the
town. There are many, many items for sale everywhere, and nearly every
stall and stand displays this sign:
In any case, the locally made items that
we saw for sale - such as those by this lady waiting along the roadside
- were certainly interesting enough for us to spend time and money on!
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Interestingly enough, we heard several
conversations where people who were from Taiwan, which is not 'that' China,
were welcomed very warmly and treated quite well.
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Breck looks through a plethora of
sharp items (he loved checking out knives at every stand), and the ubiquitous
prayer wheels that are de rigueur for Tibetans. You spin the wheel,
and every time it goes around a mantra is 'said.' I supposed it is like
racking up Rosary prayers for the Catholics...
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There were plenty of cold weather
items in shops and stalls; things that we hardly need in Mumbai! Many of
the woven goods are made out of yak wool. One of Breck's best quotes came
after hearing that - he asked what a yak is, and I told him, "It is a kind
of Tibetan cow." He looked puzzled for a minute, but had apparently assimilated
our rudimentary history lessons on the region better than expected. "Oh,"
he said, "so you mean it's now a kind of Chinese cow." Ouch.
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