Choenga Chopan at Kopan Gompa

Thursday, 21st February.
In the morning, after the sport session, Miss Tsultrim sent her three french volunteers to Kopan Gompa (= monastery). "You'll see... today is last of Losar (= Choenga Chopa). The lamas are sculpting with butter. That's impressive."
If volunteers are off duty, children had to be at school. On the day the headteacher started her scolding training, the next she used the stick for the one who've been absent with no excuse.

Noemie had still a paining knee so we took the taxi. Special day, no petrol and our "foreignness" made ask the driver for 350, but 200's been the last price.

In side, the monastery, the same we visit empty every saturday with the kids, was crowdy. Traditional garments for the majority. Everybody had to eat a meal of oily rice with dry fruits especially cooked by the monks for this holly day and offered to visitors and believers.
At the foot of the main temple, a novice was collecting offerings against khatas while the lama behind him took care of this truely amazing sculpture. Just something unseen before. The main feature represented the buddha enlightment and at the bottom three frames showing the Boudha's Stupa and the Tibetan flag.
But first of all, and the khatas were for this reason, all buddhists came to recieve the benediction of the Rimpoche (= the precious one). At sport, one of the children had told me that we could ask him to realize one's wish. May be that's why the queue was so long and looking like not moving.
Anyway, time was of no importance, most of the people planned to spend the day there. They brought everything needed for a tibetan pique-nique, sweets and kapse of course, but also their favorite meal which is meat dried from the Tiebatn Plateau in attics. "The older, the better" from Khampa's saying... but I never tried.
The monastery's rice was delicious.

On this day, the usually peaceful lawn of the garden was covered of blankets and colourful people. Not only here but anywhere suitable in the monastery.
We found a spare piece of grass backside the stupa where a 2 years old baby in a nicely fitted khampa suit introduced us to his family. His father is an artist, he knows Marcelle (France-Tibet's president) and visited France with the help of a Tadol association's member (still french!)
Above our head, as the ground was stiff, three pupils from manasarovar were playing at sliding on the lawn.
The time to show the girls the sights from the hill - also place of pique-nique, and crossing a primary school head-teacher and her german volunteer, and we were back to the world of noise and pollution (pandemonium).

I have to say that the tibetan dresses are truely beautiful and the elder women's face are attracting the attention. The children were wearing their parents clothes. Lamas were praying, playing instrument and received many bank notes.

PS: the two ducklings are dead. They didn't suffer, so quick it happened I don't understand. The news reported the bird flu in Tibet... but I don't think it is this... or may-be...