Clement Town

As part of activity week, we tried to do some cultural activities in addition to our learning ones. One day after spending time at the various schools, we took a short bus trip to Clement Town. This is the area of Dehradun that is home to the Tibetan exile community of the city. There was a 103 foot tall statue of the Buddha and lots of monks and other Tibetans in the area.

The highlight, though, was the Asia's largest stupa. It reminded us of a lot of the stupas we saw in Ladakh this summer, but was definitely big.

It is actually a part of the re-established Mindroling Monastery. This monastery was originally founded in Lhasa, but was heavily damaged by the government of China during the 1959 revolt of the Tibetan people against communist rule. They've re-established the monastery here, and it contains one of the largest Buddhist institutes of learning in the country.

It's always nice to experience some new aspect of culture in India, even if it is an aspect that is transplanted from somewhere else.

Dave and Beth