monkey presents -

know your monks!

my monks friends that came to visit and showed me how to make a sand mandala have gone back to their home (the drepung loseing monastery) in india. i will miss them, but, a new group of monks have come to the united states to visit! i got to meet them and i am so happy to have more monk friends now. i bet you will like having monk friends too, so, please allow me to introduce them to you.

this is tenzin mullin... he's not a monk. he is the person who is driving the monks around the country. he was born in dharmasala (that's where the dalai lama lives) and speaks tibetan too.

this is kalden he's not a monk either. he's the translator for the monks. that way the monks that cannot speak english can still talk to people that come visit them. he also explains all the music and dances at the monks performance and at any teachings they do. if i learn to speak tibetan as well as he speaks english, maybe i could be the translator for the monks someday.

finally, a monk! actually, he is the head monk on this trip. his name is geshe lobsang chodak. geshe is a title (like doctor) that means that he has studied for a long time and has passed many tests. He is very intelligent and very nice.

this is geshe yeshe sherab - the supervisor on the road. he's been here before and speaks english very well. i like his sense of humor and i am so happy to see him again.

this is lobsang chopel's first visit to the united states. he arrived just 5 days before i met him, so, i was the first terry cloth monkey he met in the united states. i feel so honored. i wish you could hear how beautiful her chants.

i love the sweater that passang drudak is wearing. the picture i took does not show the lovely musical notes on the front. he is the umzey (chant master) for the group, so this is a very appropriate outfit for him. he has to memorize all the songs they sing and lead them at the performances or ceremonies. wow! i can't wait to hear him chant.

what a wonderful surprise! it's geshe tubten kunyen. he was in the first advertisement for apple powerbook.(he autographed my copy of it!) i heard such nice things about him from my friend who met him when he visited in 1992. i really like him. i think we have the same smile, don't you?

wangchen dorje is the second chant master on this tour. that means that he knows how to lead all the chants without a song book. i am not sure if i could do that. i wonder if he ever just makes up the words if he forgets them. i would.

dakpa norbu started everyone's day of right by making tasty tibetan tea. in addition to his responsibilies being a monk, he is the cook for the monks. i wish he could stay long enough to teach me his secrets for making momo's (little tibetan dumplings) and tea. i could teach him how to make cinnamon toast and rice crispie treats.

ok.... john's not a monk, but, he has the same hair-do as the monks do. he laughs just like the dalai lama does too. i think he'd be a good monk, don't you?

we watched a jackie chan movie together when he stayed at my house. i fell asleep before it was over, but, he said it was great.

i wish he could have stayed longer so that i could get to know him better, but, they only stopped at my house on their way to make a mandala in another city.

 

here we are at dinner at my favorite chinese restaurant. betty (on the far left) is our hostess, rose and i are guests. that's kalden behind rose, and john next to rose. tenzin is behind john and then geshe-la. i think geshe's smile is so warm and friendly

we all had fortune cookies after our meal. they gave me the extra one to take home with me! i wonder if it will say that there are more monks in my future?

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visit my adventure with other monks from drepung loseling monastery.