Most travellers who come to Bir never make it up to Sherabling Monastery, and to me that is the biggest miss in the whole valley. This guide is the on-the-ground version, not one pieced together from other websites: the real timings (which half the internet gets wrong), how to reach Sherabling, what to look for […]
Sherabling Monastery, Bir: A Local’s Complete Guide 2026 Read More »
Most people who come to Bir never actually walk into Chokling Monastery, and that has always struck me as odd, because the whole town grew up around it. Visitors land at the paragliding site, grab a coffee, and leave, never realising that the maroon-and-gold gompa a five-minute walk away is the reason a Tibetan Bir
Chokling Monastery: The Gompa That Built Bir Read More »
Every time I walk into the Bir Tibetan Colony, I catch the same quiet collision: paragliders drifting down over the valley while, just below them, monks file into a prayer hall and the afternoon chants begin. Most guides file Bir under “the paragliding capital of India” and stop there. They miss the bigger story, that
Bir Tibetan Colony: The Hidden Tibetan World of India Read More »
Ask almost anyone in McLeod Ganj for the Dalai Lama Temple and they will send you to the same gate as Namgyal Monastery, and that is exactly where the confusion begins. Namgyal Monastery is the personal monastery of the 14th Dalai Lama, tucked inside the Tsuglagkhang complex, the spiritual heart most visitors know as the
Namgyal Monastery: Inside the Dalai Lama’s Monastery Read More »
The Dalai Lama Temple in McLeodganj, officially the Tsuglagkhang Complex, is the one place in town I still slow down for, even after walking past its gates most weeks of my life. It is the spiritual heart of McLeodganj: the home of the 14th Dalai Lama, the main temple of the Tibetan community in exile,
Dalai Lama Temple McLeodganj: A Local’s Guide 2026 Read More »
The Dalai Lama birthday in Mc LeodGanj falls on July 6, 2026 and this one carried weight most years dont. It marks the closing of His Holiness’s Year of Compassion, a 12-month initiative announced at his 90th birthday. The celebration is open to non-Buddhists, but access is tighter than most blogs admit. Here’s what to
Dalai Lama Birthday 2026: 91st in McLeodganj, Local’s Guide Read More »
In this world, there are places which inherently feel silent and peaceful. And then there are places where silence is practiced, shaped and protected. The monasteries of Dharamshala belong to the second kind. Set against the cedar forests of Himachal Pradesh and watched over by the Dhauladhar range, the monasteries of Dharamshala are not relics
A Complete Guide to Tibetan Buddhist Monasteries In & Around McLeod Ganj Read More »
I have lost count of how many times a guest has walked into my homestay, dropped their bags, looked out at the Dhauladhar range, and asked me the same thing: what are the best places to visit in Dharamshala, and what are the best things to do in Dharamshala once you are actually here? This
Best Places to Visit in Dharamshala: A Local’s Guide 2026 Read More »