Tibetan Refugee Colony

One of the biggest surprises I had during my visit to Delhi was visiting this refugee colony. My friend's younger brother is involved with a rugby team whose members live close by to the colony, and that's how he heard of it. There was some suggestion of taking me to see some museums and fanciful things. Those would be nice to see too, but somehow when the suggestion that I could visit such a place as this arose, there was absolutely no way I could turn it down.

We drove up a major road in Delhi and seemingly nothing special was on either side. We drive by what looks to be another nondescript small neighborhood and he friend's brother says, "there it is." The only designation marker is a cheaply printed wooden sign saying "Tibetan Refugee Colony" We had to drive around another couple miles to turn around and get on the correct side of the road and we made it. We stepped out onto a dirt road and walked into a shady little alley. When I say little I usually mean "little" in the American sense, that is a narrow alley barely big enough for a small car to drive through. This was not that kind of narrow, this was indian narrow. Three men walking cannot go through it shoulder to shoulder. The three of us make it through the alley and into a nice open space.

What's this? There are no Indians here except my two friends. What's that language? Is that... Tibetan they are speaking? Yes, yes it is. I don't know a single word in tibetan. I only know a couple words in Chinese, and I think they won't be very helpful or welcome here. What is that funny script? Oh, that's tibetan too.

We continue our walking tour and pass by many small shops and restaurants and guest houses. Apparently you can rent a room in a guest house there. It seems they really like visitors. We came to what seemed an abrupt end to our tour when we ran into another little alley way. It looked like only "houses" and "apartments" were there. Then I saw a man walk down that way, and some westerners come out. I decided to duck down into that alley and see what was going on. We walk into another open space with a nice tibetan temple, more shops and a people playing badminton out in the open. There are a few westerners who must have gotten a tip off about this place as well. Then I saw the most repulsive sight in the world... Two western hippies with free tibet hats and shirts and dreadlocks with camping gear. I shouldn't begrudge them their political ideals, but somehow kids from america wearing free tibet stuff in a refugee camp didn't sit well with me. It somehow seems to me like they're saying, "we understand your plight, and we're with you." F-ing idiots!

I think Americans who have enough freedom to visit Delhi and find out about this camp have no idea of what it's like to have their country taken over by less than friendly invaders, they're religion squashed, their religious leader sent into exile, and their people moved to a neighboring country that gives them a little neighborhood in a place with completely different georgraphy... I was incensed at that. That, however, is not the point of this post. While I also have strong feelings about the way Tibetans have been treated at the hands of China, I don't want to rub in their faces that I'm an American with all the world's freedoms and more money than most people, that seems insulting, and I don't want to insult refugees!

It was an eye-opening and intense experience. We stopped for some tea and coffee and "apple beer" and walked around. I at one point got into the action by getting a shuttlecock for badminton down from an awning too tall for the children playing to reach it. We watched some men playing Carrom (similar to pool, but on a board and without sticks) and took in the scenery. Here is a random assortment of photos from my visit.