Animals and Surroundings
Norlha's 18th Anniversary
We are humbled to have completed eighteen years in the valley of Ritoma, a small village in Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, China. This is a ...
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Animals and Surroundings
The Choekhor
Summer, a time of abundance for yaks and sheep, is over, marking a period of heavy work for a family of pastoralists. The vibrant green pastures ha...
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Animals and Surroundings
The Yak in the Year’s Winding Days
As September nears its end, the grassland flora makes its last hurrah with its most surprising flowers and fruits, sweet-tasting nectars, and red b...
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Animals and Surroundings
LAPTSE & THE WIND HORSE
From the tops of mountains to the banks of the most beautiful lakes, nomads call for the victory of the gods by scattering countl...
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Animals and Surroundings
THE YAK IN SUMMER
Towards the end of June or the beginning of July, Ritoma nomads start to migrate to their first summer pasture. In collaboration with the village...
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Animals and Surroundings
THE YAK IN LATE SPRING
Spring arrived later than usual this year. Rain was scarce, and the hills stubbornly remained brown. Nomads watched anxiously as clouds gathered, o...
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Animals and Surroundings
NYUNGNE སྨྱུང་གནས།
In Norlha's home of Ritoma, Nyungne is a practice performed over two days in the month of June. This practice is often referred to as Tsok Sum - li...
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Animals and Surroundings
DUKAR DOLMA
April is a month of prayer in the village of Ritoma. Spring arrives late on the Plateau, and the third month of the lunar calendar is a critical ti...
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Animals and Surroundings
EARLY SPRING
Spring comes slowly to the Plateau. Warmer weather arrives hesitantly, interrupted by sudden snowstorms and dust storms that sweep across the land...
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Animals and Surroundings
LAPTSE IN SPRING
Laptse is a festival where men from all clans gather to honour the local deities. Riding their horses, dressed in their best and bearing their fami...
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Animals and Surroundings
THE WINTER YAK
The yak, referred to as Nor or wealth, is central to the nomad’s way of life. Over a millennium, the grassland’s seasonal cycles and the yak’s graz...
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Animals and Surroundings
HARVEST OF THE OATS
Harvest on the plateau is a relatively new phenomenon. Pastures of time gone by were more ample and plentiful, with less animals and larger herds ...
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