2018
THE LAMA VISITS
Once every few years, Ritoma is host to an important lama, usually from Labrang. It is a great honor for the village and local monastery, whose jur...
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2018
ON THE MOVE
Today, people tend to forget how much we, homo sapiens, have always moved from one place to another. Migration, which happened ‘en masse’ for mille...
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2018
SILHOUETTES
Ritoma, like many other areas of grassland is a succession of hills and valleys. Nomads pitch their tents on the south facing flank of a hill, prot...
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2018
GOING TO THE RACES
Horses used to be central to life on the Tibetan Plateau, for transportation, herding and symbols of status. The Plateau was famous for its handsom...
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2018
SAGADAWA PRACTICES
Sagadawa is a holy month during which merit is believed to count manifold over that accumulated at any other time. Tibetan Buddhist culture is root...
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2018
AS LOSAR APPROACHES
As the end of the year of the Monkey approaches to give way to that of the Dog, I think about Losar’s attributes: Though it may be cold outside, Lo...
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2018
CHAM DANCE
Every year around December, when the cold has settled in and the new year is close, the monastery in Garnying, a few kilometers from Ritoma, holds ...
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2018
RITOMA'S FOUR SACRED PEAKS
Across the valley from our house stands the highest peak in Ritoma, the Amney Tongra. Shaped in the hump of a crouching animal, it is the abode of ...
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2018
MENSWEAR IN TIBET
The chuba is the core of Tibetan men (and women)’s dress, a full length cross over robe tied with a sash.
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2017
KANGTSA MEDICAL COLLEGE
Kangtsa is a small monastery situated on the border between Zorge and Karkya. Along with Shakyong and Takster, it is among the oldest Gelukpa monas...
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2017
BLACK POTTERY
When looking to bring more charm to our Norden Camp dishware, we thought of Tibetan Black Pottery, which had undergone a revival in Gyethang, now c...
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