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Afternoon in a Nomad Tent
Nomads lived in large yak hair tents moving camp 3 to 4 times in a grazing season, following their animals to new pastures. A generation or two...
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Ritoma
THE MEDICAL COLLEGE OF LABRANG MONASTERY
Labrang Tashikhyil was founded in 1709 by the First Jamyang Shepa, Jamyang Shepei Dorje, under the sponsorship of a Qoshot Mongol prince. Many ...
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Animals and Surroundings
CHADOR KHORCHEN
Past Ritoma Monastery, hidden from view on a hill is a small temple devoted to the meditational deity Chanadorje. It was built in the late 18th...
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Religion and Culture
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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Animals and Surroundings
Flower Garlands
Late Spring on the pasture is marked by the appearance of red and white clumps of Stellera Chamaejasme, or Ramarichok in Tibetan and attractive...
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Animals and Surroundings
Sheep and Sheep
Sheep are the largest contingent of domesticated animal on the Tibetan plateau. It is said there are about 20,000 in the small village of Ritom...
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Clothing
From Pasture to Street; Men's Wear in Tibet
The chuba is the core of Tibetan men (and women)’s dress, a full length cross over robe tied with a sash. The chuba’s shape varies from region ...
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Clothing
Nomad Steppes
Enter the New Year with Nomad Steppes, Norlha’s wildest, warmest weave. Like the expanse of Steppe on the Plateau, home to an endless variation...
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Ritoma
Reflecting on the Past, Looking into the Future
2017 marked Norlha’s ten years. Though the celebration was kept deliberately small, it was a time for reflecting on the changes that had occurr...
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Blankets Outside the Bedroom
Layering is one of our favorite ways to stay warm. You can play with colors, textures, and different lengths. Now we can take our love of layer...
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Animals and Surroundings
Snow Days at Norlha
The signs of winter on the Tibetan Plateau cling fast; the earliest snow can come at the end of September, the latest in June. Though they brin...
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Craft
Spinning at Norlha
Spinning is a natural activity in most pastoral cultures. Tibetan nomads live among sheep and yak, and have spun and woven their animal’s wool ...
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