Sights in Western Himachal Pradesh
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Tibet Museum
Just inside the main entry gate of the Tsuglagkhang Complex is the Tibet Museum, telling the tragic story of the Chinese occupation and the subsequent Tibetan exodus through photographs, interviews and video clips. A visit here is a must for anyone staying in McLeod Ganj.
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Secretariat of the Tibetan Government in Exile
Inside the government compound at Gangchen Kyishong, the Library Of Tibetan Works & Archives preserves the Tibetan texts saved from the Cultural Revolution. Many of the texts have since been translated into English and other European languages, but you must become a temporary member (Rs 50 per month; passport needed for ID) to access the collection.
Upstairs is a fascinating cultural museum with statues, old Tibetan artefacts and books, and some astonishing three-dimensional mandalas in wood and sand. Also worth a visit is the Nechung Gompa, home to the Tibetan state oracle.
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Kangra Fort
On the far side of town, an Rs80 autorickshaw ride from the bus stand, the impregnable-looking Kangra Fort soars above the confluence of the Manjhi and Banganga Rivers. The fort was used by Hindu rajas, Mughal warlords and even the British before it was finally toppled by the earthquake of 1905. On clear days, head to the battlements for views north to the mountains and south to the plains. A small museum at the fort has stone carvings from temples inside the compound and miniature paintings from the Kangra School.
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Norbulingka Institute
About 6km from Dharamsala, the wonderful Norbulingka Institute was established in 1988 to teach and preserve traditional Tibetan art forms, including woodcarving, statue-making, thangka painting and embroidery. The centre produces expensive but exquisite souvenirs, including embroidered clothes, cushions and wall hangings, and sales benefit refugee artists. Also here are delightful Japanese-influenced gardens and a central Buddhist temple with a 4m-high gilded statue of Sakyamuni.
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Taragarh Palace
About 2km south of Tashijong, at Taragarh, is the extraordinary Taragarh Palace, the summer palace of the last maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir. Now a luxury hotel, this elegant country seat is full of portraits of the Dogra royal family, Italian marble, crystal chandeliers, tiger skins and other ostentatious furnishings. It’s set in beautiful grounds with a pool and tennis courts. The restaurant serves lavish buffet meals (Rs300 to Rs500).
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Bhuri Singh Museum
Founded in 1908 and named after the Chamba ruler of that time, this museum has a wonderful collection of miniature paintings from the Chamba, Kangra and Basohli schools, plus woodcarvings, weapons, rumals, intriguing copper-plate inscriptions, relics from the rajas and ornately carved fountain slabs from around the Chamba Valley. There’s detailed labelling in English.
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Kalachakra Temple
Next to the Tsuglagkhang is the Kalachakra Temple, built in 1992, which contains mesmerising murals of the Kalachakra (Wheel of Time) mandala, specifically linked to Avalokitesvara, currently represented on earth by the Dalai Lama. Sand mandalas are created here annually on the fifth day of the third Tibetan month. Photography is allowed in the Tsuglagkhang, but not in the Kalachakra Temple.
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Library of Tibetan Works & Archives
Inside the government compound at Gangchen Kyishong, the Library of Tibetan Works & Archives preserves the Tibetan texts saved from the Cultural Revolution. Many have since been translated into English and other European languages. Regular visitors can become temporary members (Rs50 per month; passport needed for ID) to access the collection.
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Temples
A winding road runs southwest from Gaggal through pleasant green hills to the 10th century temples at Masrur. Although badly damaged by the 1905 earthquake, the sikharas owe more than a passing resemblance to the Hindu temples at Angkor Wat in Cambodia. You can climb to the upper level for mountain views.
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Men-Tsee-Khang
Established to preserve the ancient arts of amchi (traditional Tibetan medicine) and astrology, the Men-Tsee-Khang is a five-minute walk below the Secretariat. There’s a library and training college, and if you know the exact time you were born, you can have a whole life horoscope prepared in English.
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Tsechokling Gompa
At the bottom of a long flight of steps below the bus stand, this peaceful gompa was built in 1987 to replace the original Dip Tse Chokling Gompa in Tibet, destroyed in the Cultural Revolution. Home to a small order of Gelukpa monks, the prayer hall enshrines a statue of Sakyamuni in a magnificent jewelled headdress.
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Namgyal Gompa
Namgyal Gompa is the monastery in the Tsuglagkhang Complex. Here it is possible to watch monks debate most afternoons, sealing points of argument with great flourish, a foot stamp and theatrical clap of the hands. The monastery bookshop has a good selection of Buddhist texts; there's also a café.
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Gyuto Tantric Gompa
The temporary seat of the Karmapa is the large Gyuto Tantric Gompa in Sidhibari. Public audiences take place here on Wednesday and Saturday at 2.30pm; foreign visitors are welcome but security is tight and bags, phones and cameras are not allowed inside the auditorium.
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Church of St John in the Wilderness
Just off the main road into McLeod, the Church of St John in the Wilderness has handsome stained-glass windows dating from the British era. It's open on Sunday mornings for the weekly service. The cemetery contains the graves of many victims of the 1905 earthquake.
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Tsuglagkhang
The main focus of visiting pilgrims, monks and many tourists is the Tsuglagkhang, comprising the photang (official residence) of the Dalai Lama, the Namgyal Gompa, Tibet Museum and the Tsuglagkhang itself.
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Museum of Kangra Art
The Museum of Kangra Art near the bus station displays some fine miniature paintings from the Kangra school, along with temple carvings, fabrics and embroidery, weapons, and palanquins belonging to local rajas.
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Gu Chu Sum Movement Gallery
Run by a local charity that works with former political prisoners, the Gu Chu Sum Movement Gallery has an exhibition of photos telling the story of political oppression in Chinese-occupied Tibet.
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Men-Tsee-Khang Museum
The Men-Tsee-Khang Museum has fascinating displays on traditional Tibetan medicine, told via preserved specimens and illustrative thangkas.
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Cultural Museum
The fascinating cultural museum has statues, old Tibetan artefacts and books, and some astonishing three-dimensional mandalas in wood and sand.
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Losel Doll Museum
The Losel Doll Museum has quaint puppet dioramas of Tibetan life.
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