Pale By Comparison

So I did have lunch today with Jungly John, aka John Bellezza, who, it turns out, is quite an interesting feller, having carved a completely unique archaeological niche for himself studying the pre-Buddhist culture of ridiculously remote northern Tibet (his latest offering: the monumental, 842-page Zhang Zhung: Foundations of Civilization in Tibet).

 

Joining us was Glenn Mullin, who curated and authored the catalogue for a new show up now through August 18 at the Rubin Museum of Art in New York City, entitled “Buddha in Paradise” (link to review also has a cool slideshow).

 

Tomorrow, I’m going to try to connect him with Don Croner, who’s recently back from a horse trek into Khuvsgul Province’s Darkhad Depression (I know, sounds like a plea for quality medication) and beyond. And perhaps also Prof. Vesna Wallace, just in to boost her Mongolian language in preparation for her new gig occupying an endowed chair for the Numata Professorship of Buddhist Studies at Oxford University's Balliol College.

 

Vesna will almost certainly be attending Sakyadhita’s 10^th International Conference on Buddhist Women here in Ulaanbaatar, organized to a large extent by the dynamic Ven. Karma Lekshe Tsomo. On Saturday, I attended a lecture Lekshe gave at the local FPMT center on the History of Buddhist Women. Very nice, gently provocative lecture and I snapped a few pix:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tom Kelly’s also in-country (some Mongolia shots at the linked site), riding herd on a National Geographic crew producing a piece on the Mongolian horse. Hamid Sardar is dropping in tomorrow to set up his new high-end tourist adventure camp in a remote Khuvsgul Valley and begin shooting his new film. Also Michael Kohn, researching for the next edition of Lonely Planet's Trans-Siberian Railway Guide (he also kindly gave me a copy of his latest book, Dateline Mongolia: An American Journalist in Nomad's Land, which I thoroughly enjoyed). Who knows who else; the summer parade seems endless.

 

My neurotic conclusion from all this? Everyone’s doing something more interesting than me. Weird thinking, right? Or pathetic, if you prefer.

Comments

[bikem ozturk]

you are doing great.. also interesting things..

only this blog is even enough..

enjoy.. love, bikem..

[Don]

Please, in all further references to me try to include the adjective “rakish.”

[Konchog]

Oh. Not "gangly"?

[Leamur]

K,

You are in the enviable position of being the observer at the intersection of all of these wonderful activities.

Thanks for sharing the view.