Name: Tsering Methok
(Alias: No)
Gender: Female
Interview Age: 75
Date of Birth: 1932
Birthplace: Tsona Yama Dong, Utsang, Tibet
Year Left Tibet: 1959
Profession: Weaving
Monk/Nun: No
Political Prisoner: No
Interview No.: 19
Date: 2007-06-29
Language: Tibetan
Location: Lugsung Samdupling Settlement, Bylakuppe, Karnataka, India
Categories: Culture and History
Keywords: Bylakuppe -- early life in , childhood memories, children's games, Chinese -- first appearance of, Dalai Lama -- escape, festivals, herding, refugee in India -- life as, Utsang
Summary:
Tsering Methok comes from the village of Tsona, which is very close to the Indian border. As a young girl, she played games, helped her mother in weaving and did household chores. She describes Losar 'Tibetan New Year' celebrations and cham, special dances performed by monks.
Tsering Methok's life changed when her family witnessed many Tibetans escaping through their village, including His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Tsering Methok remembers working with the other villagers to clear a path for His Holiness by digging earth and covering the snow with soil.
Tsering Methok's parents decided to also flee their homeland with her and her four siblings. When they reached India, her family begged for food and worked on road constructions at Mon Tawang. Tsering Methok's younger brother joins the interview and describes the dangers of road construction and how they cleared thick forests to build the Tibetan refugee settlement in Bylakuppe, India.
Interview Team:
- Rebecca Novick (Interviewer)
- Ronny Novick (Videographer)
- Tsering Dorjee (Interpreter)
