Harry Potter and His Holiness the Dalai Lama

This past Saturday, on the lawn between the Capitol and the Mall, the Dalai Lama gave a public talk on world peace. His Holiness was introduced by Whoopi Goldberg and featured performances by his monks, several Tibetan dancers and the singer Skylar Grey. While the original plan was to wake up at 6:00 and be out the door by 6:30 for good seats, only Carmen made it by 7:30. I rolled out of bed around 9:00 and was there for the beginning, but very much in the back of the crowd.

However, I still got to see everything! Overall, the heat was approaching unbearable, and there was little shade to be found. But, whatever organization was responsible for the event made sure to have lots of free water available to the crowd, which I thought was a nice touch. As the Dalai Lama began his speech/stream-of-consciousness talk, I found the sound system to be a little lacking, which was unfortunate. While I myself have never seen an interview with him on TV or online, I’d always heard that he has a very characteristic voice and that his laugh is quite entertaining. I would agree wholeheartedly with those statements; if you haven’t heard him speak before, definitely check it out.

As I got restless and determined to find shade, I began walking the perimeter of the event. People watching was a particular pleasure. There were monks everywhere, people meditating in the grass, small children asking their mothers where the “llama” was, panting dog after panting dog, and lots of people wearing traditional clothing of their (mostly Asiatic) cultures. I circled around the closed off area and walked down by the street, where I was about 20 yards away from His Holiness and I could see the back of the stage and the entire crowd listening intently. It was quite a sight.

Another interesting thing I noticed was something that probably wouldn’t have happened if His Holiness hadn’t given his speech this particular weekend. I observed a lot of people carrying around Harry Potter books. A lot people, adults and younger attendees alike. I like seeing people read in general (as weird as that may seem; but I’m an avid reader) but I loved seeing so many people who had clearly camped out for this international icon porting around another. It was an odd connection to see in the midst of the sweltering DC heat.

In case you were wondering, I made my way to the Botanic Garden where I found some relief, although the “Jungle” exhibit inside wasn’t much of a difference temperature-wise. They did have some comfy chairs though, which was much appreciated.

LZ