The face of the Buddha is one of the most iconic images in the world even though representations of his face vary widely from one Buddhist culture to another. In common is the sense of peace and liberation.
Later in the afternoon two horsemen ride into the village, it seems the monk wants to buy barley from them. An hour later they return to camp with two bottles of Godfather beer, for us!
Worn and faded prayer flags, tall lhatos of willows and juniper tied with white scarves, piles of bleached blue sheep and yak horns, some carved with On Mani Padme Hum.
This was written before trekking in Mustang, between the villages on the old trade route between Tibet and Nepal that was used for hundreds of years by caravans of sheep and goats carrying salt and wool.