ENGLISH [NCERT] Prose [4M]

— the snow was so steep that they could not go around it. They had to go over it. The danger was that they could slip. They flung handfuls of dirt and covered the snow completely with soil. The narrator and Daniel got off the vehicle to lighten the load and Tsetan drove the vehicle over the snow.

— Tibetan mastiffs – ferocious with big heads – attacked like bullets fired from guns-black with red collars – furious bark, having massive jaws – completely fearless –attacked cars and jeeps.

— He found a companion who could speak English—was educated—did not believe in doing the Kora on foot in the conventional way. They decided to hire yaks. The narrator felt Norbu would be an ideal companion.

Norbu—Tibetan working in Beijing at the Chinese Academy. He was different from other Tibetans as he was wearing a windcheater and metal rimmed spectacles of a Western style and he spoke English fluently.

— the narrator suffered from cold and a blocked nose at night – gasped for oxygen — could breathe through one nostril only — could not sleep. He sat up and felt better.

Mansarovar—sacred to Hindus and Buddhists
— source of four great Indian rivers — Indus, Brahmaputra, Ganges, Sutlej — extremely beautiful — often its first sight moved the tourists to tears.

Hor—on the main eastwest highway from Lhasa to Kashmir. – a grim desolate place — no vegetation — littered with accumulated refuse. It was on the shore of Lake Mansarovar — badly painted concrete buildings.

The author was disappointed and rather depressed on arrival at Hor. Previous visitors had been overwhelmed by the beauty of Mansarovar Lake.

The doctor at the Darchen Medical College did not wear the traditional white coat of a doctor. He observed the author and diagnosed his problem as the effect of cold and high altitude. He gave him brown powders and pellets to be taken with hot water. The author benefitted with this treatment.

— Hill folks are simple and unsophisticated.
— They are courteous to outsiders/tourists.
— They look after the tourists because they earn through them.

The narrator was sick in Darchen. He passed an extremely uncomfortable night because of his breathing problem. Next day when he felt better, he disliked Darchen less.