Twice actually. He’s here in Madison for a few days of talks and ceremonies (there’s a fair Tibetan presence here, and a major Tibetan Buddhist temple just south of town). It’s a pretty big deal obviously and security is very tight.
We live on the same road as the Coliseum where he has been speaking. The motorcade comes through to whisk him away at the end of the day’s events.
Yesterday, we heard a ton of sirens (which we’re used to - our road is also a main thoroughfare to 2 of the 3 major hospitals) and I looked out the window to see a long procession of motorcycle cops, state troopers and black suburbans hauling ass past the house. We assume its something to do with the DL’s visit but don’t see anything to confirm it so we shrug and go about our business.
Then about 10 minutes ago, we hear the sirens coming again, and She & I go to the window to see what’s up. Same procession, but all the windows in the suburbans are down and we can see a bunch of saffron and crimson robes and faces looking out the windows.
I swear one of the faces was the Dalai Lama. And I thought our eyes locked for a second.
Maybe it was him and maybe it wasn’t, but it’s a cool little story that I thought I’d share.
The Dalai Lama has been to Madison quite a few times. It has a special meaning for him and his People. So the large permanent presence of Tibetans in the Madison area says more about Madison than just a place where a large number live there, as if by accident. Also, he is going to perform a ceremony that has never occurred before in the Western Hemisphere.
If he died there, maybe that’s where they could look for his next reincarnation. It’s going to be difficult to get a potential DL out of Tibet these days, what with the Chinese occupation.
I’m not nitpicking but just curious: did he literally drive by your house (i.e. was he behind the wheel) or was he in a car being driven? (I’m just curious whether or not he can drive.)
This fails to answer your question with stunning grace, but I once saw an interview where he was talking about his childhood, and how he was always fascinated by technology. Apparently he inherited two cars from his predecessor, and when he was in his early teens he tried to drive one without formal lessons, and crashed in like ten seconds. His comment was something to the effect of “All I remember is that I got in, and we were going, and then they were pulling me out and we had to get the car fixed.”
I was just about to ask if you lived in Warren County, NJ, because he was staying at a Tibetan retreat less than a mile from my house about a week/10 days ago. Small town - lotsa SS types talking into their wrists - was big news.
He met with John McCain. It was a photo-op, sure, but the Dalai Lama was holding McCain’s hand so tight that the would-be President was ready to let go.
