Chapter 5

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"Hello--Dalai."

The Dalai Lama loved to answer his phone this way. Over the years he'd perfected the intonation and timing.

He relished the silence on the line as a caller wondered "Did he really just say 'Hello, Dolly'?" It was almost nirvana.

Invariably, a new caller would stammer "I-I'm trying to reach the Dalai Lama?" and he'd reply in flawless dialect "you were expecting maybe Louis Armstrong?" It always broke them up.

The Dalai Lama was in Boston for the World Religious Congress and their annual awards show, the Holys.

He is famous for his amazing courage and spirituality. Less well known, though is has been mentioned in The New York Times, is his equally remarkable sense of humor.

But the staff at the Marriott knew his other side: the Dalai Lama was a real kidder. And not a bad tipper either, for such a big-shot ascetic.


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