This is a guest post from Felix Avery.
Known for years as the hidden jewel in the crown of the Himalaya, modern-day Tibet is no less impressive. After more than fifty years of fiercely oppressive Chinese rule the so-called “roof of the world” still not only holds onto almost all of its former mysterious charm and allure, but is now a very practical and safe option for adventurous types wishing to see something that only a handful of travellers have been lucky enough to glimpse.
Tibetan flags, photo courtesy of Drôme Ardèche – Tibet TSG vis Creative Commons
Reaching the Tibetan capital, Lhasa, is by no means an easy feat. If you have the time I recommend taking the train which leaves from a select few cities in China, including Beijing. The only other viable option for travellers heading to Lhasa is to book a flight, and planes leave from most major cities in China. The only international link to Lhasa is through Kathmandu, Nepal.
We set out from Chongching in China by train, and faced a seemingly gruelling two-day ordeal to reach Lhasa. However, our initial fears of boredom and discomfort instantly melted away as we sat in the light and airy dining car eating delicious ‘gong bao ji'(stir fried chicken with chilli and peanuts in a sticky sauce) and watched gorgeous panoramas unfold under the blaze of the midday sun at 4,000m. These 48 hours began to seem almost too little a time to sit and gaze out at the Tibetan plateau. We passed countless herds of yak grazing on the golden sun-tanned grassland, the imposing bulk of the mighty Himalaya mountain range loomed over in the distance, its snow-capped reflection mirrored in vast and beautiful lakes.
A beautiful yak all dressed up, photo courtesy of Roswitha Šimonič via Creative Commons
Inside the train however, conditions can be a little cramped in the reasonably priced hard sleeper section (around £72/$110). If you really want to guarantee comfort the soft sleeper ticket at nearly £125/$190 houses only four people per compartment rather than six, and comes with all mod-cons including a TV screen at the foot of every berth (although on our journey these were never switched on).
Before even leaving home and well before getting on the train you have to arrange to join an organized “tour” of Tibet. This is a restriction imposed by the Chinese government after a bungled and absolutely ineffectual protest by a group of travellers in 2008 at Everest Basecamp. While this may sound like an unattractive caveat to the shoestring traveller who dreams of striding alone into the mountainous outback of one of the most remote countries in the world, aside from being legally essential it is actually very practical and useful. Having a guide to help penetrate the deeply confusing Buddhist dogma surrounding every part of Tibet’s fantastic take on the religion proves to be profoundly interesting and helps put the excitement of the ever-present pilgrims into perspective.
Our tour went incredibly smoothly and worked out to be very reasonably priced at £390/$590pp for a group of two people travelling overland from Lhasa into Nepal via Everest Basecamp in seven days. For those who don’t have the money, or who are unwilling to brave the high altitudes, bitter cold or the bone shaking condition of roads outside the capital, tours can be arranged to visit only Lhasa and the surrounding area.
Although I look back fondly on my time spent staring longingly from the window of the Chongching to Lhasa Express, towards the end of the second day I began to tire of looking at the wild home of the nomads, and my heart longed to round a bend in the valley and see the golden domes and spires of the Lhasa that I had read about in Heinrich Harrer’s ‘Seven Years in Tibet’. Unfortunately, I was somewhat disappointed. As we slid into Lhasa valley I could barely make out the famous Potala Palace, which is the highest palace in the world, at the average altitude of 3,490m. The palace had been sadly dwarfed by the ugly new Chinese built bridges and skyscrapers of Lhasa’s urban sprawl. However, five minutes later we had been picked up by our guide and, after being presented with a white silk scarf each as a traditional Tibetan welcome requires, we were quickly whisked deep into the heart of the old city to our chosen guesthouse whereupon my lasting impression of Lhasa was made.
At first, Lhasa felt incredibly alien. Even after spending the best part of a year travelling across Central Asia and the Indian subcontinent, the culture shock was still immense. Narrow, flagstone streets interpose themselves between startlingly white buildings hung lavishly with multi-coloured prayer flags that flutter furiously in the wind. The denizens of this iconic and beautiful city are perhaps the antithesis of their surroundings; wild-looking nomads in yak leather chaps and goat fleece jackets sit scowling at passers-by, hunched over huge hunks of meat lying on plastic sheets at the side of the street. Strong and proud looking Khampa tribesmen with their distinctive long ponytails and longer knives stride about, families in tow, purchasing new clothes and religious objects to take back to their home in the forests of western Tibet. The residents of Lhasa look very noble compared to these simple country folk, decked out in elaborate silver and turquoise jewellery, and fine fur hats. One may also spot the odd sulky looking teenager in the latest western fashions texting furiously, which apart from fat elderly monks fiddling with the latest iPhone, is the only tell-tale sign you will find that you are still in the modern world and haven’t been transported magically back to the middle ages.
Now that you have made it to the holy city of Lhasa you have a pantheon of impressive sights within five minutes walk to a few hours drive of the city centre. At the top of everyone’s sight-seeing list has to be the Potala Palace, from where successive generations of Dalai Lamas and Tibetan kings ruled over the land between the mountains and the sky. To visit Tibet and not see the Potala Palace would be akin to missing the Taj Mahal on a trip to India or skipping the Great Wall of China.
A thirteen story behemoth of white and maroon that shines in the morning sunlight like an ancient bastion of supreme power and wisdom, Potala’s 1,000 rooms and over 10,000 chapels are an alluring prospect to any traveller in Tibet. The Palace is divided into two sections, that of the government, whose chambers are housed in the white parts of the building, or ‘White Palace’, and that of the clergy, who occupy the maroon chapels at the top known as the ‘Red Palace’. These days however, only a handful of the White Palace’s rooms are open to the public and although many are beautiful they are only a sad reminder of the former glory of the Tibetan government.
Potala Palace, photo courtesy of Coolbiere. A via Creative Commons
After the hefty entrance fee (180 Yuan, around £18/$27), the first thing you notice about the Palace is its size – it literally towers above you, perched high on the rocks that overlook Lhasa. The long and very steep climb up to the main entrance always proves difficult due to the high altitude, but gives a great view of the thousand something procession of pilgrims ambling around outside the palace. Once you reach the ancient oak gates of Potala with their huge brass knockers and colourful lucky horse tails (a braid of coloured silk that is hung by monks on doors for good luck) you have to pass through the gauntlet of the four guardian kings. These impressive wooden statues tower imperiously over visitors with deadly looking swords and even more fearsome looking moustaches and are believed to ward off any evil spirits that might try to enter.
If you survive this, you are then led through a short stone passage and into a grand courtyard dotted with auspicious looking lamas who appear to be very good at their task of keeping the legions of restoration workers stocked up with yak butter tea. Although all the more interesting rooms are further up, the lower portions of the White Palace are still beautiful and house three very intricate mandalas (ancient gold-leafed models of the universe as the Buddhist sages saw it) which include horses, dogs, people, and many other animals all proceeding around the wheel of reincarnation.
Another highlight of the White Palace is the audience chamber of the current Dalai Lama which, along with western-style plumbing and electric lights, also has an excellent collection of antique radios that are all the more fascinating when juxtaposed with the traditional Tibetan interiors.
Upon reaching the Red Palace after many flights of dangerously steep steps, the intrepid traveller is finally rewarded with magnificent views of the surrounding valley and a gorgeous collection of atmospheric chapels that house the lavish burial stupa of past Dalai Lamas. These famous relics are the chief reason for many of the pilgrims’ gruelling journeys to Lhasa and their wide-eyed devotion and happy excitement is infectious to say the least. The most impressive of the burial stupa kept here is the resting place of the 13th Dalai Lama, this behemoth of silver and gold, is over 14 meters high with around 600kg of gold and inlaid with tens of thousands of precious stones. The 13th Dalai Lama’s stupa is ten times more valuable than any of the other relics stored inside the Palace, and includes a mandala made from more than 200,000 pearls.
Part 2 of Felix’s account of his travels in Tibet will be up later this week, and tells us more about Lhasa and his experience in this unusual destination.
Have you ever dreamed of going to Tibet? Would you be willing to spend the money to make it there?
Example of some stupas, which are structures used to hold Buddhist relics and a place for meditation
About the Author:
I met Felix back on my interrailing trip about Europe in 2009, in a hostel in Budapest. Since then, Felix has travelled extensively through Asia, which led to his deep connection with the earth and nature. When I asked him what he wanted to put in his author bio, he simply told me to write, ‘I am a nomad soul and a dreamer, I am searching for inner peace and self-love, I am a storyteller and a wizard, I am love. We are one being.’ Yep, that sums up Felix pretty well! You can find some of his other writing at his blog, Fifty Seven, and his beautiful handmade creations at Skylark Crafts.
The post Travels in Tibet – Journey to the Roof of the World (Pt 1) appeared first on Gotta Keep Movin'.
