| Tibet |
| ON THE WAY TO LHASA The only way to get to Lhasa from Kathmandu is either by aeroplane or by organised jeep trip. So we booked ourselves on a 5-day trip, which included a (useless) Chinese guide, the necessary tourist permits and two stops at monasteries on the way. The route followed the Friendship Highway which took us over the barren Tibetan plateau via numerous passes. En route we visited the Tashilhunpo monastery in Shigatse, which is the HQ of the Panchen Lama and his Gelugpa order as well as the Gyantse Kumbum, a massive pyramid type of tomb. The scenery was breathtaking, particularly when passing snowcapped mountains and the turquoise holy lake Yamdrok-Tso. IN AND AROUND LHASA Once in Lhasa we booked ourselves into a little hotel, which became our base camp for the rest of our stay in Tibet. It was good not to have to pack our rucksacks every morning, like on our Everest trek. Lhasa has become very Chinese and only the old centre still has a Tibetan look. Lots of pilgrims shuffle around the Jokhang, the central temple, and it is fascinating to mingle with them. We very much enjoyed visiting the Buddhist monasteries and there are plenty of them. Surprisingly enough, we didn't really get bored. On the contrary, we got quite attached to the smell of yak butter and incense, the humming of prayers and the friendly exchanges with pilgrims and monks. We tried very hard to learn the basics of Buddhism and the Buddhist iconography, which made it fun wandering around the monasteries. The things to visit in Lhasa are the Potala (the palace of the Dalai Lama), the Norbulingka (the summer palace) and the Jokhang (the most holy temple in Tibet). All are fascinating. The Potala is such an architectural feat that Frank Lloyd Wright was said to have a picture of it on the wall of his office. It dominates the Lhasa skyline with its red-walled chapels with gold rooves, narrow white living quarters and zig-zag steps up the front. The summer palace was less interesting. The Jokhang houses the most holy icon of Sakyamuni, the historical Buddha. Views of Lhasa from the roof were stunning. We made two day-trips to monasteries outside Lhasa (Ganden and Samye), which alllowed us to get away from the slightly more touristy monasteries in Lhasa (Drepung and Sera). Ganden monastery is magnificently located on the top of a mountain, with great views over the Lhasa valley. Like so many of Tibet's monasteries, the place was smashed to smithereens by Mao's Red Guard lunatics during the Cultural Revolution, but is now in an advanced state of renovation. Even the thousand year old body of Tsongkhapa, the founder of the Gelugpa order was destroyed. Samye monastery is the oldest in Tibet and requires quite a journey: first a 4 hour bus trip, then a 1 to 2 hour ferry across the Bhramaputra river, followed by another half hour in a mini-bus. Chinese authorities insist on a permit, which you can only obtain if you book an expensive jeep trip. As a result, few tourists go there and it is wonderfully peaceful, so we decided to stay there two nights to read and relax. BACK TO KATHMANDU In order to get back to Kathmandu to catch our Singapore flight, we opted again for the jeep journey, as this was much cheaper than flying. We managed to arrange a two-day journey to the Nepalese border and to fill the jeep with another two passengers to share the cost. After 20 hours in a car we arrived in Kathmandu on the evening of the second day! |
| The Route |
| Tibetan people - We really enjoyed meeting theTibetan people, who are friendly and relaxed.. They also looked wonderful, with beautiful features and colourful dress. A bit of a contrast with the Chinese (their liberators or occupators, depending on whose side your on), who tended to be quite pushy and tried to rip us off most of the time. Obviously, these are generalisations, but we will not forget the long line of patient and devoted Tibetan pilgrims walking around the centre of Lhasa at every sunset. Our travel companions - We shared our jeep trip into Lhasa with a Dutch couple, Annemieke and Paul, with whom we got on very well. We ended up meeting up for dinner every evening in Lhasa and shared our monastery trips to Drepung and Ganden. |
| The People |
| Highs and Lows Highs Exploring Buddhism - Sniffing around monasteries, trying to recognise Buddhas and Bodhisatvas in their tiger and elephant skins. Learning about Buddhism in a place where it lives and breathes around you. Solitary monk in Samye - Sitting outside a little chapel on the top of a hill overlooking Samye monastery, listening to him chanting his prayers and banging his gong, as if nothing else in the world matters. Maybe it doesn't. Meru Nyingba monastery - Entering a sunny courtyard of a little monastery in Lhasa, packed with a 100 pilgrims, humming and spinning their prayer wheels, all with enormous smiles (and not many teeth!). Picnic at Ganden monastery - Eating lunch high up in the mountains near Ganden's sky burial site, where Tibetans feed their dead to the preying birds, looking down on the Lhasa valley and watching the eagles glide past. Reading in Barkhor Square - Reading our books on a little sunny terrace, a Lhasa beer on the table, looking at the merchants and pilgrims shuffling around the square. Permit dodging- In order to get to Samye, you officially need a permit and a guide, which costs lots of Mao's notes. We managed to sneak on a public bus and visit Samye the cheap (and fun) way. Resurrection of the sweater - Meriel's sweater mysteriously disappeared from our bag in the left luggage in Kathmandu, but reappeared the next morning in the "lost and found" items. Lows Chinese guide - Chinese authorities impose a guide on tourists for the journey from the Nepalese border to Lhasa. We have never encountered such a bad guide and had many heated arguments en route. Trip to Tsurphu monastery - Despite plentiful double-checking, we were puzzled to find ourselves for the second time on the bus to Drepung Monastery. Does Tsurphu really sound like Drepung ? Meriel's vomiting- For the second time in a year, Kathmandu's hygiene caught up with Meriel the day before a long bus journey. This time the Internet cafe was the place of the crime. Pretty miserable journey for her! Mad woman attack - After having discussed how safe Lhasa feels, Meriel got attacked on the street by a ferocious looking mad woman, who probably thought she had encountered an evil demon. No comment. Abraham the Idiot - Some old Israeli chap who agreed a week in advance to join our jeep back to Nepal but dropped out the morning of the departure because "nobody told him, so he had no time to pack"! |
| Detailed Trip Schedule |
| 10 April: Kathmandu - Zhang Mu (Chinese border) 11 April: Zhang Mu - Tingri 12 April: Tingri - Shigatse 13 April: Shigatse - Gyantse 14 April: Gyantse - Lhasa 15 April: Lhasa (rest day) 16 April: Lhasa (Potala, Jokhang) 17 April: Lhasa (Norbulingka) 18 April: Lhasa (Drepung monastery) 19 April: Lhasa (day trip to Ganden monastery) 20 April: Lhasa (rest day) 21 April: Lhasa - Samye 22 April: Samye 23 April: Samye - Lhasa 24 April: Lhasa (Sera monastery) 25 April: Lhasa - Tingri 26 April: Tingri - Kathmandu |
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| Map of Tibet |