Profile
Blog
Photos
Videos
Hey! The view from the top of the world is pretty great!
After a fairly comfortable 48hr train journey, we arrived in Lhasa on Thursday evening. This is a new train route that started in 2006 and they have all sorts of precautions against the cold and the altitude (the highest pass we hit was 5100m). The track is laid on permafrost with circulating nitrogen to keep it from freezing in winter and there is oxygen available on board for altitude sickness. The highlight of the journney was the 2nd day as we passed throuh the Tibetan Plateau. The scenery was amazing with flat grasslands giving way to snow-covered mountains.
The next day we visited Jokhang Temple and the Barkhor. The temple is the most sacred in Tibetan Buddhism built in the 7th century to house a Sakyamuni buddha statue. It's a working temple with hundreds of pilgrims and it was interesting to observe the rituals and prayers. The Barkhor is a tibetan area with curio stalls and it circuits the temple. The pilgrims follow this route in clockwise circumbulation spinning prayer wheels and chanting mantras.
The Potala Palace was the next attraction and it is very grand. Built in the 1600s by the 5th dalai lama it is the centre of religious and political power in Tibet. There is the Red Palace with chapels for religious affairs and the White Palace as mostly living quarters.
There are many good restaurants in Lhasa but the combination of altitude (3700m) and overeating has made Claire and I a little ill! There is a strong military presence here following problems last year. Its quite strange to see so many army men amongst civilians going about their normal life, but they don't seem to bother people much.
Tomorrow we move on to Sakye and Gyantse. The Chinese govt. doesn't want any foreigners at Everest Base Camp on 1 October so we have had to change our itinerary a little. Fingers crossed we will be able to visit it!
That's all for now. Sorry about the lack of photos..the internet is terribly slow. Next time we meet it will be in Kathmandu!
- comments