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We are in Lhasa, Tibet and all I can say is it is the most beautiful place we have ever been to yet it is so depressing to see the streets lined with Chinese soldiers with Kalashnikovs and the friendliest people in the world being opressed in manner that we couldn't even imagine. Anyway let's start at the beginning...
The train from Chengdu was absolutely stunning and the journey of a lifetime. The only other westerner on it- an Australian called Kirk quickly identified us in the absolutely jam packed waiting room and came over to chat. It turned out that the three of us were sharing a cabin with one spare bed. Maybe not as authentic an experience as sharing with two Chinese non English speakers but actually it was great- firstly to be able to communucate and secondly to have the spare bed so that we actually had room to put our three enormous backpacks! We headed onto the train and settled in for the night.
The first day we gently rocked through south west China where we could see remote villages and the provincial side of the country where we had only been to massive cities. Looking out the window throughout the trip was hypnotising as you saw life changing before your eyes. On this leg between Xining and Golmud the tracks pass by Qinghai Lake - China's largest. But it's the Golmud-to-Lhasa sector on the second day which offers the most breath-taking scenery. That segment also offers the record-breakers: the world's highest passenger railroad (at Tanggula Pass - elevation: 16,640 ft.; 5072m) and the world's highest railroad tunnel (Fenghuoshan - elevation: 16,093 ft.; 4905m). Over 80% of the journey is at altitudes above 13,000 feet and half of the track on this sector was laid atop permafrost.
When we reached Golmud on the second day after a night of feeling very sick from the altitude the oxygen supply started. It is released throughout the cabins but we were also given a tube to plug into a socket by each bed that gave us a personal source. I cannot describe how beautiful this section of the journey was- nomads herding Yaks through the countryside, flat topped Tibetan houses and the stunning snow capped mountains as a backdrop. It is definately the way to get to Lhasa. 45 hours later we arrived- desperate for a meal other than pot noodles and to use a toilet that wasn't of the very dirty smelly squat variety that had been completely abused on the train. Smiling Tashi our guide was waiting for us with two white prayer scarves that he put around our neck. We then jumped into our 4x4 where nam-tso our driver beamed around at us. He doesn't speak a word of English but has a fantastic grin and a very smart Panama type hat that he wears constantly. They drove us to our hotel and gave us half an hour to settle in before we went for a walk around Jokhang square.
The main square in the Tibetan part of the capital (let's not talk about the horrible homogenous Chinese part), centres around the stunning Jokhang temple which constantlky has a huge group of people prostrating themselves in front of it. Stalls selling prayer flags line one side and the locals in their beautiful traditional dress (well that's what we would call it but it's normal for them!) The whole view is, however, somewhat ruined by the hordes and hordes of Chinese soldiers in full riot gear (shields,kneepads, helmets, massive machine guns etc) that are everywhere. And I mean everywhere. On the roofs, on every street corner- around the inside and outside of the temples and every 20 metres when you walk anywhere. It is ridiculously opressive but apparently after the 2008 protest when they felt like they didn't have enough soldiers they are determined not to be caught out again. Anyway more of that later. We walked around the outside of the temple where the market is, passing stalls selling huge blocks of yak butter and meat, charms, turqoise jewellery, sweets and snacks and a guy making candy floss on the back of his motorbike. We then had our evening meal overlooking the square and pinching ourselves that we were here. Then suddenly the whole sky lit up with fireworks and the streets were ablaze with fires. Tashi had told us that the night before New year people lit fires outside their housed to chase out the demons but we didn't quite realise the scale of it. We walked home past fire engines putting out the biggest ones and being very pleased that we had come for Tibetan New year.
After a very bad nights sleep- again due to the altitude Tashi and Nam-tso picked us up and we first headed to Sera monastry which is the biggest in the whole of Tibet and covers an area of 114,946 square meters (28 acres) . It is dedicated to the Gelugpa or Yellow Hat Sect, a branch of Tibetan Buddhism, founded by Tsong Khapa. Jamchen Chojey, one of Tsong Khapa's disciples built the monastery in 1419 during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). The monastery was named Sera which means wild rose in the Tibetan language, because the hill behind it was covered with wild roses in bloom when the monastery was built. We saw Scriptures written in gold powder, hundreds of statues, scent cloth and unparalleled murals on our journey around the site. We were blessed by being hit with a big stick on the back and also saw some amazing sculptures made of butter for the New Year as well as checking out the huge kitchens with their giant copper pans. In all honesty it is going to be difficult to describe the beauty of any of the places we have been- you will just have to see for yourself from the photos!
After lunch we headed to Drepung monastry which was all closed up because they were preparing for the celebrations. We could walk around the outside though and take in the beauty of the buildings. Drepung is known as the most important monastery of Gelugpa in Tibetan Buddhism. Covering an area of 250,000 square meters it held 7,700 monks in total before the invasion and now has 800- with the rest suffering in prison. It also possessed 141 fazendas and 540 pastures before they were all stolen by the Chinese and is the largest-scale monastery among the ones of the same kind. Seen from afar, its grand, white construction gives the monastery the appearance of a heap of rice. As such, it was given the name 'Drepung Monastery' which, in Tibetan, means Monastery of Collecting-Rice. A fantastic first day.
Yesterday after a night of fireworks constantly from midnight until dawn to bring in the New Year we tried to get into the famous Potala palace. The queue was unbelievable and there were guards and police beating people with rope to try and keep control of it. It was all a bit much so Tashi said we should get out of town and go to Nam-Tso lake. It was a long long way but the 4 hour drive gace us the oppurtunity to see more of the amazing countryside. There were yaks wandering in the road, nomad villages with them riding along on their horses decorated all over with multicoloured ribbons and beautiful scenery. The only problem (and you may spot a recurring theme here) was the police checkpoints every 30km. Finally we reached the 5020metre pass covered in prayer flags which gave us a view of the frozen lake- the highest altitude saltwater one in the world. After jumping out into the biting wind and taking a few photos we climbed back into the car and drove down towards it. We had brought pot noodles with us as there is nowhere to eat but we needed to find some hotwater. When we reached a village Tashi ran to ask some women whether there were monks in the monastry by the holy mountain. They said that there were so we set off on the very icy road alongside the lake. Eventually we reached the monastry which is built into the sides of the mountain. We all got out the car and went in with Tashi and Nam-tso shouting to see if we could find anyone. Eventually Nam-tso pushed open a door and 5 monks hurriedly jumped up and switched off the television where they were watching the Dalai Lama- this is enough to be put in prison here.
They welcomed us into their toasty little room heated by a yak dung heater and poured hot water into our noodles. We couldn't have asked for a better place to eat lunch. To add to the true Tibetan experience the infamous yak butter tea was produced. It was one of those times when you really want to be polite but it is between that and throwing up everywhere. The tea is made by mixing water, fermented yak butter and salt. It tastes absolutely hideous and the worst thing ever is that every time you take a sip it is topped up again. Eventually we had to tell Tashi that we couldn't stomach any more and he said it was ok to leave some- joyously we did. Slightly nicer were the biscuits repeatedly handed round. None of it mattered though as sitting there with the 5 monks in their robes staring and smiling at us next to the most beautiful lake in the world was something neither of us will ever forget. After we'd slurped our way through the noodles we went out to explore the rooms set into the rocks. They were full of statues and books and it was great to look up and see how they were carved out. Freezing cold we climbed back into the car and started the long drive back to Lhasa stopping only to go to the toilet in the typical tibetan hole in the ground with a long drop below it- definately the worst so far! We were very tired after getting back around seven so grabbed some food and then headed off to bed for another restless night's sleep.
Tashi decided that he was going to get up at 3.30am to join the queue at Potala palace this morning. At 7am he called us at our hotel and told us to make our way down there, It was still dark when we arrived but the queue was already significant. As we couldn't see a thing we walked down the queue saying "Tashi Tashi" eventually we heard a "yes here" and bless him he was sat with his back to the door- resolutely holding his place at the very front of the queue. We joined the jam and spent the next hour and a quarter with all the Tibetans in their lovely outfits staring and smiling at us, singing and being very happy when I offered a packet of mints round. It was brand new when I arrived but was quickly demolished by the families around us. I started playing games with a young boy next to me whilst a fat old man sat on my feet and Tashi and others at the front peered through a crack in the door to see if there was any activity. Suddenly everyone stood up and surged forward- I was jammed against the wall practically on top of a very sweet old woman all dressed up and chanting away like the rest of the crowd. It was a lovely sound and great to be in the midst of things again amongst locals.
Then Tashi grabbed my hand and held onto it really tight, I in turn grabbed Charles' behind me. "Are you ready?" Tashi said...for what I wasn't quite sure. Suddenly the doors flung open and the crowd surged forward- I've never felt a crush like it and really thought my arm was going to break as it was jammed against the door. Tashi ran as fast as he could dragging me with him, past the security guards and a woman beating everyone with a mop to make them run faster. As soon as we got past the gates Tashi shouted "keep going I need toilet" and ran off in a different direction. We began climbing the hundreds of steps up to the top. Even the locals were finding it hard going and they were born at this altitude- for us it was very difficult- we both felt like our hearts were going to explode! Every step was worth it though. The Potala Palace was the chief residence of the Dalai Lama until the present one (14th) fled to Dharamsala in India, after the invasion 1959. The building measures 400 metres east-west and 350 metres north-south, with sloping stone walls averaging 3 m. thick, and 5m thick at the base, and with copper poured into the foundations to help proof it against earthquakes.Thirteen stories of buildings - containing over 1,000 rooms, 10,000 shrines and about 200,000 statues - soar 117 metres on top of Marpo Ri, the "Red Hill", rising more than 300 m in total above the valley floor.Before the first skyscrapers were built, the Potala Palace was the world's tallest building. Highlights included seeing the Dalai Lama's thrones and rooms but most stunning of all were the tombs or stupa. The biggest one belongs to the 5th Dalai Lama and is an enormous 14.85 metres high. The stupas are built of sandalwood and coated in 3,727 kg (8,200 lb) of solid gold and studded with 18,680 pearls and semi-precious jewels. Again it is impossible to describe how beautiful they are and photos are not allowed so to understand you will have to visit here yourself!
We then walked back into town past the horrible 'liberation' monument and Chinese flag surrounded by armed guards in Potala square until we got to Jokhang temple. It was unfortunately closed despite Tashi's best efforts to get in so we took him to lunch for yak curry instead to thank him for being such a legend. Afterwards we sent him home to sleep and got a bit of a rest ourself before coming to the internet cafe to write this. So what's it actually like here? Let's start with the internet cafe. First you have to hand over your passport and have your details recorded and then of course, like China loads of websites are blocked. Where it goes further though is that you are being constantly watched. A couple of days ago I put "Dalai Lama" into the Guardian website and it came up with an article about how he was going to meet Barack Obama. Suddenly the whole internet crashed and the server was down in the hotel. A coincidence? I thought so but having spoken to Tibetans and also ex pats that live in China it appears it definately wasn't. There is no radio here and all phone calls are monitored. Luckily Tashi feels he can speak very openly to us and it has been very distressing to hear about the horrendous things that are happening. People dissapear never to be heard of again for offences as small as taking a photo of the military. CCTV is everywhere- they say England is the most watched nation but this takes it to another level- there are those all seeing eyes even inside the monastries. Thousands of monks are in prison and the monastries are full of replicas where their artefacts were burnt or taken to China and sold. The Tibetan flag has been strictly banned- something that makes the people very very sad as it is part of their heritage. It goes on an on really and is very depressing. I have always thought "oh yes free Tibet" but actually being here and seeing the situation makes you really care, very outraged and desperate to do something about it. Don't worry I promise that we will wait until we are out the country! Ok going to try and get this blog on and hope I'm not arrested! Tomorrow we leave for a four day drive through the countryside along the friendship highway to Nepal via Everest base camp- seriously exciting.
- comments
Ray Romano I would read up on some Tibet history if I were you. Even though being occupied by China may not seem like a good thing, if you read what the life of 99% of Tibetans was like before the Chinese takeover, you might have another opinion about the situation. Basically the entire populace was living as medieval serfs and only the 1% that was the ruling class (read: Dalai Lama and his inner court) lived comfortably. Also, all the Tibetan voices you hear in the media today fighting for Tibetan independence and condemning China are descendants of the 1% ruling class that fled Tibet when the Chinese took over. Basically, they want their monopoly over Tibet and the Tibetan people back. They want to live their bling bling life again. A Chinese takeover may not have been the ideal choice of the average person in Tibet, but if you ask the average Tibetan who was living before the takeover - I doubt many would regret the takeover. Their living standard has increased tremendously since the takeover - and being part of China - the younger generations at least have a chance to be something more than an indentured farmer. For some reason, the West idealizes Tibet and wants its antiquity preserved like some museum. But, the problem is - these are people - people just like you and me who have a right to want to progress and improve their lives - who want to make money and buy iPods, buy a house, have a car, take vacations, etc. They are humans - they are not museum pieces that exist just for tourists' fascination. Economically, it is hard for Tibet to make money alone. It is a land locked nation - there are no sea ports to conduct trade activities - they don't have a tradition of manufacturing - and they were crippled for centuries by a truly backwards authoritarian leadership (the Lamas) that really did not promote improvement of their country and the living standard of its people. So, by being part of China, they at least have direct access to the modern opportunities that China can offer. That is truly enormous and useful for Tibetans. Sitting around praying all day never made anyone money.
Nal Have you realized Ray Romano that not everyone wants to make money? That everyone wants their freedom - the ability to say what you want, do what you want, pray how you want. Have you been to Tibet? Perhaps you should. I have. I see none of this great chinese positve influence on the tibetans. i see the han Chinese who are wealthy and taken care of and I see Tibetans living in squalor with no hope for education, no electricity or roads or schools or food for them, rations... in their own country. It is easy for you to sit here in the modern western world and talk a big talk.. but to really see and know you have to stop reading the internet, stop reading books about monarchies and the 1% and go visit for yourself. Talk to locals. Perhaps then you will see that what is important is no where near close to what you deem important. Sign me up as someone who just got back from Tibet and who is going back again...