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Tashi Delek from Tibet!!!
That is the extent of our Tibetan after 10 days in the country although we can now also chant a Buddhist mantra, albeit phonetically (om ma ni bha ma hu). We flew into Kathmandu, Nepal, 2 weeks ago and enjoyed 3 nights in this city to begin our acclimatisation for the heady heights of Everest base camp on the Tibetan side. Have always wanted to visit Kathmandu and it didn't disappoint although it is very polluted (lots of face masks) and poor and overrun by foreign trekkers and hippies. We stayed on the outskirts of Thamel, the old city, so were able to walk around easily. The hotel was great except for the crazy housekeeper who woke the whole corridor up very early by knocking to ask if we had any laundry!!! The responses were getting progressively more bad tempered as she reached the far end of the non sound proof floor.
Kathmandu is a maze of congested narrow streets with many dilapidated
buildings and temples, mostly Hindu. The population is 70% Hindu, 20% Buddhist and 10% others.The usual tangle of Asian electricity wires dangle above your head (we had several power cuts in the time we spent there). Small white Suzuki taxis hurtle through the streets as well as decorated cycle rickshaws and motorbikes. The riders keep going so you have to watch your backs and your toes, at all times. We found several lovely squares built around prayer flag draped stupas or tiered temples with interesting houses and lots of children playing together. All the houses and temples have bells at their entrances. It is a shopper's paradise with stores selling trek gear (a lot of fake N Face), semi- precious gems and jewellery, prayer beads and bowls, Gurkha knives, books, men's traditional hats (like the Afghans wear), musical instruments, puppets and all kinds of religious and tourist trinkets. Every other shop seems to be a trekking/mountaineering agency and there are lots of rooftop restaurants and bars that we enjoyed. We also had a great meal in an 150 year old house, Bhajun Griha, which used to be the residence of royal priests. I also particularly enjoyed the street of dentists with their cabinets of false teeth. We visited Swoyambhu, the Monkey Temple, which is overrun by fairly aggressive primates. We climbed the many steps and found a monastery and many stupas and shrines. The views of the city were spectacular from the small cafe. Durbar Square was our next destination. It is a Unesco site of temples and stupas right in the heart of Thamel. It really took me by surprise as it is superb to wander around. A huge tropical downpour occurred while we were there so we sheltered in one of the temples. Loved the people watching! There was a group of old people dressed up as holy men and women in yellow and orange with painted faces, posing for tourists for money. Thinking the rain had stopped, we went to the Garden of Dreams. This is a beautiful landscaped garden right in the heart of the city. We spent most of our visit sheltering in the cafe as the heavens reopened. Turned into a bit of a nightmare as all the streets flooded and became mud baths as we made our way back to the hotel. Up early the next morning for a trek in a national park to Shivapura Peak. Drove out of the centre with our guide on terrible roads. Reached the park's checkpoint (it is controlled by the military) and set off. The hike was hard (+1000 metres) basically up steps. It took us nearly 6 hours to reach the peak, stopping at a monastery with 90 female monks aged between 95 and 13 and 6 male guru monks. They are building a new monastery but progress depends on donations so is slow. When we were there, a cow fell into a ditch next to an existing building and the rescue operation became very absorbing for them all. We left them to it!!! At the summit, there was a hermit's cave but no sign of him. We did have a cup of tea with a sweet lady who meditates for 18 hours a day in a shack on the peak. The shack was being renovated!!! so she wasn't able to meditate because of the disturbance. Slightly confused us when she told us, through our guide, that she has 2 daughters living near Hounslow and is going to stay with them for several months very soon. Bashu, our guide, felt she was a wealthy woman who had the time and money to explore meditation, rather than a holy woman. Still, a fascinating encounter! It only took us 1 hour 50 mins to descend the thousands of steps but our thighs, knees and calves were like jelly for several days. Bashu normally guided treks up to the Everest basecamp and knew several of the Sherpas recently killed on the mountain.
So now it was time to cross the border into Tibet. We were driven 4 hours from Kathmandu to Kodari. It was a beautiful drive through the mountains with houses perched on the sides of the precipices. We saw lots of Nepalese resorts offering kayaking on the river, trekking and even bungee jumping from one of the many foot bridges spanning the ravines. There were many schools and school children on school buses. The roads were bad in places and we saw the aftermath of a couple of accidents. Couldn't believe the number of police checkpoints. One guy rudely opened my bumbag and grabbed my US dollars to count without looking or speaking to me. We reached Kodari, had a quick Nepalese tea, and then walked with our 'fixer' to the Friendship Bridge. Straight ahead was a massive Chinese archway leading us to Tibet. We had our luggage searched. Would have loved to have taken a photo of the Chinese border policeman flicking through my Country Living magazine! You are forbidden to take any Lonely Planet guides into Tibet and the guy in front of me had his digital photos looked through. Still, after a wait, we got through customs and immigration and met our guide, Tenzin and our driver, Wanchowk. The checks continued as we drove to a border town for lunch of Tibetan dumplings, momo. Tenzin had to register us at the local police station so we waited around for that procedure to be completed. This was the start of many checks in the next 10 days.
Our overland trip to Lhasa was a trip of 2 halves. The first half was tough and at times, very unpleasant as we reached Everest Basecamp on the third evening at 5200 metres ( 1000 metres higher than the Nepalese camp). From the border, we drove higher and higher in our Landcruiser. The mountains are barren and a harsh coloured brown with many hairpin bends, high passes and waterfalls. We spent the first night at Nyalam (3750 metres), a cold and windy town with one main street. The locals were very sun and wind beaten and were wrapped up warmly. Many of them are nomadic but have received government help to settle in the small towns. Woolly cows ate rubbish in the street and Tenzin warned us about the packs of dogs who can turn savage after dark!!! He also introduced us to the atmospheric tea houses of Tibet. You duck under a thick fabric door covering and find yourself in a small space with beautifully painted chairs and tables with a wood stove in the centre. We enjoyed many cups of sweet tea and noodles in these old fashioned places full of Tibetans. Needless to say, the hotels here and in Old Tingri (4050 metres) were very basic and cold. The bathrooms were awful but as there was no hot water, it wasn't a major problem. We slept in thermals with gloves, hats, scarves etc... We had lovely views of the snow capped peaks of Everest from Old Tingri and the sun shone. Unfortunately, we were both feeling the effects of the altitude with headaches and lethargy. I started taking some medication which made me feel a lot better. We spoke to 2 Dutch guys who were attempting to climb a peak near Everest and you realise how dangerous mountaineering is!!!
The drive up to Basecamp is very bumpy and dusty. We passed flocks of sheep and nomadic shepherds, yaks and small villages of clay brick houses, all flying prayer flags on their roofs. Locals travel by carts driven by horses or cows.The lintels of the doors and windows are all brightly painted with intricate designs. We arrived at our guest house in Rongbuk, 8 kms from Basecamp. It was really basic, to say the least. No running water, 4 holes in the ground with no partitions, no heating in a very basic bedroom but a tea house for meals. The views were Everest and yaks. The north face of the mountain is truly spectacular up close and the view changed with the constantly changing weather. We drove up to the village where tourists can stay in tented hotels surrounded by hawkers. We then took a minibus to the viewing area of Basecamp. You are not allowed into the camp but we viewed the bleak and windswept plateau full of tents of those who were just about to attempt the summit and paused for thought. On the walk back to the guest house, we stopped at the 7th century Rongbuk monastery to meet the solo monk who has lived there for 21 years. Kevin climbed down into his meditation cave while l chatted to him through Tenzin. He was very jovial and let me take his photo.
Having stayed the night at over 5000 metres, we knew the worst was over and that we were heading for lower altitudes. We spent the next night in a Chinese town, Lhatse which was like a Milton Keynes of Tibet. Didn't enjoy the town or the hotel so glad to move on to Shigatse, Tibet's second city after Lhasa. It is very strange to drive through the mountains of Tibet as there are so many contrasts between the old Tibet and the Chinese driven Tibet. The Chinese have given Tibet a new infrastructure of good roads, electricity, commercial investment, some new towns, new schools,branches of banks and China Post. Unfortunately, they have also given the country endless checkpoints and controls. We must have shown our passports and visas at least 30 times. The centre of Lhasa has airport style security with particular bans on anything inflammable. Obviously to stop anyone but particularly monks setting fire to themselves. Policemen look down on the crowds from the rooftops.
As we drove nearer to Lhasa, we stopped to visit some fabulous monasteries. Most were destroyed during the Cultural Revolution but those that remain are crammed full of statutes and old paper and wooden scripts. Our first experience was at the wonderful Sakya Monastery which is the centre of the Sakyapa sect of Tibetan Buddhism ( the monks wear red hoods). It was full of altars and carpeted areas, monks and devotees giving money in traditional dress. One monk was blowing into a conch shell which produced a poignant sound. The odour of butter lamps pervaded our noses and clothes. The surrounding countryside was full of people working on the land, ploughing and sewing seed with animal carts and tractors. We saw the first trees we had seen in Tibet, planted by the Chinese to line the roads. There were 2 monasteries in Shigatse. The smaller Natang and the large impressive complex of Tashilingo with its gold roofs, 20 metre stature of Buddha, stupas of various Panchen Lamas and many monks. The town was great to wander around with stalls and shops selling religious paraphernalia, particularly large prayer wheels which the locals walked around spinning. Another day, another monastery - this time Shalu with lots of chanting monks blessing the clothes of those who had recently died. Had one of many explanations of Buddhism from Tenzin. Thought we were getting to grips with the characters but it was a struggle. Learnt a lot about the Dalai Lamas, the Panchen Lamas, the present Buddha, the future Buddha, the goddess Tara, the Buddha with a 1000 eyes and hands and 11 heads, the protectors of wisdom, power and compassion, the solid, painted and sand mandelas, the masters of the 2 sects ( red and yellow hats), and Gura Rimponche, whom we last heard about in Bhutan!!
As we approached Lhasa, we drove over 2 more high mountain passes and passed Lake Yamdrok Tso, the Turquoise Lake which is accurately named. The valley became more and more farmed and the traffic increased. Our driver demonstrated some unwise manoeuvres so we were glad to have reached the city boundaries in one piece!!! Lhasa was a lovely city bathed in sunshine for our 3 day stay. We stayed very centrally near Barkhor Market. We visited the huge Potala Palace, the home of the Dalai Lamas and Norbulingka, the summer palace. Both very interesting and impressive with monasteries inside. The Potala Palace of a 1000 doors and windows dominates the skyline of the city and all day locals walk around it and the Jokhang Temple in a clockwise direction saying prayers while holding prayer wheels and beads ( some move by repeatingly throwing themselves to the ground).It is quite a sight to behold. The strangest thing was when we visited the Sera monastery and all the monks gather outside to debate philosophical issues in groups. Each group leader claps his hands and throws his prayer beads towards a hone ,asking a good point. Apparently, this only happens once a year and we were there at the right time. Bizarre!!! Enjoyed eating and drinking in Lhasa as there is lots of choice. We found a really old tea house and sat down with a couple of hundred Tibetans. The waitress didn't want to serve us as she couldn't speak English but was egged on by surrounding tables. A hilarious episode.
Rounded off our trip with a weekend in Hong Kong. Very wet weather so enjoyed our lovely hotel, The Indigo, in Wai Chan, especially happy hour!!!Used all the walkways, trams and the Star ferry to dodge the rain and wandered around the mid level areas and over to Kowloon. Ate roast goose, noodles and dim sum and walked around the Jade and Goldfish markets as well as the local markets in Wai Chan. Said goodbye to Kevin as he heads to North Korea for a week and l head back to Penang for a girlie week with my friend, Margaret.
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