Tibet is a place that has always been on my mind, the highest peaks in the world lay deep with in this semi untouchable Plateau, the Himalayas, Mt. Everest, places that i wanted to see, places i felt compelled to visit. Getting there was not easy and getting around once you were there is a chore if you don't book a tour. Now the current Chinese law is that you must obtain a Tibetan Tourist Permit that can only be done by booking with a group and organizing a tour, pre-packaged and payed in full, all this must be done before you can get on your flight or train to Tibet. SO after 2 failed attempts, Chengdu was the place of Tibet organization, and my access to Tibetan.
A two day sleeper train from Chengdu to Lhasa was not as bad as you think, sure 48 is a bit much but when traveling with 7 others on an organized tour you can find things to do, talk about, and at very least share some beers with while watching the roof of the world pass you by. The train passes the highest elevation (train elevation) in the world, on day two they pass around oxygen connections for those having trouble breathing, so you can get your steady flow of the good stuff. Waking up and looking out the window at 7am on the last day of the train trip to catch a sunrise was pretty awesome, snow covering the ground, the Himalayas in the background and the promise of Lhasa was something to put a smile on my face.
Being in Lhasa was actually something i found more enjoyable than expected, at first it was a city i nearly was willing to pass up and not visit. Being the Hub that was impossible but i thought it would be another big Chinese city. Yes, unfortunately it is overrun by Chinese, the local Tibetan people and culture are well out numbered by the masses of Chinese coming in, but it had its charm and character and still with the constant oppression of the powerful Chinese government you can still wander some back allies and see the Lhasa which used to be (pre chinese Lhasa).
Visiting Potala Palace and the major monetary in Lhasa was a good experience for me in two ways. In one sense it was good to get a little more understanding of the culture, it was good to hear the stories of the Buddhist religion, it was great to get a little more information about the people and the land i came to visit. Potala palace was a shrine of past and the current Dalhi Lama, to witness a nomadic family visiting their Temple (potala palace) and literally crying at the tomb of the 5th Dahli Lama was a experience that was, well... yes humbling to be in a place which holds so much meaning to so many, but also at the same time it was something i found to be wrong.
Paying to go into a holy place is something that i don't know if i like, after leaving Lhasa i decided that i would not go to any more monasteries. the thought of going into a place of worship and poking my nose around, observing a dying culture, to me, was almost like going to a zoo, no i would say it's probably worse. People are praying, worshiping and there i am clearly just there for the experience, it was an out of place feeling that rubbed me the wrong way. I kept thinking if i was in church and a group of non-western tourists rolled in to watch me pray, how would i feel, it was something i didn't like.
Leaving the City and heading into the country side was something that i was extremely eager to do, the excitement of the unknown, the open plains, the mountains, EVEREST, was something that i couldn't wait to see. 6 days of driving around the Tibetan Plateau was awesome, getting a chance to visit smaller towns, more monasteries (which i didn't go in to), stringing prayer flags up at the top of a hill in Shigatse was a once in a life time experience.
The landscapes, the mountains, the Himalayas, the blue rivers, the glaciers on the tops of mountains and in the vallies, the frozen rivers, and the chance to sit at the bottom of Everest. Looking up at the top of the earth, seeing the top of the world, no point being higher than that. It sounds so simple, uneventful, but for me to see the top of the world was something that still sends a chill down my spine. Even though i came for the landscape, the people and the culture of the towns that i visited made it so much more worthwhile.
PHOTOS:
http://picasaweb.google.co.in/vaccaro.marc/MarcvaccaroTibet?feat=directlink
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