Lhasa Off The Beaten Path

At Ganden, spend some time on the montain in front of the monastery, you will appreciate the monastery on the whole and its incredible situation.
Spend also some time with the saleswomen, at the entrance of the monastery. They are playing and singing, waiting the next tourists bus!

Do not hesitate to spend some time in some very small villages. You will enjoy the people, even if you cannot communicate.
In Lhassa, it's worth also to stroll along the small streets. Don't forget the markets, it's amazing.

Shigatse (3900 m) 250 km far from Lhasa, the town is divided in two areas: the Tibetan and the Chinese. In the Tibetan neighbourhood Tibetans women sell “original tourist stuff”. It’s a nice place to meet people. Please don’t ask women to sell the jewels they are wearing!
Tashilhunpo Monastery
The huge monastery, built in 1447, was once inhabited by over 4000 monks. Nowadays, only 600 remain there. It is the seat of the Panchen Lama. The Grand Hall contains the tomb (with more than 85 kg gold and lots of jewels) of the 4th Panchen Lama. There is a 27 m high statue of the Maitreya Buddha. Tibetans believe that great religious leaders like the Panchen Lama are reincarnated. When the 10th Panchen Lama died in 1989, other lamas and monks who were friends with him began to look for his reincarnation. Finally after six years, they had a list of boys who they thought might be the next Panchen Lama. They asked the Dalai Lama which boy was the right one. After looking at all the information about the boys, he chose Gedhun Choekyi Nyima.Then, China kidnapped the Panchen Lama, his parents and brother from their home in Tibet and are holding them under house arrest somewhere in China. China also says that the boy that the Dalai Lama chose as the Panchen Lama is not the true one. After they kidnapped the real one they picked a different boy themselves, even though the government of China does not believe in religion. His name is Gyachain Norbu. However Tibetans know that the boy chosen by the Dalai Lama is the true Panchen Lama.
Free the Panchen Lama Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, the youngest political prisoner!

Gyantse (3950 m) 200 km south-west of Lhasa, the Chinese influence is not so evident here and it is worth a visit for this reason alone. The Tibetan area is close to the main tourist attraction: Palkor monastery and Kumbum stupa, with its 10.000 images of Buddha. It is a nice place to spend some time just walking around, looking for …Tibet! The Dzong (old fort), which towers above the village, offers a fine view over the valley.

Tingri (4390 m) Few Tibetan houses and some restaurants; Tingri is the first village you meet coming from Nepal.“My parent’s house overlooked the village and was built around a large inner courtyard between two other houses. At sunset, the gate and small windows were shut and the family felt as secure as they were in a fortress. The roof had two chimneys and three ventilation holes set in it. The water from the melted snow or rain ran through drainpipes made from juniper, often of extraordinary shapes, into the courtyard….Foundation were built with clay bricks which had been dried in wooden moulds. The roof was covered with logs and finished off with a layer of brushwood treated with a mixture of trodden-down earth and oil that made an excellent insulation. The house was then white-washed and the prayer flags raised. … The door lintels were decorated with tridents and dragons.' (Jetsun Pema, ib.)

There are hundreds of places in Tibet that would be a shame to miss but with the current situation (politically, in terms of transportation, visa limits, and so on) it is almost impossible to get to all of them. If you are limited to the area around Lhasa (like most travelers to Tibet), there are a few places that you shouldn't miss. These include the town of Shiangtse and the monastary at Drepung. Less than a days trip from Lhasa (both can be reached by fairly cheap local bus), they are great places to see what is Tibet is like outside of 'Metro Lhasa'.

4 more images

51 hours

Another one of women having a relaxing moment...taking a break from walking around and around the Jokhang Monastery no doubt...it's hard work in the sun!