A trip to the roof of the world

I'm not sure what prompted me to want to visit Tibet, none of the traditional reasons for selection of a travel destination applied. No one I knew had been there before, the crew from Getaway hadn't covered it (or at least not during my viewing) and at the time none of the recent movies about Tibet had been released. Maybe it was a dim and distant memory of Lost Horizon that sent me in search of Shangri-La the mysterious Buddhist land.
I arrived in the Land of Snows from Kathmandu, Nepal. Flying across the Himalayas into Tibet must be one of the most exiting flights in the world, Everest is clearly visible from window of the plane and seems to be about the same height as the plane's cruising altitude. After arriving at the newly constructed Gonggar airport and getting used to the altitude (3,600m or so) there's the small matter of getting to Lhasa, 95 kilometres (2 hours) from the airport. A group of travellers I'd never met and I banded together and hired a landcruiser to take us to Lhasa.
Lhasa is one of the most wonderful and exciting cities in the world, since the 7th century this magnificent city has been the centre of religion and government in Tibet. The majestic image of the Potala (the main home of the Dalai Lhamas and the base of Tibetan government before the Chinese invasion) with its enormous white and red white washed walls dominates the city and captivates you from your very first glimpse. Knowing a little of the history of the military invasion, repression and partial destruction of Tibet by the Chinese, for me the Potala also evoked an image of great emptiness and sadness. Despite much encouragement from fellow travellers, during my many days in Lhasa this sadness kept me from visiting what is now no more than a museum to what was once the heart of this magnificent country.
Accommodation in Lhasa is surprisingly good and seems to range across the spectrum with something to suit all tastes. My choice fell to the Yak Hotel (a recommendation from a couple of guys from Hong Kong I met in a bar in Kathmandu - but that's a different story). The Yak is a really lovely hotel filled with exciting people from all over the world eager to share exciting travel stories and to join me in adventures into this exciting land. The altitude (everywhere is at least twice the height of Kosciuszko) takes its toll, particularly in the first few days so it's vital to have accommodation that is comfortable, clean and relaxing.
At the Yak Hotel is CITS Shigatse Travels, a wonderful friendly and helpful bunch who's ‘can do attitude’ was just what an individual traveller with only a 4 weeks to try to explore this huge country wanted to hear.
My first trip was a short pilgrimage to Tsurphu Monastery (4480 metres above sea level according to the ever reliable lonely planet travel survival kit for Tibet). The 70-kilometre journey took a fair bit longer than l thought (6 hours) ... but what a journey. The snow swelled Tsurphu River winds beside the road. The river is a swirling splashing torrent with huge unmelted chunks of snow bobbing in it. High mountain ranges towered on either side. The road is in pretty bad shape and the combination of bad roads, thick mud and less than state of the art mechanics makes for an "interesting" trip.
The Monastery at Tsurphu is magnificent. It is the 17th Karama (a 14 year old boy who is the seventeenth reincarnation a living Buddha). The Tibetans believe that when a lama dies he is reborn and his reincarnation becomes the new lama. The golden roofs, upturned eaves and inscribed stone pillars are set against a back drop of towering snow-capped mountains. My poor photographic skills lived up to my expectations and completely failed to capture the grandeur and beauty of this scene.
My next destination was the lakes at Nam-tso and the Tashi Dor Monastery. The trip to the lake takes the best part of a day so, if your going to have time to explore and get a feel for this magnificent area, then you’d better plan to spend at least three days away from Lhasa. The trip to the lakes is, like all journeys in Tibet a part of the whole experience. Up until the Chinese invasion there were almost no roads. The road winds through the high mountain passes sometimes as high as 5000 metres.
The lake is a wonderful shade of torquise blue and the surrounding mountains are something else. The Monastery sits on a peninsular that juts into the lake. I’d heard the accommodation would be pretty rough and there would be no food available so I arrived well stocked with instant noodles, dried fruit and a thick down sleeping bag.
The journey to and from the lakes takes you past remote expansive plains and looming Mountains. Everywhere you travel you see the nomadic Tibetan people herding small flocks of yak, sheep and goats. While most Tibetans live in small communities growing barley and other crops there are still many nomads who live a lifestyle largely unchanged for centuries.
There is so much to see in this vast and exciting land. The people are warm and friendly and despite their obviously difficult circumstances they go out of their way to make you feel warm and welcome.
The end of my journeys in Tibet took me down the Friendship Highway from Lhasa to the Nepal border. The trip takes in many wonderful cities and villages and is well worth leaving a week or so to travel the 750 kilometres to the border.

I detoured from my journey to the border for a week or so at the Rongbuk Monastery. The monastery sits at the foot of Mt. Everest and its only a short (3 hour) walk to the Mt Everest base camp on the Tibetan side at the foothills of the worlds tallest mountain Qomolangma (the Tibetan name for Everest). The monastery is at 4900 metres so even a short walk can be quite demanding. The sight of Qomolangma is awe-inspiring and you can spend countless hours watching the changing faces of the mountain.
Tibet is a wonderful and exciting land that, despite the difficulties of travel, will reward those who take the trouble to venture inside. Travelling in this land is a small step towards understanding the difficult road ahead for the Tibetan people. The scenery is without parallel. Every day the constant views of the glorious snow capped Himalayas, the intricate pattern of terraced crops stretching along their base and the presence of these beautiful people make you glad to be alive.