Where on earth is Tim ?

ལྷ་མོ་དོན་འགྲུབ The wonders of Apple, Google and the Dalai Lama

After four days in Lhasa, we commenced our road trip across the Tibetan plateau and on to Kathmandu, Nepal. This was going to take us across the Himalayas, which is one thing I have always wanted to do, apart from being pressurised at 35'000 feet!

For this journey, Sarah, Gennaro, Spanish Guy and I travelled in the relative comfort of a Toyota Land Crusier, which I have to say, I rather like compared with a Land Rover. This was made all the more comfortable by the handling of our Tibetan driver, who is a real pro and adequately armed with a good sense of humor dashed out with a spluttering of English phrases. Our Favorite, "No Problem, Toyota" was uttered every time we hit some rough ground, forded a stream or edged down a steep bank. What impressed me the most is the first hour of every mornings journey. As a devout Tibetan Buddhist, he chants a mantra from the Dalai Lama, even if he starts the day cruising along in the Toyota full of foreign tourists.

Mantra's in the morning, Chigatse

Leaving Lhasa for rural Tibet presented quite a change. The change from a Chinese dominated world to a Tibetan dominated world is quite marked (although your still not far away from the auspices of the police and military, most of which are not Tibetan!). It is also a much more friendly place ... here people are really pleased to see you and want to spend a little time to understand you and your culture. This was nicely summed up when we drove across a very rarely used dirt track on top of a large pebble strewn flood plain. We saw some chaps running towards the track ahead of us. As we drove on, we realised that these chaps, were actually young boys and they had no clothes on! In their eagerness to meet a passing 4x4, then legged it over, ignorant to their lacks of clothes which were removed following a dip in the nearby river! Thankfully Gennaro offered up some balloons, which when fully blown up, gave these chaps some measure of dignity.

Balloons bring Dignity

A little later into the journey we stopped by a small hamlet of three or so houses. Gennaro and Spanish Guy have been keen to stop at a small village to sample really rural Tibetan life. I must admit, I wondered how we would be welcomed by just turning up at some random persons house to meet, greet and take a few photos! It must be a strange experience for four foreigners to turn up, share some tea and take a load of photos.

However, within minutes of stopping, we were quickly invited in by the family of the nearest house and offered butter tea, Chang (rice beer) and dried Yak's cheese. We entered the house and Spanish Guy's camera started clicking away, at which point the grandmother of the house asked our guide a question ... which she translated ... "Do you have a picture of the Dalai Lama ?" came the reply ... I was taken aback and hesitated ... I didn't have a picture and I also realised that the Dalai Lama is a banned man in China, along with photos of him. I was also a little taken aback that our guide translated this question !

A few moments later, thanks to a strict upbringing as a gadget freak/geek, I got my iPhone out, googled the Dalai Lama and within five minutes I was able to present the Grandmother of the house a full screen picture of the Dalai Lama on my iPhone. The thought of the data roaming costs did not even enter my mind. Neither had I thought about how well Big Brother might be watching.

The 14th Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso ... and this was the Photo I found thanks to google

She looked at the picture, pressed the picture against her forehead and then started to cry. It was abundantly clear from this old ladies face and emotions, that this was the first time she had viewed the Dalai Lama for a very long time. Probably decades. I would imagine that she and her husband grew up with the Dalai Lama as their spiritual leader, watched him flee into exile when the Chinese government invaded Tibet and then during the cultural revolution, had to destroy all images of the Dalai Lama as well as refrain from any public signs of reverence towards the him. This must have been the first time she had seen an image of the Dalai Lama for 40 years.

Shortly afterwards, the Grandmother and he Husband asked if we could take alms and a silk scarf to the seat of the Dalai Lama in Dharamsala. I could not refuse, despite having been there only a couple of months ago. I'm not going there anytime soon, but I agreed in the knowledge that we'll find a way, somehow, to fulfill this promise. If anyone going to Dharamsala soon, let me know - my good Karma bank account is at risk !

The whole experience left me speechless and deep in thought. I felt honestly touched, along with everyone else. I was left thinking about this encounter for the rest of my trip in Tibet. All credit to our guide who tolerated such a moment that could easily jeopardise her position.

Stupa in Shigatse

Later in the trip we visited Everest Base Camp, which, understandably is the EBC from the Tibetian side! We were very lucky with the monsoon weather, so thankfully, I am the now the proud owner of a front and back picture of Everest. Maybe I should get a cheesy front and back T-shirt made up ! I did feel as if the journey in Tibet was somewhat cheating ... a couple of days in a landcruiser as opposed to two weeks trekking in Nepal.

Front (Nepal)

Back (Tibet)

We are going to spend some chill-out time in Kathmandu followed by a hop to Bangkok and then a trip to Myanmar. Sarah and I have thought long and hard about if we should take a trip into Myanmar given the political situation. My encounter with this family in Tibet has made me realise that not only will the tourist dollars help, but you can give people an insight into our world, which may one day may help them to change their world. I am also deeply sceptical about the effectiveness of a tourist travel boycott, especially when this is ignored by so many Asian countries like China, Thailand and Taiwan for example. Never-mind the staggering amount of US DOLLARS in trade that goes to the Burmese government, thanks to China. More on this in a later blog.

NOTE: I have carefully tried to keep anonymity of some of the wonderful people we met in Tibet in this blog. Our Big Chinese Brother may be watching.

པོ་ཏ་ལ གནམ་མཚོ་ Playground for the Cheesy Chinese

For the past few days we have been doing a tour of Lhasa and surrounding areas, including a visit to the sacred Namtso Lake. I have to say, Lhasa is everything I expected and more. For the first time in the whole of my trip to China, I can really see people devoutly following their religion, but then again we are not in China, we are in Tibet! In this case its Tibetan Buddhism and its reminded me of India in many ways. We have seen crowds of Pilgrims circumnavigating the Jokhang temple and the Potala Palace; Then there the devotees prostrating themselves around the same circuits; Mantras being chanted by every day people in the morning; People doing their business around town with prayer wheels spinning in their right hands; A splattering of monasteries with monks going about their daily routines, including time for meditation. It's really is a spiritual place.

Pilgrims on their way around a monastery, nr Lhasa

I have also decided that Lhasa is the holiday playground for the Han Chinese. And there are allot of them here too. Here the Chinese can roam around on their holidays without any restrictions. Unlike the Tibetans who need a permit to travel in restricted areas and also have little chance of obtaining a passport. Our guide speaks four languages. He is hoping to learn a fifth in order to help his case to get a passport as an international guide. He is also not allowed to accompany us to the Nepalese Border ... he needs to renew his permission. In China, everyone is not equal ... hardly a communist ideal ?

The Jokhang, Lhasa

We took a tour of the Potala Palace which I have to say, is awesome, but I am sure a shadow of it former self prior to the Chinese invasion of Tibet in 1959. During our trip we were treated to some cake by a curator stations inside the Dalai Lamas quarters. He was actually a monk, but the staff of the Potala Palace are not allowed to ware their habits, instead they get a government issued blue overall. He very nicely treated us to some tea and cake while streams of Chinese tourists filed past. We got talking and at one point he told us he like's foreign tourists as they understand the plight of Tibetans. He offered up that that the Tibetans miss the Dalai Lama and that he personally wished for him be allow to return. I was left thinking that it was quite bold for someone to talk about this in the chambers of the Dalai lama when he is considered a terrorist by the chinese government. Pictures of the 14th Dalai Lama are banned and talking about him in public could get a Tibetan into some hot water.

Many of the monasteries near Lhasa are being rebuilt after being destroyed in the Cultural revolution. The was evidenced by the Buddha statues at one end of the monasteries, all of which appear to be all newly made. Apparently at one point almost all of the monasteries in Tibet were closed by the Chinese government. However times have been changing since 1982, with the gradual liberalisation of religion in China. Its is good to see the Tibetan culture, so much of which is based on Buddhism now in resurgence.

Namtso Lake

The trip to Namtso lake was extraordinary. It was a grueling four hour ride, in which we got to know our driver well, a Tibetan and a real pro in his land cruiser. His array of English made me smile which his many simple phrases he has learnt along the way, all spoken with a thick lashing of a Tibetan accent. But when we arrived, I was impressed. Very. Namsto Lake is an incredibly surreal and photogenic place. It had the bluest water and skies that have ever seen, which considering that Namsto is the highest saltwater lake in the world, some 5km above sea level, is not surprising. Shame about the cheesy Chinese tourists posing for shots on tops of Yaks, both hands up in the air, giving a Winston Churchill's V for Victory signal. And they paid 20 Chinese Yuan for the privilege.

Cheesy Chinese Tourist ... She had to pay an extra 10 RNB to get a picture with the Yak in the water !

Finally a note about Spanish guy; He's turned out to be a Joker. I also reckon he must be half Japanese, given the way he is alway late for the landcruiser, last seen wondering off with camera clicking in one hand. I am having allot of fun speaking Italian to him and then trying the understand the Spanglish response. But its hard work.

Next stop is Shigatse, 350 km from Lhasa. I am looking forward to the trip.

བཀྲ་ཤིས་བདེ་ལེགས། The Forbidden City, Tibet

I've realised one of my traveling dreams today. I have arrived in The Forbidden City, Lhasa.

The route here was hard. The flight was an easy hop from Chengdu, but having to negotiate Spanish Guy and the Permit was less so. But we are here and I have to say its fantastic.

Its an incredibly photogenic place. It feels great, despite the high altitude. Lhasa is situated on the Tibetan plateau which hovers an average 4000m above sea level and has the Himalayas protecting it from the savages of the monsoon. I've enjoyed plenty of sun with the odd splattering of cloud. I like Lhasa. Allot.

That said, its pretty obvious since I arrived in Tibet that I am traveling in a police state. The People's Committee for the Tibetan Autonomous Region, aka the 'Chinese Government' has built a massive monument opposite the Potala palace to celebrate the 'Liberation' of Tibet. Looks quite like Tiananmen Square to me ... and in the process concreted over the holy lake outside the Potala Palace. I am a fan of progress to modernise the world, but isn't it quite sad to destroy a holy lake for a square to reinforce 'that we are a totally awesome communist state".

I also struggle to understand the concept of the liberation of the Tibetan people by the Peoples Liberation Army (PLA) when the PLA is station on every street corner. The official line is this is needed to protect the Tibetan people. I smell a rat! It look more like a necessity to create an aurora of dominance and control, as well as to keep any Tibetan independence feelings at bay. I have never seem so much military presence anywhere I have travelled.

Probably the most boring job in the world ? ... Just one of many Soldiers keeping watch over Lhasa.

Which reminds me of Spanish Guy. He took a photograph of a platoon of soldiers walking next to the Jokhang temple, the most important of all the Buddhist temples in Lhasa. The platoon ran over to him and tried to confiscate his camera. Thankfully he had a chance to delete the photo he took as the ran over, which, armed with some spanish charm, he managed to avoid his camera being destroyed, or even ending up with a short spell in the nick.

As you've probably guessed, Spanish Guy is on form. After the endless debate which frustrated the staff as Sim Cozys (as well as Sarah and I), he booked his trip for Tibet to end in Katmandu. He did this with a confident air that he will be able to reorganise his itinerary in Lhasa. Alas, we just found out this is not possible in Lhasa. Poor Spanish Guy, he has to carry on into Nepal.

I have enjoyed the last couple of days in Lhasa. I once again feel like I am in India. People go about their lives with Religion being the driving force. Just like India, it has probably not changed for hundreds of years, despite the ravages of the cultural revolution. That said, it is obvious that in the last couple of decades there has been a huge influx of tourists as well as an influx of Han Chinese who have migrated for economic purposes or on assignment with the armed forces... there are plenty of them in Lhasa.

The Jokhang, Lhasa

Thankfully the cultural revolution is now thing of the past. Long may Tibet and the Tibetans continue to thrive, rebuild their culture and practice their religious beliefs. In or out of China.

We are off to Namtso Lake tomorrow. I am looking forward to getting outside of Lhasa to see more of the rural tibet. I just hope that I won't see a Chinese tour party being led by an umbrella !