Lhasa at last
Trip Start
Jul 29, 2008
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88
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Trip End
Sep 01, 2009
Lhasa, Xizang, China
Sunday, August 9, 2009
The drive in was surreal with huge pictures of the developing Lhasa, Tiled buildings, Mysterious Government compounds with huge gates and guards outside lined the street. These were actually completely self contained army barracks, including shops and movie theatres for the rumoured 200,000 man garrison stationed in Lhasa. We did not see a single armed solider in the entire time.
The population of Tibet's largest city has reached over 500,000 and they have managed to remove most of Old Lhasa, leaving just the Potala palace and the area around the Jokan temple as a tourist example of what old "bad" feudal Tibet was all about. Lhasa's saving grace is the Tibetan people.
They coexist under stern conditions with the imported Han Chinese and the rather large military presence , but they still manage to doggedly avoid the Chinese influence and to hold onto their unique history.
The Chinese to their credit have decided enough is enough and have recognised the value of the old town to both the small international tourist market and the developing inbound domestic tourist potential. More than 1 million Chinese visit each year filling the coffers of the state run bus and travel companies and the government run hotels in Lhasa.
To be honest you just do not see the domestic tourists as your attention is simply focussed on all things Tibetan. The Chinese have provided an extensive infrastructure that allows everyone to relax and enjoy this unique place. This blog is not the place to examine the rights and wrongs of the last fifty years of Tibetan history. Have a wander around the net for more information. To an international tourist the place seemed happy, well fed and prosperous.
Our hotel was right in the centre of town and only walking distance to both the Jokan Temple and the stunning Potala Palace. We could not have been better situated, although there was no inhouse massage service!
So we left the hotel and went straight to the Palace, traditional home of the Dalai Lama.
Lhasa is only 3650 metres high so breathing and walking around was much easier. We met a young Chinese girl from Hong Kong who had spent the first three days of her stay in hospital as she acclimatised. If you are considering visiting this area make sure you have enough time to adjust as it is a tough place to visit, if you are having trouble breathing.
However we had to visit the Potala palace. This is or was the ancestral home of the succession of Dalai Lamas. The palace is currently empty but kept in good repair, while the current Dalai Lama lives in exile. We struggled up the huge steps and through the main entrance to finally step inside what must be one of the wonders of the world.
The Potala is the winter palace of the Dalai Lama and is now a World Heritage Site. You can see why upon entering. Even though the palace was restored by the Chinese in 1995 and they run it, you just cannot hide it’s true purpose. Whether the Chinese realise this is another thing.
The castle is over 13 stories high rising over 117 metres and is built of rammed earth, wood and stone. It is a true maze with over 1000 rooms, 10,000 shrines and countless statues. The walls vary from 2 to 5 metres and were strengthened against earthquakes by pouring in molten copper. The Tibetans even built the entire palace without using any nails. The palace was started in the 7th century and completed in 1653 by successive Dalai Lamas.. Every stone and bucket of earth had to be manhandled up the steep slopes on either donkeys or the backs of men.
This must rank with the building of the pyramids as it was completed even before the wheel arrived in Tibet. They forgot to install any plumbing, or heating, so everything had to be bought up the hill on a daily basis.
Architecture now taken care of, how did it feel? A little sad when we passed the palace meeting rooms where the Dalai Lama met revered guests, but secretly I was absolutely delighted to be in such a revered place. We were lucky as usual and were granted access to the inner rooms and the actual private quarters of the long line of Dalai Lamas. Goosebumps and a huge lump in the throat is the only way to describe this experience.
The Dalai Lama will return, it is just a matter of time and patience. Perhaps not this Dalai Lama, but one will return. The Tibetans are relying on it and I think they are right. I was reminded of the struggle Nelson Mandela had and how he never gave up. This feels like a similar problem to solve.
We left the private quarters and descended to the Red Palace, through four levels. Interspersed through the many prayer rooms are the Stupas containing the salt dried bodies of previous Dalai Lamas.
These stupas were covered in gold and precious stones and provided a similar experience to the Egyptian tombs. Interesting, but a bit the same after a while. Still that did not stop hundreds of Pilgrims placing money everywhere you could think of. The palace must receive thousands of dollars in donations every day. Junior monks seem very busy clearing out the cash to make room for more.
After wandering for hours past more Stupas, we descended to the Great Western Assembly Hall. This is a huge place, the largest in the palace with the throne of the Seventh Dalai Lama. Each of the pillars is wrapped in silk and the walls are covered with amazing murals.
I could blather on for hours about this revered place but there is only one way to experience it and that is to simply make the effort and go. You just could not be disappointed.
After lunch we travelled across Lhasa to the Jokhang Temple.
This is the Cathedral for Lhasa and is Tibet’s most sacred temple. Pilgrims from all over Tibet travel thousands of kilometres on foot, on extensive pilgrimages to this revered place. It is quite something else.
There is a short video I will upload that will give you an idea of the extent of the devotion Tibetans have. The flagstones have human sized grooves that match the protestations of the devotees. They literally fall flat on their faces as part of the prayer process.
Jokhangs history is interesting. It was built in 7th century by King Gampo in order to placate his new Nepali wife. She brought a Buddha image from Nepal when she became one of his five wives and needed a place of worship so like a good husband he obliged.
The Cultural Revolution left its mark and a fair proportion of the Temple has been restored. Traditional methods were used to rebuild, repaint and re-plaster so it is very difficult to see the old from the new. Add to this the smoke from hundreds of butter fires and things just seem to merge.
The ground floor is full of new and restored icons and murals tracing the entire Tibetan history. Unfortunately the light makes it difficult to see these clearly. Still you can always buy the book. Why they do not let you take photos , saying the images are religious, but still seem quite happy to sell books with the same image in is beside me. Commerce rules with religion as well it seems.
The local guide walked us around the temple visiting chapel after chapel filled with so many different types of Buddha’s, including the nirvana Buddha’s who it is said reached divine heights by consorting with nuns or other religious women in the temple. Let’s just say the statutes left nothing to the imagination. Money covered everything and was inserted in lots of strange places. Hmmm, maybe putting that sentence earlier would have been better.
After our earlier session at the Potala palace I was suffering from Tombitis and to be honest things got a little blurry until we got on the roof. There everything seemed to make sense. The view from the roof is quite spectacular and we were given the opportunity to get up close to snow lions and dragons guarding the rooftops from evil spirits. There was also an amazing view of the square and the old town.
Exhausted from the huge day and the subsequent emotions we retreated to the hotel to recharge ready for the next day of just wandering around Old Lhasa, and maybe a massage!
