After the first night there we had breakfast on the rooftop restaurant which had a fantastic view of the sun rising over the mountains that surround Lhasa as well as The Potala which is the winter palace of The Dalai Lama. It sounds idyllic but actually it was bitterly cold and we sat there shivering despite having thick coats on. Expecting a nice cooked breakfast we were encouraged by the sounds of cooking coming from the kitchen and the brilliant flashes of yellow light quickly followed by a "Whoosh" as whatever was being fried burst into flames. We were then presented with some cooked potato and chillies, a couple of cremated eggs and a huge pile of crispy bacon. It looked OK but by the time they'd bought it the short distance from the kitchen to the table it was stone cold. The only thing that stayed warm was the toast but it filled a gap.
This set us up for a bracing walk down to The Potala and what surprised me was the sheer number of pilgrims following their daily walk around the Kora. There was a complete mixture of
people, old and young and some of them were even prostrating themselves along the entire route. The Potala is build upon a huge lump of rock that dominates the West end of Lhasa and walking up the stairs to reach the palace is quite tough, especially when short of breath from the high altitude but it's worth the effort. The inside walls and ceilings are all painted in brilliant yellows, reds, blues and greens and in the bright, clear light of winter the colours just glow. Each of the chapels and tombs are adorned with Buddhas and lit by burning yak butter, filling the air with a comforting yet slightly sickly aroma. The light from the buttery candles made the gold covered tombs shine and the flickering of the light enhanced the serene feeling that filled the place. The only thing that spoiled it were the shocking charges the monks were imposing for taking pictures inside the place. It was outrageous so we didn't bother.
We continued wandering around Lhasa for a couple of days taking in all it had to offer. The Jokhang Temple was stunning, especially the climb onto the roof where you could get a good view of the square below and see the worshippers doing their thing. The Renpoche Monastery was also a real treat, though I couldn't help feeling a little guilty when our guide, Sambhu, started hammering on a closed temple door only for it to be opened by a weary looking monk that eventually let us in. It wasn't the monk I felt sorry for, but the other locals that had the door firmly shut in their faces after we'd entered. I guess we did pay a lot for the ticket though and the locals get in for free.
Regardless of how much I loved Lhasa, there was definitely an air of tension in the city. Guarding all the little alleyways leading into the old town were dozens of Chinese soldiers armed with guns ready to fire rubber bullets at anyone that posed a threat to the peace. As well as those, soldiers and police strutted around with big wooden batons which must have antagonised the Tibetans even further.One thing about Sambhu was that he loved his sweet tea. In the first place he took us to we sat down next to a group of very excitable Tibetan women who were obviously very curious about us. Rich delighted them by taking pictures of them which generated shrieks of laughter. The next time we had tea, in a Buddhist nunnery, I though I'd take some pictures of the other customers myself. This wasn't appreciated so gratefully and the old woman that I was pointing my camera at held her thumb to her throat and slid it across from one side to the other and looked at me with a "just you dare" sort of look. I put my camera down and avoided anymore eye contact with anyone.
After our couple of days in
Lhasa, we were then driven to Gyantse. On the way there I was stunned to see a man standing in a field, surrounded by sheep with his trousers down. All sorts of things went through my head but I'm sure there was a perfectly rational explanation. The town is small with a big monastery and the best thing there was the Kumbum which is a huge stupa with 77 chapels built into it and apparently 10000 murals. I somehow doubt that number but there were an awful lot of paintings and statues to see. Needless to say, we didn't stop to look at them all but what we did see was very impressive. There's also a great view of Gyantse from the top.To kill some time we had a little walk around the town before settling down for the evening. It
was a very grim place, partly due to the thick, sandy dust that coated everything but mainly due to the trio of dead dogs we saw lying in the park with their teeth exposed and 'snarling' in almost comic fashion. One of the best views in the town was that of the Old Fort at the top of the hill. It could be viewed from 'dead dog park' but the Chinese authorities, in their infinite wisdom, decided to stick a great big, ugly monument in front if it which really spoilt the otherwise pleasant viewing spot. Typical and arrogant.The toilets in Tibet are possibly the worst we've seen to date. Often they are just a hole in the ground with a couple of planks suspended over it forming somewhere to stand. Other times there is no hole, it's just a platform suspended over the side of a hill. In all cases they stink to high heaven and even the locals must hate them because on many occasions we saw men just urinating anywhere on the street in exactly the same way a badly trained dog might do. It's apparently not that unusual for long skirted women just to squat down in the road and relieve themselves either. I suppose the skirt retains some sense of dignity. This wasn't just limited to adults either; I couldn't understand why so many kids were wandering around with the seam in the backs of their trousers split open, but I guess as it's so cold they could just stop what they were doing, do their business then continue their games without the hassle of nappies or getting undressed. It sort of makes sense, but still just seems wrong. Thinking about it, maybe the sheep farmer I saw on the way was just emptying his bladder...
After Gyantse, we drove to Shigatse which is the second largest town in Tibet. On arrival, Rich and I had a walk around the town again to see what it had to offer. Butchery is obviously a big thing here with yak and goat heads in big demand given the number of them we saw for sale. I asked Sambhu about them who told me that they are a big delicacy and quite delicious once all the hair has been singed off and then cooked (the head, not the hair). He doesn't like it though - can't imagine why. The main attraction here is the Tashilhunpo Monastery and it's a real beauty. It's a huge site and has traditionally been the seat of the Panchen Lama, probably the second most important person in Bhuddism after the Dalai Lama. One of the highlights here was seeing the young monks gathering in their ceremonial robes of crimson and yellow, getting ready to go and pray. Most of them were no older than about 15 and were behaving like naughty school children until an older monk bought them into line. Once they started chanting it was great to see, then they all filed off into an assembly hall to continue their prayers. All that was left were dozens of pairs of crimson boots that the boys had shed before leaving.The next day was really exciting, after a breakfast of cold oily cabbage, raw oily potatoes and warm greasy spam, we continued our drive along the Friendship Highway to Everest Base Camp. It was a long drive, but I loved every moment of it, even seeing a man on his motorbike with a skinned, slaughtered sheep riding pillion. The scenery was absolutely beautiful and our first glimpse of Mount Everest bought a huge grin to both of our faces. Continuing along the
Gyatso-La Pass bought quick increases in altitude as we wound our way up and over mountain ranges. The views of the Himalayas were breathtaking.
Eventually, we reached Everest Base Camp and were blown away by the clear, unadulterated view of Mt. Everest or Mt. Chomolangma as the Chinese call it. We couldn't have had a clearer day and we were the only ones there! I was expecting the base camp to be full of tents housing groups of intrepid explorers and their Sherpas all decked out in Gore-tex hiking gear and clasping oxygen masks to their faces. It was nothing like that, there was a grotty toilet block, a couple if deserted tin huts, lots of prayer flags and a view to die for. We clambered up the hill to get a better view and at this point I tied a string of prayer flags to the others already fluttering in the freezing air. That was in memory of my Dad as he'd loved to have known I had been there.Eventually, we tore ourselves away and drove to Old Tingri to stay the night. We were due to stay at the Rongphu Monastery which is quite close to the base camp but were told that it would be too cold as they have no heating there. A terrifying drive followed where we didn't stick to any road in the conventional sense, but followed a rough dirt path usually used for trekking. We were worried that night was closing in at this point and thinking that if anything had happened to the car we'd have been stuffed because nobody was around for miles. The car, at one point, lurched up an icy hill and then started wheel spinning before the engine cut out. The driver, looking slightly worried, switched off the ignition then let the car roll back down the hill. We heard a big crunch at which point Sambhu and the driver got out, looked at each other anxiously then looked at the front wheels. After a minute of so, they got back in the car and started the engine and we were on our way. Next, we found ourselves on a huge sheet of ice confronted with a deep but narrow river to cross. I looked out the window and could see the flow of water under the thin ice that our 4x4 was now parked on. I closed my eyes while the driver slowly backed up to find another route across. We made it, but it was getting dark at this point and the next trial was traversing the side of a hill on a very fragile, narrow dirt track with a sheer drop on one side. Rich looked petrified when I glanced across at him but, again, we made it. Each small settlement we saw in the distance we hoped was Tingri and the third one turned out to be the right one.
What a huge relief.
Tingri turned out to be no better than the Rongphu. The first guesthouse we arrived at looked quite cosy as we sat by the stove and sipped weak tea. We'd just started to look at the menu when the Sambhu got up and declared that we weren't staying there. There was a very strange atmosphere and I don't know what was going on but we were bundled back in the jeep and drove next door to the neighbouring guesthouse. All very strange. We were shown our 'room' and our hearts sank. It was rotten. I'd seen cleaner stables and it was dark and freezing. The only heat and light came from a 40 watt light bulb that got progressively dimmer as the evening wore on. After having some very dubious looking 'chicken' curry and veg momos, Sambhu told me that we may encounter some problems on the road the next day as they are resurfacing it and it doesn't open until 8pm. I thought he might be exaggerating and tried not to think too much about it. I slept in all my clothes that night, trying to keep warm in a sleeping bag, tightly wrapped in a smelly damp quilt and grubby blanket. We couldn't wait to leave the next day. There was no chance of a shower as the corrugated iron 'door' was locked for the winter and I had to hold my breath as I used the stinking toilet before we left.
A quick cup of tea heated up on the stove fuelled by yak dung and we hit the road to Zhangmu, the Tibetan/Nepali border. I didn't look back but I just managed to catch sight of one of the numerous stray dogs, whose back legs had given out, shuffling itself along using it's front legs and dragging it's arse along the ground with its back legs tucked forward like some pathetic impression of a gymnast. It was pitiful.
A few hours into our journey and we reached a town called Nyalam. The driver hopped out with Sambhu at the checkpoint and then informed us that the road is indeed closed and we were not allowed to pass until 8pm that evening. Even the bribe of a packet Tibetan fags couldn't persuade the gatekeeper. It was 1pm at this point so we decided to stop for lunch and decide what to do. Sambhu suggested that we start walking and he and the driver would catch us up when they could. It was 30km to Zhangmu so we were a little apprehensive about starting the walk along a largely unmade road with the possibility of it getting dark before seeing the car again. However, we bit the bullet and set off. It was not a choice we regretted as the scenery was absolutely breathtaking. It was all downhill so not too tiring and we passed numerous waterfalls, some of them frozen,
tree lined valleys and gushing streams. We walked for five and a half hours and made the entire 30km. Absolutely knackered, we sat on a rock as it got dark around us and waited for the car. It arrived fifteen minutes later and soon after we were taken to our final Tibetan hotel. It was another bitter disappointment. Firstly, despite asking for a twin room we were put in a dormatory with five filthy looking beds lined up around a cold stark room. There were no showers which was a real blow as we were cold and caked in dust from the long walk and the toilet was a hideous squat type toilet with no light. The only hot water was delivered by thermos flask and we had to wash in a washing up bowl in the corner of the room. Neither of us could be bothered to go out for food so we just climbed into our beds and fell fast asleep. That was until Sambhu, obviously relieved at safely delivering us to our final destination, came back to the hotel rip-roaringly drunk and shouting at the top of his Tibetan voice. God knows what he was saying but the driver was obviously trying to calm him down. Eventually peace returned and we all slept through til the next morning.Sambhu looked really rough, and a little embarrassed the next day. I told him that he sounded like he'd enjoyed himself the previous night and I'm sure he squirmed a little. Ha ha ha...
We made it through the border to Nepal and I was glad that we were heading to a decent hotel after the previous two tough nights. After the usual struggle to get a taxi for a decent fixed price we were shown to a car that looked like it wouldn't make it to the end of the road, let alone more than 100km to Kathmandu. Rich and I kicked the dilapidated back wheel and looked at the driver suspiciously. We were told there was a spare wheel and it was OK. Reluctantly we got into the car. Two hours later the driver stopped at a puncture repair place and got the attendant to stick yet another patch over the knackered inner tube of the bald spare wheel. It was farcical but turned out to be very prophetic as an hour later the back wheel that we'd regarded with such suspicion got a puncture and had to be replaced with the even more knackered looking spare.
Luckily, we made it to Kathmandu and checked into a decent hotel. Only one major snag with this though, the electricity is switched off for several hours a day in Kathmandu as there is not enough to go around. I'm sitting here in the hotel room writing this in dim, flickering light, powered by the hotel's generator. With a bit of luck, the power may come back on at 8.30pm. Or it may not...
Who know's?
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