Hi, this is Sandy Van Soy for Trekking the Planet. Today we're in Tibet in the country
of China and we've been spending about a week here so far going through different parts
of the country from the Nepali border and we'll be ending our time here in this main
city of Lhasa. Right now we're at one of the passes that we've had to drive over to
get to the various places here. These passes range from 4,000 meters to 5,000 meters about
14,000 feet to 17,000 feet and you get wonderful views at each pass like you can see behind
me. So let's take a look at what we've done while we've been here in Tibet.
One of the highlights of our time here was a visit to the north side of Mount Everest.
The summit is on the border of Nepal and Tibetan China. Climbers who want to reach the top
of the world have the option of starting on either the Nepali or the Tibetan sides. Visiting
the base camp has been a dream of ours for some time. After leaving the Friendship Highway
which links the Nepal and China border with Lhasa, we drove 100 kilometers or 62 miles
down a rough dirt road. It was fascinating to see the small villages and other sites
along the way. As we got closer, our excitement started to build. Would we be able to see
Everest or would we be disappointed as many visitors are to find that the summit is actually
clouded over? As we came over that last pass, we were beside ourselves to see the summit
clearly visible in the distance. Another highlight was our visit to monasteries in the city of
Chinatse and Ganatse during the Sagodala Festival. This festival honors the birth, enlightenment
and death of Buddha. Thousands of pilgrims come from the surrounding area to walk the
traditional circuits around the monasteries. Why in Ganatse, we were fortunate to witness
a late afternoon procession of Atanka into the placho of monastery. Atanka is a Tibetan
silk painting with embroidery usually depicting a Buddhist deity or saint.
The faith fell through kattas on top of the tanga as it passed by.
Why in Lhasa, we spent two full days sightseeing. On the first day, we visited the Dalai Lama
Summer Palace. We found the grounds peaceful and the historic structures fascinating. Later
that day, we went to the Potola Palace, the winter palace of the Dalai Lama. This complex
has 13 stories and 1,000 rooms. We climbed to the top of the complex to begin our tour
and slowly made our way down through each of the different levels. There were so many
things to see, but unfortunately, we weren't allowed to take pictures inside.
The second day, we visited several monasteries around Lhasa. At the Draupung Monastery, we
were able to witness over 100 monks chanting.
At the Sarah Monastery, we arrived in time to see the monk debates, which are used as
a method to learn the teachings of Buddha and the philosophy of Buddhism.
It's a bit met every expectation that we had. We saw and experienced so much during our
10 days here.
That's it for now. Check back with us later. Thanks!
