House of Shambhala Lhasa

... Chinese built the largest<br>hydroelectric plant in Tibet. According to the Lonely Planet<br>guidebook the lake is supported only by run-off from the mountains.<br>The Chinese promised to replenish the lake with water from other<br>Tibetan rivers but that has not been done. Today walking along the<br>shoreline we could tell where the lake is starting to recede &#8211; a<br>bit sad to think that one day it could disappear entirely.<br><br><br><br>Throughout<br> this ...

... is amazing and Tibet has the friendliest people I have ever met. They seem to smile and laugh more than any other people in the world. The sky in Tibet is so blue, and seems so low, that if I stood on a chair, I felt like I could have touched. The inspection tour that I took to Tibet was with China Odyssey Tours last year, simply put, was a life changing experience. I know it seems a bit melodramatic, but this place ...

... crossing itself was another matter.<br><br>The Chinese border guards searched every bag from top to bottom. Were the looking for drugs? No, Bombs? No. They wanted to make sure we weren't smuggling in pictures or writings from the Dalai Lama. Just a little bit insecure...<br><br>The last couple days we spent touring Lhasa itself. Picture a modern (if ...

... die sicher zu den freundlichsten zählen die ich so auf meinen Reisen kennenlernen durfte.<br><br>So, bevors zu "esoterisch" wird ( .... gö, Gitta ;-) ) , mach ich mich mal über mein Abendessen her. Zum Abschluss gibts tibetische Nudeln mit Gemüse - hervorragend - und vielleicht genehmig ich mir doch noch ein kleines "Lhasa-Bier" ;-)<br><br>Alsdern, gut Nacht und <br><br>Namaste !!!

... Hauptstrassen, sieht man eher Autohaeuser und Soldaten. Auch vor unserem Hotel war dann, wie in der ganzen Stadt, ein Soldatenposten und es war schon ein bisschen erschreckend, dass die ganze Stadt voller Posten mit Maschinengewehr oder Schilden ist und an vielen Orten sogar Soldaten auf den Daechern stehen um die Leute zu beobachten. Angeblich soll es nochmal genausoviele Zivile geben, die sogar die Guides belauschen, wenn sie Sachen erzaehlen (hoffentlich kommt der Bericht ...

... Tsongkapa). Way too complicated for me, but apparently this so-called tantric Buddhism has a strong appeal on westerners and on our travels we met many westerners who had converted to Buddhism and came across quite a few kaukasian nuns. We started by visiting Drepung monastery, a large complex, once thriving with several thousand monks, now only harbouring a few hundred after it, like pretty much all Tibetan Monasteries, was largely destroyed during the cultural ...

... the highest, longest tunnel in the world all this on the highest train in the world! Quite a few first here for our records. The country side is dotted with small communities with the farms all around it. Seen heards of yaks, cows, sheep and goats along the way. Did see some antelope at one spot. Lots of cement fencing and stones laid out along the track in the mountain areas to stop the snow from blowing in the track. The stones were laid out in squares about 10-15 ...

... studying the route to India, wondering if she could make it tonight. 'I can't wait to get out of here.' Tibetan tourism is undergoing a sleazy, get-rich-quick phase, the old values unhinged by the soaring wealth of Chinese capitalism. On day 30 of the trip, 1,300 miles in and well behind schedule, we were approaching the holy mountain of Kailas when we saw another victim, a Japanese woman standing in the road, tears streaming down her face. Circling Kailas is supposed to bring great ...

... their homeland was essentially independent for much of that time. The March violence and tourist ban have taken a major toll on Lhasa's economy, which has become increasingly reliant on tourism since the start of rail service nearly two years ago. Hotels in Lhasa said they'd had almost no customers recently. "We've had zero business since the Lhasa rioting, not even a penny," said Deji, the manager of booking at Hotel Kyichu in Lhasa. She refused to give her full name, a ...