We were greeted at the train station in Lhasa (elevation 3200m) by our guide Bhutie – whose full name means 'I wish it had been a son' – and taken to our hotel. Our hotel was right in the middle of the action, and there was a fantastic view out the window of the main temple in Lhasa, and the colourful circuit around the temple where pilgrims prostrate (this has nothing to do with the prostate, but can lead to a callous on their foreheads where they touch the ground).
We were very excited, and then we looked at the bedside table, and this greeted us:
But, there was no time to reflect on the appropriate use of Australia's foreign aid budget; it was time to see the sights!
As you might expect, all of the main attractions in Lhasa are Buddhist – the Jokhang Temple, Potala Palace (below), Summer Palace and Sera Monastery. They were all full of bright colours, incense and amazing Buddhist imagery.
Despite Bhutie's best efforts we continue to be confused by all the different Buddhas. However, we were particularly taken by a nunnery that we visited – we sat and watched the nuns for a while as they preyed – they were in the middle of a 10 hour session. We also watched the monks debate at the Sera monastery. Why is the sky blue? Why is the river green? Who's going to win the World Cup? And so forth.
In the evenings we dined with some Belgian friends we had met on the train, and who thankfully pointed out that the hotel was charging us twice as much as them for an identical room. We enjoyed some good Tibetan food – particularly the old classic Yak Burger – and some times a cold Lhasa beer.
After a few days it was time to pack the Land Cruiser and head out on the open roads of Tibet.
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