Driving in Tibet you never know whether the roads will be blocked (rocks or snow) or closed (construction or policing restrictions). We left Lhasa early in the morning for an adventurous 400 kilometer/250 miles drive through the mountains heading towards Mount Everest and Nepal.
The view of Yamdrok-tso Lake, a turquoise glacier lake, and the surrounding mountain chain situated at 4,488 meters/14,700 feet above sea level was absolutely breathtaking. We didn’t stay long though because it was pretty cold but we did mount yaks decorated with traditional gear for the classic tourist photo.
As we left the lake, a police officer advised us that the road construction had proceeded well enough for us to continue on the highway rather than having to double back to find an alternative way. We couldn’t help but notice that the second police officer was very studious in keeping track of cars coming and going on this part of the road using his “Hello Kitty” notebook.
After about 30 minutes on this newly paved highway with almost no traffic in sight, we came to a roadblock where we were informed that the road was closed further ahead. Our driver and guide got out of the SUV, offered the construction guard a cigarette and proceeded with a discussion that lasted at least 20 minutes with us having no idea what was going on.
Finally, our guys returned to our car and we followed a second SUV to a riverbank where they drove around a little to get the trucks dusty. We then returned to the highway and continued on our way. We asked our guide what that had been all about and he answered that the construction guard had allowed us to proceed on the closed road but that we had to dirty the SUVs to make it look like we had taken the alternate dirt road. That was just the start of the fun.
At the next roadblock, we were told that we couldn’t continue as they were paving the road and that we would have to follow the dirt road along the river. Well, that’s why you have four-wheel drive isn’t it? We went down by the river – more like a large stream, really – and drove along it and crossed it at least four times to follow the indistinct road.
The path was so bumpy, especially crossing the stream, that I joked to my companion that this is why we are travelling at our age and not when we are so incontinent that our bladders couldn’t handle these bumps. Well, wouldn’t you know that when we re-met with the pavement, an elderly man in the other SUV had had an accident and his navy-blue sweatpants were obviously wet. We felt bad but the worse thing we could have done was to offer to help – this would have embarrassed him more – so we just ignored the situation.
We stopped at the Palkhor Monastery – yes, another one – built in 1418 and famous for its 108 chapels and 10,000 Images Stupa. We went into a dozen or so chapels as we climbed as many of the nine tiers as we were allowed and got great views of the city and the surrounding valley.
Continuing our drive, most of what we saw was countryside along a long, narrow valley. The land is used mostly to grow barley and wheat or for cattle grazing. We passed through a few towns with nothing but traditional homes as the Chinese government, obviously, didn’t think these important enough for its modernization efforts.
We stopped at a barley mill that probably hasn’t changed in several hundred years. It used three water wheels to drive the grinding stones but everything else was done by hand. At lunch in a Han Chinese restaurant where we were the only Westerners an old man offered an interesting service to diners. He collected their shoes, replaced them with slippers, polished the footwear and returned them before the owners had completed their meals.
The Tashilumpo Monastery — decimated during the 1970s — used to house 8,000 monks but now has only about 600. Much of this monastery was destroyed and monks were ordered to marry (and therefore no longer be monks). There were a few old monks still there but the majority were quite young causing a generation gap that may result in leadership issues in the future.
In the last decade, as the Chinese government has allowed greater freedom by minority groups to practice their religions and cultures, the Tashilumpo Monastery monks have begun rebuilding. As with the other important palaces and monasteries in Tibet, this one featured gold and silver tombs bejeweled with coral and turquoise as well as more Buddhas than you can count.