trekking companies. We didn't get to do a lot of sightseeing- but we
were in a guesthouse right at the heart of the city around Jokang and
went for one afternoon outing to Serah monastery. Every afternoon at 3
o'clock, all of the monks gather in a shaded gravel courtyard and
debate their lessons. From all over the monastery you can hear the
sounds of their voices and the slapping of their hands as they make
their points. Despite the lively debates, the monastery was quite a
peaceful place with high stone buildings, secluded courtyards, hidden
shrines, and golden sunlight filtering through the yellow willow
leaves along the main street.
I never did get a good feel for the city or the people, but Bill said
it wasn't nearly as bad as he expected from all of the stories we'd
heard. Although there were many pilgrims worshiping around the shrines
and central temple, it wasn't the mythical place that one imagines
Lhasa to be and wasn't the cultural window I'd hoped to gaze through.
The language in that area was much different than on the grasslands
and the people seemed more like the Tibetans in Nepal than around
Yushu. Same with the food- much more Nepal Tibetan style. The natural
scenery, however, was amazing- we flew over some of the most rugged
terrain in the world- deserts, glaciers, razor edged ridges covered in
ice and snow. Around the city were rocky peaks much more like my
previous visions of Tibet than the rolling grasslands where I've been
working.
Overall it was just a tantalizing peek at a place I've been longing to
explore for years. The city didn't deliver much, but there were
promises of real life in the valleys beyond. Luckily we've made a lot
of good working relationships with tour guides and trekking companies,
so next time I go back it'll be for an extended trip through some of
the nomad areas.
