recovering in Lhasa

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Well, we're here in Lhasa, recovering from the long train ride. Fortunately for us, our bunk mates were nice and quiet. They didn't say a word to either Xiang Yi or me or to anyone else. We started to wonder if they were mute or something! That wasn't the case, bring us to other sorts of speculations- the main one being that they understood every word we said--which would be utterly embarressing for us! I laughed long and hard at the thought of that!

The views from the train were spectacular. We started out green in Sichuan and then moved onto sandy-yellow mountains as we passed through Xi'an and into the southern route of the Silk Road. At some point we encircled a sparkling blue lake. I tried to capture this on video, but it just doesn't do it justice. From the red-rock desert of Golmud we ascended into Tibet.

The northern part of Tibet (what we've seen so far) is barred. While snow-capped mountains could be seen in the distant background, the area surrounding the tracks is mostly flat and without any type of visible growth. We encountered some herds of yaks every now and then. As we approached the newly constructed train station (completed in 2006), we saw some brick hut-like structures with flags in typical Tibetan colors.

For dinner we ate at a Dutch-owned foo-foo place and ordered yak streak with fries and vegitables. The meat was amazingly tender and flavorful. I think I am reaching my limit on Chinese food. I feel like I could eat pizza and cheeseburgers for a week--and some nachos would sure hit the spot!

So far we haven't encountered any altitude sickness. We've posted some ads for 2 additional travellers to join us on the way to Everest Base Camp-- so we can reduce the cost. Other than that, nothing else to report at the moment.....

jessica

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Photos

What do you mean I have to be a monk?
Newly arrived boys begining their monkhood. A bit curious, a bit rowdy.