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Background: For centuries China stood as a leading civilization, outpacing the rest of the world in the arts and sciences, but in the 19th and early 20th centuries, the country was beset by civil unrest, major famines, military defeats, and foreign occupation. After World War II, the Communists under MAO Zedong established an autocratic socialist system that, while ensuring China's sovereignty, imposed strict controls over everyday life and cost the lives of tens of millions of people. After 1978, his successor DENG Xiaoping and other leaders focused on market-oriented economic development and by 2000 output had quadrupled. For much of the population, living standards have improved dramatically and the room for personal choice has expanded, yet political controls remain tight.

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By shaun dellavedova
September 22nd 2009

Will the real Penchen Lama stand up in Shigatse? Asia » China » Tibet » Shigatse

Grain Mill

The next town on our journey was Shigatse, about an hour and a half down the road from Gyantse. It is in the same valley, and so the entire time we were surrounded by fields of barley, much like Gyantse. Since they are so close together and at a similar altitude, like Gyantse, most of the crops had been harvested and were drying in the fields. I guess that following the harvest it is adobe brick making season. All along the way people were filling molds with mud from irrigation channels and straw, for drying and then use in some construction [View Full Entry]

By shaun dellavedova
September 20th 2009

Buying a rug in Lhasa Asia » China » Tibet » Lhasa

Potala Palace

The first big test we faced upon arrival in Lhasa is the three hundred meter walk with your bags from the train to the bus that was taking us to our hotel. Now I know that this doesnt sound that hard, but when you have jsut stepped out of an oxygen enriched environment to the thin air at 3600 meters, it is not as easy as it sounds. I have been lucky enough that the altitude did not affect me much in Lhasa, but some of the others were not so lucky. And even those of us that were OK were [View Full Entry]

By shaun dellavedova
September 20th 2009

Picking a fight with a monk in Gyantse Asia » China » Tibet » Gyantse

The road out to Gyantse

Sometimes the destination is the highlight of a trip and sometimes it is the journey itself, and when it comes to Gyantse, the journey is certainly the highlight. Before leaving Lhasa, Erin, Maureen and I joined the hotel staff (from the chefs in uniform to the manager) in morning callesthenics. A little light stretching to the sounds of a tape of a woman singing out a cadence in Chinese is a great way to wake up and get ready for a seven hour bus ride. Leaving town we followed the river along the main Friendship Highway, which connects the far reaches [View Full Entry]

By 3xuok
September 19th 2009

Lhasa Asia » China » Tibet

sunrise in Lhasa

20/9/09 The road to Lhasa was super. the scene was the same all the way, brownish mountain with no tree all around the Yaluzangbo river, but surprisingly the effect was pretty as there was the important ingredient...blue sky and cotton cloud. After the Gongga airport some memories came back, the rock craving by the road side, but then approaching Lhasa river, I was lost, the Lhasa now was so big. Wide road, traffic light, department store, big bank...13 years ago there was nothing, only a single street linked the Potala to Bako street, no electricity after 9pm,and then a curfew afterward! [View Full Entry]

By 3xuok
September 14th 2009

Shannan Asia » China » Tibet

scene

14/9/09 From Bayi I turned left travelled on the S306 2 days ago, as I would like to see the Yaluzangbu river. The road was surprising good and new, all the way through Milin(@2200m) and ended at Langxian(@2200m) . Both was rather new town with totally Han favour. Hair saloon, ktv and bar, only the exterior was in Tibetan colour. Met a chinese young couple on the bus and they invited me to visited Jiacha yesterday. The man was a subcontractors for road work in Jiacha, and told me about a holy lake there, "you might able to see you past [View Full Entry]

By shaun dellavedova
September 13th 2009

Anna Karenina and a lack of Uno on the Train to Lhasa Asia » China » Tibet

Train to Lhasa

Leaving Beijing was quite a sad experience for me, beyond the most obvious of reasons, as I had to get on a train for 45 hours with a new group of people. Not that the new group didn't seem interesting, but I had just shared so many experiences with Verena, Robin, Sarah, Raul and the rest that it somehow seemed that I was cheating on a girlfriend to go on a long train ride with other people. There would be no more hiding vodka from the train attendant, no more heated games of Uno, Ticket to Ride or Billionaire and those [View Full Entry]

By jimistar
August 30th 2009

Tibet Asia » China » Tibet » Friendship Highway

Photo 6

Travels through Tibet [View Full Entry]

By Paul Casey
August 28th 2009

Tibet - Hello from the roof of the world! Asia » China » Tibet

Our infamous Tibetan travel permit

Tibet is located in the southwest of China; it is the highest region on earth, with an average elevation of over 16,000 ft. The Tibet Autonomous Region is known locally as the "roof of the world". It is without doubt one of the most remarkable places we have visited in Asia. It offers fabulous monasteries, breathtaking high altitude views of the some of the worlds highest mountains, as well as an insight into the remarkable culture of the indigenous Tibetan people. A line of spiritual leaders, the Dalai Lamas, ruled a large portion of the Tibetan region at various times from [View Full Entry]