Here are some of our photos from the trip. (Because of the length of this trip, I am breaking the photos up into several different pages. This second section is of our three days in Lhasa before we left for the trek.)
1) My first glimpse of Tibet. I thought we were flying through Chengdu on the way from Beijing to Lhasa but this view out the airplane window cleared up that confusion pretty quickly.
2) One of my favorite experiences from our trip was walking the Barkhor around the Jokhang Temple. This is the most sacred temple in Tibet and pilgrims from all over Tibet travel here to walk the kora on the streets around it. It was deeply moving to see all these incredibly devout people walking each day while chanting mantras and counting beads on their malas. What isn't visible in this photo are all the Chinese military guards posted regularly around the kora circuit.
3) This is a photo of the front of the Jokhang Temple. Huge incense burners on all four corners of the temple burn juniper offerings from pilgrims nearly 24 hours a day. Inside is the Jowo Sakyamuni statue, the most sacred shrine in Tibet. The interior is dark, primarily illuminated by the light of yak butter candles. There are many chapels inside, each with statues of famous Buddhist teachers or incarnations of Buddha. (No photographs are allowed inside the temple so you'll just have to take my word for it).
4) Pilgrims, after walking the kora, will often do prostrations in front of the main wall before entering the temple. There are people here all day long, alternately standing and prostrating, and the sound of their hand pads sliding on the stones is one of the many memorable sounds I remember from the Jokhang.
5) The Jokhang Temple is a large complex of buildings. There are stairs so that you can go up on the roof and look out over Lhasa. This is Jonna up on the roof standing in front of the main hall of the Jokhang Temple.
6) This panorama photo of the Barkhor square was taken from the roof of the Jokhang Temple.
7) This photo is Jonna and our good friend Holly in front of the Jokhang Temple. Holly had been in Tibet for a year prior to our visit working on her doctorate. She was our translator, our tour guide, our price negotiator, our fashion advisor and our Tibetan culture expert. She kept us entertained with stories, helped find just the right tankha painter and just the right tailor, brought us to great restaurants and was crucial in nearly every aspect of our trip. In a word, she was awesome.
8) If there is a single photo that signifies Tibet, it is of the Potala Palace. Here are Alan and Jonna in the inner courtyard of the Potala. Construction on this massive building began around 700 AD but it was built to its current size in the 1500s. It was the seat of power for the Dalai Lama, the ruler of old Tibet, and also it housed other things like a monastery and government offices. We took a guided tour, unfortunately limited to one hour, which allowed us to see some of the incredible sights inside this icon of Tibet.
9) Jonna and Holly in the newly made park in front of the Potala. That large Chinese flag placed directly in front of the Potala was doubtlessly not placed in that location by accident.
10) Jonna wanted to have some chubas made. Chubas are the traditional dress of Tibetan women. Holly brought us to this tailor and helped Jonna pick out just the right fabrics. The chubas were handmade for Jonna and we picked them up after we returned from our trek.
11) This photo of the moon was taken near our hotel, just a couple of blocks from the Jokhang Temple. We walked the narrow alleys of the Barkhor at night on a few occasions and always felt perfectly safe. Petty crime, like pick pockets, occurs in the Barkhor but there is very little violent crime in Lhasa and almost none involving western tourists.
Go back to the first '06 Tibet Photo Page.
Go forward to the third '06 Tibet Photo Page.
Return to Alan and Jonna's Travel Page
