The Call of Kailash...

Rock cairns (called "doubeng" in Tibetan) set against the landscape
At altitudes of 15000 feet any spot of color, however plain and humble, is a cheerful sight
Western Tibet - 2001

The individual who defined adventure as "gross discomfort seen in retrospect" sure knew what he/she was talking about.

Our 2001 trip to western Tibet, following the time honored pilgrimage route to Lake Manasarovar and Mount Kailash, was full of discomfort. We were a bit of a rag tag group - three physicians, two architects, one retired school teacher, one scientist, one Vedanta priest, two teenagers, an eleven year old and a six year old (who would turn seven on our trip). Most of us had never hiked above 10,000 feet and admittedly, not all of us had been disciplined about getting in our hiking training, as our everyday lives were just too busy. Though some were in better physical condition than others, none of us were thrill-seekers or experienced adventurers. We weren't sure we would actually complete the 3 day, 32 mile clockwise circumambulation of Mount Kailash (called a "kora" in Tibetan and "parikrama" in Sanskrit") successfully, but we were determined to give it our best effort. And just to be on the safe side, we had all stocked up on diamox and were traveling with a hyberbaric bag and oxygen...

It was a truly amazing "adventure." And it gets more and more amazing with each passing year...so much so that I am seriously thinking of doing it again.

Yes! But why?

Well, mainly because I KNOW that this time, it will be even better. Because this time, despite the fact that my physical body is older and weaker, I know that mentally, I am more capable. I meet life with more intention. I live more fully. And I have to admit - now I also have a really cool DSLR....

Oh, what a difference a decade makes!

The lush view from the Friendship Highway between Nepal and Tibet
Southern Tibet - 2001

Mount Kailash (21,778 feet, also called Gang Rinpoche in Tibetan) lies near the source of four of Asia's most important rivers: the Indus, the Sutlej, the Brahmaputra and the Karnali. The mountain is revered by Hindus, Buddhists, Jains and followers of Bon. For Hindus it is the symbolic home of Shiva, god of destruction and regeneration. Shiva is sometimes personified as an all powerful, all knowing yogi - an acetic - who can be roused from his deep meditations by humans who have endured sacrifice and performed prolonged meditation (years and years of meditation) in his name. It is believed that making the pilgrimage and completing a single kora will essentially neutralize the karma acquired in this lifetime, and completing 108 will lead to nirvana - the release from the cycle of birth and re-birth).

The pilgrims who come to Mount Kailash from regions closer to sea level usually complete the 32 mile kora in three days. However, just getting to the base of the holy mountain is an arduous journey and many are unable to recover sufficiently to even attempt the kora. For those native to high altitudes, it can be completed, astoundingly, in a single day - starting before sunrise and ending after sunset. A select few, like the nuns we met on our first day, will happily complete the kora by performing full body-length prostrations the entire way.

For modern day travelers whose beliefs are not as deeply rooted in the traditions of the area, the trip to Mount Kailash can be a pilgrimage of a different kind - a challenge to mind and body - a promise of walking in the footsteps of a select few on a path that has endured through the centuries.

After making it down from Dolma-la, the highest pass on the kora, I was completely drained, happy to have survived, and convinced it was not something I'd ever do again. But distance makes the heart grow fonder. And time....it dims the aches and pains and somehow amplifies the joy...just as it should.

View into the valley from Milarepa's Cave
Near Nyalam (12,300 ft), Tibet - 2001

Meandering stone paths and rustic village homes against a brillant blue sky
Near Nyalam, Tibet - 2001

The mighty Brahmaputra (also known as Yarlung Tsangpo in Tibetan)
We crossed the river on a raft, along our three Land Cruisers and the truck carrying our crew, cargo, tent  and supplies
Tibet - 2001

"Tashi Delek!" - Nomadic Tibetans greet us at every stop
They often drop everything and run over to meet us as soon as they spot our Land Cruisers  approaching
Western Tibet - 2001

Seralung Monastery on the banks of Lake Manasarovar (elevation 14,950 feet)
Western Tibet - 2001

Hiking the desolate landscape of Lake Manasarovar
Western Tibet - 2001

Tarboche, where you begin the kora by passing through the quaint rock temple surrounded by mani stones
Mount Kailash, Western Tibet - 2001

Prayer Flags and Mani Stones at Tarboche
Mount Kailash, Western Tibet - 2001

Buddhist Nuns, Kora Day 1
 A cheerful duo, these nuns planned to complete the kora by prostrating themselves over its entire 32 miles
Mount Kailash, Tibet - 2001

Red Tara
Beautifully barren with a delightful waterfall
Base of Mount Kailash, Tibet - 2001

Walking in silence and beauty - except for the sound of running water
Mount Kailash, Tibet - 2001

The South Face
Mount Kailash, Tibet - 2001

Drolma-La (18,465 ft)
Mount Kailash, Tibet - 2001
(Photo by RPMalla)

Day 2 is the most strenuous; the altitude takes its toll and all thoughts of taking photographs is replaced by the singular need to just put one foot in front of the next and breathe. We reached the highest point on the kora - Dolma-La at mid-day and stayed there for half an hour and had lunch. From there it was downhill, then across a glacier before  finally getting getting to camp around sunset.

Postcards from Lhasa - Part 3 - Guest Post from historian Sandy Lydon

Welcome to the last post in the three part series by guest writer, Sandy Lydon, professor emeritus of Asian and Asian American History. He is writing direct from Lhasa, Tibet where he, along with Gary Griggs (Professor of Earth Sciences and Director of UCSC's Institute of Marine Sciences), and Cherie Barkey (Professor of Modern Chinese History) are leading an intrepid group of travelers, most of them from Santa Cruz, California, on an amazing 2 1/2 week adventure through China, Tibet, Hong Kong and Macao. You can find details about the trip itinerary on Sandy's website. Included in this post are my own photographs taken on two previous trips to Tibet - in July of 2001 and October of 2009.

Our Trusty Tibetan Drivers
Tibetan Plateau - 2001

The Road to Yamdrok Lake

We spent several months researching a get-out-of-Lhasa day and after getting advice from all quarters (but most importantly, our travel connections, Asian Pacific Adventures one of the most experienced travel wholesalers on this side of the world), we decided to do a temple-less day (a day without temples in Tibet is, well, let's just say unusual) and make a day-trip to Yamdrok Lake. The road westward along the Yarlung Valley is a dream freeway, as the highway glissades along the south bank of the river, and when the mountains press up against the river suggesting that the highway cross to the other side, the Chinese highway engineers punched tunnels – big, long new tunnels – to avoid re-crossing the river. The river is splayed out and has evidence of some high water, and building a bridge across it is no easy matter. Better to punch the tunnels.

Yarlung River

Yarlung River Valley, Tibet - 2009

The Yarlung Tsangpo, the river we are following, is the headwaters of the Brahmaputra River, that monster holy historically important river that tumbles out the Himalayas down into India. It is an amazing to realize that almost all of the Big Ones – Asia's big rivers, begin up here – the Hwang Ho (Yellow), the Yangtze, the Irrawaddy, and here the Brahmaputra. Tibet's snows are Asia's reservoir, and, as Gary Griggs has pointed out in our pre-trip session and commentaries during the trip, global warming is beginning to diminish these snows, and posing dire consequences for billions of Asia's population. The snowpack melting up here means danger for folks living in low-lying places like Bangladesh.

Mighty Bramaputra River
Tibet - 2001

Tony's Chinese History Lesson

As we rolled along beside the river, Tony began a remarkable re-counting of China's history, and for the next 45 minutes or so he wove historical and personal accounts together, compressing over 2,000 years of history (we won't worry about before the Qin Dynasty, he said…).  It might sound strange to be doing general Chinese history with Tibet rushing past the bus windows, but it was perfectly appropriate because the bus windows were fogged up and no amount of the driver jiggling the controls could clear them.  We were in a long classroom and Professor Tony, with the assistance of a hand-out, was vow-determined to reach the present-day.  Both Cherie and I have taught that sequence and were enthralled – and so was the rest of the group.

Yamdrok Lake

They were more than right about the view of the lake. As the bus topped the ridge and pulled onto a flat graveled parking area (joining a few other 4-wheel drives and one other bus of Chinese tourists), the lake spread out before us to the south, and beyond it the snow-capped Himalayan massif, and Mt. Nojin Kangtsang which is a wicked-looking wedge of snow and ice towering over 23,000 feet. Yamdrok Lake is one of the three holiest Tibetan lakes, and it is believed that if it every dries up, that Tibet will cease to exist. The Dalai Lama has visited it as has every major Tibetan historical figure. It is long and narrow beginning way off on our left and disappearing on our right. The hills framing it are bare brown rock, and the Tibetans say that the lake is shaped like a scorpion, the coiling tale out of our vision to the right. The lake is a stunning blue, and the air atop the pass is still, clear and bracing. I've never spent much time walking around above 16,000 feet, (we crossed the 16,000 foot Tangulla pass on the train), and the feeling is one of giddiness and restraint. You KNOW that you can't do much, so you don't.

There are a group of locals selling stuff in the parking lot – you can get on a yak and have your picture taken (Jane Kling, Marty Williams and Janet Jones did that), or you can pose with some formidable looking black Tibetan mastiff dogs who wear red ruffled collars that make them look like characters in a Punch and Judy show, or you can just try and discourage the young men and women selling jewelry. "Hallooooo" – "you want buy cheap?" Most of us began our visit determined not to buy something, but it might have been the altitude, or the absolutely splendor of the view, or whatever, because we bought enough jewelry to open a store.

I had been fearful of this trip as we were flying blind, trusting the recommendations of our travel professionals, and hoping that the group would be able to weather the 2.5 hour one-way trip up the switchbacks to get there. The group declared the visit to be not only worthwhile, but also one of the high points – literally and figuratively – of our Tibet stay. And as we inched slowly back down the mountain to the river, we could see why the Yarlung Valley below is called the cradle of Tibetan civilization – there just aren't that many places hospitable enough for human habitation. This is tough country.

Alan Richards noted that if you stayed on the road that dropped down and skirted the lake, you could eventually reach Nepal. We'll save that one for another trip.

Yamdrok Lake - looking south to Mt. Nojin Kangtsang and Nepal
Near Gyantse, Tibet - 2011
Photo by Gary Griggs

Prayer Flags adorning the Gamta Pass
Yamdrok Lake, Tibet - 2011
Photo by Gary Griggs

Tibet Conclusions

As we packed up and prepared for our descent to Kunming, a mere 6,000 feet, and heavier air, I was trying to find an answer, some wisdom, some Solomon-like solution to the Tibet-China conundrum. But I haven't one. Group members continued to come back from Lhasa excursions with stories about seeing the Chinese soldiers encountering the Tibetans, and none of them were nice. Even those in the group who befriended Tibetans out on Barkhor square, usually broke off the friendship after ten or fifteen minutes for fear of endangering the Tibetan. By all accounts the Barkhor is filled not only with uniformed soldiers (who seem to enjoy shouldering you out of their way), but also plain-clothed men and women with ear pieces, watching and listening for any sign of disruption or protest. I used to think that the soldiers on Tiananmen Square were pretty scary, but they are nothing compared to this occupying army in Lhasa. And, I noticed that not only were there fire extinguishers at every soldier station, most of which are really pop-up shade structures like you'd see at the flea market, but one member of each squad was carrying an extinguisher on his back in a backpack, to extinguish any spot fire that might spring up.

The other night, I tried to Google the title of the move Seven Years in Tibet, but the screen locked up and for a day I couldn't Google at all. There are keywords – Seven and Tibet – that must be set up to catch such inquiries.

The group continues to try and process what we've seen and heard, but the answers are coming hard if at all. It's easy to simplify things from the comfort of your living room, to paste on a two-word bumper sticker and feel smug that you know it all. This won't distill to a bumper sticker. The answer lies somewhere between complete Tibetan independence, and this heavy-handed occupation. The Chinese have made accommodations in other places, the most obvious being Hong Kong (where we'll conclude, intentionally, this trip), and someday they will no doubt do so with Tibet. But I have the feeling that, as long as many people in the world us that two-word bumper sticker, the accommodation won't happen. The Chinese are a proud people, and, as Cherie Barkey said it yesterday as we were having lunch in one of the multitude of airports we went through, "It's face." The Chinese must find their own way, and it cannot appear that bumper stickers or Richard Gere or anyone else outside China had anything to do with it. It is, after all the Middle Kingdom, the Center of the World. During too much of their history, the Chinese were occupied and humiliated. Time and again, particularly during that period in the 19th century when the Europeans and Americans periodically raped and looted the place (you can visit some of the spoils in the British Museum, the De Young, etc.), China was made to kow tow to outsiders. No more. And whether it is adjusting their own currency, or human rights, or Tibet, she will not be told what to do.

China and Tibet will eventually work it out. The Chinese take the long view of things. There's no rush. And, in my opinion, if you want to help the process along, say a prayer for the wonderful Tibetan people, and go out and take off the bumper sticker.

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Editor's note: text has been minimally edited to circumvent any possibility of censure by the Chinese government.

All of the images posted here are also available for purchase as 8x10 and 5x7 fine art prints and A2 size greeting cards (all printed on archival water color paper) at http://DigitalYak.etsy.com/. Be sure to send me a message if there is something you'd like that you don't see listed, or if you'd like a custom size or item, as I truly enjoy creating one of a kind items that hold special meaning. Thanks!!

Postcards from Lhasa - Part 2 - Guest Post from historian Sandy Lydon

Welcome to the second in a three part series by guest writer, Sandy Lydon, professor emeritus of Asian and Asian American History. He is writing direct from Lhasa, Tibet where he, along with Gary Griggs (Professor of Earth Sciences and Director of UCSC's Institute of Marine Sciences), and Cherie Barkey (Professor of Modern Chinese History) are leading an intrepid group of travelers, most of them from Santa Cruz, California, on an amazing 2 1/2 week adventure through China, Tibet, Hong Kong and Macao. You can find details about the trip itinerary on Sandy's website.  Included in this post are my own photographs taken on two previous trips to Tibet - in July of 2001 and October of 2009.

Potala Palace
Lhasa, Tibet - 2009

P O T A L A   P A L A C E

We delayed our visit to the Potala Palace until the second day here at 11,000+ feet, hoping that most of the group would be acclimated enough to handle the 200+ (or is it 300+?) steps required to make it to the top floor. We gave anyone not feeling comfortable with the climb an option to stay below and hang out with Tony, our national guide. Suzanne McLean was the only one choosing to stay behind (and while doing so, did the required clockwise circumambulation of the entire place and sketching a brilliant image of the palace.)

The Potala is the most prevalent icon of Tibet, that huge, white multi-storied complex that every book, travel book and Tibetan website has as its lead image. But, as we stood at the bottom, girding our lungs for the coming ascent, we realized that those photos are misleading, because all those images make it appear as if the complex is draped down a hillside that looms up behind it. Not so. The photographs compress the depth of it. The Potala is actually draped down all sides of a smaller mountain and is squared up on the points of the compass with the main part of the building facing south.

The morning air was crystal clear, and standing near the base of the Potala, it was framed against that deep blue Tibetan sky, a hodgepodge of windows and terraces, the details framed in black while most of the building is freshly-white washed a brilliant almost painful white. Pilgrims and volunteers paint the building every year and pay no attention to the surrounding stone and rooftops below. It looks as if the countryside had been bombed by a flock of huge, possibly ill birds, the white "overspray" as Gary Griggs called it running off everything. 

Potala Palace Pilgrim Painters
Lhasa, Tibet - 2009

The Potala's Specialist Touch-Up Painter
Lhasa, Tibet - 2009

The group stopped at a wide spot below and took all manner of photographs with the Potala behind them, establishment photos that prove they were in Tibet. And then, after going through security yet again, we began, slowly and steadily, our own pilgrimage, joining the crowd of Tibetans and foreigners slogging up the stone stairs. The route up is a series of switchbacks and we stopped at each turn, panting, wondering how many steps we had done and how many remained. Janet Jones seemed to be the only one of us counting, and she told me an outrageous number – 300? – when we were still short of the top.

The number of foreign visitors is restricted to 3,000 per day, and they are sent up in groups that are a half-hour apart. Each group is supposed to complete the climb and visits of the various rooms at the top and be out in an hour, and our guide said that we were 30 minutes over by the time it was all said and done. He had to pay a small fine for our lollygagging, but the group did extremely well, with several who had been nursing colds keeping up with the rest.

Within the Potala Palace
Lhasa, Tibet - 2009

There is no limit placed on Tibetans who wish to climb the Potala, either in numbers or time, and they were everywhere, carrying children and offerings up the slope, the advantage of their good lungs apparent. When inside the rooms at the top, they filed by us, sometimes nudging us gently out of the way, repeating their mantras and dropping money and yak butter at various important stops. And some had cell phones pressed to their ears, carrying on conversations while making this important of pilgrimages.

Stunning Color within the Potala Palace
Lhasa, Tibet - 2009

As with other temples that we have visited, the air inside the dimly-lit rooms is heavy with yak butter and incense, and the history of the various Lamas, and sect-founders is even more dense. The paintings are incredibly detailed, and I only wish I knew more about each image, each Buddha statue. These pilgrims walking beside me probably know each and every one and for them the place has the deeper dimension that comes with a lifetime of immersion in their faith, but for me they are incredibly beautiful, but mysterious. The wooden handrails that help keep us from falling to an early death are worn smooth by thousands – millions? – of hands.

Potala Palace Rooftop
Lhasa, Tibet - 2001

T H E   B L U E   B A G   S E C T

Photography is prohibited inside the rooms and temples here at the Potala, but they have several bookstands on the landings, selling books not available in stores, published by the Potala Palace with the funds going to help buy all that white-wash. Our group lines up at the last bookstand and does commerce, each book placed in a blue plastic bag. There were so many of us having them, that we christened ourselves as the Blue Bag Sect, a play on the various Buddhist sects (Red Hat, Yellow Hat, etc.), and declared our guide to be the founder. Those having the bags posed for photographs at the bottom, and we boarded our bus and trundled off to lunch.

Many times, an historical icon that one has yearned to visit can disappoint. But not the Potala. It is everything one can imagine and more. The views of Lhasa from the palace are stunning, and even though our lungs, at times, were complaining, I think that if members of the group could pick just one place to visit in Tibet, this would be it. Ask them.

Editor's note:  when I visited Lhasa in 2001, visitors to the Potala Palace were allowed to stay as long as they wished and also take photographs.  I have included some here.

Norbulinka Palace (Summer Palace)
Lhasa, Tibet - 2009

N O R B U L I N K A   or . . . The Lonely Planet Gets it Dead Wrong

I'm a great fan of Lonely Planet guidebooks and have lugged them around wherever we go – in China proper I tore the recent edition apart – as did many of our group members – rather than lug the whole thing. But I brought the entire Tibet Lonely Planet with me. The Lonely Planet writers can often be acerbic and dismissive, and they were about the Dalai Lama's Summer Palace, Norbulingka, saying that it ranks behind the other sights in Lhasa. They use the word "lifeless" in their description. Wrong. Dead Wrong. If you knew nothing else about the place, and glazed over when the litany of earlier Dalai Lamas who stayed there (#'s 7 – 14) were there I could understand it. But it is the 14th Dalai Lama's having stayed there, and then escaped from there that elevates the place to something special. Our guide pointed out on the large map at the entrance the route that the Dalai Lama took in 1959, dressed as a soldier to escape detection, as he fled the Norbulingka and set off on his exile that continues to this day.

Norbulinka Palace Gilded Roof
Lhasa, Tibet - 2009

T H E   F O U R T E E N T H   D A L A I   L A M A

The Dalai Lama's presence is everywhere here, in the commentary, in the furniture, the carpet. But his likeness is not. We have seen no images of the 14th Dalai Lama anywhere in China or Tibet. (And were warned not to bring any books or magazines with such images into China.) Since his receiving the Nobel Prize, and the March 2008 uprising, the Chinese government has seen to it that his image has disappeared. So much of Tibetan history and Buddhism is attached to images and likenesses. Statues and paintings of every major and minor figure are jammed into the temples. But there are none of the 14th Dalai Lama. It reminds me of the early Buddhist iconography where the artists and sculptors, unable to depict the Buddha who had transcended this word, left blank the space where he would be. Only the Buddha's footprint, or the animals worshipping him. You can almost see the indentation of the Dalai Lama where he had been sitting on the sofa. But the space where he would be is empty.

There is an audience room where the 14th Dalai Lama would receive visitors, dignitaries, pilgrims, and at the head of it is a low bench where he had held court and dispensed his incredible wisdom. On the surrounding walls is a history of Tibet that he had ordered be painted. It is a decidedly Tibet-oriented history and it is exquisite. It ends on the lower corner of the third wall (the fourth is windows), cut off by events in 1959 and following. When our guide got to the end of it and was standing near the bench, I asked him if conditions were ever such that the Dalai Lama would/could return to Lhasa, would he possibly be sitting there again? "Of course!" he said "This is his home."

I would suggest, respectfully, that Lonely Planet take another look. And this time open their hearts.

Outside the Norulingka Summer Palace
Lhasa, Tibet - 2009

A R T   &   L I F E  and Seven Years in Tibet

Almost from the beginning of his presentations both in Norbulingka and other important sites involving the Dalai Lama, our guide has been making references to the 1997 movie starring Brad Pitt: Seven Years in Tibet. He has never seen the film, but has learned bits and pieces about it from his tour groups over the years. He pointed to places at Norbulingka that were depicted (but not actually filmed) in the movie, and for him as with many other Tibetans he tries to piece together the bits and pieces he has heard. When I just tried to Google Seven Years in Tibet, it was not able to connect with any of the movie sites about it, and then my Google wouldn't work. The long hand of the Chinese government at work.

*******

Editor's note: text has been minimally edited to circumvent any possibility of censure by the Chinese government.

All of the images posted here are also available for purchase as 8x10 and 5x7 fine art prints and A2 size greeting cards (all printed on archival water color paper) at http://DigitalYak.etsy.com/. Be sure to send me a message if there is something you'd like that you don't see listed, or if you'd like a custom size or item, as I truly enjoy creating one of a kind items that hold special meaning. Thanks!!

Postcards from Lhasa - Part 1 - Guest Post from historian Sandy Lydon

We have a very special treat this week!  Sandy Lydon, emeritus professor (Asian and Asian American Historian), who has been leading trips into China and other parts of Asia for thirty years or more, is our Guest Writer on the ground, in Lhasa, Tibet. Sandy, along with Dr. Gary Griggs (geologist and oceanographer), and Dr. Cherie Barkey (Modern Chinese Historian) are leading an intrepid group of travelers, most of them from Santa Cruz, California, on an amazing 2 1/2 week adventure through China, Tibet, Hong Kong and Macao. You can find details about the trip itinerary on his website.

The Potola Palace from the Roof of the Jokang Temple
Lhasa, Tibet - 2009

The singular hallmark of Sandy's trips is the great preparation that travelers have in the 6 - 8 months prior to departure. They are immersed in learning of all the forces that have shaped the region - religion, language, history, conquest, trade, geography and politics - enabling them to have a nuanced and non-judgmental understanding of the people and places they are visiting.

This is the first in a three part series, which I know you will enjoy. Please feel free to respond with your comments. Included in this post are my own photographs taken on two previous trips to Tibet - in July of 2001 and then October of 2009.

L H A S A

Who hasn't wondered about, dreamt about, fantasized about and wanted to go to Lhasa? And the being here in no way resolves any of the dreams or fantasies. We say over and over again to ourselves and each other, "I'm in Lhasa." And smile. It is magical. Whether I'm able to make any clear, logical sense of it is another matter. Lhasa assaults the senses and being at 11,000 feet just adds to it. The air is clear and bracing, sharp on one's lungs that seem to be shallow. We don't breathe – we pant. We've been blessed with remarkable weather since our arrival – we left the clouds and chill of Xining for bright, deep, blue skies, much like one experiences at the top of ski lift. Allan McLean leaned over to me as we were walking through the park at the Norbulingka and said he had never seen a deeper blue sky, noting that the sky up the Santa Cruz County North Coast where he grew up (Rancho del Oso) is always hazy, even when cloudless. It is easy to see why both the Tibetans and the Mongols use a deep blue in their imagery, and symbols.

The Jokhang Temple on Barkhor Square
Lhasa, Tibet - 2001

Mid-day Prayers
Barkhor Square in front of the Jokhang Temple
Lhasa, Tibet - 2009

J O K H A N G   T E M P L E
After lunch (a sumptuous Americanized spread with meat, potatoes, pizza-like stuff, and a dynamite tomato soup), we journeyed over to the Jokhang, a temple complex originally built in the 7th century and then restored following fires and political destruction, most recently during the Cultural Revolution when the Red Guard desecrated the interior. Since then it has been restored and is so heavily used by pilgrims and so filled with yak butter candles and incense smoke that one would think it is over 1,000 years old. If Tiananmen Square is the political and cultural bulls-eye of the Chinese world, Lhasa and more specifically the Jokhang and the Potala Palace comprise the center of the Tibetan World. Throughout the afternoon we were surrounded by thousands of Tibetans, including little children and complete three-generation families, moving in the propitious clockwise direction, prayer wheels turning, humming their prayers and mantras. They have come from everywhere in the Tibetan World, wearing the clothing of their home areas, strolling and always with a look of surprise when they see us.

Prayer before Kora at the Jokhang Temple
Barkhor Square
Lhasa, Tibet - 2009

Kora (clockwise circumambulation of a holy site) on the Barkhor
Lhasa, Tibet - 2009

A movie was being filmed on the roof of the Jokhang (I cannot imagine the permits and bureaucracy THAT must required) and we watched as they filmed a scene of a young bewildered Chinese tourist trying to find himself. By that time, after a big lunch, the various Buddha statues and their attendants, the bodhisattvas, the Lama images began to blend together, and I was relieved when we finally entered the sea of humanity that was walking around the Jokhang.

On the Roof of the Jokang Temple
Lhasa, Tibet, 2009

T H E   B A R K H O R

It didn't take a genius to figure out that a river of circumambulating pilgrims provided a great opportunity to sell stuff, so as the hundreds of faithful walk around the Jokhang, they are flanked on either side by a continuous line of stalls, selling most everything, but heavy on the jewelry and Tibetan clothing and accessories. Most of our group members resisted the temptation, but there were some who shopped, such as Gary Griggs. I will not divulge what he bought for fear of ruining the surprise of his returning home with gifts. The square in front of the west entrance to Jokhang is filled with pilgrims prostrating themselves, and it is also this square that is the place where many protests and demonstrations began. It serves the same purpose for dissenters as does Tiananmen Square.

Shopping on the Barkhor after Kora
Lhasa, Tibet - 2009

Side Street Commerce on the Barkhor: Yak Jerky and Yak Cheese
Lhasa, Tibet - 2009

Side Street Commerce on the Barkhor: Lots of Veggies
Lhasa, Tibet - 2009

B U M P E R  S T I C K E R  P O L I T I C S

The two-word bumper sticker "Free Tibet" what one often sees on cars in Santa Cruz County makes it seem so simple. But, as Vicki Birdsall noted the other day, you can't winnow down the situation between China and Tibet into two words. It is a hugely complex issue, and as the locals will point out – it was the Chinese government's suppression of the March 1959 uprising that really marked the beginning of the end of any Tibetan autonomy. And, on the anniversary of that rising in March 2008, the Chinese government responded with a very heavy hand. Before and since, protestors (mostly monks) have chosen the Jokhang's Barkhor Square as their stage. And everywhere we look, there are uniformed Chinese soldiers. Not the type that you might see guarding an airport, though; these are tough even scary looking men. We have been told repeatedly not to take pictures of the soldiers. So, I'll have to try and describe them.

A N  O C C U P Y I N G  F O R C E

Some are stationed in guard posts, either located in the middle of the human river flowing around the Jokhang, or off on the side. At first blush these posts look like hot dog stands at the county fair, but the men inside them are not hot dog salesmen. They wear tan or sometimes camouflage uniforms, and shiny dark brown helmets. The posts have machine guns, and the soldiers holding them are wearing knee pads and shin guards much like a baseball catcher would wear. But the gear is designed to allow them to kneel and fire those fierce-looking weapons should the need arise. They look much like the storm troopers in Star Wars, and they walk with difficulty, a stiff gait, their legs reaching out far ahead of them. Each post has a large number of fire extinguishers set in the corners, and at first I thought it might be one of their other functions – to protect the wooden structures on either side of the human river. Then it dawned on me, and it was a chilling revelation. Those extinguishers were preparation should a protesting monk set himself on fire. They would want to douse the flames before any movie or still cameras could record the event and post it on the Internet for all to see.

Most military men standing on duty will crack a smile or grin in return of a grin from us. But there is no humor here in Lhasa, no laughter behind their eyes. They are tough, no-nonsense dudes. Most Tibetans do not make eye-contact with them, and the young ones that do have no laughter behind their eyes either. There is grim drama being played out here, one that does not seem to have an immediate resolution.

The place I am most familiar with where the cold eyes of an occupying force met a similar glance from the residents was in Ireland. Vince Versage, a member of our group, noted the same similarity. And, as do the present-day Irish, the Tibetans know the names of their martyrs and exactly where they fell. The British no longer occupy most of Ireland, but the Chinese occupy Tibet and have vowed to do so in perpetuity. Chinese patriots insist that Tibet is and always has been part of China, while Tibetans insist that claim to be tenuous. Our group members have read about the two views and we have discussed the situation, but seeing it first hand, and watching the squads of heavily-armed Chinese soldiers march through the crowds of pilgrims, I realize now that the problems are much more complex than I had even imagined.

From the beginning of this adventure back in January, I had asked group members to try and cultivate a position of neutrality before going to Tibet. Then, after the trip I plan to ask them what position they now hold on what is often called the Tibet Problem. You might ask them when they get home.

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Editor's note: text has been minimally edited to circumvent any possibility of censure by the Chinese government.

All of the images posted here are also available for purchase as 8x10 and 5x7 fine art prints and A2 size greeting cards (all printed on archival water color paper) at http://DigitalYak.etsy.com/. Be sure to send me a message if there is something you'd like that you don't see listed, or if you'd like a custom size or item, as I truly enjoy creating one of a kind items that hold special meaning. Thanks!!

The Secret to Good Travel: it's not about what you SEE, it's all about how you FEEL!

School Girls
Bhaktapur, Nepal - 2009

Preparing for a trip is fun; it's exhilarating to anticipate the thrill of being in a totally different physical environment, observing a totally different way of life. It allows us to step outside ourselves and our daily routines to gain a wider perspective on our lives and the amazing possibilities that stretch out before us. And it's that same wonderful feeling that we all work so hard to retain after our journeys are over and we are on our way home.

Trips are often scheduled around all the places we want to see - the Himalayas, the Piazza San Marco, the Potala Palace, the Uffizi Gallery, Machu Picchu. The list is endless.  However, when we head home and think back on some of the special moments we experienced, it's often the human stories unfolding before us that make the lasting impressions.

Without the crutch of language we learn to communicate with our faces and hands.  We express emotions more clearly with our bodies, without relying on words. I marvel at how universally welcoming a smile can be, how a shared laugh immediately bridges the gap between continents, and how we are all so effortlessly capable of spontaneous acts of kindness and generosity.

So this post is a tribute to all the wonderful people who have embraced me on my many trips. Rather than turn away from my camera, they've smiled into it and invited me, a total stranger, to share in that particular moment of their lives. And I seem to remember exactly where I was, and what I was thinking and feeling when I took every one of these photographs.

Proud Grandfather
Bungamati, Nepal - 2009

Pilgrims Crossing the Yarlung River to the Samye Monastery
Yarlung River Valley, Tibet - 2009

Family Outing to the Taj Mahal
Agra, India - 2007

Boy and His Bicycle
Village outside Lhasa, Tibet - 2009

Smiling Sadhu at Pashupatinath
Kathmandu, Nepal - 2007

Woman with Spindle
Zedang, Tibet - 2009

Smiling Monk in Doorway at the Temple of the Divine Madman
Wangdu, Bhutan - 2009

None of these photographs were staged, though I did ask if I could snap a photo just before I put the camera up to my eye.  Happily, they all agreed. 

Some of these photographs are included in a desk calendar titled "Himalayan Encounter", which you can find at my etsy shop: http://www.etsy.com/listing/82102104/2012-desk-calendar-himalayan-encounters. All of the images posted here are also available for purchase as 8x10 and 5x7 fine art prints and A2 size greeting cards (all printed on archival water color paper) at http://DigitalYak.etsy.com/. Be sure to send me a message if there is something you'd like that you don't see listed, or if you'd like a custom size or item, as I truly enjoy creating one of a kind items that hold special meaning. Thanks!!

Doorways....They All Have Something to Tell You...

Brown Door and Espaliered Tree
Obidos, Portugal
2011

If you are like me, you can never pass by a door without wondering what might lie beyond it, what sort of people have passed through it, or even what sort of greeting one may expect to find if you knocked on it.  Doors tell you a lot about the people who built them, the people who live behind them and the people who need to be kept from entering them.  And the symbolic role that doors play in our lives is clearly illustrated by the many ways in which doors, doorways, and elements of doors are used metaphorically:

"Education is the key to unlock the golden door of freedom"

- George Washington Carver

"When one door of happiness closes another opens; but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one which has been open for us."

- Helen Keller

"The teacher who is indeed wise does not bid you to enter the house of his wisdom but rather leads you to the threshold of your mind"

- Kahlil Gibran

So here's a sample journey...around the world in eight doorways:

Starting with the place of my birth, Kathmandu, Nepal:

Richly Carved Door in the Newa Tradition
Home of the Living Goddess - Kathmandu, Nepal
2007

In the neighboring city kingdom of Bhaktapur, Nepal:

Gold Gate (Sundhoka) into the National Gallery
Bhaktapur, Nepal
2007

To the north of Nepal, in Tibet:

Zedang Doorway with Yak Skull
Zedang, Tibet
2009

To the south, in India

Doorway Layered with Time
Orcha, India
2007

Pointed Arch Door - Safdarjung's Tomb
New Delhi, India
2007

Then on to Portugal, the land of Vasco da Gama, who opened the sea route to India...

Opening in Moorish Castle Battlements
Sintra, Portugal
2011

Portel Castle Entrance Arch
Portel, Portugal
2011

 Finally to the New World, the USA, my adopted home: 

Violet Door in Lavender Wall - Capitola Venetian Hotel
Capitola, California
2006

Nothing welcomes you home after a journey around the world like your own front door...

All of the images posted here are available for purchase as 8x10 and 5x7 fine art prints and A2 size greeting cards (all printed on archival water color paper) at http://DigitalYak.etsy.com/.  Be sure to send me a message if there is something you'd like that you don't see listed, or if you'd like a custom size or item, as I truly enjoy creating one of a kind items that hold special meaning. Thanks!!