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TIBET - Around the world

Bec
2004-09-20 12:26:40

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Zhang Mu
I quickly got used to thinking of Tibet as a province of China. It was difficult to do otherwise after passing the Chinese customs here in Zhang Mu. The Chinese military occupation was obvious everywhere and so was the dilution of the Tibetan population by the massive immigration of Chinese nationals.

Bhota Khishi Gorge
Crawling up this absolutely grandiose gorge was soul lifting, I was getting closer to that very special place where supernatural secrets were kept!

Tibetan Village
We stopped at this Tibetan village to get to a cave reputed to be the one where the legendary poet Milarepa is supposed to have spent six years in isolation to atone for having used black magic to kill his family's enemies in the 11th century. There was a widespread belief in Tibet that paranormal black magic powers can be acquired through mortification of the body, meditation and the practice of tantric rituals. Milarepa was admired for having developed the ability to fly through the air to wherever he wished with his physical body and not only with his spirit (which apparently was a more common achievement).

Mount Everest
Lalung La (Lalung Pass) a high pass at 5 050 meters (16 600 feet) with the Everest (8 848 meters - 29 029 feet) in the background. The air is thin and cold at this altitude.

Transport of grain.
The tibetan plateau reminded me of the altiplano of Peru and Bolivia as they both support grazing in the summer months. Replace the yak by lamas and alpacas and this could be somewhere in Bolivia.

Tingri
Individual travel is allowed in China but not in Tibet where a special group visa is required. That is why I joined a group. We drove from Zhang Mu in this white GMC van and stopped here in Tingri for lunch.

We met very ...