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October 2003 - August 2004

Tibet, part III

Brett Voegele
2005-11-19 14:02:35

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time for staying close to Lhasa was the dead of winter, as I was one of the few foreigners around - even most of the NGO staff leaves during the winter. As such, any encounter I had with the locals was genuine - they knew I wasn't simply passing through. The people selling trinkets to tourists or begging are gone. There are many more Tibetans in town wearing their traditional outfits, as they make their pilgrimages from the smaller villages during the winter when they don't have to tend to their herds or crops. Obviously you have to contend with colder temperatures during the winter - from my unheated room (though I did buy a small, ineffective heater) where I slept in a wool hat in my down sleeping bag, covered in two down comforters, and a wool blanket, I'd proceed down the hall to the squat toilet (where the window was normally open), and then upstairs to the luke-warm shower (where there was a hole in the wall for a fan). From there it was off to an unheated restaurant, an unheated internet cafe, and an unheated school. One became accustomed to doing everything while wearing a down jacket - even eating. The absolute temperature really doesn't get that cold, but the fact that you're in it all day long wears on you. Surprisingly, there really isn't that much snow in Lhasa - I think there were two days where snow stuck to the ground in the 10 1/2 months I was there. One festival that is held in the winter - typically February, is Losar, or Tibetan New Year. That's a great time to see many pilgrims in Lhasa, and to experience Tibetan culture - especially if you're lucky enough to be invited into people's homes.

So, is everything perfect on the roof? Not by any stretch of the imagination. As my journal stated on day one, "Downside to being in Lhasa? My room smells like yak cheese." Other gripes: People use the narrow alleys in Lhasa as public toilets; fake monks accost you for money; numerous beggars count on Tibetans, and foreigners, who are trying to improve their karma by giving in this life; beggar children who bear-hug your leg such that you literally drag them down the sidewalk; and the Tibetan shop owners who have learned from their neighbors - buying something for 1/10 the inflated initial asking price is not out of the ordinary.

I could have told you about sentries posted outside many government compounds and hotels, solar cookers on rooftops for heating water, and people around town selling the hide/fur from various animals. There was the woman who had a bag with a very familiar-looking mouse, but the wording said, 'Michael Mouse'...perhaps his Asian cousin?!? And there's the new, glitzy street leading from the Jokhang which has funky palm trees and fake mushrooms and rocks with built-in speakers that blare music at night. But hey - if I told you eveything you wouldn't have to go check it out for yourself...and you really should.

You'll have to enter Tibet with an open mind, as you're going to see the oppression, the inequality, and begging. However, dig deeper and you'll still find that mystical, magical, timeless kingdom that everyone envisions when they hear the word 'Tibet'. Where many still live as they have for millennia, and still do it with a smile on their face. Of the countries I've been fortunate enough to have visited, it's my favorite. I fell in love with the simple life, rich culture, and amazing people. It's a magical place. As I had to be around Lhasa to teach, there were many places I wasn't able to visit. I will return.