Lhasa adventures

My Lhasa adventures were a fulfilling of a dream. For many travelers Lhasa is a dream destination, a kind of holy grail if you want, less difficult to achieve though. And I have been lucky, I visited Lhasa several times.

There are many place that speak to peoples imagination, think about Machu Pichu, Notre Dame, Big Ben, Timbuktu, Easter Island, Kathmandu but no name had such an attraction as Lhasa, capital of the former Forbidden Kingdom of Tibet although since the Chinese invaded Tibet, the official name Xizang or "Tibet Autonomous Region".

My first visit to Lhasa was in 1996, in an organized short tour. Later I would come back, hitchhiking from from Yunnan, leaving to Nepal and come back through Kashgar and West China by truck. It was winter when I first visited, rainy season season when I traveled from Yunnan and November when I came through West China. I will tell you all about these journeys.

The Magic of Lhasa

Everyone who has been to Lhasa will admit, there is magic in the heart of Tibet and in the heart of Tibetan Buddhism. You can feel it, smell it, breath it, even eat it! There are two main magic places everyone has to visit in Lhasa but around town there are many more. Within a tour you will only see what the Chinese government allows you, so it's better to come independent.

Military tourists at the roof of the Potala

Getting there and away

See our Getting there and away page for Lhasa and Tibet

Where to stay

Lhasa and Shigatse have international standard hotels, you can book them from our recommended hotels in Lhasa.

Probably my favorite photo I made in Lhasa

Potala

The Potala is the former palace of the Dalai Lama's. After the present Dalai Lama fled to Nepal, the Potala became a museum. It is of course the most famous of all places in Lhasa and it is impossible to ignore.

Lhasa adventures without a visit to the Potala and Barkhor Square (Jokhang temple) is an impossibility

Inside the Potala you can still feel an atmosphere of the days when the Dalai Lama's ruled Tibet. Several private rooms of different Dalai Lamas, temples, prayer halls, private belongings and other curiosa are to be seen. It is officially not allowed to make photos inside but during my two visits I saw plenty of people, locals and foreigners making photos.

Jokhang Temple

The Jokhang Temple and Barkhor Square is the heart of every Tibetan because it is the heart of Tibetan Buddhism, regardless what the Chinese government has tried in the years to break that.

Lhasa adventures is not complete with a visit to Barkhor Square

The temple stands in the heart of old Lhasa. It's the main place for worship in the city. At the entrance hall you will see Tibetans prostrating themselves. Inside it is a dim lighted but extraordinary beautiful temple. You can walk up to the top of the temple and have a view over the city. This includes a view towards the Potala.

Prostration in front of the main door at Jokhang Temple

Around the temple and at Barkhor Square there is an endless row of market stalls selling anything from prayer flags to colored shawls (used to offer in the temple or before leaving on a journey), yak meat (Tibetans although Buddhists, do eat meat due to the lack of other resources), buttertea, prayer wheels, clothes, jackets and many other things.

In some ways, Barkhor Square, more then any other place I have visited is like a time machine, a place where time has stand still. It's an amazing place.

During the winter months many of the nomadic Tibetan people come to Lhasa for their annual pilgrimage. This is also the time to buy new tools, visit relatives in the city, make new friends and for the younger, maybe find a marriage partner. Thus, everyone is at Barkhor Square.

Norbulinka

Although the Potala was the Dalai Lama's palace, the Norbulinka was his residences. Norbulinka literally: "The Jeweled Park". It was the traditional summer residence of the Dalai Lamas from the 1780s up until the present Dalai Lama fled to Nepal. Each Dalai Lama had his own residence in the park. Some of the residences are open, some are not.

Today the park houses the pitiful Lhasa zoo.

The Lhasa Zoo in the Norbulingka Park in Lhasa

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And a lot more photos of Tibet

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