Days 1 and 2 in Tibet
This blog was originally created several days ago, but rumor has it that it might not have actually made it onto the blog. That's entirely possible because 1) the entire interface here in Lhasa is in Chinese characters, and 2) I can't check the actual blog because it's blocked here by the Chinese firewall. So all I can do is post and hope for the best. I'm posting blind folks!Let's try it again ... The following message is from our first two days in Lhasa. The next posting will talk about our excursion to Everest and back!
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From May 11, 2006:
Yes indeed, there are artifacts of the modern world here in Tibet ... including the internet.
This particular blog is labeled "Days 1 and 2" because yesterday yours truly was feeling the effects of being at 12,800 feet above sea level. The irony is that although I was worried about how the students would be affected, it turned out that I probably got hit worse than any of them. But you parents should definitely take that as good news. ;-) Several of us were feeling a bit light-headed, and there were a few headaches, but overall we're in pretty good shape today ... even me!
We arrived in Lhasa Tibet yesterday (Thursday) after saying goodbye to our Beijing hosts, who were absolutely wonderful. Our last day in Beijing featured a trip back to Tiananmen Square (incredible) and a partially-successful visit to Mao's mausoleum. I say 'partially' successfuly because as it turns out, one is not allowed to wear sandals into the mausoleum, and guess how many of the women were wearing sandals. You got it. Plus the Chinese army troops were there to enforce the ban, and, uh, I wasn't going to argue with them. So some of us got in, and some of us did not. Oh well ... the students who did go in reported that it was a bit of a disappointment. (Woo hoo!) That night we enjoyed a farewell dinner at the 'revolving top' restaurant, which was a big hit. It provided a beautiful panoramic view of Beijing on a beautiful sunny evening.
We jumped on the bus for the Beijing airport at 6:15 am on Thursday morning (that was not such a big hit!), and landed in Lhasa on Thursday afternoon. Tibet is amazing. The air is bright and clear, and Lhasa itself is surrounded by the Himalayas. You will have to see the photos!
We all love our hotel. It is surprisingly nice -- I'm in the business center right now -- and certainly nicer than our 'hotel' in Beijing. We ate dinner last night in the hotel -- to save our energy -- and then yours truly went to bed. Rumor has it that the students explored the area around the hotel a bit, viewing the slice of local life ... including a cart of yak heads. (Oh yes, yak is a common menu item here ... we had yak last night for dinner ... not bad actually, tastes like beef)
This morning we went to the incredible Potala Palace, home of the Dalai Lamas over the past few centuries. We also did a little shopping -- several of us bought tapestries ... they are really nice! Later today we are going to the Langkor Temple, and then to the Bakhar Market to do some shopping. Tonight we'll have dinner, and then pack light bags for the trek to Everest, starting tomorrow.
Tomorrow we will board 7 Landcruisers for the 2-3 day journey to Base Camp. Again, I'm not sure of the internet availability at our next stop, Shigatze, but we'll see what happens.
In the meantime, here is another photo. This one is of the group in front of the Potala Palace. A photo can't do it justice, but I think you'll get the idea. Enjoy!
posted by Dr. William Spangler @ 2:30 PM
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