Sera
Monastery lies 4 km north of Lhasa, and was one of only eight (of some
3000) monasteries in all of Tibet to be spared the vicissitudes of the
Cultural Revolution. It is here that the monks' famous daily debates
take place, at 3.30pm.
They are highly stylized with much
clapping and stamping, and always attract many spectators. Photos are
no problem, which is very rare in Tibet, so make the best of it. Sky
burials are still occasionally practiced at Sera, although they are
much less common than they used to be because of the unholy and
unhealthy interest shown by tourists.
It is considered the height of indecency
to intrude upon a sky burial. The deceased is chopped into pieces and
left on the mountains for the vultures. Keep well away, curiosity
notwithstanding.
How to get there: Sera is usually
included in the "tour" packages from Lhasa. There are also
minibuses out here from the city.
Opening hours: 9am-4.30pm
Cost: RMB30
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Covering
an area of 3 square km, the Chongye Burial Mounds are located on Mulou
Mountain in Chongye County in the south east of Lhasa. This is one of
the few Tibetan sights that illustrates the existence of of a pre-
Buddhist culture here. Despite the fact that most of the kings buried
here are now associated with the rise of Buddhism, evidence suggests
that an earlier Bon faith existed. Archaeological discoveries
suggest that burial was widespread between the 7th and 9th centuries
here, when the Tibetan Gampo kings were buried at the sight. It is
said that King Songtsen Gampo and the Tang princess Wen Chen, are
buried here as well as several other Kings and Queens. On the facade
of a large stone tablet here are ancient Tibetan inscriptions singing
the praise of the king's achievements. The inscriptions are still
visible after thousands of years. Songsten Gampo's tomb is the biggest
here with a small temple standing on top of it.
According to historical documents, there
were originally 13 tombs at the site although today only three are
visible. The tombs appear to be arranged randomly and are all
rectangular shaped with plain tops. All the tombs are a different
size, and some are as high as 10 meters. Erosion means that many of
the tombs only resemble mounds today.
There are spectacular views from the
furthest tomb, the Tomb of King Trisong Detsen. This is about a
one hour climb from the other sights, but it is worth it for the great
views over the valley below.
How to get there: The easiest way
to visit the Chongye valley is as a day trip from Tsetang.
Although the burial tombs are not that exciting in themselves, the
surrounding countryside is impressive. To get to Tsetang, take a bus
from Lhasa's main bus station. This should take about 4 hours and
there are a few places to stay in Tsetamg while you explore the area.
Alternately, take a bus here from Samye. In Lhasa you can also hire a
jeep and drive out to the valley. The Samye Monastery,
Yarlung valley and Tsetang can all
be seen in a couple of days. This should cost about RMB3000 in total.
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Tsurphu Monastery and Nam Tso (Nam
Lake) lie 70km and 230km respectively northwest of Lhasa. Tsurphu,
sits at an altitude of very nearly 4500m, and can be reached from
Lhasa within 2 or 3 hours, or otherwise combined with Nam Tso as a 2
or 3 day trip.
Tsurphu is the official home of the
Karmapa Lama, the third ranking priest in Buddhist hierarchy, and he
still lived there until he left over the Himalayas to India in
February of this year, 2000. (It was events from the history and
legend of Tsurphu that inspired Eddie Murphy's mad-cap eighties comedy
romp, "The Golden Child").
Nam Tso rests at an altitude of about
4700m, and is frozen over from November to May. It is vast in size
(30km by 70km), and is the second largest salt water lake in China
(after Qinghai Hu). The scenery is the ultimate in picture book style:
snow capped mountains tower behind the massive lake, and yaks graze in
the surrounding fields. Facilities are very limited here, and it gets
very cold at night. Bring your own food.
How to get there: Mini bus leaves
for the Monastery 7:00-8:00 in the morning from the lane 200M south of
the western garden of Johkang Temple, the bus might be cancelled
if there wasn't enough passengers, the trip costs RMB15 and the same
bus departs the Monastery by 15:00.
Opening Hours:
9:00-14:00
Admission: RMB20 for visitors
Visiting Hours: 2 Hours
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The history of Yumbulagang, the oldest
chateau in Tibet, can be traced back to the time of legends. Although
it is claimed that the 2000-year-old building is the original, the
structure you see today is basically the result of the latest
renovations conducted in 1982. However, the building still remains an impressive
and imposing sight overlooking the valley from the top of a steep
hill.
This originally small chateau has
been repeatedly expanded to its current size: a three-storey palace
style temple. Besides the statue of the ancient kings and queens of
Tibet on the first floor, the chapel is the residence of a few monks
and a room is kept here especially for visiting Dalai
Lamas.
Althouh the building itself is merely 11M
tall, it dominates the skyline of the nearby area by standing high up
on the steepest mountain. It doesn't really take a long time to
explore the palace itself, but to ascend the hill on which the palace
stands is a tougher job, efforts will be rewarded after you
ascend to the top of the palace and enjoy the excellent panoramic view
of the prosperous Yarlung valley.
How to get there:
Yumblagang is situated by the main road from Tsetang to the Yarlung
river valley, if you have hired transportation, have the driver stop
by the road. If you intend to get there from Tzetang and back, the
best method is to hire a pedicab in Tsetang, a return trip costs
around RMB40, luckily, the Trandruk Monastery is in between the city
and Yumblagang, also by the road, you can arrange to stop at Trandruk
on the way back to the city.
Admission: RMB30 for
visitors.
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Sightseeing
Index
