Tibet: What's The Fuss About?

Tibet. There are so many facets to this massive region. Free Tibet. Religious Tibet. Mysterious Tibet. Honestly, I just wanted to go because it’s normally closed off to tourists. It’s like a forbidden piece of candy you’re not allowed to have because the Man (China, in this case) only wants to keep it for himself. To put it mildly, I was curious. So once the borders opened (this is an on and off again occurrence) my husband and I basically tripped over ourselves to get permits and explore the verboten paradise.

Our time in Tibet was short, but the stories I have to tell are so plentiful, that I’ve decided divide this segment: Tibet, What’s the Fuss About? into three sections: The Journey, The Capital and The Legend.

The Journey

Going to Tibet held a second benefit for us: I don't know how many of you know this, but it houses this little icon called Mount Everest. I wasn’t going to climb it – obviously, those who know me, know well enough that I barely have enough stamina to climb the stairs to my ninth floor apartment without seeing dark spots. There’s also the fact that Everest is elevated at a staggering 8,848 meters (29,029 feet)  (makes sense that it's the world’s highest mountain). Climbing Mount Everest can take up to a couple of weeks to a few months. Acclimating to the elevation is a pain in the butt and most people don’t adapt very gracefully. We only had 10 days in Tibet with 3-4 different stops. This left us with 5 days to acclimate for the jump from Lhasa (3,600 meters) to Everest Base Camp (5,200 meters). Am I disappointed I didn’t make it to the top of the highest peak in the world? Sure, but I’m not a hiker, let alone a professional one. And in this case, I’m focusing on that I got to make it to Base Camp. The Base Camp.  I’ll probably only meet 5 other people in my lifetime who ever made it that far. And that is something pretty impressive to boast about.

I’ve never really had an opinion, let alone an idea, of what Tibet must be like until I moved to China. For all of you, scattered across the globe, Tibet is far, very far. As well as isolated and very expensive to get to. Since I’m a Shanghailander, I found myself a bit closer to this mysterious region and wondered what a holiday there might look like. The irony here is, most people only really get interested in traveling Tibet once they’re in China, but with this being a big fat communist state, your information on Tibet is very tightly censored. I’m actually intrigued to see how long this post (if it gets posted at all) will be online, as I’m writing this article from China. This could be an experiment on its own: The lifespan of Jumé’s Tibet article. I will take the time to write another piece about China’s very strict censorship and control over content, especially on how they monitored (or still might be) my phone calls home.

Back to Tibet. Starting at the beginning is always best. Going to Tibet is pricey. The downside to being allowed access to Tibet is, China still controls how, when, and where you go. You can only enter the region if you book with a tour company. Chinese tour agencies know this, and naturally, the prices skyrocketed. You need flights, train tickets and permits for everything imaginable as well as a guide.  We overnighted in a horrifyingly boring city (thinking back to our unkempt hotel still makes my skin crawl) at the border to Tibet.  We caught the train the next afternoon to Lhasa. This, we heard, is the healthiest way to reach the Tibetan capital, because you slowly ascend with the train. Also, you get to see the scenery change from the flat, dusty Chinese province of Qinghai, to the hilly and lush landscape of Tibet.

View from the train

Onboard the train from Xining to Lhasa

The more we ascended the bigger the pressure became in our sealed snacks

After 24 hours of extreme irritability (motion sickness makes me a very prickly travel companion), a trigger-happy roommate, inhospitable bathrooms, and many curious Chinese passing our cabin to see what foreigners on holiday look like, our train pulled into the capital.