From Beijing to Lhasa by train, 10 days of trekking through the Tibetan plateau, the Kailash kora, a stop at Everest Base Camp, and ending in Kathmandu
Day 1
Arrived in Beijing and met up with my group. Because of the restrictions the Chinese government imposes, you need a permit to visit Tibet. The easiest way to go about it is to go with a tour company that arranges the permit. I went with a company that specializes in adventure travel and partners with local tour companies to arrange lodging, transportation, tour guides & permits.
Day 2
I did not find Beijing very interesting. The architecture hails from the Communist era and there is a stark lack of beauty. We did the requisite checkbox visits to Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City and the Great Wall, but used it mostly as a stop to pick up food and supplies for our long train ride ahead to Tibet. Some of us were bold enough to try roasted maggots and insects being sold on some street corners.
Day 3
We got on a bus and made our way to Xi'an, the city where the famous Terra Cotta Warriors are. It is a charming city with great food.
Day 4
We boarded the train for the real reason we were there, our overnight train journey on the Trans-Tibetan railway to Lhasa, the unofficial capital of Tibet. There being 8 of us, we had 2 sleeper cabins that slept 4 each. By this point in our journey the 8 of us had built a great camaraderie so we swapped travel stories, made fun of each other's accents (3 Australians, 3 Brits, 1 Swiss and 1 Indian-American) and feasted on the spiced peanuts and other snacks that we had thankfully picked up in Beijing since the food on the train was atrocious. As we entered the Tibetan highlands, the scenery changed dramatically from one that was lush to a starker, sparsely vegetated one. You could feel the change in altitude, Lhasa being at almost 12,000 feet (3,657.6 meters).
Days 5 - 7
We finally arrived in Lhasa and checked into our hotel, very simple rooms that we shared 2 each. We wasted no time and got straight to walking through the charming alleyways of Lhasa. We noted a significant presence of the Chinese military, as we did through most of our journey through Tibet, and were stopped often on the highways to have our permits checked. We visited the Potala palace, which used to be the winter palace of the Dalai Lama, now more of a museum. We spent lots of time relaxing at the many tea houses in Lhasa, slowly adjusting to the elevated altitude.
A big highlight was a visit to the Sera Monastery. In the afternoons, the monks there gather in the courtyard in small groups and debate with each other in a very animated way. One monk stands, beads in hand, and asks the questions to a group of seated monks. If the seated monks don't know the answer, the questioning monk delivers the answer by clapping his hands and making a lunging motion with his arms and body
Days 8-11
We spent the next several days driving in jeeps to various towns in Tibet as we made our way to Darchen to begin the Kailash kora. We stopped at Gyantse, Xigaze, and Sakya. Our living arrangements were very basic shared rooms at guesthouses. The landscape was stark, with barely any greenery visible.
I was struck by the tenacity of the Tibetan people who live in this stark setting where little grows. They radiate a subtle peace, joy and warmth that makes you feel safe and welcome. We got used to eating momos (Tibetan dumplings) for breakfast everyday--Lhasa was the last stop where we had any Western food (including coffee). Those of us who were vegetarian had a bit of a tough time finding anything to eat other than rice or noodles and yak butter tea, adding to the excitement and adventure of being in such a different landscape. Yak meat is a staple as is "tea" made from yak butter, but because the Tibetan plateau is so high, vegetables don't really grow there. You might occasionally find some cabbage in your noodle soup. Rice itself doesn't grow there but is brought in from lower lying regions of China.
In Gyantse, we witnessed a goat who had just given birth to a kid. It was unbelievable how quickly the kid was up and running (why does it take humans so long?). The kid was very playful and started chasing me around. I tried getting close to it but the mom wasn't having it. Her protective instincts were in full gear and I decided to respect her.
Each of the towns we visited had either a temple or a monastery that we visited. You would often see the pilgrims or visitors turn prayer wheels that are either mounted on walls or small ones that they hold in their hands which tend to be inscribed with the mantra "Om mani padme hum". The symbolism is one of the Wheel of Life--liberation from karma/suffering and the attainment of Nirvana.
Prayer flags are also a very common site that you will find at all sacred sites in Tibet. Tibetans, who are largely Buddhist, believe that the prayers that are written on the flags are carried by the wind to their fulfillment.
Day 12
On Day 12 we arrived at Darchen, the town at the base of Mount Kailash, a large granite mountain surrounded by a ring of other mountains. Mount Kailash and the nearby Lake Mansarovar are very sacred to Buddhists and Hindus alike. Kailash is thought of as the masculine principle and Lake Mansarovar the feminine principle. Some believe the origins of mankind can be traced to this mountain range. We were there during the Saga Dawa festival where thousands of pilgrims come to perform a kora, circumambulating the mountain on foot -- a 2 night, 3 day trek if you wish to circle the whole mountain. Many believe that performing this ritual erases your sins of a lifetime and maybe even multiple lifetimes.
Day 13
We began our trek around the mountain with the many hundreds of pilgrims from all over the world . By this point we had spent over a week in Tibet so we were quite accustomed to the elevation. The first half of the day was a pretty easy walk but the elevations crept up on us and the trek got more difficult as the day wore on. We took plenty of time to stop along the way and experience the magical moments of being on this very sacred land. In the late afternoon we arrived at the first camp, a very basic wooden shack which all 8 of us shared. Some people were hit quite hard by the altitude by this point and were feeling quite sick but we rested up and stayed warm in the meal tent with yak butter tea and noodle soup. A good sleeping bag was key to staying warm at night.
Day 14
Day 2 of the kora trek was the most difficult one but the rugged beauty of the stark mountains kept us going. The toughest part was the 8.6 mile (14 km) hike to the Drolma pass which is at an elevation of 18,741 ft (5630 m). Compare that to the elevation of Mount Everest at its peak--29,029 feet (8,848 m). The final stretch getting to the top of the pass is quite steep and it was an extremely difficult climb, and there are times when I had to stop after every few steps to catch my breath. But it was extremely rewarding to get to the top and take in the dramatic views. We sat for a bit at the top of the pass and hydrated before we began our downward trek on the other side of the mountain.
The rest of the trek was downhill to the valley where the cabin for our second night's stay of the kora was. We walked along the river, mountains all around us, desperate to get to our shack after this tough second day. Again, a hot cup of yak butter tea and soup did the trick.
Day 15
This was the last day of the kora as we strolled down the lower lying slopes of the mountain and through the valley along the river to get back to Darchen. The teal colored river flowing through the valley surrounded by rocky mountains made for dramatic views. Unlike many parts of Tibet, there was a lot more greenery here owing to the river.
We got back to Darchen in the afternoon, got into our jeeps and headed to Rombuk for the night, in preparation for our trek to Everest base camp. Rombuk has the highest monastery in the world, at an elevation of 16,340 ft (4,980 m). We nourished ourselves at a tea house as we took in the dramatic views of Mount Qomolangma (Everest) in the distance. I felt so lucky to be able to experience something that many people in the world may never get to.
Day 16
In the morning, we made our 4.4 mile (7 km) trek from Rongbuk to Everest base camp, not a very difficult one, especially because we had adjusted to the elevation by this point. Everest base camp on the Tibet side (the other one being in Nepal) is at an elevation of 17,056 ft (5200 m). The Drolma pass that we climbed through two days prior was higher than Everest base camp. While there were quite a few visitors to base camp, I was surprised to see only two or three tents of climbers who were camping there to take on Everest. The mountain in front of us was awesome and majestic. I couldn't help but wonder what it would be like to trek up it and what it would be like at the peak. Perhaps a journey for another time.
Days 17-19
Our journey in Tibet had come to an end. After visiting Everest base camp we got into our jeeps and headed toward the border with Nepal. We went down the slopes of the Himalayas toward the valley where Kathmandu is. The ride was really beautiful, and we rode past towns that were perched on steep cliffs above the river. I couldn't believe that people actually lived in such a beautiful place. After crossing the land border between the two countries, we spent the night in a guest house in one of these towns. It was nice to have a mattressed bed after sleeping on bunks in wooden shacks for much of Tibet.
After breakfast we headed for Kathmandu where our trip ended. Our Tibetan tour guides had been absolutely amazing. They were kind, generous and fun. It felt great to have trekked through some of the highest regions in the world and met such wonderful people. Definitely a journey of a lifetime!
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