Lhasa – Kathmandu Overland Tour
This overland excursion connects old capital towns, Lhasa in Tibet and Kathmandu in Nepal. The tour starts offevolved in Lhasa and ends in Kathmandu. En route, you move over several high mountain passes with staggering mountain perspectives, together with those of the majestic Mount Everest, Cho Oyu, Makalu, and Shishapangma.
This tour gives you an insight into the wealthy subculture and history of Lhasa. Most popularly called ‘Sunlight City,’ Lhasa seems as the coronary heart and soul of Tibet. It is the most in-demand tourist destination in Tibet. As you pressure throughout the Tibetan plateau, you can go to all Tibetan monasteries, temples, monuments, and vital tourist sites. You could discover the Potala Palace, Sera Monastery, Norbulingka, Jokhang Temple, Drepung Monastery, and the busy Barkhor Square in Lhasa. This excursion offers you a possibility to find out the actual Tibet and introduces you to the rich Tibetan subculture, artwork, and records. From the bustling old towns to the historic villages and settlements, you get to look at the Tibetan lifestyle at near-quarters.
Potala Palace is located west of antique Lhasa, atop the “Moburi (Red) Mountain.” In 1994, the Potala Palace declared the United Nations World Cultural Heritage website. It was originally built inside the 640s for the duration of the reign of King Songstan Gampo. The 13-tale palace stands 117 meters high and has over 1,000 rooms. Covering a place of one hundred thirty,000 sq. Meters, the entire building is made of stone and timber. The palace is well known for its treasures, including sculptures, murals, ancient Tibetan Buddhist scriptures, Buddha figures, antiques, and jewelry. These are of the great cultural and inventive fee. The Red Palace carries diverse chapels and mausoleums for previous Dalai Lamas. The White Palace contains the residing quarters of successive Dalai Lamas and their tutors. The offices of the old Tibetan government and their meeting halls also are placed right here. The unique Potala changed into destroyed within the 9th century, at some stage in the breakdown of the Tubo Kingship generation. It turned into rebuilt all through the reign of the 5th Dalai Lama and finished in the late 17th century.
Jokhang Temple is located within the center of old Lhasa town. It changed into authentic construction in 647 AD. The website online became chosen, in my opinion, with the aid of the wife of King Songstan Gampo, the Tang Princess Wen Cheng. It became built via artisans from Tibet, China, and Nepal and consequently functioned one-of-a-kind architectural patterns. The Jokhang is the non secular center of Tibet and the holiest vacation spot for all Tibetan Buddhist pilgrims. The relevant hall is the Jokhang s oldest and maximum valuable item- a sitting statue of Sakyamuni Buddha when he becomes 12 years old. It is a gilded statue adorned with many jewels in a problematic place. Pilgrims have prostrated themselves in front of this statue for centuries.
Drepung Monastery lies within the west of Lhasa below Mt. Gambo Use. Built-in 1416, its miles are taken into consideration as considered one of the largest monasteries in the six principle monasteries of Gelu Sect. Drepung Monastery was once the living palace of Dalai Lamas before the reconstruction of Potala Palace. This staggering monastery resembles a huge walled city. From its roofs, you’ll experience the scenic view of the Lhasa metropolis. As the maximum effect of the “Gelukpa” monasteries, Drepung had seven schools and, at its peak, housed over 10,000 clergymen. It owns many magnificent murals, tricky statues, and other wealthy treasures. A massive golden statue of Buddha “Jiangba Tongzhenma” sits near the precious conch shell. During the construction of the muse of Drepung, Tsong Khapa discovered a magical white conch shell with counter-clockwise swirls, believed to be buried by using the Sakyamuni Buddha. Tsong Khapa bestowed this religious treasure to Drepung, and it may nevertheless be seen these days inside the “Great Sutra Chanting Hall.”
Barkhor Street is determined inside the coronary heart of Lhasa. It means “a pilgrim’s inner circuit” and is the oldest road in Lhasa. Barkhor Street is a critical pilgrim direction. It bustles with the hobby and is constantly jam-packed with tradespeople. The market is “a need to go to the website” for memento-searching vacationers. Many human beings call the Barkhor “the window of Tibet” as it offers an ordinary reflection of Tibetan lifestyles. The vintage circumambulation circuit is always crowded with pilgrims. Here you will find humans from throughout Tibet.
Sera Monastery – Sera approach “Hailstone” in Tibetan. Legend has it that hailstones rained at the same time as laying the muse of this famous monastery. Sera become the final of the 3 important Yellow Sect monasteries to be built in Lhasa. It was completed in 1419, under the supervision of Shaka Yeshe. Shaka Yeshe traveled to Beijing and as some distance as Mongolia to evangelize Buddhism. He was given the title “The Tutor of the Empire” by using the Ming Emperor, Xuan De. Many precious gifts had been despatched to Sera through the Chinese Emperors, many of which are saved properly preserved and can be seen at Sera to this day. Sera contains a fantastic sutra chanting hall, a college, and 32 sections. It as soon as housing nearly 10,000 clergy members.
The Tibetans dwelling within the borders of cutting-edge Tibet are without difficulty identified by way of their one-of-a-kind dialects, social customs, and get dressed. The Topas live within the highland areas (Lato and Ngari), the Tsangpas inside the West Tibet (Tsang), the Upas stay in crucial Tibet, the Horpas comes from the north (Nagchu/ Jangtang), the Kongo was from the south, the Khampas stay within the east, the Amdowa inside the northeast, and the Gyarongwa in the acute east.
In Lhasa, you will discover a few Tibetans talk a piece of English and are happy to have a chat with you. Travelers to Tibet inevitably find Tibetans to be friendly and owning great humorousness. It is preferred when you attempt to use the Tibetan language while communicating with Tibetans. Religion is extraordinarily crucial to the general public of Tibetans, and vacationers should endeavor to recognize their customs and beliefs. Always circumambulate Buddhist religious websites or monasteries in a clockwise path, and when in a monastery, do not put on a hat, smoke, or touch frescoes. In addition, refrain from hiking onto statues, mani stones, or different sacred gadgets. Don’t photograph people without permission, and be aware that some locations restrict pictures without a charge.
