TRAVELING IN CHINA: Tibet, a Land of Enchanted Extremes
By Shi Rui
It is the dream of every traveler.
It is the last heaven on Earth.
It is a place high enough to reach the stars.
It is a place called Tibet.
It is said that Tibet is just like a Poppy which is quite attractive but also full of bad things. I agree, as both its beauty and its danger impressed me deeply.
Our plane arrived at the airport in Lhasa at half past ten. The sun was shining brightly, which confused me for a little while. I swear I had never seen such strong sunshine before. I thought I had better not open my eyes too wide, or I might be blinded in an instant. "Tibet is such a fairyland without any darkness, " I thought.
I started to feel a little strange; also, the lack of oxygen and the low atmospheric pressure had given me a terrible headache. What's worse, my heart was working extra hard just like a fat man's in a heavy sweater on a hot day. I wondered sometimes whether I could bear it. After a while, though, I began getting used to the high-altitude changes and started to look around.
Seeing the sky, I was entranced! The meaning of "clean and holy "dawned on me suddenly.
When I saw the Potala Palace, the same feeling came again.
The highest palace in the world, Potala rises above the land to an elevation of over 3800 meters. It consists of a red palace and a white palace. The Red palace is in the middle, in which there is a vast library of classical texts. The white one, which has a Sunshine Hall and an East Hall, surrounds it at a lower level. The Lama uses these two halls as his sitting room and office.
There were ancient pictures on the wall inside the palace. They told of the great history of a great nation. Touching the pictures carefully and piously, I was seized by a desire for purification of the soul. It reminded me instantly of the local people in front of the palace methodically praying on their knees and bowing their heads; the whole process was complicated and seemed to cause much suffering, but they could do it for several days without a pause.
Their strong beliefs gave them strength. That strength holds the nation in one solid bond, and it has prospered and grown accordingly.
In my opinion, you will never know and understand Tibet if you just stay in Lhasa. Tibet is made up of 7 areas and my trip covered 3 of them. We chose the most dangerous route to drive through because it had the most gorgeous scenery. A good jeep was necessary, as many big stones left by the constant mudslides were all over the road. Driving was hazardous. You had to be quite careful if you wanted to get where you were going.
A Mitsubishi jeep accompanied me all the way. It moved fast, smoothly and above all, safely. This lovely jeep was great in others ways, too, such as when I climbed its roof ladder to take photos from a higher position.
After getting a good jeep my second suggestion is to make sure you carry plenty of rolls of film, because you will feel like taking photos all day long--and all night.
I can remember the first time I saw a snow-capped mountain. I got excited and used nearly a roll of film to express my joy. Then, half an hour later, I found another snow-capped mountain with a stream running at its foot. I got excited again and used a second roll of film. Another half an hour later, a snow-capped mountain with a stream and a lush prairie came into view. There were sheep and cattle grazing and drinking from the stream. Half of the sun still showed on the horizon, so the snow, the stream and the animals were painted golden. What could I do when I was faced with this vision of Fairyland? Nothing. My last roll of film was used!
The air was cool and the wind was gentle. Some sheep began to move towards me. A Tibetan girl accompanied them. She looked younger than me and the expression of satisfaction on her face suggested a healthy life and contentment.
I am interested in the different life that Tibetans lead, so this trip offered me a good chance to experience it. I tasted their highland barley which is their main food and a kind of tea that was salty. Their food is very simple. Vegetables or fruits do not seem to be needed, as the only dish is air-dried beef.
Once I saw four men on their way to Lhasa. Their pilgrimage could last 2 years or more, because they had to kneel and bow down every three steps. They had a cart on which beef, tea and bread made of highland barley were kept, and pulled it along in turn. They also had some money to buy food in towns, but what they would buy was still beef, tea and bread. Religion plays such an important role that other parts of life become easier and easier.
Tibetans are fond of acting. When they are free, they will get together, drink wine, sing and dance. It seems that they don't have any anxiety. Their Buddha takes troubles away.
I admired the Tibetan kind of life, because it's easy and clean, just like the blue sky. Yes, the sky! The sky was the beginning of my trip. I knew it would also be an ideal end.
The last time I looked up in that marvelous land I nearly burst into tears. I believed, at that moment, I SAW HEAVEN!
It is the dream of every traveler.
It is the last heaven on Earth.
It is a place high enough to reach the stars.
It is a place called Tibet.
It is said that Tibet is just like a Poppy which is quite attractive but also full of bad things. I agree, as both its beauty and its danger impressed me deeply.
Our plane arrived at the airport in Lhasa at half past ten. The sun was shining brightly, which confused me for a little while. I swear I had never seen such strong sunshine before. I thought I had better not open my eyes too wide, or I might be blinded in an instant. "Tibet is such a fairyland without any darkness, " I thought.
I started to feel a little strange; also, the lack of oxygen and the low atmospheric pressure had given me a terrible headache. What's worse, my heart was working extra hard just like a fat man's in a heavy sweater on a hot day. I wondered sometimes whether I could bear it. After a while, though, I began getting used to the high-altitude changes and started to look around.
Seeing the sky, I was entranced! The meaning of "clean and holy "dawned on me suddenly.
When I saw the Potala Palace, the same feeling came again.
The highest palace in the world, Potala rises above the land to an elevation of over 3800 meters. It consists of a red palace and a white palace. The Red palace is in the middle, in which there is a vast library of classical texts. The white one, which has a Sunshine Hall and an East Hall, surrounds it at a lower level. The Lama uses these two halls as his sitting room and office.
There were ancient pictures on the wall inside the palace. They told of the great history of a great nation. Touching the pictures carefully and piously, I was seized by a desire for purification of the soul. It reminded me instantly of the local people in front of the palace methodically praying on their knees and bowing their heads; the whole process was complicated and seemed to cause much suffering, but they could do it for several days without a pause.
Their strong beliefs gave them strength. That strength holds the nation in one solid bond, and it has prospered and grown accordingly.
In my opinion, you will never know and understand Tibet if you just stay in Lhasa. Tibet is made up of 7 areas and my trip covered 3 of them. We chose the most dangerous route to drive through because it had the most gorgeous scenery. A good jeep was necessary, as many big stones left by the constant mudslides were all over the road. Driving was hazardous. You had to be quite careful if you wanted to get where you were going.
A Mitsubishi jeep accompanied me all the way. It moved fast, smoothly and above all, safely. This lovely jeep was great in others ways, too, such as when I climbed its roof ladder to take photos from a higher position.
After getting a good jeep my second suggestion is to make sure you carry plenty of rolls of film, because you will feel like taking photos all day long--and all night.
I can remember the first time I saw a snow-capped mountain. I got excited and used nearly a roll of film to express my joy. Then, half an hour later, I found another snow-capped mountain with a stream running at its foot. I got excited again and used a second roll of film. Another half an hour later, a snow-capped mountain with a stream and a lush prairie came into view. There were sheep and cattle grazing and drinking from the stream. Half of the sun still showed on the horizon, so the snow, the stream and the animals were painted golden. What could I do when I was faced with this vision of Fairyland? Nothing. My last roll of film was used!
The air was cool and the wind was gentle. Some sheep began to move towards me. A Tibetan girl accompanied them. She looked younger than me and the expression of satisfaction on her face suggested a healthy life and contentment.
I am interested in the different life that Tibetans lead, so this trip offered me a good chance to experience it. I tasted their highland barley which is their main food and a kind of tea that was salty. Their food is very simple. Vegetables or fruits do not seem to be needed, as the only dish is air-dried beef.
Once I saw four men on their way to Lhasa. Their pilgrimage could last 2 years or more, because they had to kneel and bow down every three steps. They had a cart on which beef, tea and bread made of highland barley were kept, and pulled it along in turn. They also had some money to buy food in towns, but what they would buy was still beef, tea and bread. Religion plays such an important role that other parts of life become easier and easier.
Tibetans are fond of acting. When they are free, they will get together, drink wine, sing and dance. It seems that they don't have any anxiety. Their Buddha takes troubles away.
I admired the Tibetan kind of life, because it's easy and clean, just like the blue sky. Yes, the sky! The sky was the beginning of my trip. I knew it would also be an ideal end.
The last time I looked up in that marvelous land I nearly burst into tears. I believed, at that moment, I SAW HEAVEN!
1 Comments:
At 1:57 AM , Anonymous said...
Congratulations. The population of Tibetans has decreased drastically since the Han annexation, you write like a middle-schooler with no sense of how ridiculous your pronouncements and sweeping generalities sound, and the tourist attractions you're describing are more like an opportunity to see the back of Han heads than a chance to see a "Tibetan" lifestyle, which today looks more like your prototypical rural poverty scene than an actual culture. Good job on finding god.
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