Day 6. Sept 12. Lhasa.

Photos and videos at the end.

At breakfast, I started to meet more of my tour group. We were 12, Ziggy and Chandra were in a different group and Bala in another group again. After breakfast, my group piled into our small bus for the first time together, and Tenzing, our guide, introduced himself. We were given strong instruction from Tenzing to not talk politics or ask about topics sensitive to China. Better for him and better for us.

We were 11 today as Inga wasn’t feeling very well and stayed behind at the hotel. This would be my family for the next 13 days, and what a lovely bunch of people, and amazingly well travelled. Quite inspiring really.

As we drove, Tenzing started to tell us the history of Lhasa and provided a commentary on the sights we passed on the way to Drepung Monastery. Lhasa has a history going back some 1,300 years. As recent as 60 years ago, it was still considered a town and has undergone rapid development since then. Today it has a population of around 470,000 with a culture mix of Tibetans, Chinese, Muslims.

At the foot of the extensive monastery grounds, we went through security at the entrance and then drove uphill through pleasant woodland.

Drepung is the largest of all Tibetan monasteries and is located on the Gambo Utse mountain on the outskirts of Lhasa. It was founded in 1416 and was the residence of the Dalai Lamas until the Great Fifth Dalai Lama constructed the Potala Palace which we will visit tomorrow.

Tenzing was a superb guide, distilling the essence of Tibetan Buddhism principles and rituals for us and the history of the Drepung and the evolution of Tibetan Buddhism in general. The visit was everything I had hoped for and more. My only regret is to not have read more about Tibetan culture before I came. But I’m here for the experience. More knowledge would have been a supplement, not an essence.

In its heyday, Drepung housed some 10,000 monks.  Today 800 monks live there, dedicating their lives to the study of Buddhism. As we ascended the very steep stone steps up to the monastery buildings, the air was scented with the subtle incense of slowly burning Tibetan pine needles. That is the smell of Tibet I was told by Birgit, one of our group. Birgit was in Tibet 25 years ago and it was interesting to hear about the changes she observed.

We made our way through alleys and courtyards. A prayer wheel spinning on its own from a water wheel at its base, deities painted on huge boulders up on the hill above. A row of prayer wheels here and there.

We soon entered rooms and chapels that had an intensity of colour that lit up the gloom. It is incredibly hard to put into words the experience of the overwhelming sights and smells. The pervading smell is of burning butter candles. Tenzing was very informative, but it was hard to take it all in.

We visited the enormous kitchens, blackened walls from many centuries of smoke from cooking fires, the main prayer hall and too many exquisite rooms to mention. We emerged onto a large gathering area before making our way back to the bus.

On we drove, to a pleasant lunch at a restaurant nearby. Then it was over to Sera Monastery in the afternoon. The weather was very kind, blue skies and white clouds and quite hot.

The origin of the Sera Monastery name is attributed to a fact that during construction, the hill behind the monastery was covered with blooming wild roses (or "sera" in Tibetan). That roses bloom at 3,600m (12,000ft) is quite something.

The monastery, as a complex of structures with the Great Assembly Hall and three colleges, was founded in 1419. Over the years, the monastery developed into a hermitage where about 6,000 monks resided. Only a few hundred remain in residence today.

Again, the profound experience of wandering through rooms and halls is difficult to put into words. The yellow sect at Sera value knowledge and logic above all. We visited the bookshop with intricately scripted books and single sheet mantras. Some of the group bought some small mantras enclosed in cloth and later had blessed by a monk in front of a statue of Hayagriva in the main chapel the at Sera.

The monastery always has been one of the finest locations in Tibet to witness debate sessions, which were held according to a fixed schedule. Debating continues at Sera today and it was fixating to watch.

Then back on the bus and back to the hotel. Some of us went out later to visit Liberation Square with views of Potala Palace. We had an amazing hot pot dinner where the table has an induction cooker in the middle and you cook while you have conversation. Wonderful. Then back to Liberation Square to see Potala Palace lit up.

So many stories to tell, so little energy at the end of the day. Am determined to post near daily to capture the moments before they all blend into each other.

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