Another long-overdue round of pictures. The highlight of the trip to Tibet was a three-and-a-half-day hike from a point near Ganden monastary, through the mountains, over two passes (the highest of which was at 5100 m), and eventually ending at a point near Samye monastery. Our group of five was led by a guide, a cook, three yak-herders and ten yaks. The yaks carried our bags, tents and food, and moved twice as fast as we did. And were also very cute.
The hike was pretty intense — I thought that after doing a few short hikes in other parts of China and wearing a pair of brand-new hiking boots bought in Beijing, 5-6 hours of hiking per day would be manageable. I was wrong — the first day was relaxed, but the second day, which had us at the highest altitudes, was exhausting, and by the end of the day I needed oxygen to recoup after Martin and I staggered into camp with hail raining down on us (I was clearly the slowest in the group). By day three we were descending, and there was more oxygen in the air, but also vampire bears in the woods — they kill children, and suck blood from adults — so we kept up the pace and then stayed closed together once we had struck camp. I later realized, seeing the pictures from the afternoon, that we were all extremely swollen at that point — I looked like I had gained 10 kgs — and I’m not sure if it was because of the altitude, or because of the salt water we were drinking to stay hydrated, but either way it was all very extreme. But also incredibly beautiful — and by Day 4, we had left the stark rocky landscapes and snow-capped mountains, descending into green fields and flowers. The yaks, and even more impressively, the yak-herders, turned around to do the journey back, up-mountain, in a day and a half, as we were bussed onwards to Samye monastery and then home to the luxury of our hotel.
We had a wonderful experience overall, and our tour guide was amazing — if anyone reading this is planning a trip to Tibet, send me an email and I’ll pass along their contact information.
A Tibetan mastiff that would eat me if it wasn't tied firmly to its pole
Yak dung drying on a wall
The puppy version is friendlier
A nomad family's tent, this one without solar panels
Martin, looking cool
Tony, looking cool
Snow-capped pass
Chris, looking cool
Beautiful views
A nomad family gave us surprisingly delicious salt tea, and now have my walking stick
Frosty morning views
More beautiful views
Flowers
Martin, looking handsome
Yak
Prayer flags in the wind