Lhasa

Lhasa train station. The architecture does fit in. Why no people? Because they aren't allowed anywhere near it. We waited patiently at the entrance for our guide until the soldiers ran us off.

The Masses in motion, safely away.

Who let that mass in?

See the guys on the left? That's not your grandfather's Peoples' Liberation Army. They are sharp and they are packing, big-time. See the guy on the right? That's our intrepid guide, and he's reminding them that's it's just not polite to point at strangers (well, duh!). The Admiral got away with it, this time...

The first surprise about Lhasa is that it's really a pretty big city. See the label? That's the train station. Most of Lhasa sprawls on the other side of the river. It's pretty big, considering the picture we had in our minds.

This is the main street in Lhasa; note the stupas. Also, if you look closely at the motorcycle coming this way, the woman is wearing a mask. This is not disease-related, as we'll explain in a minute.

This is the staple of Lhasa, the religious pilgrim. These ladies are spinning prayer wheels.

Pilgrims are everywhere, especially circulating Potala Palace. We wish we had better shots but we learned early on that Tibetans did not like their pictures taken (would you?). Behind them you can see prayer wheels and flags. When they spin or flutter, a prayer is chanted.

Here's another pilgrim, spinning with mask. Women here wear masks to preserve their complexion. Otherwise, the sun and dry wind wear out the face pretty quick. Some wear embroidered masks. No "modesty", just vanity.

Speaking of Tibetan women, we found them pretty cheeky. Tibet is one of the few societies to practice polyandry, usually with a woman marrying a set of brothers. They have attitude in other ways. They liked to grab the hair on Capt Hub's arms; they think it's sexy and most exotic. They also liked to pat the admiral on the tush, much to her indignation. Usually the perps would melt into a crowd, so this molestation had to be stoically endured.

Oh, and we didn't want to forget another Chinese oddity. Despite its size, the entire country is on Beijing time. Imagine the entire US on EST! As a result, the Tibetan sun rises and sets very late in the day.

The other major purpose of Lhasa is as a market town. Above we see a vendor selling yarn made from yak wool.

This is what they make from the yarn.

The basic Lhasa passenger conveyance, the tricycle rickshaw. This is not a tourist gimmick, it's how the locals travel.

Bustling commerce, everywhere. See the blue umbrella in the upper left?

That's the ever-vigilant police.

Pearls! Fresh water. Made In China.

You can buy just about anything on the street.

High fashion and art on parade.

Bootleg music and more! The yellow bags behind the woman are yak butter.

A Muslim butcher plies his trade on Main Street. We were told about 20% of Lhasa was Muslim.

Kids can be so serious, especially in a Chinese Cheese Wagon (read:school bus).

You can't visit a Communist country without seeing a Cultural Show. Here we have a guy dancing with pantomime yaks. The yak is to Tibet as the Kangaroo is to Oz or the Llama to Peru - the national critter.

Ok, you're thinking there's lots more to Lhasa than pilgrims, officials, and vendors, - and you're right. We just thought you'd like to see stuff that's not normally shown about Tibet.

So, without further ado, let's move on to what makes Lhasa famous, its Monasteries and Palaces.