Theme Week Tibet – Lhasa

26 October 2019 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, UNESCO World Heritage Reading Time:  16 minutes

Potala Palace © flickr.com - Christopher Michel/cc-by-2.0

Potala Palace © flickr.com – Christopher Michel/cc-by-2.0

Lhasa is a prefecture-level city, formerly a prefecture until 7 January 1960, one of the main administrative divisions of the Tibet Autonomous Region. It covers an area of 29,274 square kilometres (11,303 sq mi) of rugged and sparsely populated terrain. The consolidated prefecture-level city is divided into five mostly rural counties and three partially urban districts Chengguan District, Doilungdêqên District, and Dagzê District, which contain the main urban area of Lhasa.   read more…

Theme Week Tibet – Gyantse

25 October 2019 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  6 minutes

Old Gyantse and Palcho Monastery © Antoine Taveneaux/cc-by-sa-3.0

Old Gyantse and Palcho Monastery © Antoine Taveneaux/cc-by-sa-3.0

Gyantse, officially Gyangzê Town, is a town located in Gyantse County, Shigatse Prefecture, Tibet Autonomous Region. It was historically considered the third largest and most prominent town in the Tibet region (after Lhasa, and Shigatse), but there are now at least ten larger Tibetan cities.   read more…

Theme Week Tibet – Yamdrok Lake

24 October 2019 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  6 minutes

© flickr.com - Laika ac/cc-by-sa-2.0

© flickr.com – Laika ac/cc-by-sa-2.0

Yamdrok Lake (also known as Yamdrok Yumtso or Yamzho Yumco) is a freshwater lake in Tibet, it is one of the three largest sacred lakes in Tibet. It is over 72 km (45 mi) long. The lake is surrounded by many snow-capped mountains and is fed by numerous small streams. The lake has an outlet stream at its far western end and means turquoise in English due to its color. Around 90 km to the west of the lake lies the Tibetan town of Gyantse and Lhasa is a hundred km to the northeast. According to local mythology, Yamdok Yumtso lake is the transformation of a goddess.   read more…

Theme Week Tibet – Dharamsala

23 October 2019 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  9 minutes

Parliament of the Central Tibetan Administration © Bernard Gagnon/cc-by-sa-4.0

Parliament of the Central Tibetan Administration © Bernard Gagnon/cc-by-sa-4.0

Dharamshala is the district headquarters of Kangra district in India. It was formerly known as Bhagsu. The Dalai Lama‘s residence and the headquarters of the Central Tibetan Administration (the Tibetan government in exile) are in Dharamshala. Dharamshala is 18 km (11 mi) from Kangra. Dharamshala has been selected as one of the hundred Indian cities to be developed as a smart city under PM Narendra Modi’s flagship Smart Cities Mission. On 19 January 2017, Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh declared Dharamshala as the second capital of Himachal Pradesh state, making Himachal Pradesh the third state of India with two capitals after Jammu and Kashmir and Maharashtra.   read more…

Theme Week Tibet – Shigatse

22 October 2019 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  6 minutes

Shigatse Fortress © Antoine Taveneaux/cc-by-sa-4.0

Shigatse Fortress © Antoine Taveneaux/cc-by-sa-4.0

Shigatse, officially known as Xigazê, is a prefecture-level city of the Tibet Autonomous Region, with an area of 182,000 km² (70,271 sq mi). It is located within the historical Tsang province of Tibet.   read more…

Theme Week Tibet

21 October 2019 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Bon voyage, Theme Weeks, UNESCO World Heritage Reading Time:  12 minutes

Putuo Zongcheng Temple © Gisling/cc-by-sa-4.0

Putuo Zongcheng Temple © Gisling/cc-by-sa-4.0

Tibet is a region covering much of the Tibetan Plateau in Tibet Autonomous Region, China. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpa, Tamang, Qiang, Sherpa, and Lhoba peoples and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han Chinese and Hui people. Tibet is the highest region on Earth, with an average elevation of 5,000 m (16,000 ft). The highest elevation in Tibet is Mount Everest, Earth’s highest mountain, rising 8,848 m (29,029 ft) above sea level.   read more…

Return to TopReturn to Top