Friends often ask what prompts me to go to some far-flung places on my travels.
Obviously reading magazine articles and promotional emails from certain travel companies have a bearing. Condé Nast Traveller magazine has an excellent feature each month known as ‘Epic Journey’. I’ve just finished reading about the 4,000km railway from Beijing to Lhasa climbing so high that passengers are provided with oxygen – from coils of plastic tubing with a splayed end to put in your nostrils. Last month I was also teased by a mailing from St Regis Hotels talking of their new Lhasa property “surrounded by snowcapped Himalayan peaks only minutes from the Potala Palace and UNESCO World Heritage Sites”. M-m-m, there’s a stirring!
Click here to read what I wrote about China and Tibet in 1985
At the same time, I also recall reasons why I may regret any idea of returning to Tibet. I can still vividly remember the dirt everywhere and the over-powering smell of yak butter in glasses for all the candles. Then the thought of . . .
Map for the new 'Sky Train' to Tibet
having to get by with minimal appointments in a very basic government ‘guest house’ room doesn’t exactly excite me. All I had was a tin dish to wash in, and this didn’t help much to remove the dirt that had stuck to the Vaseline in thick swathes on my dry lips.
More frightening is the recollection of looking for something to relieve the terrible altitude headache when I tried to sleep. In a vain attempt to alleviate the pain, I pulled a folded, cold wet towel tight over my forehead while pressing the back of my neck on the ribbed outside surface of an empty Coke bottle, rolling it back and forth, but to no avail.
“And he’s still thinking of going back?” you might ask.
It’s worth resurrecting a story I wrote around that time. Not only does it reflect on my experiences in Tibet, but also on conditions in China, still quite primitive only twenty-five years ago. I write about the parlous state of aviation at the time, but why I felt no fear, I’ll never understand. Parts of the story also show me up as being quite inexperienced and naïve in some matters, and perhaps more than a little influenced by what my Chinese ‘minders’ were telling me.
Old CAAC labels from the 80's
hey, Mr. Michael,
this was a shock to me….i did not realize you visited Tibet in 1985, 25 years ago……you were so brave and adventrous, this experience itself is classical, historical and original….not many foreigners had a chance, even chinese, to review authentic and old time of Lhasa… on the other hand, people have always different angles and views when watch the same things…..i bet your views can be different if you dare to make a retreat……to me, you are a such a open minded person..
believe it or not, i almost made a decision and executed a plan for 13 days trip from Xining to Lhasa, by professional driving…..passing through beautiful soften side of Tibet, in lower attitude area…but the schedules did not work out…..if you really plan something for Tibet again, or Nepal, and Butan…pls let me know also.
i noticed you have some other short articles…..very reader friendly…i liked your style.
J
John, I don’t know that I was so brave – just gung-ho in my relative ‘youth’. The thought of visiting the Tibet of Today with a western educated Chinese National is appealing, and I;m sure it would be most informative, enjoyable and sociable – and bearable, staying in recently opened deluxe hotels. The new train doesn’t sound all that ‘deluxe’ though.
Am going to check the new train out with a leisure travel contact of mine in HKG. I will let you know what I find.. and what insightful comments from John.
Regards Juanita.
The St Regis Hotel in Lhasa has come back saying that they think the Deluxe carriages will commence this September.
M, back into memory lane! I think you saw much more of the ‘original Tibet’ than is possible now. Hordes of Chinese and international tourists and prostitutes outside brothels are now in the center. You saw the almost real Tibet which has vanished. Lucky you!
What an experience… and the photographs are truly marvellous. The beauty of the buddha carved into the expanse of rock beside the pool of water… the rock upon which the monastery was built – incredible. That you were able to see such magnificent landscape prior to the influx of the many is remarkable to say the least. ‘Tis no wonder to me that you wish to return, even recalling the physical challenges… such a place will always call you back. and even though change is inevitable, what you saw then will remain intact… i doubt that you expect it to be the same anyway. and isn’t that the point of returning? to see the now of something, having also changed oneself…?
Mick
What a cracking story!!
Couldn’t wait to get to the next page.
Felt I was there.
Have marked only a very few suggestions/typos in red.
It’s a corker!!
T
Trev, In incorporating your eagle-eye typo corrections in my original document, and taking on board suggestions already received from other ‘avid readers’, I expanded the title, and decided to add an additional page.
I think this added information about China in the 80’s adds a ‘sense of place and context’ to better understand my old 1985 story.
You can see it’s past 1am, but I am happy with the result. I really didn’t think that this ‘re-write’ for posterity sake would have generated as much interest as it has.
Thank you, and the others for their comments too!
M