A big enough mountain range can hide all sorts of wonders—and we don't just mean a good ski run. Get enough peaks in a row and you can hide away a whole culture.
Tibet's had geography on its side for centuries, and anyone lucky enough to cross the mountains into Lhasa these days will find a part of the world that's almost completely untouched by western culture. In other words, it's well worth navigating a mountain or two.
Chinese law requires a bit of navigation itself, but it's nothing you can't handle. You'll need a travel permit to enter the country, but that won't take more than a passport and a few renminbi. After that, if you want to travel outside of the usual tourist spots, you'll need a bit more paperwork—luckily there are in-house travel agents at most hotels to make sense of it for you. A few signatures later, you're set to explore Tibet's unique cultural treasures, including The Golden Temple at Gyantse, the holy pilgrimage site at Mount Kailash, and breathtaking high-altitude lakes like Pangong Tso, Yamdrok Tso, and Lake Manasarovar.
For the biggest highlight, you won't even have to leave Lhasa. The Jokhang Monastery in Barkhor Square in Lhasa is the spiritual center of Tibetan Buddhism—so holy that mornings in the temple are still devoted entirely to religious pilgrims—but after noon they let the nonbelievers in to see the sights. Highlight include a spectacular image of Palden Lhamo, the protector deity of Tibet, and the Jowo Rinpoche, a five-foot statue of the young Buddha that some describe as the most revered object in Tibet.
When you're done there, we recommend the Kyichu Hotel as a place to rest your head, just a few minutes walk from Jokhan. You'll be sharing the place with the host of scholars, medical teams, and NGO workers that make up the Tibetan ex-pat community. So if you need any more navigation tips, you'll be able to pick them up firsthand.
Kyichu Hotel
www.kyichuhotel.com
Beijing East Road, Lhasa, Tibet
Tel: +86 891-6331541