Much like Guinness this Tibetan specialty is a meal in a glass, and a very buttery one, I might add. Thick as oil, yak butter tea is made using tea leaves, water and butter from Tibet’s beast of burden, the yak.

Consuming butter tea is an integral part of life for Tibetans. To kick off each day, Tibetans typically drink several of these beverages out of tiny little bowls. Nomads, who live in the mountains and along the Tibetan plateau, are said to drink up to 40 cups of it a day. In a Tibetan home it is customary for the hosts to continue refilling the bowl to the brim after a few sips are taken. The guest is never supposed to drain his or her bowl, rather, have it constantly topped up.

Butter tea is made by boiling black tea leaves for a half a day. The tea is then combined with salt and butter in a special tea churn and churned for several hours before serving hot.

For Tibetans who are constantly in battle with nature and all of its colder elements, butter tea provides great sustenance. In a place where very little can actually grow, fatty butter tea is also a great way to escape cold and hunger, and as an added bonus, it’s said to keep those lips less chapped.

We soon learned yak butter tea may not be the best fit for a foreign palate. More rancid than savory, this frothy, oily brew is definitely an acquired taste.

But what struck us most was their devotion. They don’t practice Buddhism, they live it. Many spend hours a day twirling prayer wheels and thumbing round, wooden prayer beads while circumventing a temple.

From monks to school children, from beggars to street vendors, these are the faces of Tibet.

Created with Admarket’s flickrSLiDR.

The plateau is full of mountains, rivers and lakes which offer spectacular scenery. But that’s just half the draw. Because of the remoteness of the land, the people of Tibet have cultivated unique ethnic traditions, folklore and ways of life. Click below for a glimpse of of the dramatic Tibetan landscapes and one of Tibet’s most sacred traditions in action, Buddhists postrating in front of a temple.

Music
Song: Reckoner
Artist: Radiohead

Click on the photo for more details.

Created with Admarket’s flickrSLiDR.

The Qinghai-Tibet Railway Station in Lhasa

Ryan’s a man of superlatives so when we got word that Tibet was home to the ‘world’s highest train,’ I had no other choice than to jump on board. The fact that the it meant we had a 37-hour train ride ahead of us meant nothing to my better half.

The slick lobby of the Lhasa train station

In 2007 China celebrated the opening of the Qinghai-Tibet Railway, the highest rail line in the world. The 1,200 miles of tracks are the result of engineering genius, traversing 342 miles of permafrost, much of it at altitudes exceeding 13,000 feet. Since Tibet was incorporated into the the People’s Republic of China in 1951, China has dreamed of uniting this mountainous province with the rest of the country. After nearly half a century, the world’s highest locomotive was achieved and now gives people from Beijing, Shanghai, and other major Chinese cities direct rail access to once remote Tibet.

Chatting up my 70-year old roommate in the train car

Providing passengers with enough oxygen was one of the biggest technology challenges the Chinese faced. The thin air on the Tibetan plateau makes breathing a challenge and altitude sickness prevalent. To remedy the situation, the Chinese increased the amount of oxygen circulating the train cars with generators that suck in the good oxygen from outside air and release the other gases into the atmosphere. Genius.

Ryan's morning Budweiser in the dining car

Lucky for me, the world’s highest train turned out to be one of the world’s poshest trains. We had a 37-hour ride in order so splurged on the first class ticket. A darn good splurge it turned out to be! Although we had to share our train car with two others, it included individual TV’s for each passenger, hangers for clothes and even a lace tablecloth topped with a vase for the table. The best part was a first-class dining car where we took in the scenery, sipped on Budweisers (yes they serve Budweiser at 15,000 feet) and passed the time with our new-found Tibetan traveler cohorts. The comfort of the train was only rivaled by the breathtaking views.

Here’s a look at how we spent our days.

Day 1

Just across the Tibetan border, we were ushered into a large bus to begin our journey. Here laid before us, amidst the snow-capped peaks of the Himalayas and barren terrain of the Tibetan plateau, was a road stretching into the horizon. It’s known as the Friendship Highway and stretches from the Nepal border to Lhasa, the capital of Tibet.

The scenery on the highway features stunning views of the snow-capped Himalayas, vast grasslands and meadows, and other unforgettable sights. Getting across the Himalayas has been very difficult throughout history which has helped preserve the culture of the people living there. Many weeks of mountain walking were once required, but the Chinese have set out to change all this. You can now traverse the country in just a couple of days.

Day 2

We left the small village of Nylam behind and began our journey to Lhotse. We climbed high into the Himalayas with peaks seemingly kissing the sky. By noon time, we were at the Lalunga Pass, reaching over 15,000 feet. Sitting atop the roof of the world, the land was covered in a blanket of snow and the wind blew ferociously. You could hardly see three feet in front of you. The only view in sight were tangled bunches of colorful Tibetan prayer flags flapping in the wind. As we descended the pass, the sky cleared just enough to see the peak of Mount Everest jetting out over the clouds.

Day 3

We watched the sun rise over the mountains this morning, casting down on a beautiful Tibetan village outside of Lhotse. The Tibetan architecture is very unique. The buildings are all one story and sit very low to the ground. They are made of mud, it looks like, and painted white. All the windows and doors are ornately decorated with colorful awnings and big, brass doorknobs. We paid a visit to a small monastery and came across saffron-clad monks thumbing prayer beads and chanting in unison. They invited us in to witness the intimate prayer session inside a dimly lit golden temple honoring Buddha.

Day 4

Today is my 28th birthday! It’s not every year you can say you are celebrating in Tibet, right? We made an early morning drive to the town of Gyantse. The most well-preserved of Tibetan villages we’d be staying in, this place was a fairytale. Here a medieval fort sits at the tip-top of a mountain, guarding a snow-colored village.

As you can imagine, life is simple here so a birthday splurge was out of the question. Ryan did his best to make it special and made arrangements with our guide for dinner reservations and to have a surprise birthday cake await us. Our guide, in his broken English, only got half the story. He misunderstood Ryan and instead of hearing cake, he heard the word party. He spent the remainder of the day gathering up every Westerner in town for a surprise birthday party for me!

When we walked into the restaurant for an anticipated intimate dinner, there were thirty others there to surprise me and a surprise it was for the both of us! They dressed me in white cloths and a golden crown and brought out a cake big enough to feed all 40 of us. A highlight of the night was when they sang happy birthday. Just as it came time to sing “Happy Birthday dear…” it grew completely silent. No one at my birthday party knew my name! Was certainly a birthday to remember.

Day 5

Today was a full day of driving while we made our way to our final destination of Lhasa. The scenery today rivaled anything we’d seen before. We reached the highest pass on our journey at nearly 16,000 feet. Here we were surrounded by beautiful snow-capped peaks and glaciers sitting in the clouds. Climbing back down, we passed beautiful lakes and fields of yaks and nomadic hill tribes.

Day 6

We spent our day exploring the mystical city of Lhasa. It’s lined with monasteries and temples and smells of incense and yak butter. For centuries it has been the center of Tibetan Buddhism and headquarters for the Tibetan government. Today, it’s largely occupied by the Chinese, seemingly closing in on the Tibetans. The old city is where the Tibetans live. Although it’s being encroached upon by Chinese modernization with each passing year, it still retains its ethereal charm.

Day 7

Today we paid a visit to the most important monuments in Tibet, the Potala Palace and Jokang Temple. The Potala Palace was founded in the 7th century as the winter home of the Dalai Lama and main government building. The complex sits thirteen stories high, built on a red mountain in the center of Lhasa Valley, at an altitude of 11,500 ft.

The Jokang Temple is the center of Tibetan Buddhism. Thousands of devout Buddhists circumvent the temple daily while clinching their prayer beads or swing brass prayer wheels. Others express reverence by prostrating (laying face down with legs and arms fully extended) in front of the temple for hours at a time. The beauty and originality of the architecture of these monuments can only be rivaled by their rich ornamentation and harmonious integration in the stunning landscape.

At the mind-blowing (literally) altitude and desolate terrain of the Tibetan plateau, it’s difficult for many crops or livestock to survive. As a result, the Tibetan diet is based around the one crop that does flourish here – barley. From sweets to soups and everything in between, barley is an integral part of every Tibetan diet. You’ll see various forms of barley on menus in Tibet, including tsampa, pictured above. Tsampa is a Tibetan food staple, particularly prominent in the central part of the country, and is made of roasted barley flour.

During your tour, breakfast will be included at your hotel or guesthouse. It usually consists of an egg (either in omelet form or hard-boiled), a piece of white bread and some sickly-sweet jam and butter. You may get a banana or sliced apple or some boiled potatoes as an accompaniment.

Lunch and dinner can be eaten in any restaurant in town. There is an array of restaurant options in each town with Chinese and Tibetan offerings. A select few may offer some Western food. Food is cheap, with meals costing around $5- 7 for two people. I suggest trying to seek out Tibetan-run restaurants so you can give back a bit to the Tibetan community since the rest of the tour money goes right into Chinese pockets.

For more information on travel in Tibet, click on the links below:
Tour & Visa
Cost & Value
Accomodation
Transportation

Days one and two (coming from Nepal and traveling east) , expect the most basic of accommodation. You’ll be staying in small towns and the hotels reflect the simplicity of life there. Rooms are dorm-style, with four to eight people per room. The rooms are like cement blocks with wooden beds and heavy comforters to keep you warm through the cold nights. As for the bathrooms, there is no running water so that means no showers or flushing toilets. Expect squat toilets and be ready to brush your teeth and wash your face by cupping your hands under your water bottle.

Day three you are in for a treat. To our surprise, we were checked into a three-star hotel. Western toilets, hot showers, clean sheets and even slippers awaited us. Days four through seven are quite the same. Hotels offer similar comforts and amenities.

We were pleased to find out all hotels we stayed in were run by Tibetan people.

For more information on travel in Tibet, click on the links below:
Tour & Visa
Cost & Value
Transportation
Food

Preparing for our visit to Tibet, we spent countless hours on the internet researching the status of things and a few days in Kathmandu paying visits to travel agencies to get the best advice. To save other travelers some time and energy, here’s a detailed summary, broken down by category, based on our experiences on what to expect (as of April 2010) for a visit to Tibet from Nepal.

Tour & Visa
Cost & Value
Accomodation
Transportation
Food

Here’s a look at the cost for the various aspects of the tour and entrance into Tibet.

Visa: $114 Chinese visa (for Americans), $28 for Tibet permit

Note: You will need to have both visas if to you plan to explore China after Tibet.

Tour: Range of $300-$350

Note: We met people who paid around $350 and others paid just below $300. We paid $320. This seems to be the going range for the eight-day tour. These prices are negotiable, despite what any tour operator tells you.

Outbound Travel: $150-$200 for train ticket, $300-$400 for flight

Note: You have to have proof of onward travel to get your visa, which means you’ll have to purchase an outbound flight or train ticket prior to entering Tibet. Whether it’s a train or flight you purchase, you will pay top dollar. Popular destinations coming from Tibet by train are Xian (37 hours), Chendu (42 hours) and Beijing (48 hours). Though your research may tell you train and airfare from Lhasa are half the price noted above, you will be paying double when coming from Kathmandu. These prices are not negotiable.

Private Tours: $945 for two peole

Note: This in addition to the price of the visa and outbound travel costs noted above. As this was out of our budget, we didn’t get into the details, but understand this price is negotiable and goes down if you have four people to share it with.

So was it worth it? In our eyes, absolutely. We had a lot of gripes and grumbles leading up to the trip. We hated the idea of being part of a tour group and loathed the idea of traveling around in a bus. We were bitter at the high costs and the fact that our money was going directly to feeding the machine that is destroying Tibet.

But the fact was we were desperate to experience Tibet. Although it wasn’t the ideal way to do it, it was the only way at this moment in time.

Would we recommend it? That depends on how strong your desire is to see Tibet and your tolerance level for group tours.

For more information on travel in Tibet, click on links below:
Tour & Visa
Accomodation
Transportation
Food