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About Tibet |
Tibet (Xizang), the Roof of the
World, remained unknown to the world until the
beginning of the 20th century. The massive,
snowy land has exerted an awesome draw on
travelers and adventurers ever since. Its
majestic scenery, mysterious and exotic
religious culture, and wonderful people, reward
every tourist with an indelible life long
memory!
Tibet (Tibet Autonomous Region, TAR for short)
borders Xinjiang, Qinghai, Sichuan and Yunnan
internally while India, Burma, Bhutan, Sikkim,
and Nepal meet its external borders. It covers a
massive 1,220,000 square kilometers (470,920
square miles), which is about 12.8 % of the
whole of China. With an average height of 4,000
meters above sea level, Tibet is encompassed by
some of the world's highest mountains. The
Himalayas to the south, the Karakoram to the
west, and the Kunlun to the north are the dream
lands of all adventurers and mountaineers. |
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General Information About
Tibet |
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Tibet Info |
The vast land is also the
cradle of several great rivers such as the
Yangtze River,the Yellow River,the Nu River (Salween),
the Lancang River (Mekong), the Yarlong
Tsangpo(Brahmaputra), the Indus, and the Ganges.
Tibet also offers awe-inspiring scenery of
beautiful lakes and valleys. Over 1,500 lakes
including Heavenly Lake Namtso and the holy Lake
Manasarova make Tibet the plateau with largest
amount of lakes. Without irrigation and
nurturance of these rivers and lakes, the
surrounding lands may not flourish.
The long history and exotic religion allures
more and more tourists every year. Tibetan
Buddhism inhabits most Tibetans' hearts. Thus, a
great deal of splendid monasteries, vivid murals
and sculptures, and solemn stupas were built to
worship the unparalleled Buddha. Lhasa and
Shigatse, the most important cities of Tibet,
feature most of the religious monuments
including the Potala Palace, Jokhang Temple,
Drepung Monastery, Sera Monastery, Ramoche
Monastery, Tashilunpo Monastery and Sakya
Monastery. Besides the monasteries, sacred
mountains and holy lakes are also great places
to show the Tibetan peoples' devotion to Buddha.
Western Tibet, Ngari, is a vast barren plateau
and renowned as the Roof of Tibet. As the place
where the Holy Lake (Lake Manasarova) joins the
Sacred Mountain (Mt.Kailash), Ngari is a holy
pilgrimage destination of both Tibetans and
Hindus, as well as a popular challenge to
trekkers. The ancient Shang Shung Kingdom and
Guge Kingdom also exert a pull. As the climate
is so inclement few people live in this region.
Therefore, Ngari is also the home of wild yak,
Tibetan antelope, wild donkey, and many other
rare wild animals.
In Tibet, five mountains exceed the altitudes of
8,000 meters (26,240 feet) and many of the
mountains exceed the altitudes of 7,000 meters
(22,960 feet). Hence, southwestern Tibet has
been a popular destination for mountaineers.
Mt.Everest towers over the region. Besides, more
than 40 snow capped peaks are open to mountain
climbing enthusiasts. Each year, thousands of
adventurers and mountaineers come to Tibet to
challenge both nature and themselves. Southern
Tibet also offers primeval forests, running
waters, and a relatively mild climate. Yarlong
Tsangpo Canyon, the largest canyon in the world,
is the home of rare plants and animals, and
remains unknown to anyone other than the local
people.
Tibetan people are warm and hospitable. Tourists
can visit local families and experience the
daily life of Tibetan people. Holidays and
festivals are the most important days in Tibet.
Enjoying the local food and dancing with
beautiful Tibetan girls are the most excellent
ways to celebrate these joyful times. Buying
some typical handicrafts in Barkhor Street or
from other authentic vendors may add extra
happiness to your visit.
Beside white snow capped mountains, verdant
virgin forests, clean running rivers and
tranquil beautiful lakes, the devotional pilgrim
progress toward their places of worship by
prostrating themselves under the sky and along
the roads, making people humble and modest.
Tibet, the lost paradise under the sky, is
undoubtedly a place where the spirit lives!
The already famous Tibet Railway that was
completed last October has been officially set
for operation from July 1, 2006. This miraculous
engineering achievement will make Tibet, the
mysterious and amazing sacred land with a
thousand-year history, witness many changes
leading to prosperity.
Following the opening of the Tibet Railway,
3,000 - 4,000 tourists are expected to travel to
Tibet every day. It is anticipated that the
railway will enhance tourism to both Qinghai
Province as well as the Tibet Autonomous Region,
thus bringing prosperity to that part of West
China that until now has not enjoyed all the
benefits attributable to the tourist industry.
The new rail link provides the traveler with a
more convenient, comfortable, safer and
economical way to go to Tibet. In turn the
railway will alleviate the pressure on exiting
passenger transport during the peak period of
the high season. The Tibet Railway offers the
tourist the opportunity to see more of the
wonderful landscape that is unique to the 'roof
of the world'. By opening up the connection
between Lhasa and Qinghai, the railway will not
only give outsiders the opportunity to take
Tibet tours but will also facilitate economical
freight transport for the benefit of the Tibetan
people as a whole.
The miraculous railway now closely connects
mainland China and remote Tibet, which will
speed up economic development. The Tibet Railway
will not only bring about a significant change
of the mystical view of the outside world to
Tibet, but will also create a better cognition
of the Tibetan people by the outside world.
There is a strong belief that Tibet will welcome
a better tomorrow thanks to this widely hailed
sacred road. |
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