Living in Lhasa, people who live in the snow-covered plateau are so happy

【Lhasa】Drunk Sunshine City

"I fantasized since I was very young
just fantasize about going to a faraway place
Today I walk in Lhasa, the heavenly Lhasa
That broad chest accepts your vagabonds
Only the quiet Lhasa River
That's it, just listen to my song like this"

During my long growing up, Tibet has always been a label that I cannot ignore. I love it, from the first time I went to Lugu Lake, it can only be regarded as touching the edge of the plateau, but I fell in love with the feeling of lack of oxygen.

I just came back from the northern part of Nagqu a few days ago. Although it is the rainy season, I can still see the majestic and colorful scenery in the west at dusk, and the fiery red sunset glows the whole sky. This is the plateau I have always wanted to pursue.

▲Walk on foot in the White Horse Forest, and see Kula Gangri Mountain at close range.

▲ Namtso Sacred Elephant Tianmen, it is extremely difficult to make an appointment, and finally meet again.

▲National Highway 317, the starry sky next to Nima County.

I have always had a wish to live on the snow-covered plateau for a year or so, and this year my dream has been fulfilled. Even though I spent more than a month wholeheartedly collecting, brushing and selling Cordyceps, I still didn’t forget to go to every corner of Tibet and leave some thoughts for myself.

▲Dangre Yongcuo and the shy Daguo Snow Mountain.

▲Gerencuo makes a cup of coffee and a cup of tea, what more can one ask for in life.

Mulan Snow Mountain

▲Climb to an altitude of 5,200 meters, and get a close look at Mulan Snow Mountain.

Looking at the mountains in the distance on the streets of Lhasa, the blue sky and white clouds seem to be within reach. These days, I have seen the color of the mountains from grayish brown to the current green and lovely, from the warmth of spring to the coming of the rainy season.

This is my one hundred and one day stay in Lhasa, my fifteenth trip to Tibet, the purpose is to live in Lhasa for a period of time. From the first time I came into contact with Tibet, I should have been to Tibet 30 times at least, and I always joked that all the money I made was spent in Tibet. I have traveled all the scenery in Tibetan areas that I want to go. I have not been to a few hiking routes and no-man's lands. I have probably been to most of the ones that you can name.

▲The Silin Temple on the cliff is rarely visited by tourists.

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▲The daycare temple that is drifting away.

▲For the first time, I drove the car to Lin Zhou alone.

▲Salawuzi Mountain overlooks Lhasa city.

There are many late nights, whether I am missing or watching the moving storylines in TV dramas, I often cry alone, and I can’t tell why, maybe it’s just that I love to cry this year.

In the compound where I live, I don’t seem to see a second Han family. Basically, the Tibetans Ajia and Bora go out day and night. In the evening, there are often children playing outside. They are innocent and happy to run every day.

Paula from the house next door would sometimes knock on my door, shouting that it was raining and that the clothes outside the window needed to be packed. There are often Ajia sitting on the sofa at the door, basking in the sun and chatting about family affairs. When he sees me coming home, he will ask how the business is doing recently.

▲ Lavender in Bella Manor, Lhasa's newest net red attraction.

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▲Yiyi under the peach blossoms in Pabangka.

▲The mysterious forest in Zangga Village is an excellent place to visit Linka.

▲ I gnawed a red apple next to Dangre Yongcuo.

▲On how to look at the Potala Palace more forcefully.

These days I have learned an important skill, and that is driving. Although it's been a long time since I got my driver's license, and I still don't know how to reverse the car into the garage, but in Lhasa, where the traffic is really messy and even worse than Quanzhou, where I don't obey the traffic rules, I can drive the car like a fish in water. The farthest time should be from Lhasa to Linzhou, driving on the mountain road to Silin Temple, which is very similar to the super beautiful cliff temple of Tiger Cave Temple.

In Lhasa for such a long time, I often feel very lonely. Back and forth in Tibet, in the nine years before and after, many friends who had a good time at that time also returned to their hometowns one after another. I used to go to the Jokhang Temple Square to bask in the sun or the Potala Palace Square to see the fountains, and by the way, I could meet a few tourists from afar. Now the older I get, the less I make new friends.

When I often eat alone, I either go to the supermarket to buy a la carte to make a meal, or I am willing to ride five kilometers to the Lhasa River to eat a bowl of fried rice noodles. Unfortunately, it is really difficult to find something I want to eat in Lhasa.

During this period of time, I traveled across the mountains to see the great rivers and mountains in Tibet, chasing the sunrise, counting the stars in the sky, wandering in the woods in the afternoon, listening to songs and having a glass of wine at a livehouse at night, and finding a lakeside in my spare time Making a cup of coffee, meeting the running Tibetan antelope and the Tibetan wild ass who is so stupid that everyone has come to the end and still doesn't run, I am living the life I love.

If you don't know how to play in Lhasa, please read this travel note.
If you think Lhasa can be finished in a week, please also read this travel note.
A travelogue written after living in Lhasa for three months.
Only those who love it can understand.

001. Pabangka丨Under the Peach Blossoms, the happy moment with Nanshan Yiyi

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Landed in Lhasa at 1 o'clock in the morning, walked towards the civil aviation bus by accident, and arrived in the urban area of Lhasa after bumping for more than an hour. I randomly found a fast hotel on Yutuo Road, and it was already three o'clock in the morning when I fell asleep.

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When the peach blossoms in Pabangka just arrived in April, Pabangka can be regarded as a niche destination in Lhasa, and it has only been gradually known to people in recent years. Pabangka is located on a big rock in Niangregou. It is a real palace built directly on the stone. Pabangka has the first Mani stone in Tibet. Before the construction of the Potala Palace, Princess Wencheng and Songtsan Gampo lived here. Pabangka is also known as the first palace in Lhasa.

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When I woke up in the morning, I moved my luggage to the small courtyard in Lhasa these days. When I went out to look for food, I called Yixi. She drove her beloved small motorcycle to pick me up on the middle road of Beijing. We walked along the winding mountain road to the palace on the top of the mountain. The peach blossoms are in full bloom, and with the unique blue sky and white clouds in Tibet, my heart can't help but move.

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Looking at the city of Lhasa from a distance on the mountain, I went to Nanshan in Shannan with me many years ago. This time, it has an extra son——the two little guys followed us up and down without any high opinion. The temple architecture of Pabangka is beautiful on weekdays, and it is even more charming when the peach blossoms are in full bloom.

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The thousand-year-old peach trees have always been in Pabangka, and the ruined walls beside the temple are in stark contrast to the peach blossoms that bloom and fade year after year. When we come to it, we just feel the former palace and the fresh peach trees, and cherish the life in front of us even more.

Pabangka 002. Paradise Grassland丨Let’s go to the supermarket to buy vegetables and go up the mountain to have a barbecue

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The enthusiasm for chasing flowers has always been there. In March, I ran thousands of miles from Fujian in the southeast of the motherland to the Tasha Ancient Road in Xinjiang in the northwest, chasing apricot blossoms. When you come to Lhasa, you can't fall naturally. This is the peach blossom of Paradise Grassland.

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Happiness is probably living in Lhasa. When you wake up, the blue sky and white clouds, going up the mountain is living in the mesmerizing painting. The Paradise Grassland is located in the south of Lhasa. In Cijiao Forest, Princess Wencheng continues to walk up the mountain. Here, she randomly finds a piece of grass to pass through Linka, overlooking the Potala Palace and overlooking the city of Lhasa.

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I came to Paradise Grassland with Xiao Yingzi purely to take some photos, and ended up accidentally rubbing against a stranger's barbecue. Only two or three days later, Sister Hua and I went to the supermarket to buy a bunch of things together. We lit a fire on the mountain, grilled, cooked bacon and claypot rice. The slender rice that Adong brought all the way from Dongguan is really good. eat.

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We collected dry cow dung in the Paradise Grassland all afternoon, some dry firewood on the side of the road, and forcibly lit the fire to cook rice and roast chicken. There used to be a village here, but it was abandoned and turned into ruins. I don't know how old the peach tree is. Although there are only a few, it is enough to bloom the colors of spring.

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Cijiaolingou 003. Mila Mountain Pass丨It was agreed to sell roses and actually sold one

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Mila Mountain Pass is the last mountain on the Sichuan-Tibet line, circling from Chengdu to Lhasa, with an altitude of 5013 meters. There are several yaks guarding here for many years, and there is a huge array of prayer flags at the mountain pass.

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When I first went to Lhasa, the brother who slept next door made a big move. Every day, I thought about how to make Zhao Yang, the third generation of Tibetans, popular in the film. I don’t know if it is popular or not, but sometimes the storyline is true when filming. interesting.

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We drove to the flower shop, bought 20 roses, and said that today's plot is to sell roses on a snow-capped mountain at an altitude of 5,000 meters. Now it takes only four hours to travel from Lhasa to Nyingchi at high speed, and it is naturally very fast to come to the Mila Pass. In just over an hour, we arrived at the thin-air Mira Pass from the urban area of Lhasa.

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There was still snow everywhere on Mount Mira in April, and I was shivering with cold while watching the three of them filming. When I am away all the year round, I can meet all kinds of people, such as "who has never seen roses, who cares about them, go away, don't buy them", and of course, "Oh, you came here to sell roses?" .

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There are thousands of things in the world, just live the life you want. When our short video was finished and after the plot went through, a couple of wives happened to come at this moment. They talked about the various reasons and hardships of coming to Tibet. The two felt that they were finally going to Lhasa.

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There are many people who want to come to Lhasa. It takes a long time to plan and prepare for a long time. In the end, the two of them asked us to buy the first business today, a rose for 5 yuan. We are also very happy successfully completed today's task.

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Mila Pass 004. Mulan Snow Mountain丨Dig Cordyceps to the mountain

Mulan Snow Mountain

I came to Mulan Snow Mountain because of the Cordyceps Festival in 2021. There are some fun festivals in Tibet every year, such as the Cordyceps Festival in Damxung Nagqu in May, the Horse Racing Festival on the grassland in June and July, and the Shoton Festival in August. If you can come to Tibet during some holidays, you can experience Tibetan culture more comprehensively.

Mulan Snow Mountain

We set off from the small courtyard at five o'clock in the morning, Brother Yang was still sleepy, and the few of us fell asleep after getting in the car, leaving the heavy responsibility of driving to Zhao Yang. The altitude has been rising all the way, and when we approach the foot of Mulan Snow Mountain, we need to change to the organizer's off-road vehicle, because the next bends and narrow roads are not suitable for everyone to continue driving.

Mulan Snow Mountain

At the foot of the Mulan Snow Mountain at an altitude of 4,600 meters, the horizon suddenly widened, and a hotel was built! Although it hasn't opened yet, but when you come here from thousands of miles away, there are no people, and there are only snow mountains in front of your eyes. This kind of enjoyment makes me secretly determined to come again.

Mulan Snow Mountain

This day is really happy, and the Mulan Snow Mountain is fully revealed. After lunch, the organizer asked us to go for a walk on that ridge, maybe we will find the caterpillar fungus. Today is an event, if you dig the caterpillar fungus, it will be yours.

Mulan Snow Mountain

As a result, Liu Dazhao and I walked to the mountainside thinking about how high we could climb, so we started to walk up the mountain. The wind was fierce on the pass, and we were panting and tired when we walked. What does Xiaoshanbao bring us. After passing several small hills in a row, I finally came to a place at an altitude of 5,200 meters. Looking at Mulan Snow Mountain up close, I felt so happy. I really like the lack of oxygen to breathe on the plateau, the process is painful, but I still feel the happiness of seeing the beautiful scenery.

Mulan Snow Mountain

When a person places himself in nature, it seems that only himself is left in the world at this time, and it is the best time to get along with himself. I know that if I stay ahead of me, I will feel at ease. People are always social animals, and they need friends and family to love and kill each other. But I also need to give myself a certain amount of time to digest the daily life and enjoy being alone. Hiking on the plateau is such a moment for me.

Mulan Snow Mountain

When your whole body and mind are only left with how to adjust my breathing to make myself more comfortable, all the troubles are left behind. When you want to take a breath and find a rock to rely on, sit there and watch the snow-capped mountains quietly blowing the wind, now you will start to think about the uneasiness that life has brought you in the past few days, and then digest it for better The days after the earth passed.

Mulan Snow Mountain

Mulan Snow Mountain 005. Yamdrok Yongcuo丨The long-lost daycare temple starts charging

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When I first went to the Rito Temple, Brother Zhou took me there in 2017. He would tell me that you have been to Yanghu Lake so many times, you must have never seen the Yanghu Lake that I am going to show you today. Our car was driving on a small road with many bends, narrow road, gravel road, and shell craters. The road conditions at that time would make driving difficult.

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Starting from Lhasa, it takes about 4 hours to reach the destination. The first time I saw Rituo Temple, I was stunned. What kind of fairy place is this, how can it be so beautiful! The water of the Yanghu Lake in Rituo Temple is like a fairyland, and you can kill the blue sea water that is boasted abroad without any filter at all.

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The touch of blue in Rituo Temple gradually changes from white to azure blue. Seeing this kind of Yanghu Lake is really exciting. Only such a small road can reach the island. The lake water on both sides of this road is like an oil painting, changing with the color of the sky.

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On this day, I made an appointment with Chen Haowen and He Chenwen to find a place around Lhasa. I really didn’t know where to go, so I chose Yanghu Lake in the end. We were caught by a school 2 kilometers in front of Rituo Temple. The small model house was blocked.

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The Rituo Temple under the vision of the drone can truly feel the saying "one monk, one temple, one isolated island, this is the loneliest temple in Yanghu", not only in terms of geographical location, but also in the past There is only one monk guarding the island.

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In the past, you only need to pay the lama 20 yuan if you want to go to the temple, but now it is good to collect the money when you pass directly at the intersection. Rituo Temple has become a check-in spot for Internet celebrities, and self-driving station wagons flock to it, and the number of people has increased. It is no longer possible to find the tranquility of only one car enjoying an island in the past.

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If you just want to leave some beautiful photos, just to check in this place, it is still necessary to come to Rituo Temple, but if you just want to feel the beauty of Yanghu Lake quietly, you can completely go around Yanghu Lake. Find a high point or the shore of the lake to spend an afternoon in a daze. Looking at Yanghu Lake from a satellite map, it looks like a coral reef. The shoreline of Yanghu Lake is connected or fragmented, which makes Yanghu Lake different from other lakes. Sometimes a turn is a surprise.

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Tips for high-energy camera positions:

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1⃣️Gang Bala Pass is 4790 meters above sea level. It is the most common blue ribbon-shaped sheep lake that most tourists will choose from Lhasa to Shigatse.

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2⃣️Garola Pass, most of them are the pass that we will go to Rituo Temple from the fork of Qude Temple, and you can see a faint blue sheep lake when you turn over this mountain

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3⃣️Zhila Mountain Pass, the winding and changeable lake shoreline is clear at a glance here, and there is a sense of sight of Qiandao Lake

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4⃣️The heart-shaped peninsula near Gongbu Xuexiang

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5⃣️ From Zhangda Township to Gongbuxue Township, you will pass through a small pass. There is a small hillside near the lake. When you drive the car to the hillside, it will surprise you. You can see the heart-shaped peninsula on the left, and the right You can see Yanghu Qiandao Lake again

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6⃣️The small island of Yanghu Lake that you will meet on the road from Duoque Township to Dalong Township
7⃣️There is an island in the center of Yanghu Lake called "Yumbuduo Island". It is said that every morning there will be a boat from Aza Ferry to Yumbuduo Island. There is a temple on the island. This is the loneliest temple in Yanghu Lake. This is also the only hinterland of Yanghu Lake that I have not yet reached.
2-day round-the-lake itinerary:
D1 Lhasa-Jidexiu Town-Langjie Xuexiang-Zhangda Township-Gongbu Xuexiang-Duoque Township-Dalong Town-Langkazi D2 Langkazi-Shencuo-Kumucuo-Kalong Township-Gangbala Yamaguchi - Lhasa
It must be reminded that if you want to go around the lake and pass through Langkazi County, there will be a border inspection station. You must have a border defense certificate that says Luozha County, Shannan Region, Tibet. If the time is right, you can turn on the road to Langkazi County. Go to Pumoyongcuo and stay at the lakeside at an altitude of 5070 meters for one night.

006. Najin Mountain丨Going to the mountain late at night to take a picture of the starry sky

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"Brother Yang, why don't you drive me to the mountains to see the stars?"
"Okay, which mountain"
"Najin Mountain is relatively close. There should be no light pollution in the direction of the Milky Way."

Nagin Hill

Today's wine has not been refilled, we have already driven to Najin Mountain to watch the starry sky. We followed the mountain road all the way to the top of the mountain. It was really not as good as the sky. The whole dark cloud came from the direction of Zayeba Temple. The wind at the pass of Najin Mountain is always strong, why can't the cloud be blown away.

Nagin Hill

In the dark night, the Lhasa River Valley is still brightly lit, and countless prayer flags are rustling by the wind. The prayer flag array on Najin Mountain is very spectacular, and the entire pass is covered. I just watched quietly like this The experience of dancing, the twinkling stars in the sky, the heart also calms down.

Although I didn't wait for the Milky Way in the end, I saw the stars.

Nagin Hill

High Energy Ahead: Tips for Starry Sky Shooting
Let's not talk about star trails, splices, just the simplest ones that are completed one by one.
Shooting the starry sky is really too particular about the right time, place and people!
🌛Time of day: The moon is cloudy and sunny. Remember to take pictures of the starry sky during the crescent moon, such as the fifth day of the lunar calendar from the 25th day of the lunar calendar to the fifth day of the next month. Generally, the Milky Way can be seen in places without light pollution. The season is recommended to be from May to August, the night sky is longer, and the shooting time is around 10:00 pm to 3:00 midnight. This is based on the rising time of the Milky Way every day. certainly! Also, you must not take pictures of the Milky Way in cloudy weather. If you can’t even see it, what else can you shoot.
🌃Geography: Far from the city, places with severe light pollution, suburbs, mountains, seaside, the darker the better, of course the plateau is the most suitable place to shoot the stars. If you can find a foreground to shoot the starry sky, it will be the best for others to know at a glance where you went to shoot the starry sky. It doesn't matter if you don't have prospects, you can also be a model for photos.
🎨Renhe: In addition to a camera with a manual transmission, the equipment for shooting the starry sky must be prepared with a tripod.
1. Set up the camera, adjust the camera to M gear, adjust the focus mode to manual focus MF, rotate the focus ring to infinity (the symbol ∞) and then turn it back a little bit; adjust the lens to the wide-angle end, such as common The 16-35mm is adjusted to 16mm, and the 24-70mm is adjusted to 24mm.
2. Remember to bring some ground foreground when composing the picture, so that the starry sky will not appear too monotonous. The foreground can be characteristic buildings, tents, roads, mountains or even cars or people.
3. Parameter setting: The larger the aperture, the better, F1.8-F4, the smaller the value, the larger the aperture. The iso should be between 1600-6400 as much as possible, and the shutter should be adjusted around 15-25 seconds according to the wide angle of the lens.
For example, I used the Sony dog head 18-200mmF3.5-6.3 to take the following parameters of the Big Dipper:
Lens focal length: 18mm, aperture: F3.5, shutter: 25 seconds, iso: 2000

‼ ️Digression: Najin Mountain is the only way to go to Zhayeba Temple. Zhayeba Temple is one of the four major hermitages in Tibet. When you see Zhayeba Temple, you will feel its aura. It seems to be one with this mountain. On a cliff, there are many holes for practice on the mountain, and the temple was built based on these holes.

007. Dadong Village丨The rape blossoms on the snowy plateau are blooming

Dadong Village

I have long heard of Dadong Village, one of the sacred lands of Rinca around Lhasa, a traditional ancient village and a key village for rural tourism. These names are enough to make it interesting. After picking up the lunatic at the airport, I asked him how he felt, and when he said he didn't feel high, I had already dragged him to the East Village.

Dadong Village

From the airport back to Lhasa, the airport expressway will pass through the high-speed exit of Dadong Village. Now the village pays attention to the development of tourism. If you drive along the road of the village, you can come to the tourist reception. There is a huge parking lot.

Dadong Village

This is a small primitive Tibetan village. When we walked in the village, there was a small lake not far from the visitor center. It is a tea house by the lake, where you can drink tea and daze. Going further in is the place where Dadong Village crosses Rinka. There is a snow mountain stream passing through the village, which also brings a certain vitality to the village.

Dadong Village

Rapeseed flowers are in full bloom in many fields in the nearby farmland. Rapeseed flowers in Tibet have a very long flowering period and are also divided into altitudes. They can be seen from June to August. A piece of golden rapeseed flowers, together with the unique blue sky and white clouds in Tibet, is not to mention how beautiful it is when the weather is fine.

Dadong Village

At the entrance of the village, I saw a temple on the edge of the village. It turns out that Dadong Village still retains two thousand-year-old temples. However, since the madman just got off the plane, I couldn’t let him walk for too long, so I didn’t go there again. Visited the temple and returned to Lhasa early to rest.

Dadong Village 008. Paradise Grassland丨Prayer flags dancing in the wind under the afterglow of the setting sun

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That day in the studio, the sun was shining and the weather was fine. The lunatic and I ran to the back mountain, which is where Princess Wencheng was, to take some sunset photos of prayer flags regardless of work. When there are no peach blossoms in the Paradise Grassland, there are ruins, waterfalls, black yak tents and prayer flag arrays. It can be regarded as a treasure in Lhasa that can be reached by bicycle to relax.

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The light at sunset is the most beautiful. The shallow sunlight shines through the top of the mountain and shines on the colorful prayer flags. Colorful prayer flags can be seen everywhere in Tibet, such as mountain pass, riverside, building roof, temple... These prayer flags are printed with Buddhist scriptures, and the prayer flags that move with the wind can be chanted once, so in places with strong winds The probability of seeing prayer flags is even higher. For example, there are basically prayer flags at the pass.

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The colorful prayer flags entrust people’s prayers to gods and good wishes in their hearts. The five colors of prayer flags are represented respectively, blue, white, red, green and yellow, and the order of colors cannot be confused. The traditional Bon religion of the Tibetans originally worships nature, and these five colors also refer to the gold, wood, water, fire, and earth in our nature.

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These black tents on the Paradise Grassland have not always been there. In recent years, Lhasa’s travel photography business has expanded to this place. The shooting of Barkhor Street and Potala Palace is far from satisfying the photography of modern travelers who are close to nature. Commemoration is also a great option.

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If you have a chance, you must go in and visit the black tents on the grassland. The Tibetans far away from the city are still very simple. They will be very hospitable. If you are lucky, you can drink buttered tea in the pastoral area To the serious yak jerky.

The black tent is made of yak hair. The tent is made of high-quality cow hair from yaks, and the cow hair is further processed. The summer in the black tent is very cool, and the winter will be a little cold, but it can at least let the herdsmen live comfortably Shelter from the wind and rain on the huge grassland. Moreover, the black tent is the home of herdsmen on the move. It has a simple structure and is easy to disassemble and assemble. It can live in water and grass all year round.

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The sunset time is always short, and after a while, the sun set behind the mountain, and we went back home.

009. Ganden Monastery丨A pilgrimage on Wangpo Ri Mountain

Ganden Monastery

Maybe it’s because I’m so familiar with Tibet. Every time I go to a destination, I can’t help but think of the first time I came to this place. I remember that Brother Zhou took me on a motorcycle and walked through the rugged mountain roads. Ganden Monastery is completely invisible at the foot of the mountain, but it will give you a surprise when you reach the top of the mountain.

Ganden Monastery

Ganden Monastery, Sera Monastery and Drepung Monastery are known as the three major monasteries in Lhasa. Ganden Monastery is also the most special temple among the six major monasteries of the Yellow Sect, and is the ancestral temple of the Gelug Sect. It was built by Master Tsongkhapa, the founder of the Gelug Sect. It doesn’t matter if you don’t know Master Tsongkhapa. For example, Kumbum Monastery in Xining, Qinghai, one of the top ten temples in China, is to commemorate Tsongkhapa. It was built by Master Ba, just to say that this person has a high status in Tibetan Buddhism, so the status of Ganden Monastery is also very special.

Ganden Monastery

Ganden Monastery is about 60 kilometers away from Lhasa. I started from Lhasa with the madman. Now there is a highway to Ganden Monastery. It takes less than an hour to reach the foot of the temple. A small kiosk blocked our way forward. Under the epidemic environment, show the health code and itinerary code, and buy tickets to go up the mountain.

Ganden Monastery

The winding mountain road winds up, and when we come to a relatively open mountainside, there is a large building in front of us. This is the Ganden Monastery, which is integrated with the mountains. We need to look up to see the whole temple, and park the car in the Ganden Monastery parking lot. The Ganden Monastery is magnificent here.

Ganden Monastery

We walked towards the sound of the debate, and by coincidence, we happened to meet the scene of the debate, so we simply sat by the door and listened for a long time. Yes, I don't understand, but I'm feeling it. See the standing lama clapping his hands, stepping back, and then flicking the rosary in his hand, clapping his hands vigorously, and then a string of Buddhist scriptures burst out of his mouth. The sitting lama was not to be outdone, and kept replying to each other with words. Just watching them repeat these actions, but they all said different words in their mouths.

Ganden Monastery

Debating scriptures is a relatively special way of learning in Tibetan Buddhism, and it is also a process of learning and comprehending for them in debating scriptures. This is like letting a hundred schools of thought of our Han people let go, and we must express our views in order to make progress together. If you want to visit the debate, you can see the Sera Monastery in the northern suburbs of Lhasa at close range. 

Ganden Monastery

We followed the footsteps of the pilgrims towards the main hall. Even if we don't talk about the temple treasures, murals, and Buddha statues inside the temple, Ganden Temple itself is a very beautiful building complex. The monastery is layered along the mountain, and it is the top of Wangbori Mountain when you go straight up the mountain, and you can see the Lhasa River Valley.

Ganden Monastery

There is also a mountain road in Ganden Monastery. If you take the bus from Lhasa to Ganden Monastery in the morning, most of them are people on the mountain road. Follow them and you will find a different Ganden Monastery.

Ganden Monastery

Ganden Monastery 010. Zha Nang Desert丨Desert by the Yarlung Zangbo River

The first desert park in Tibet is on the banks of the Yarlung Zangbo River. From Lhasa to the airport expressway, out of the tunnel to the Zegong Highway in the direction of Shannan, this is the only way to go to the Samye Monastery, and the Zha Nang Desert is along the way. This is the second time to walk with the lunatic on the land of Tibet. Unfortunately, this time because most of the night is busy with Cordyceps, I can only take him around Lhasa. Zha Nang Desert is only a two-hour drive from Lhasa, and it is estimated that it is also a good place for Lhasa people to go outing.

I saw this desert when I went to Samye Monastery for the first time about ten years ago. There are deserts in Tibet? As the desertification of the land has become more and more serious in the past few years, the scale of the desert has become larger and larger, and it is barren. I visited the Zha Nang Desert again in the past two years and found that it has turned into a desert park, and the entire area has begun to do ecological protection.

I stayed in Lhasa for three months this year, and felt the unprecedented heat in Lhasa. In previous years, Lhasa might have walked around in short-sleeved short skirts for a day, at least in the morning and evening, I had to wear long sleeves. With global warming, the vegetation in the urban area of Lhasa is getting better and better, and the chances of survival are greater. This can also be seen in the Zha Nang Desert. Now that a desert park is being built, naturally some psammophyte gardens have also been planted in the desert to better protect against wind and sand.

Every step in the desert is difficult for me as a professional, so I still walked a lot for the sake of the beautiful scenery. From a distance, there were still people doing sandboarding and beach motorcycles in the past, and now some people are gradually taking the Zha Nang Desert as their destination.

The sea of sand in front of us is undulating, the rainy season has not yet begun, and the Zha Nang Desert under the vision of the drone still lacks something. In September two years ago, the low-lying pits on the entire Golden Desert were filled with water, and the blue sky and white clouds were reflected in the water. From a distance, the Zha Nang Desert and the Yarlung Zangbo River complement each other, and the picture is very interesting.

The best desert seasons are late autumn and winter. The trees in autumn are colorful, and the desert is covered with snow in winter. It is a very special picture. Of course, if you can only go to the desert once, you must watch the sunset to show the golden beauty of the desert. Since we still have something to do, we really can only check in and let it go.

011. Sera Uzi Mountain丨An unexpected trip to the temple

Lhasa in the morning is the best time of the day. Even in summer, it can be a bit cold in the morning. Once you get out of bed, you can wake up instantly. The coldness in Lhasa should be considered okay for a southerner, at least not cold and humid. There is not much wind in the city.

The lunatic came to Lhasa to accompany me. He originally thought that it would be good to cook for me every day, but I called him to accompany me to go shopping around Lhasa every day. There is no reason to have a photographer by my side.

The original plan was to go to Weiba Village in Duodi Township. Tibet has developed rural tourism in recent years, and there are many Tibetan villages that retain the original ecology that people yearn for. But unfortunately, it happened that the road was being built that day, and the road into Duodi Township was not good enough to continue driving in. When I turned around and walked back, I saw a temple on the top of the mountain, and there was a road extending down, so I drove the car directly.

This is Salawuzi Mountain, and the temple I saw was Pubujue Rizhui. This is the north side of the back mountain of Sera Monastery. Before I climbed Sera Uzi Temple, I never thought that there are so many temples in the back mountain. Jicang Rizhui and Rekaza Rizhui are all on this mountain.

The road up the mountain is a dirt road with steep slopes and big bends. It was still a bit difficult for our car to walk. After going through hardships, we finally came to the temple. The colors of Tibetan Buddhist temples are pleasing to the eye, colorful prayer flags flutter in the wind, and the yellow house on the top of the temple attracts people to approach it.

Climb up to the temple and circle around clockwise. At the foot of the mountain is our original destination, Duodigou. If you have nothing to do in Lhasa, you can walk for a day between the two mountains of Serawuzi and Pabangka. This is easier said than done. Climbing in Lhasa is a protracted battle. Only by being mentally prepared can you walk the entire route full.

I really like the architectural style of Tibetan Buddhism so much. This is probably another important reason why I have been coming to Tibet year after year. No matter how I look at it, I can’t get tired of seeing Tibetan temples. Especially in the foothills, most of the temples formed on the mountain are built following the mountain, and colorful Buddhist halls and scripture halls are placed on the high places. Most of the interior of the Buddhist temple is dimly lit, with colorful murals painted on the walls, faint butter lights, and golden Buddha statues. If you visit the temple carefully, you will find that each sect has its own characteristics.

We climbed up and down in the temple, which can be regarded as the end of the main hall. Back on the main road, we carefully drove our car down the mountain. When we stopped on a large platform, we saw a panoramic view of Lhasa city.

The Potala Palace is not far away. This is the view that you can see when you climb up directly behind the Sera Monastery. The whole mountain can be strung together for hiking. You can go to Sera Monastery at three o'clock every day to see the debates. Woolen cloth.

012. Jokhang Temple 丨 Barkhor Street under the epidemic

"Basking in the sun at the Jokhang Temple Square" is probably the favorite thing to do in the early days. I have nothing to do all day long, and when I wake up, I go to the Jokhang Temple Square to bask in the sun. At that time, a bed cost 10 to 20 yuan, and four people and six people can live in a multi-person room for a long time. Now that I think about it, it is really Lhasa in my memory.

Since the epidemic, the simmering santa at the entrance of the Jokhang Temple has not smelled the fragrance of pine and cypress branches for a long time, and there are no longer people who are prostrating their heads one after another. Barkhor Street will be cleared before dark. It seems that the Jokhang Temple did not re-existed.

When I was going back to Quanzhou, the clearance time became ten o'clock in the evening, at least I could see the Barkhor Street under the night. Gradually, the kowtowing area at the entrance was also opened, and the familiar holy city of Lhasa returned.

Lhasa is really a particularly magical existence. It is the holy city in the hearts of Tibetan compatriots. Many Tibetans spend their entire lives on pilgrimage to the Jokhang Temple in Lhasa, even if they lose their fortunes. As far as we are concerned, standing on the streets of Lhasa is like being in a certain city in the inland. The secular life has already occupied the dominant position in Lhasa.

At the moment, Lhasa has everything you need, such as Japanese sushi, Korean cuisine, Sichuan cuisine and Northeast cuisine in the streets, KTV, and escape rooms. All kinds of stores complement each other, and foreigners from south to north enjoy a rich and slow-paced life in Lhasa. , how can people not love it?

Barkhor Street is already the best place to show that Lhasa is a holy city. Even if there are no people who kowtow along Barkhor Street, the people who turn around are endless and never stop. When I went to Lalu Wetland, I met a local old man. He told me that there are 27 large and small temples in Lhasa surrounding the Jokhang Temple. It is the Barkhor Street that we walk every day.

Barkhor Street was selected as a "Famous Street of Chinese History and Culture". It retains the oldest appearance of the holy city of Lhasa. Even the stone roads on which the feet step are stamped out step by step by pilgrims with long heads. Patina. In the past, some products with Tibetan characteristics were sold, a street integrating religion, life, culture and tourism. For example, prayer wheels, butter lamps, pine and cypress branches, mats, Tibetan shoes, aprons, snuff bottles and other daily necessities of Tibetan people, as well as souvenirs such as dried yak meat and Tibetan incense that tourists like to take home. You can buy them all on this street.

What is more sad now is that Barkhor Street has become a street of photography. Every lady, sister, and brother who comes to Lhasa wants to leave a good memory for themselves, and the photo of the Potala Palace on Barkhor Street is derived. It used to be fine, 599 sets were neither expensive nor cheap, and naturally fewer people took pictures; now that the competition is fierce, the price of 199 has come out, and naturally it has become a bad street photographer and model.

I sincerely hope that the Barkhor Street in the future can retain a little more of the original original flavor while being prosperous. Otherwise, if the original beauty is lost, who will come to Tibet to find simplicity and innocence.

013. Nanshan Park丨A good place to see the reflection of the Potala Palace from a distance

The big mountain with the words "Long live the motherland" seen in the Potala Palace Square is our destination today - Nanshan Park.

Nanshan Park is an excellent location to take pictures of the reflection of the Potala Palace. There is a Bugong Mirror Lake. I have seen a reflection of the Potala after snow on the Internet. It is really beautiful. Nanshan Park is also a good place to climb high and look far, overlooking the entire city of Lhasa.

Nanshan Park is forbidden to enter until 19:00 in the afternoon. If you want to take pictures of the sunset, you have to come here early and wait until 90:00. I had nothing to do by myself, so I drove around Nanshan Park. Last time I brought Wang Defa (a very cute Erha), but the staff refused to let him in, so I had no choice but to go home.

Nanshan Park is a park that has only been built in recent years. It used to be a barren mountain. Through tree planting, the mountains in Lhasa have become lush and beautiful parks. Many urbanites come to the park for a walk and exercise in their spare time on weekends.

Mirror Lake is not far from the entrance of the park. You can see the majestic Potala Palace in two steps. If you have the strength to continue climbing up the mountain, you can have a panoramic view of the bustling Lhasa city on the other side. Climbing in Lhasa requires a lot of physical strength. This year, Lhasa is very hot. I really have no strength. It is a beautiful afternoon to enjoy the pure blue sky under the shade of trees.

014. Lalu Wetland丨Good choice for enjoying the cool in summer

Lalu Wetland is located in the northwest corner of Lhasa. There are several entrances to enter the wetland. Currently, there are three open entrances: the south entrance is located at the intersection of Deji North Road and Dangre West Road; the east entrance is located at the Potala Palace in the middle of Qumi Road. Next to the staff living base; the north entrance is located at the Barku grit chamber on Majia Qutong Road, North Outer Ring Road, Lhasa.

The wetland is already a mature small scenic spot for people to relax and play. There are boardwalks to guide you to the wetland. Now the Lalu Wetland has opened some walking trails. We are very happy when we can freely enter and exit the wetland.

Lalu Wetland is a good place to see the reflection of the Potala Palace. Before Nanshan Park was built, the only place to see the reflection of the Potala Palace was Lalu Wetland, although it was the back side. When I saw the Potala Palace for the first time, it was such a picture. At that time, we walked through the woods in the wetland every day, and when we came out of the small woods, we felt that we had entered the city of Lhasa; in the wetlands, we lived a chic life like a peach blossom forest.

The Lalu Wetland has its beauty in every season. The spring is warm and the flowers are blooming. The reeds in the whole wetland are flourishing and green. In summer, when the day is hot, people come to the wetland to cool off under the shade of trees, or even just sit by the wetland and watch the red shelduck swimming in the water, and they feel a lot cooler. Although the wetlands in autumn and winter are all withered and yellow, they also have a special flavor.

I was sitting by the reeds, looking at the clouds in the sky. A Tibetan Bola (grandpa) sat down with me, and he spoke Chinese very well. He said that he grew up in the wetlands, even if he left the wetlands now, he would come back to visit from time to time. In the past, people lived here, grazing here, cattle and sheep ate aquatic plants, and people from the aquatic product market in Yaowang Mountain would come to the wetland to catch fish. The whole ecology was damaged to a certain extent, so the Lalu wetland was completely protected later Get up, and also carry out closed management.

Now that the Lalu Wetland is protected, the ecological environment of Lhasa has been improved to a certain extent. Although I can no longer live in the wetland and watch the sunrise and sunset all over the Dala Palace, I still feel that it is really good.

015. Bella Lavender Manor丨Romantic Purple

The flower language of lavender is to wait for love. It is also a blue-purple romantic flower, and the flower language of Jacaranda is to wait for love in despair. I don't know why purple is always irreplaceably romantic.

When I saw this sea of purple flowers on the Internet, I couldn't help but want to go out and take pictures. It takes only 40 minutes to drive from downtown Lhasa to Bella Manor in Dazi District, and the sea of purple flowers embraces you directly.

When I finally parked the car, picked up the tripod and happily walked to the lavender, I found that I forgot to bring the camera extension board on the tripod. Fortunately, Brother Yang had an artifact in the car. I took a small tripod and started the day just like that. selfie.

Lhasa is really hot this year. Sunshine is the most indispensable thing in the city of sunshine. The blue sky and white clouds are the most beautiful. Who would have thought that there would be lavender fields in Tibet this year, which is really surprising.

There are wedding dresses, Tibetan clothing rentals and shootings on site. If you don’t prepare in advance, you can still spend the money directly to take beautiful photos for yourself. The worst thing about this lavender manor is probably that there are wires all over the sky.

016. Pingcuo Kangsang View Hotel丨Watching the Potala Palace in bed

⚠️ Lhasa · Pingcuo Kangsang View Hotel
💰Per capita: 300+
📍Coordinates: No. 31, Duosange North Road, Chengguan District, Lhasa

When Pingcuo Kangsang Viewing Hotel was still a new store of Pingcuo Kangsang Youth Hostel, I have already formed a relationship with it. As an old-fashioned youth hostel in Lhasa, after so many years of hard work, it has turned into a particularly good viewing hotel. worth learning.

The location of Pingcuo can get a perfect score. It takes seven or eight minutes to walk from Pingcuo to the Jokhang Temple, and it takes 20 minutes to walk to the Potala Palace. You can get to the Civil Aviation Administration in a few minutes. The entrance is the Shenli Times Square, where you can eat, shop and watch movies without delay. On the top floor of Punco, you can directly watch the Potala Palace for breakfast.

Let's talk about the hardware facilities of the hotel. The Pingcuo Viewing Hotel should have been renovated around 2018 and become the current Internet celebrity hotel. The automatic curtain allows you to lie on the bed and see every moment of Bugong every minute. Floor heating, oxygen supply equipment, and humidifier are all necessary on the plateau, but not every hotel. Pingcuo It can still be done.

The quality of disposable slippers can be reused, and the shower gel and shampoo in the shower are all original large bottles, with a homely feel in the details. At least 6 bottles of mineral water are provided every day, and mineral water is also provided in the public area of the hotel. These are the daily routines that we often ignore, and Pingcuo is doing it with all his heart.

However, the price is really expensive in the peak season. My absolute suggestion is to choose their home when visiting Tibet in winter.

[Strategy part] 001. Itinerary

Day1 Barkhor Street
Day2 Potala Palace - Potala Palace Square - Zongjiao Lukang Park
Day3 Pabangka
Day4 Sera Monastery - Sera Wuzi Mountain
Day5 Paradise Grassland - Princess Wencheng
Day6 Najin Mountain - Zayeba Temple
Day7 Ganden Monastery
Day8 Yanghu Lake - Day Care Temple
Day9 Nanshan Park - Lalu Wetland
Day10 Zha Nang Desert

Just staying in the urban area of Lhasa, you can enjoy a 10-day itinerary. There are many places around Lhasa that I haven’t discovered. We took it for half a month in Lhasa, and itineraries that don’t repeat every day are not a problem.

002. Traffic

It is very convenient to choose train or plane to enter Tibet. If you have more time, it is recommended to buy a ticket to Xining, take a train to Lhasa for about 26 hours, and gradually adapt to the plateau climate on the train. Take the plane to Lhasa Gonggar Airport, about 60 kilometers away from the urban area, the airport civil aviation bus is 30 yuan, and the taxi is about 200 yuan.

003. High anti

It is said that you should eat rhodiola before departure. If you are free, you can eat it for half a month. It depends on the individual's physical and psychological quality. Some people pass it in two or three days, and some people don't recover after a week.

Suggested necessary medicines: Baiyunshan He Jigong Acafeol powder (headache pain reliever). In addition, you can prepare some Red Bull and glucose drinks during the itinerary, which can also effectively relieve high fever.

004. Board and lodging

Hey, in fact, how important is food, clothing, housing and transportation. But I can’t find gourmet food in Tibet, there may be, just one or two once in a while. The whole of Tibet has been called "Little Sichuan". Basically, you can eat home-cooked Sichuan dishes wherever you go. The price is about 30-45 for vegetarian dishes and more than 45 for meat dishes. Consumption is not cheap.

There are a few restaurants in Lhasa that you can recommend. There is absolutely no suspicion of advertising. Sun Island, Nianglu, normal Sichuan restaurant. Deji North Road, Wanzhou Yishang Grilled Fish Bar, there is often a queue. Xianzu Island, Riverside Beef Noodles, opened by a grandpa in Hong Kong, fried rice noodles are very good. Barkhor Street, Malu Zangshan, a Tibetan beef hot pot, delicious and affordable.

In terms of accommodation, I have rarely lived in other houses in Lhasa in recent years, and I basically look for Pingcuo Kangsang. Now there are three in Lhasa, one of which has retained a youth hostel. If you want to experience the feeling of backpackers when you were young, there are still here. Of course, their viewing hotel is the most recommended. The price is not affordable, and it is definitely an Internet celebrity, but it is worth the price. There is also a newly opened one on Jinzhu West Road, about 25 minutes' drive from the Potala Palace, with a large parking lot, good hardware conditions, good environment, and high cost performance.

005. Shooting tools

Photography equipment to bring in Lhasa

Sony A7R3 camera
24-70mm F2.8G lens
Sony 6400 camera
18-200mm F3.5-F6.3 lens
50mm F1.8 lens
GoPro 9 Action Camera
Mavic 2pro Drone
iPhone12 mobile phone

I used the r3 to take photos in the early stage, but later I thought it was too heavy for the lens, so I changed it to a 6400 in the middle. Except for taking pictures of the starry sky, the weight of the 6400 is really delicious. If you want to use a mobile phone with better picture quality and don’t want to be too heavy, 6400+18-200 is enough for most scenes.
GoPro is because my hands are always shaking when I shoot videos, so I brought a sports camera specially for shooting videos.
Tibet without drones is not perfect Tibet. Except for the Lhasa urban area, military management area, and border areas, do not fly drones. There are many other mountain lakes, and the vision of drones is definitely different.

006. Daily precautions

wear:
The summer in Lhasa this year really shocked me. There were mosquitoes all over the place. There were several days and nights when I only needed to wear short sleeves. Global warming has changed Tibet too much. In the past, the temperature difference between day and night was very large even in summer, and it is almost the same this year.

But if you are going to a higher altitude place like Ali Naqu, a thick dress is still necessary. Taking pictures in Tibet, the most recommended colors: red, yellow, orange, pink, white, as colorful as possible will be very beautiful.

Credentials:
The border areas of Ali, Shigatse Shannan and Nyingchi, such as Mount Everest, Kailash, and Medog, all require border defense certificates, and it is recommended to do so locally.
Carry your ID card with you at all times, and you need to use it when you go through the security check.
If you want to rent a car and drive by yourself, you should also carry your driver's license with you at all times. To refuel, you need three certificates in one, driving license, driver's license and ID card. Only after successful registration of the three can you refuel. Pay attention to the interval speed measurement, Tibet is relatively strict.

thing:
Sunglasses, lip balm, thermos cups, sunhats, sunscreen, and facial masks are all clichés, but must-haves.

Precautions:
*Don't wash your hair and take a shower when you first arrive at the plateau, don't be happy and lively, for the sake of your body.
*Keep warm, remember to blow-dry your hair in time after shampooing, to avoid the trouble of pulmonary edema caused by cold.
*Respect customs, such as turning clockwise on Barkhor Street and temples, not stepping on prayer flags, taking off hats when entering temples, etc.

At the end of the travel note, it happened that A Liang sent me a message, talking about some daily life in Lhasa.

I replied to him: "I really miss Lhasa a little bit, but I just want to, and I haven't reached the point where I have to go."
He returned to reason: "Lhasa, I want to leave when I come, and I want to leave when I leave."

Well, Lhasa is a curse, I think it is the destination and home of my life.