Pictures again in three parts

Finally. It took me some time. But they are on my website now. The pictures I took during my travel in Tibet in January 2017. And they can be seen in three parts: go directly to part1, part 2 and part 3

I took again a lot of pictures during this travel because I saw and experienced again beautiful and special things. I was very lucky during this trip. Again I saw only very few foreign tourists in Lhasa. The rest of the trip I was alone between the Tibetans. And that is what I like so very much. I visited places that were familiar to me but I also saw new landscapes and monasteries. And I was very lucky that in many monasteries, there were monks gathering in the assembly halls and they were chanting. I saw that in the monasteries of Pelkor Chöde in Gyantse, Shalu near Shigatse, Drigung Til and Tsurpu. And in Sakya I was totally lucky because there was a festival and they took the big statues out of the halls of the monasteries and they danced with them on the courtyard of the monastery. It was so great and as I said, I was there alone between the Tibetans.

Not easy taking pictures

Taking pictures in Tibet is not always easy. With that I mean that the light makes it most of the time very difficult to make good pictures. In January I had beautiful sunny days. That’s great but the light is so harsh to make pictures. The difference between the light and the shadow is so big and that influences your pictures. So you have to take good care how you make the pictures. It’s also difficult to make good pictures inside the halls and chapels of the monasteries. Because it’s very dark inside the monasteries. Sometimes you have nice rays of sunlight coming into the halls. That makes great pictures. But sometimes there is a lot of light on a certain spot in the hall while the rest is quit dark. Well, if you have a good look at my pictures I’m sure you see what I’m telling here.

Pilgrims

What I enjoy every time when I’m in the winter time in Tibet, are the many pilgrims coming to Lhasa. Especially walking the Barkhor – the street around the sacred Jokhang Temple in the old centre of Lhasa – with the pilgrims is something I enjoy so very much. So many beautiful Tibetan people walking their koras there. And I walk with them. And of course I try to interact a little bit with them and take pictures of them.

New on this trip

I saw some for me new monasteries on this trip. Near the city of Tsedang I visited Zhatang Monastery, Kamadang Monastery and Densatil Monastery. On my way from Shigatse to Sakya we drove through a valley I hadn’t been yet and visited Puntsholling Monastery in this valley. Puntsholling Monastery is beautifully located near the Yarlung Tsangpo river with a big sand dune behind the monastery. Above the monastery the ruins of the destroyed part of the old monastery can be seen. So incredible beautiful!

I was total 16 days in Tibet and like on every trip in Tibet I don’t like to say goodbye to my Tibetan friends and leave Tibet to go to my own country again.

This was the itinerary of my trip in January 2017

1 Flight Amsterdam – Chengdu
2 Arrival in Chengdu
3 Flight to Lhasa, walking the kora at the Barkhor in the afternoon
4 Lhasa, visiting the Potala Palace and the Jokhang Temple, walking the Barkhor in the evening
5 Lhasa, visit to Drepung Monastery and Sera Monastery
6 Driving from Lhasa to Tsedang through the Yarlung Tsangpo valley. Visit to a small monastery and Zhatang Monastery on the way to Tsedang and Thandruk Monastery near Tsedang in the afternoon after checking in in the hotel.
7 Day trip from Tsedang to Kamadang Monastery and Densatil Monastery
8 Driving from Tsedang to Samye. Visit to Chimpuk Hermitage and Samye Monastery
9 Driving from Samye to Gyantse. Visit to Dorje Drak Monastery, the Kamba La pass, Yamdrok Tso Lake, the Karo La pass with view on glaciers and Simu La pass on the way.
10 Driving from Gyantse to Shigatse. Visit in the morning to the Pelkor Chöde Monastery with the Gyantse Kumbum in Gyantse and on the way to Shigatse visit to Shalu Monastery.
11 Stay at Shigatse with a visit to Tashilhunpo Monastery and walking the kora from the monastery to the Shigatse Dzong.
12 Driving from Shigatse to Sakya through the Yarlung Tsangpo valley with a visit to Puntsholling Monastery on the way.
13 Driving from Sakya to Shigatse. In the morning visit to Sakya Monastery and in the afternoon on the way to Shigatse visit to Narthang Monastery.
14 Driving from Shigatse to Lhasa
15 Driving from Lhasa to Drigung Til Monastery and a little back to Medro Gongkar. Staying the night at Medro Gongkar.
16 Driving from Medro Gongkar to Lhasa and visit Ganden Monastery on the way
17 Lhasa, daytrip to Tsurpu Monastery
18 Flight Lhasa – Chengdu
19 Flight Chengdu – Amsterdam
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