We arrived in Lhasa today after a grueling three day train trip from Guang Zhaou; one of the worst things about china is that people smoke everywhere… even on a sealed train! So were were overjoyed to finally be on solid ground again and breathing clean air. once we left the train station we were met by our guide Dawa, a local Tibetan to our relief. He was an amazing guide and he knew more than we will ever be able to remember about this magic place. They call Tibet the rooftop of the world, and after spending only a short time there we could tell why.  At roughly 3700 meters above sea level it holds the record for the highest capital city in the world, and you can definately tell; not just because of the extreemly big and bright sun but also by the lack of oxygen.

Tibet was invaded by China in 1959 and they have been suffering abuse ever since, many of the monasteries we saw had been looted or destroyed by the chinese. Dawa told us several things about chinese occupation that really struck us; if a Tibetan decides to become a monk they are now required by chinese law to denounce Tibetan independance. They are also not allowed by the government to have a passport or travel outside of china, although many excape to India, including our guide for several years. Another thing that has been wierd about all of china is the internet censorship; as mentioned we couldn’t access our blog because it was free speech, and forget hearing anything involving democracy or human rights. The Tibetan people really have no way of knowing what is going on in the outside world. Tibet has captured a place in our hearts not only for the stunning beauty of the landscape but because of the stunning resilience of the people, hopefully we will return some day.

Mike