Living at 16,000 feet Above Sea Level

This fall my annual working trip to China took me to Tibet. The changes since my last trip were more than I had anticipated. Lhasa has doubled in size in just 10 years. Going in November it was in the 60's during the day and 30's at night with an intense sun. Walking from the sun into the shade was quite a contrast in temperature as the air is cool but the sun is warming. More modern hotels, lots of cars and wealth has come to the people of Tibet. Restaurants now have western, Tibetan, Chinese and Indian food on the menu. My Tibetan friends took me out to a sacred lake at 16,000 feet where I was surprised to find several small villages and we stopped to visit one family to see what life is like at that altitude. A simple life and certainly cold most of the year, without electricity but still have cars to get to the city when they want or use motorcycles rather than horses to round up their yaks. They even plant some vegetable crops at that altitude. A great time to visit is November because there are few tourists but the Nomads from around Tibet come to Lhasa to trade their wares for supplies and goods plus making a pilgrimage while they are there. One sees the different dress and peoples from the whole country at this time of year. Check our web site for new packaged tours to Tibet or let us design a custom tour to your interests and requirements. Tours to China is our business and our only business for over 25 years.  Click on the photo for full screen viewing.