Day 7 - Lhasa - the Great Monk Debate

Toward the end of the debate, the mood changed dramatically. The frowns and scowls turned to grins. You could tell that they were enjoying themselves which was not at all clear at the beginning of the debate. I do want to point out the tourists in the background perched at the edges of the courtyard. We were literally in their faces as they debated and they completely ignored us. It was a bit odd.

Day 7 - Lhasa - The Great Monk Debate

The great monk debate (as I'm calling it) was beyond anything I could have imagined. The courtyard of the monastery was packed with monks some sitting while the others stood over them. The standing monks were clearly the ones in a position of authority and were "schooling" the monks on the ground. I'd imagined the debate looking more like something from the British parliament but it was more like a mock argument. The entire time the standing monks were angrily yelling and pointing at the sitting monks then, suddenly, they would rear back and then slap their hands together into the sitting monks' faces. It was fascinating! I really have never seen anything like it. I asked my guide what they were arguing about. He kinda shrugged and said, "Deep spiritual things."

Day 7 - Lhasa - Lunch

On my second day in Lhasa, I returned to the place I'd had lunch the day before. The food was terrific and there was a fantastic view of the plaza in front of the Jokhang Temple. The first day, my guide sat and chatted with me though he didn't have anything to eat. The second day, he sat at a separate table with some other Tibetans who I assume were also guides. I guess I wasn't a great lunchtime companion. Pictured is the Napali curry set I ordered the second day which was delicious.

Day 7 - Lhasa - the Summer Palace and Gardens

While touring the Summer Palace and Gardens, my guide sat and chatted with an older woman who was sitting near the residence that was on an island in the middle of a pond (pictured above). She offered both of us a "special" candy made from yak milk. The stuff tasted like really hard, solidified butter. In other words....not so good. I asked her to hold it up while I took her picture. She offered me more but I politely declined.

Day 7 - Lhasa - the Summer Palace and Gardens

My second full day in Lhasa started out a little lame. First, my guide took me to the National Museum which was more an opportunity for the Tibetans to hock their wares (half of the museum was a souvenir shop) than a true display of national treasures. Next, we went across the street to the Summer Palace and Gardens. The gardens were ill-kept and the residences far from palatial. A highlight, though. was the summer palace of the current Dalai Lama (pictured above). His residence is on the second level and has not been altered since he went into exile (sometime in the 70s?). The place looks like my grandmother's living room - all groovy crushed velvet furniture and tassled curtains. A total blast from the past! I got into a bit of trouble while I was there. While it was very clearly marked that photography was not allowed, I was the sole visitor with no one else around. I thought, "What's the harm?" and started snapping pictures. Suddenly, an alarm sounds and a pair of young Tibetans rush in saying, "Sorry, sorry, no pictures!" They were quite serious making sure the photos were deleted from my camera before I was allowed to leave. Guilty as charged!

Day 7 - Lhasa - in front of Jokhang Temple

My second day in Lhasa and I was back in front of the Jokhang Temple where the swirl of activity never got old. In the foreground, a group of pilgrims is tossing some type of herb into one of the ovens (there was a second that you can see in the background) in front of the temple. Unfortunately, I have no idea of the significance of this.

Day 7 - Lhasa - the street market in front of my hotel

I mentioned previously that yak is a mainstay in Tibetan culture and cuisine - not only the meat but also dairy products. Here we have yak butter which is used in a variety of things including yak butter candles and yak butter tea. While I didn't end up lighting a candle, I did try the tea. It tasted a bit like macaroni and cheese sauce. Mmmm...yummy?

Day 6 - Lhasa

Colorful people, colorful buildings, colorful landscape. This place is just so dang colorful! I'm standing in front of the Jokhang Palace in the path of the oncoming pilgrims and just taking it all in. The only specific thing I want to point out in this photo is the prayer wheel. The man about dead center is holding what looks like a broom stick with a wooden cylinder on top. The cylinder has a little ball attached that spins with a slight motion of the pole. Many of the pilgrims carried these as they walked and prayed. I'm almost certain the prayer wheel spins in a clockwise direction.

Day 6 - Lhasa - in front of the Jokhang Temple

I followed the pilgrim's path around to the front of the Jokhang Temple where many of the pilgrims had stopped to prayer. Most of prayers were prostrating themselves towards the temple. In this picture, you can see many of the implements they use to make prostrating a little more comfortable such as prayer mats to lower themselves onto and hand pads they strap on so that it's not their bare palms gliding across the ground. Funny thing of note: the two monks are walking completely in synch. They both have their back leg raised to the same level so that it looks like they're standing on one leg.

Day 6 - Lhasa

I've mentioned that some of the pilgrims were prostating themselves as they made clockwise circuits around the Potala Palace and Jokhang Temple. In the picture are three pilgrims, in various stages of the process. It goes something like this:

• Begin in a standing position with hands in prayer position in front of the heart.
• Bend down in a squat placing hands flat on the ground.
• Glide forward on your hands until lying face down with hands and arms in front (the superman position).
• While still lying flat, bend at the elbows bringing the hands to a prayer position behind the head.
• In one smooth motion, bring hands back, push up to a squat and then into a standing position.
• Take a step forward and start all over again.