"The Roof of the World - Under... " a Tibet Travel Page by grets

Mystical, magical, incomprehensible Tibet offers an overload on the senses: the gaspingly thin air; the overwhelming beauty of the world’s highest mountains; the haunting images of Buddhas, deities and demons; the intricate patterns of the colourful Tibetan art; the poignant devotion of the pilgrims circumambulating sacred images; the improbability of the ancient architectural wonders clinging to perilous hillsides; the tumultuous history of inaccessibility, mystery, struggles, determination and resilience. This is a country of extremes with one of the most adventurous, scenically stunning and physically demanding road trips in the world, as we followed the path from Tibet’s capital Lhasa, through gruelling conditions, past vast landscapes and glittering peaks, remote high altitude deserts, densely forested precipitous gorges and virtually unpopulated high altitude moor-land to the end of its borders and further towards the fabled city of Kathmandu.

It was a journey of scenic and religious discovery, of many monasteries merging into one recollection of dazzling Boddhisatvas and Maitreyas, the scent of yak butter lamps permeating the air, the murmured chanting of Buddhist mantras emanating from the faithful, the niggles of the constant attention received from long-distance pilgrims to whom we were their first meeting with the outside world, the struggle for breath at the high altitude passes, the emotional turmoil upon my first glimpse of the Potala Palace. It was the journey of all journeys with the thinnest air, the most treacherous road conditions, the most picturesque panoramas, the most intriguing and jumbled amalgamation of traditional and progressive existence and one of the most distressing and ambiguous political situations. It was the realisation of a long-standing ambition – the ultimate expedition teeming with life-long memories.

Tibet Autonomous Region measures 2,600 km from west to east and 1,300 km from north to south with an area of 1.2 million square kilometres. This is roughly equal to the size of England, France, Germany and Austria put together. Tibet is a landlocked country which borders India, Nepal, Bhutan, Burma and China. Most of the Tibetan Plateau is over 4,000 metres high, with an average elevation of 4500 metres and contains the world’s highest mountains, as well as the world’s deepest gorges.

Under Restaurants I have not named specific establishments, I have tried to give a description of the various dishes we were served in different places within Tibet. The food was far superior to our expectations in general.