Buddhist Adventure
Tour
14 Nights 15 Days
Itinerary
Day 01 : Fly
from Kathmandu to Lhasa -drive to Tsetang: After
clearing customs, you will drive in a van to
Tsetang, the largest town in the Lhoka region
south of Lhasa. Built along the base of the
Gangpo-Ri, the area claims the distinction of
being the birthplace of the Tibetan race, the
site where Avalokiteshvara descended to earth
in the form of a monkey, mated with a demo ness,
and produced the first of Tibet's children.
Depending on how you feel in the high altitude,
you can rest in the hotel or walk around this
old town.
Day 02 : There
is no better way to begin a tour of Tibet than
with the first monastery built in the country
“Samye”. A monastery is actually
a collection of buildings situated together
in a way that represents the Buddhist universe.
Samye was founded in the 770s under the patronage
of King Trisong Detsen. In the center of the
monastery buildings is Mount Sumeru, represented
by the central temple. The mountain is surrounded
by the four continents situated in the four
oceans of the four directions. Side chapels
represent sub-continents, and there are even
temples to the sun and moon. It was here at
Samye, near the end of the eighth century, that
the first Tibetans were proposed as monks by
the sage Sharantakshita. On the way back to
our hotel in Tsetang, we will visit perhaps
the oldest house place in Tibet - Yumbulakang.
The original building, dating back to the seventh
or eighth centuries, was associated with the
semi-mythical king, Nyatri Tsenpo, but was destroyed
during the Cultural Revolution. Rebuilt in 1982,
the present building has been turned into a
chapel with a shrine to the ancient kings.
Day 03 : On
your way to Lhasa, you will stop at Mindroling,
one of the largest and most important of the
Nyingma-pa monasteries. Founded in 1676 by the
renowned teacher of the fifth Dalai Lama, Terdak
Lingpa, Mindroling became, according to Stephen
Batchelor, "a center of learning where
officials from the lay government in Lhasa would
traditionally be sent to study." From Mindroling
you will continue on to Lhasa and the Holiday
Inn, the last of the good hotels you will see
for a while. The remaining hours of the day
will be free to explore the Barkhor, or main
Tibetan market area, and the popular walk encircling
the seventh-century Jokhang Temple. You might
be able to watch sunset on the Potala from the
top of the Jokhang Temple.
Day 04 : After
rising early, you will grab a quick breakfast.
Around 7:30 AM you head back to the Barkhor
and the Jokhang, spiritual center of Tibet and
destination of millions of Tibetan Pilgrims.
The Jokhang, built in 767 AD by Tibet's first
Buddhist King, Songtsen Gampo, is the heart
of this Buddhist world. We walk the kora, or
pilgrim route, around the Barkhor with the early
morning pilgrims. After walking the kora, we
enter the temple and walk the nangkhor, or inside
of the temple. On the roof of the Jokhang, we
can take beautiful pictures of the market and
pilgrims below and the Potala on the hill across
the square. From the Jokhang, we will head to
the Potala, the former winter palace of the
Dalai Lama, which was built on the escarpments
of Red Hill and rises more than 1000 feet above
the valley floor. We must be sure to enter through
the pilgrim entrance up the long path rather
than through the tourist entrance. Lunch will
be at a local Tibetan restaurant. After lunch,
you will visit the Norbulinka, once named Jewel
Park and now People's Park. The Norbulinka was
the former summer palace of successive Dalai
Lamas from 1755, and suffered extensive damage
during theCultural Revolution. Much has been
rebuilt, and it is fascinating to see how the
Dalai Lama actually lived. Painted on one of
the walls is a picture of the 14th Dalai Lama
and his family - the only one still prominent
in Tibet. Later in the day, if you are not exhausted,
you can visit the Lukhang, set in the middle
of a lake. At one time, one would take a boat
across the lake. Now the area is a Chinese theme
park, and it is fun to see how the people use
the area. The temple is one of the gems of Lhasa,
and contains artwork related to Tibetan medical
practices.
Day 05 : Today
you travel to the suburbs of Lhasa to visit
two of the most interesting of the Buddhist
monasteries. The first, Phabonkha, served as
a meditation site during the time of Songtsen
Gampo and contains a plaque commemorating the
first Tibetan script. The monastery also serves
as a sky burial site, and if we are early enough,
we can still see the great Himalayan vultures
circling overhead and waiting for their dinner.
In the last part of the eighth century, the
very first seven Tibetan monks stayed here after
receiving their ordination from the Indian Shankarakshita.
From here, we will go to have a simple lunch
in a local restaurant and then head to Sera
in time for the 3 PM debates. Sera is a 15th-century
Gelugpa monastery founded by one of Tsong Khapa's
disciples, and is famous for its Tantric teachings.
The name Sera means "Merciful Hail."
Years ago a rivalry existed between Sera and
Drepung (which means "Rice Heap").
The monks from Sera thought their hail would
destroy Drepung's rice, while Sera boasted the
"dob-dobs," an elite corps of warrior
monks much feared by other Buddhist leaders.
Day 06 : After
a 3 to 4 hour morning drive, you will arrive
in the valley of Drigung Monastery, founded
by the Khagyupas, descendants of Milarepa. The
valley, cut by the Kyichu, is spectacular, boasting
not only the monastery, but a nunnery, and hot
springs - wonderfully welcome in this cold land.
Drigung Til was rebuilt in 1983 and boasts a
large assembly hall with Drigung Kyapgon's footprint,
his personal conch, and his trumpet. On the
right side of the altar are images of Apchi,
the protectress of the temple. Drigung and the
nunnery, which you will see tomorrow, are primarily
meditation monasteries.Additionally, Drigung
Dundro, up the hill along the monastery kora,
is one of the power places for sky burials and
is considered identical to Sitavana, one of
the most famous of the Eight Indian Charnel
Grounds near Bodhgaya. Legend has it that a
rainbow connects Sitavana and Drigung Dundro.
Watch then, early in the morning for people
climbing up the hill with a body to be devoured
by Himalayan vultures in a traditional Tibetan
burial. Tonight you will camp in the valley
below the monastery.
Day 07 : You
will take a short drive over to Terdrum, the
nunnery or "ani" gompa with its hot
springs attended by residences of the goddess
Apchi. Below the lakes is a limestone ridge
that once contained a poisonous lake said to
have fumes so strong that they killed the birds
in the sky above. Guru Rimpoche, the teacher
who brought Buddhism to Tibet, threw his dorje,
or thunderbolt, at the ridge and drained the
lake. The nuns see the shape of his dorje protruding
from the rocks below the opening of the tunnel.
After bathing in the springs, you might wish
to visit the nunnery or even climb up to the
Guru Rimpoche cave on the hill. Tonight you
will camp near the nunnery.
Day 08 : After
leaving Drigung, you will head next to Reteng,
a Kadampa gompa founded in the 11th century
by Dromton, the chief disciple of Atisha. The
juniper trees around the monastery were said
to have grown from the hairs of Dromton. Although
much reconstruction is taking place, the monastery,
with its extraordinary view of the Rong Chu
valley, will never again be the small city it
once was. Inside the lhakhang, or God House,
are important relics, such as the statue of
Jowa Jampa Dorje or the Talking Drolma. Tonight
you will camp near Reteng.
Day 09 and 10 :
Today you cross the Nyanchhan Thangla Mountains,
a range that parallels the Himalayas and is
the home of the God of the North. Your destination
is Tibet's second largest salt-water lake and
a wonderful cave monastery. Few hermitages can
rival the power and grandeur of the pre-Buddhist
site of Tashiy Do, built into the red limestone
cliffs and overlooking Lake Nam Tso. In reality,
Tashiy Do consists of two separate hills with
caves built within the rock walls - Tashiy Do
Thuuije ("Merciful Lucky Rock") and
Tashiy Do Chhungchhung ("Little Lucky Rock").
Camping beside a long Ladhaki-style mani wall,
you will have two days to explore the area and
Nam Tso, Tibet's second largest salt lake. Because
the lake lies on the migratory route across
Asia, you are likely to see many flocks of birds
- bar-headed geese, black-necked cranes and
others - congregating along the shores of the
bay. Also common are small members of the rabbit
family, the black-lipped pikas that have dotted
the ground with their burrows. These two nights
are spent camping on the shore of the lake.
Day 11 and 12 :
Once again crossing the Nyanchhan Thangla Mountains,
you have a long drive in front of you to Tsang
province and its capital, Shigatse. Tashilhumpo
monastery, the oldest and largest Gelugpa monastery
in Tsang province and home to the Panchen Lama,
is lovely, and your kora will take you past
holes for dogs, thought of as "fallen monks,"
as well as places to earn merit by rubbing your
body against holy rocks. You will have time
to visit the Tibetan market. At night, you will
stay in the small Tenzing Hotel right across
from the market and not too far from the monastery.
Note that Myths and Mountains has chosen to
stay in this hotel because the owners are Tibetan
and quite special. Bath facilities are somewhat
"creative," but there is a lot of
ambience.
Day 13 : You
have about 50 miles to drive from Shigatse to
Gyantse, which was once Tibet's third most important
city. Gyantse lies at the head of the Nyangchu
Valley astride the main routes from India and
Nepal to Lhasa. Made wealthy in this major trading
center from selling sheep and yak wool, the
rich lords of the city pooled their resources
in 1427 to build the Kumbum, a Nepalese-style
stupa. You will tour the stupa, home to some
of the most beautiful tantric pictures in all
of Tibet. Be sure to climb to the top of the
Kumbum and look out over the area.
Day 14 :
You have a long drive back to Lhasa, stopping
for a beautiful lunch by the shores of the turquoise
green Yandrok Tso. A dead lake that has no constant
flow of water in or out, Yandrok Tso is threatened
with being drained - to protect a Chinese hydroelectric
plant in the valley below. Once in Lhasa, the
rest of the day is free for shopping or sightseeing.
At night, there will be a farewell dinner and
you will sleep in the Lhasa Holiday Inn.(B,L,D)
Day 15 : All too soon, you
must catch the morning flight to Kathmandu and
transfer to your selected hotel.
Price: Depending on size of group
