To Zhada, Tibet, China | Week 129 September 18th 2013 | |
A bit of up and over from our roadside campsite.
We are now headed a bit east. Then a bit south. And so on. Tibet is bordered by the Kunlun Mountains to the north and the Himalayas to the south. |
||
A strange (to us) place to put an airport.
44km from town. |
||
Sometimes the rivers flow on the surface.
Other times below ground. |
||
Another little bit of up and over, around a bluff. | ||
Look.
No wires. And significantly, no high fence around it. How odd in a "sensitive area". But whereas we camped beside comms towers with fences in some other countries we wouldn't consider it here. |
||
Stones like these were regular along the side of the road.
Best we could come up with was that they were the local equivalent of cats' eyes. |
||
And up again.
Our average height seems to be above 4,500m. |
||
We've turned south west. To Zhadar.
Surely there must be something worth mining in all this colour. |
||
But too hard to try and figure it all out without some analysis equipment. | ||
Salt. | ||
And yet more colours. | ||
Plus some more. | ||
And even some high level sheep.
About 5,000m. |
||
Either Kamel or Nanda Devi is in the Himalayas, in Western Nepal. | ||
Part of the line of peaks in the far distance. | ||
And between us and the mountains is an earth forest.
Clay. |
||
Honest, it really is between us and the mountains. | ||
And we have to drive through it. | ||
Deeper and deeper. | ||
And deeper. | ||
Until we reach Zhadar.
For food, registration, and a look at the solar kettles on the main street. |
||
Thence to the Guge Kingdom.
A 10th century origin formerly walled city. We are at the top. A steady breathtaking (as in out of breath) climb. The doorway leads down steps cut inside the clay. |
||
Founded by a great grandson of the last monarch of the Tibetan Empire. | ||
The first Guge King split the lands between three sons, one of whom ruled Ladakh, another Puran (to the east). | ||
A Jesuit Minister arrived in 1624.
The land was wetter then than now. He was allowed to establish a church. |
||
Which was possibly the beginning of the end as some dissidents invited Ladakh to invade. | ||
The fifth Dalai Lama, based in Lhasa and leading the Central Tibet Government, conquered the remnants of Guge in 1679-80. | ||
There are three temples preserved on the site.
All contain Buddhist frescoes. One was closed. Two didn't allow photos.
|
||
We decided to drive back through the earth forest, as the sun lowered, and camp higher up, with a view. | ||
Photos are always better with a low sun. | ||
Aren't they? | ||
Camped with Rob and Clary again.
A room with a view. |
||
La Ang Cuo, Barga, Tibet, China | Week 129 September 19th - 20th 2013 | |
Comments | Home | |||
Ian & Jan | Fri, 20 Sep 13 06:02:22 +1000 | |||
Hi Folks! By any chance did you get a copy of how that 'Solar Kettle' works please? I would like to try and replicate it for Morocco just in case the gas runs out or the inverter packs up! At least then we could make a cup of Tea, or even Berber Whisky!! FABULOUS Pictures again, you are certainly having a superb time now, while we sit here in the rain getting very jealous! | ||||
Peter | Fri, 20 Sep 13 09:59:44 +1000 | |||
Great Trip Julian, but so remote, Great pictures, I like the Sola Kettle also, great invention perhaps they could use this idea elsewhere. | ||||