Today was a good day (surprise, surprise). It was more relaxed and slightly less overwhelming (I only took 100 photos instead of my usual 350-400). It started out with our morning breakfast – and us lamenting the fact that Fran and Mirjam would be leaving our now, close-knit group for their own new adventures the following morning. It was our last full day together!
Tse Tan picked us up once again at 9:00am and we set out for the day. Today it was off to Yam Drok Lake, which is located very high in the mountains - no less than 5,000 metres above sea level. It is one of Tibet’s three holy lakes. It supposedly started out as a very small lake and then Dalai Lama #5 threw his walking stick in the lake and it became quite large. Once again, Ethan put on his iPod as we made the steep ascent into the mountains as the rest of us drank in the beautiful scenery. I have to say that we have been very lucky in Tibet. It was raining at our hotel in the morning when we left, but we chased the sun and caught it. No matter where we have been in this country, the sun has followed us.
It was definitely worth the hour drive to the lake and the sharp rise in altitude that caused all of our ears to pop (this was actually the worst my ears have felt since being here). We got out of the van and surveyed the scene. It was breathtaking. The lake actually reminded me of Lake Moraine in BC. It was a brilliant turquoise colour due to the fact that it was a salt lake. There was also a huge prayer flag pyramid (amazing). Due to the long car ride, however (and the copious amounts of coffee I consumed at breakfast), first stop for me was the “boilet” – you never know what you are going to get – but it will usually end in a smile or quizzical nod at least. Upon exiting the bathroom, we were all immediately pounced upon by locals peddling their wares and tugging on yaks that they wanted to have us take pictures with for money. This was the one thing that was starting to get on our nerves a little in our idyllic paradise. You see, with the dearth of tourists, the locals clamor for business and are EXTREMELY PERSISTENT. It was because of their persistence, however, that David Ethan and I discovered something even more breathtaking.
Love the signs
Yom Drak lake
David and Ethan climb to the top
Prayer flag tower and a yak.
It was a humble home, but full of love, a kitten and a crazy evil dog… but just doing his job protecting the family I guess. He did not stop growling and barring his teeth the whole time we were there. I sure was glad he was chained up. The wall paintings that adorned the exterior and interior of the home were spectacular and the woman very welcoming.
The highlight, however was the children we met outside the home. They were very curious to see Westerners and hung around our van and stared at us. We gave them some candy that we had in the van and their faces lit up and personalities came out. They were quite the characters. I have said it before, and I will say it again: Kids are kids anywhere in the world and it is great to see. We played with them, took photos of them (which they loved seeing again in our digital cameras) and then said our goodbyes – “Calishou”. It was a moving experience, very different from our experience picnicking with the locals, but one I will always remember nonetheless.
We had our driver Tashi drop us at Barkhor street (the market) as Fran and Mirjam wanted to pick up some souvenirs before heading out the next morning (as did David, Ethan and I). We did great in the market, mainly because it was raining a little and the lack of tourists. After wandering and shopping for an hour, it was time to stop at our favourite Tibetan terrace, Gangki Restaurant for some beer and a midday momo.
After drinks were ordered, the gang settled in to write postcards home (sorry kids, I am not the postcard type). We were all somewhat distracted, however, because the music they were playing was all English music from the 70’s to the 90’s – very “easy rock”. All of us, just glad to hear music we knew, sang along to every song – from the Eagles Hotel California, to Lionel Ritchie, the Carpenters, to Celine Dion (I definitely drew the line here! Good lord, there is no escape!). The wait staff really got a kick out of us and just sat and stared and giggled, watching our every move. At one point, a particularly cheesy slow song from the late 70’s came on and so I had to ask Mirjam to dance… and dance we did. We slow danced right on top of that terrace, overlooking Jokhang Monestary in the middle of Lhasa, Tibet. Such a great group. Such good fun.
The Postcard Club
By this point it was 5:30 – so time for some last minute shopping in the market as we were not meeting Susie and Dan until 7:00. I got some souvenirs as did David and Ethan… now the big question: “How the heck are we going to lug it all around with us on the rest of our escapades???” Oh well, we will figure it out.
We met Dan and Susie at 7 and went to the Lhasa Kitchen for dinner. All of us got on famously. We regaled each other with tales of what we had been up to in Tibet, and what we were going to do with the rest of our time travelling. Mirjam and Fran have an organized tour all through southern China and Dan and Suzie are biking from Lhasa to Nepal. After our experiences yesterday with the roads up to Drak Yerpa and today’s trek to Yam Drok, all I can say to them is “good luck! I can’t wait to keep up with their adventures on their blog (you can click on the link at the side of this page to follow along too!)
Our gang - Ethan, David, Mirjam, Fran, Susie, Dan
Today, it truly felt like the last supper for me. Looking around the table, I realized that this may be the last time in a long time that I would see these people. I mean, this is what astounds me about travelling – how you can make such instant, deep connections with people that you only spend 5 days with. I will miss Fran’s sense of humour and penguin, and without Mirjam, who am I going to slow dance with to bad elevator music on terraces with??? The five of us are in the process of making a yearly travel group. Fran wants to go throw cheese at people in Italy, whereas Ethan wants to witness the running of the bulls in Spain. We will see, but we all really want to keep our connection – so I hope the David Daldwin Tour Company will not only live on, but thrive!
Following dinner, it was back to our favourite Yak yoghurt store to talk to our new friends, the shop owners as well as pick up a few last souvenirs. Ethan was in for a surprise when he entered the shop because his concoction from the night before (chocolate/strawberry yoghurt) was now proudly being displayed on the counter! We talked, we laughed, we drank yoghurt together. It was a fitting end.
Tomorrow morning we are waking up early to have one last breakfast with Mirjam and Fran and to see them off to the airport. It will be with a heavy heart that I say goodbye because I just can’t imagine not having them in our group for the rest of our adventures. We truly have become a family (getting hammered on fire water and yak butter tea at the top of a mountain in Tibet will do that to you). One good thing about them going to the airport, however, is that our guide Tse Tan and driver Tashi have to take them, which means the boys get to sleep in in the morning! We are not leaving to tour for the afternoon until 1pm. I am hoping that I can use that time to catch up on my blogging and photos.
Well, that’s all for this post. Until tomorrow, my last full day
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