Tibet (17-26 October 2018)
Tibet is a region, which is now ruled by China, that covers much of the Tibetan Plateau in Inner Asia. Tibet is the highest region on Earth, with an average elevation of 4,900 metres (16,000 ft). The highest elevation in Tibet is Mount Everest, Earth's highest mountain, rising 8,848 m (29,029 ft) above sea level. The current population is approximately 3.1 million with an increasing Han population.
I ended up spending ten days in Tibet with the highlights including; Barkhor Square, Jokhang Temple, Debating Monks (Sera Monastery), Polata Palace, Tsamkhung Nunnery, Yamdrok Tso Lake, Tibetan Mountains, Pelkor Chode Monastery, Gyantse Kumbum, Gyatso la pass, Tashilunpo Monastery, Shigatse Bazaar, Mount Everest and the stunning Himalayas.
The temperature ranged from minus 10 to 18c during my stay. The air was extremely dry at this high altitude. At Lhasa the locals all use electric vehicles which means very quiet motorcycles. The major religion is Buddhism. While the religious sights are great (those that survived the Cultural Revolution) in particular the Polata Palace which is the home of the Dali Lama (currently in exile).
However the real highlight was the Tibetan / Himalayas landscape and in particular Mount Everest the highest mountain on earth. I got as high as 5,300 metres above sea level which is still far below the peak of Mount Everest at 8,800 metres.
The sad fact however of Tibet is that it is an occupied by the Chinese Government since the 1960s. They rule with a very firm hand, every house has a Chinese Flag on it, their are Chinese police and military everywhere, closed circuit TV watching you and checkpoints everywhere (I had to use my passport at least 14 times during the ten days). The local Tibetans as a rule can’t get visas to leave China to travel overseas (there are some limited exceptions).
While the Chinese Government has eased up on some restrictions for example the Monasteries are slowly rebuilding there number of monks and the buildings that were wrecked previously. However the current Dali Lama’s picture and an reference is strictly forbidden. An visitors can struggle to get visas to visit this region which is why I entered from Nepal. You can see the Chinese Government investing significant sums into this region in particular the fast rail to better link with the rest of China.
Tibet is an amazing country (or autonomous region of China) and well worth a visit. It’s just sad that a people with such a long and proud history don’t have self determination.
. I actually go more into the day to day experiences on my travel blog but post hear more about the flights and lounges. 
