Tibetan Hitchhiking

Make sure you read the previous post here before you start this post. We hopped into the back of the two Tibetans’ white SUV. The one in the passenger seat turned to us and asked, “Do you smoke?” holding out two cigarettes. They were both well-dressed, and, driving this kind of car, well-paid. “No. Thanks.” …

Continue reading ‘Tibetan Hitchhiking’ »

Soap-Making in Xining

We never originally planned to come here to this city on the northwest edge of the Tibetan plateau, yet we’ve been resting in Xining for several days. Our Tibetan friend has been wanting to start a business that would help young women in her community get involved in entrepreneurial ventures. Unfortunately, there is not much …

Continue reading ‘Soap-Making in Xining’ »

Tiantang Temple

Tiantang Si, or Tiantang Temple was a tiny town grown up around a large Tibetan temple nestled in a mountain valley separating Gansu and Qinghai Provinces. The day after having climbed Maya Snow Mountain, we took a bus up to the temple, a three hour journey up dirt roads. The temple glimmered atop the town, …

Continue reading ‘Tiantang Temple’ »

Wolves of Tibet

While we were sweating our way up Maya Snow Mountain, the clatter of the baahing sheep enveloping us as a herd passed by, I asked our Tibetan friend, “Other than herd animals, are there any wild animals up here?” “Oh, yes. They have bears, wolves and a kind of leopard. In fact, just a few …

Continue reading ‘Wolves of Tibet’ »

Hike up Maya Snow Mountain – Tibetan Gansu Part III

If you haven’t already checked out Part I or Part II of this series, take a look at them before reading this post. In the 1990’s, our Tibetan friend had once done the hike we were doing, though it was different. Back then, they had travelled on foot from their village for two days. They …

Continue reading ‘Hike up Maya Snow Mountain – Tibetan Gansu Part III’ »

Tibetans along the Silk Road – Tibetan Gansu Part I

The invitation came unexpectedly. An old friend on Facebook saw that the post I put up on our Silk Road Hitchhiking project. She contacted me in a message, telling me that a friend of hers was in Huazangsi, in Tianzhu County, just along the Silk Road in the Gansu Corridor, and she and an Australian …

Continue reading ‘Tibetans along the Silk Road – Tibetan Gansu Part I’ »