The Tibet House in New Delhi provides glimpses of Tibetan culture to the visitors. It is situated at the Institutional Area at Lodhi Road. It is an excellent resource centre for those who look for information about the history of Tibet or Tibetan culture. The activities of Tibet House have been shaped by the long-standing issue of the alleged Chinese intervention of Tibet. The Chinese government officials always maintain that Tibet is a part of China. They never liked the fact that India provided political asylum to the spiritual leader of the Tibetan people, Dalai Lama. But Tibet House largely managed to steer clear of controversies that occasionally surface between China and Dalai Lama, on various affairs, such as the agitations of certain sections of Tibetan people during the recently concluded Beijing Olympics.
The Tibet House was established in 1965 by Dalai Lama. It is said that Tibetan refugees started coming to India even from the late 1950s fearing the alleged atrocities by the Chinese army. The institution is a result of those early refugees’ efforts. The institution hosts a museum that exhibits Tibetan artifacts and other memorabilia of Tibetan origin. It also has a neatly maintained library where books and periodicals that deal with various aspects of Tibetan people and their culture. One can find plenty of books and articles that deal with the so-called Tibet issue involving the Dalai Lama and the Chinese Government. The book collection includes those books that Dalai Lama took with him when he fled from Tibet on the face of mounting Chinese aggression.
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Although I had already visited many Tibetan areas of Qinghai and Sichuan provinces, this trip into Tibet itself had a different feel to it.
First off, foreigners must join a tour group in order to visit Tibet. Second, Tibet itself seemed much more developed than the places we had just seen in Qinghai and Sichuan.
For example, the hotels were much better and the roads were nicely paved and not pockmarked with potholes. Lhasa, the capital of the Tibet, seemed clean and orderly and caters to tourists with its many restaurants, sites and souvenir vendors. The scenery also seemed much larger: brighter sun, bigger mountains, more snow capped peaks and skies that are clear and blue. Temperatures can be warm during the day and then cold at night. The Tibetans that live here are different from the Kham Tibetans we encountered in Qinghai and Sichuan; the attire and language are very different.
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How to describe Tibet? I have heard it called “Shangri La”, and I have heard it called “The Rooftop of the World”, but there is really no accurate way to describe this amazing and mysterious place in a few simple words or even paragraphs. It is an absolutely amazing place that time seems to have forgotten. It features some of the most breathtaking man-made, and natural sites in the world, and as a whole, has the friendliest people I have ever met. They seem to smile and laugh more than any other people in the world. The sky in Tibet is so blue, and seems so low, that if I stood on a chair, I felt like I could have touched. My trip to Tibet with my family, simply put, was a life changing experience.
The first site we visited, and the one which I was most looking forward to visiting, was the Potala Palace. It stands in the center of the city of Lhasa and it took my breath away. I was surprised at how big the whole complex is. The bottom half is painted half, with red buildings on the top. It looks like a giant fortress. It was the home to Tibet’s Dalai Lama. It was packed full of people, but because they limit the amount of tickets sold each day, it was not overwhelming. I’m glad I had a guide, because if one was allowed to wander alone, I’m not sure they could have ever found the way out. It seems to just keep going and going. It is like a huge labyrinth. It is full of unbelievably beautiful treasures. Every square inch seemed to be decorated. Even the ceilings are incredible. Everything seemed to have secret meanings. I’m sure that place could be studied for decades and never be fully understood.
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