May 11, 2007
Rest Day in Shigatse: Tashi Lhunpo
It rained pretty hard last night but the morning shows some opportunity for sunshine so we decide to visit the Tashi Lhunpo Monastery this morning. It is within walking distance from the hotel. The entrance fee has been raised since our guide book was first published to 55 yuan ($8) per person. We grumble but what are you to do?
We start following worshippers on a Kora that takes us past a large chorten and behind the main buildings of the monastery. Then we go inside and quickly get lost amidst the maze of dark chapels, corridors and larger meeting halls. We see a couple of shrines of the former Panchen Lamas, the leaders of this monastery, second only to the Dalai Lama. There is no reference to the current Panchen Lama. The "real" one was identified by a group of leaders of this monastery and endorsed by the Dalai Lama, but he was then whirled away to Beijing by the Chinese. He is considered to be a political prisoner by now. The Chinese then forced the monastery to find another Panchen Lama to their liking who is now "educated" by the Chinese somewhere. The Panchen Lama will play a role in finding a new Dalai Lama....
After some hours wandering around the building we haven't seen half of it, and hunger drives us out. You can really see only so many monasteries...
After lunch and internet, we head back to the hotel. We find out the hotel has a problem, our room had been reserved with all the other "good" rooms for a large group coming in tonight. But since we already paid for it...they are nice, and we agree to move to a room without a bathroom. We get a deal of 100 yuan, and the room is nice.
Throughout the day clouds move in and it feels like rain. In the evening a big downpour starts, happy to be inside.
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