Day 15: Sheep Traffic Jam in Samye
After loading our stuff into the back of the Land Cruiser we made our way slowly through the village, dodging cows, yaks, and various other animals. We were making decent time until we hit a traffic jam of sheep. Apparently some local farmer was taking them on a field trip somewhere. There were hundreds of them crowding around the car on all sides baaaahing and jumping on top of one another. We inched the car forward and they would generally get out of the way.
We made our way back to the trail towards Lhasa, this time a slightly different route that would result in more trail time but an overall shorter drive. Local people were finishing building the trail with shovels as we drove, and occaisionally we’d encounter groups of people building bridges over streams. The majority of these bridges weren’t completed though so we ended up fording most of them. We only got stuck briefly once when our driver was attempting to pass a cow on a sandy section. The cow stopped and stared at us as we worked to get the truck free.
Back in Lhasa we went to the Nam-Tso for lunch again. The food here is good and the place is relatively clean. Even with the weak U.S. dollar one can get a huge meal for two for $8. It’s fun here to order and guess which item is going to come out first. They will serve each item as its ready rather than serving appetizers first or waiting for all of the entrees to be prepared.
After a nap at the Shambhala I went to find their yoga and fitness area. The facility consisted of two very small rooms in a building a couple of doors down that contained some rudimentary yoga and weight equipment. We had been trekking a lot and getting plenty of exercise, but I was badly in need of some gym time. I was pleasantly surprised to find that weight training at 12,000 ft. wasn’t noticeably more difficult than at sea level.
Later on we went for a walk around the streets of Lhasa and ended up on the west end of old Lhasa at the Potala Palace, about a mile from the Shambhala. It was nearing dusk but there was still a numbe rof people mulling about in the courtyard, taking photos, or praying. This massive open space – with its richly storied history – seemed eerily empty yet beautiful. It reminded me of standing in Red Square in Moscow.
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