The Potala Palace, in an idyllic shot.  The setting is anything but idyllic, however: just outside the view of this picture are the busy streets and squares of Lhasa, mostly new but already looking old and run down.

Rooftops within the Potala Palace.  Only outdoor shots were allowed at the palace; monks, police, and security cameras closely monitored tourist activity within each palace chamber to make sure no one took pictures without paying a huge price - anywhere from 100 yuan to 1,000 yuan per shot.

The city of Lhasa, from atop the palace.  It looks much better from a distance than up close; unlike most other places I visited throughout this trip, Lhasa is neither a pretty city nor an old city with charming character.  Little of what you see here existed before 1950.  Unlike so many other Chinese cities undergoing massive construction with new streets and sparkling buildings, Lhasa remains quite run down, despite a large amount of Chinese construction over the past decades.

Alongside the palace.  The climbs early in the Tibet trip were quite a challenge, because it took a while to acclimate to Lhasa’s 3,700 meter elevation; the air is pretty thin two miles above sea level.

The palace viewed from Potala Square.  The weather was chilly as well; I wore a sweatshirt nearly the entire time in Tibet, despite it being July.  At least I knew what to expect from the weather here; I was little prepared for anything else.  Our tour guide (who was required by the government to accompany Western tourists) said early on that no matter what one expects from a visit to Tibet, it will be different; and he was right.

The Tibet trip began with a flight from Chengdu to Lhasa, which was crowded with the strangest mix of people I have ever seen on an airplane.  At least half the passengers were Western tourists, many of them backpackers, some on a spiritual quest; the rest were Asian tourists, some well-dressed, others looking as if they had spent their life savings to make this trip.  After arriving at Lhasa’s airport (nearly 60 miles from Lhasa itself), our tour bus to the city stopped at this Tibetan village along the way.

This was the standard greeting throughout Tibet whenever the tour bus stopped.  A dozen or more children, often encouraged by their parents, would rush the bus and noisily ask for money from everyone onboard.  Some would attempt to sell trinkets or drinks, but most just asked for money.  When we exited the bus, their hands would make their way into our pockets, searching; some of the more persistant children would follow us around for some time.  It was quite a shock at first, but everyone adapted and learned how to handle these situations.

A Tibetan villager allows herself and her child to be photographed, for money.  A vast majority of Tibetans do not allow photographs, and will hide when a camera is pointed in their direction.

The villager allowed us to take pictures inside her house; this is her kitchen...

...and this is the rest of her house.  Her home was much better furnished than most villagers, due to her income from tourists paying her for photographs.  It would be interesting to know how her activities and her relative wealth affected her relations with other villagers.  Regardless, the quick visit in the village and all the activity surrounding it made for a memorable introduction to Tibet.