Train to Tibet
Superlatives surround the Qinghai-Tibet rail line, as it is the world's highest. A marvel of engineering, the tracks cross the permafrost of the Tibetan plateau to heights greater than 16,000 feet before finally reaching Lhasa, capital city of Tibet. You must sign high altitude waivers before being allowed to board, and the oxygen valves next to each bed are not there for decoration.
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We board the train in the western Chinese city of Xining. The railway station in Xining is gigantic, and the oversized socialist-themed statue in the front looks like something inspired by the USSR of old.
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Remote rail stations are always a treasure trove of people watching.
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Xining's large mosque. Western China is where most of China's Muslim population is located, and it's a population that -- like everything else in China -- is vast. Little known trivia fact: China has more Muslims than Saudi Arabia.
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Time to go! Our train is the one on the left...
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Extra oxygen is pumped through the corridors as the train begins to climb, but each bunk is also equipped with a valve for a more direct administering of oxygen to anyone who might be suffering headaches, nausea, or other effects of altitude sickness. A nasal cannula is provided free of charge to anyone needing one.
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Bright yellow fields of flaxseed plants as far as the eye can see at the lower elevations.
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Even without snow in the summer months, the mountains of the "rooftop of the world" still strike quite an imposing vision.
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A few shots of the immensity of space in the Tibetan Plateau. Every now and then a house would appear in the middle of nowhere.
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One of the strangest things about the long train journey was the occasional stop in the middle of nowhere. Gigantic train stations with no one and nothing around. No one gets on, no one gets off. At one such station, this attendant looks around as if begging for us to give her something to do.
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Spending more than 24 hours on a train can get monotonous at times, but there is always the discovery of new and unusual "Chinglish" signs to keep us amused.
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The temperature drops to near freezing in the middle of the night. The train's movements, together with my shivering, prevented me from getting this shot in focus. Later the temperature dipped another 2 degrees C lower, but by then I was snug in my bed in the upper bunk with oxygen flowing into my nostrils and wasn't about to disconnect myself from all that "comfort" to take an updated photograph.
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Our car was right in the middle of the train, which made it difficult to get shots of the train itself in motion. I had to wait for very steep curves before I could catch a glimpse of the front or back.
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Trying to be artsy with a shadow shot of our train crossing over a bridge...
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Signs of civilization come and go in irregular intervals, and as we head higher we start encountering snow. This time of year the summer sun had melted most of the snow below 18,000 feet, which means we are getting into some really high elevation because we're starting to see snow -- and glaciers!
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Beautiful patterns adorn this traditional Tibetan ger tent.
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The first sighting of yaks has tourists scrambling for their cameras and tripping over each other. Hours later, yaks are a dime a dozen and everyone is already quite used to the sight of them. They really are beautiful animals.
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More in an endless stream of mountains...
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We cross paths with more than one military convoy during the train ride. China is very sensitive about the world seeing tensions with its restive western provinces, but the signs were impossible to overlook. At one stop in the middle of nowhere, a line of Chinese tanks snaked along the track next to us. The guards were not at all happy when they saw our cameras, and we were quickly ordered to put them away.
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Getting closer to Lhasa...
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Lhasa's sleek, modern, and gargantuan train station.
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Chinese military is everywhere in Lhasa and Tibet. From the moment one exits the train station and sees the red Chinese flag, there is no doubt which country holds sovereignty here. Armed soldiers are posted in front of every important building and at most major intersections.
