- Home
- 80 Days
- Pole to Pole
- Full Circle
- Hemingway
- Sahara
- Himalaya
- New Europe
- 80 Days Revisited
- Brazil
- Photo Gallery
- Keyword Search
- Photo Search
- Geography
- Accommodation
- Activity
- History
- Nature
- Person
- Transport
- Advanced Search
- The Chatter Box
- Chat Room
- Competition
- Polls
- Register
- Bookshop
- Bibliography
- Links
- Instructions
Himalaya
Day 65: Lhasa
The magnificent Potala Palace in Lhasa. The tallest building in the world before skyscrapers. It was the home of the Dalai Lama until he fled his country after the Chinese invaded in 1950.
But now I see it with my own eyes I realize it is everything it appeared to be: a great Buddha of a building, looking gravely out over the city that was for so long the heart and soul of the Buddhist religion. The only thing I can see that is taller than the Potala Palace is the flagpole at its eastern end, from which flies the red flag of China. Shave, dress, wrap a scarf around me and head for the dining room. A rubber mat in the lift reads 'Wednesday'.
Bas and Nigel are already at breakfast, dressed like Tenzing and Hillary. The staff are apologetic. The hotel is about to close for the winter and the heating has all been turned off. They do have portable radiators and will try to find some for us.
The bad news is that John Pritchard, ace sound recordist, has been examined by a doctor and found to have pulmonary oedema, an accumulation of the fluid in the lung that normally occurs in small amounts at high altitude. He's also showing early indications of pneumonia and must be admitted to hospital at once.
Choose another day from Himalaya
PALIN'S GUIDES
- Series: Himalaya
- Chapter: Day 65: Lhasa
- Country/sea: Tibet
- Place: Lhasa
- Book page no: 158
Bookmarks will keep your place in one or more series. But you'll need to register and/or log in.
){kind=link}