Brief Observations on Tibet & Nepal
Walking Around Kathmandu While most people take the cheap cabs to see the major sights such as the monkey temple or the big stupa, I opted for the hour-plus walk to further explore the city. Thamel, the main tourist district, contains mostly souvenir shops and western restaurants. Sidewalks are near nonexistent and often you'll be forced to hug the side of the road and endure a prodigious amount of dust kicked up by motorbikes and cars. I walked mainly by myself and once I left Thamel none of the locals gave me a second look or really even acknowledged my presence, but perhaps because I don't have fair skin or light hair.
What Thamel, the tourist district, looks like (though usually with more people and bikes)
An example of walking along one of the busier streets. Actual (narrow) sidewalks were available in most parts of the city though.
Departing from Kathmandu Airport For the international airport in a capital city, the Kathmandu airport leaves much to be desired. You must endure numerous security checks, including: (1) bag scan and pat down at the entrance of the airport, (2) passport boarding pass check to access immigration, (3) another bag scan and pat down to reach the terminals, and finally (4) another pat down before boarding the plane. During steps (3) and (4) the lines are separated into male and female with approximately 90% of passengers male, meaning if you're female you can usually glide through the checks while males are left to wait in long lines. Sounds like a not-as-fun Vegas.
Not one but TWO lines of just men. The women's queue is in the middle but there is no one waiting in line.
Chinese Propaganda There is only one airline (Air China) that flies to Lhasa internationally and the plane's inflight magazine had a fair bit of propaganda including an article written by an "American" about how they went to protest the Dalai Lama. They claimed that the Dalai Lama oppressed religious choices in Tibet and ordered the murder of dissidents. The writer also made sure to note that their protest group was comprised of "beautiful young professionals". Other propaganda included an interview with a Tibetan souvenir hawker who expressed their gratitude of the Chinese government for moving their stand from the main square in Lhasa to a mall several blocks away. Later on we would see other signs of Chinese dominance of Tibetan culture, including Chinese flags placed on top of every monastery or temple, store signs written in large Chinese characters with smaller Tibetan text, and even a large monument directly across from the Potala Palace erected by the Chinese in "celebration" of Chinese/Tibetan peace.
The Chinese monument in the background... sticking up like a middle finger
Altitude Effects The moment my group landed in Lhasa, most of us felt short of breath. In fact, simple physical activity would be quite challenging, even climbing one flight of stairs would require a breather afterward. The effects vary by person, but at the highest point in our trip when we slept at Everest Base Camp, most of us had trouble sleeping due to nagging headaches.
Canned oxygen was sold in Lhasa
People The people in Tibet were amazingly kind. Hard to explain it in words, but go there and you'll see what I mean.
Speed Checks Speed limits in Tibet are enforced by intermittent checkpoints in which the police would check how long it took you to get from one checkpoint to the next. If you arrived too soon, they would know you were speeding. Given the emptiness of the open roads it was hard to stay within the speed limit. Many Tibetans are forced to pullover on the side of the road before a checkpoint and literally just wait there until an appropriate time has passed to make it appear like they were within the speed limits.
Weather The weather in Tibet can swing wildly, and is mostly dependent on whether you are standing in the shade or the sun. In the shade, I would wear a jacket while in the sun it was often quite warm. The sun is so strong in Tibet that eye protection is a must yet almost no Tibetans wear sunglasses (opting for cowboy hats instead). As a result, many Tibetans suffer from cataracts and other eye problems.
Food & Drink Food prices are pretty cheap, usually just a few American dollars. Mostly noodle soup, usually of the yak variety though yak became less common in the smaller cities outside Lhasa. There is no fish on the menus for a variety of reasons: one is the belief that more (fish) lives must be killed to feed a person than a larger animal. Another belief is that due to water burials, it would be like eating your own kind. Beers are very weak in Tibet, only about 2.5% ABV due to the high altitude causing you to feel the effects much sooner. Many of the restaurants (and people) here are called "Tashi", which means good luck. Additionally, many restaurants geared towards westerners copy other menus so items are often almost identical from restaurant to restaurant (there is always a pizza section).
Yak thukpa, or noodle soup
Nightlife Tibet has a pretty progressive drinking culture, allowing groups of women to go drinking by themselves if they wish (in contrast to Nepal in which it was mostly men out drinking). In addition, many go drinking during the weekdays and the party doesn't get started until 11pm or later.
Karaoke show in Shigatse with a large dance floor for later
Intrepid It was my first time using Intrepid and I must say I was impressed. Perhaps the best thing is that the group was comprised of nationals from Australia, the UK, New Zealand, Singapore, and more, giving me contacts around the world should I be traveling in those areas.