Part 1
Tibet! I think everybody wants to visit this country and to feel its spirit, but before this, you have to find out more about it, to get acquainted with main travel tips in order to be prepared…
1. So, the first of 8 travel tips can be named - Best Time For Visiting
Climate in Tibet is the typical downy special climate. And don’t feel upset, but, it can vary throughout the day and different places in Tibet. Pay attention, you can visit Tibet at any time, but the best time is from April to October. From May to September (especially July and August), as a rule, comes a rainy season, so don’t forget your umbrellas.
You need only 4 documents to visit and travel freely in Tibet: the Chinese Visa, the second one is Tibet Permit, the third one is the Travel Permit when you are planning to travel to the closed areas in Tibet which you can obtain it after you arrive in Tibet (So, the 1st question what travel permit is? This paper is also called Aliens’ Travel Permit (A.T.P) and it is required to visit closed areas), and the fourth document is the Military Permit (not always, only if are going to visit some special areas: Ngari, Nyingchi, and Nagqu). Also, you need a visa and a passport (valid for at least six months).
2. Mountain Sickness
Yeah, I am not mistaken, there is not only an air-sickness, it is another kind of disease, that is very popular among Tibet tourists and it presents a great risk to their health! When at high altitudes, people are lack of oxygen, so symptoms vary, but the most widespread are: dizziness, fatigue, headache, nausea, shortness of breath, loss of appetite and insomnia. As a rule, in the course of acclimatization your health condition will become better and better. Before going to Tibet, visit a doctor and be sure that your heart, lungs and other organs are healthy! But the following precautions will help you to avoid Mountain Sickness: drink as mush as possible, before visiting Tibet and in the country: don’t smoke, don’t drink alcohol, eat more chocolate and fruits. If you already feel sick, don’t even think to go higher.
3. Packing Things
Remember! Tibet is just another place to visit, it is no use to take the whole wardrobe with you. Moreover, it is a remote place, so choose as comfortable things as possible. Nevertheless, you can always ask your travel advisor. But, don’t forget:
• documents (ID card and Travel Permit);
• a folder or a small bag (in order to put very important papers);
• bag (in order to put things, you are going to take with you, while visiting some place of interest);
• lotions, creams, sunglasses and other things in order not to get sun burns;
• cold-weather clothes. Sounds strange? Because, it is so unbelievable to put lotion with SPF and a warm sweater in one bag, while going to catching sun. But, facts are stubborn thing. As you already know, weather in Tibet can changes in a very quick way, so be ready! Walking shoes, rain coat, woolen socks, hiking boots, long-sleeve shirts… all these things are a must!
torches: be ready to power cuts. Very often the electricity can be cut after 10 PM. It is so romantic!
• oxygen bag: it will help to facilitate the symptoms of mountain sickness and in Tibet it is a useful thing, because it (Tibet) is situated very high;
• travel bag: who knows, may be you will decide to spend a very romantic night (in the case, if the electricity will work);
and, of course, medicine: tablets for water purification, chrysanthemum tea, pain-killers, medicines for diarrhea, nausea, colds and fever.
Part 2
Hello, dear Tibet-lovers, now let’s go on with our travel tips! Are you ready to get acquainted with 4 more tips? So, they are the following…
1. Entertainment Tips
First of all - people, they are so kind, hospitable and friendly. They are always ready to open the doors of their houses to you. Just imagine, more than several hundred of palaces. Various clubs, popular sport complexes. So, there is a great number of bars and cafes in Tibet, among the most popular in Lhasa can be named:
• Niwei Recreation City Opposite Youth Mansion;
• Kelsang Metok Minzhu Recreation Center;
• Salon Nightclub Near Lhasa Military Branch Region;
Also, Tibet can be proud of a wide chain of stores, boutiques and just shops, the most interesting and worth visiting is (in Lhasa): Barkhor Street Bazar Inside Barkhor Street. So, anyway, you won’t feel disappointed!
2. Currency Exchange
To tell the truth, only 2 currencies are popular in Tibet (and sometimes exceptionally they can be accepted): US dollar and Chinese Yuan. But, be careful, dollars are not used in each shop and credit cards you can use only at some hotels, moreover, the exchanging rate is fantastically low.
Remember, official and profitable operation you can make only in the Bank of China, it has sub-branches in Lhasa. Sometimes, you can think, that it is no use to go to the official representative office, but you are not right, because making exchanges on the black market, you can be cheated. And this mistake can spoil the rest of your holiday and leave awful impression about this country.
3. Tips for Photographers
I don’t know a single person, who hates making photos, while travelling to new countries. So, I believe, you are not an exception, but before taking your paper or digital memories with you, find out how to make it and not to provoke an international scandal. So, the following travel tips are useful for photo-lovers:
• general preparations, such as taking batteries, taking more films, spare balconies, equip the camera lens with UV lens;
• it is forbidden to make photos inside the chapels, as a rule, you can use a camera in monasteries (unless, lama didn’t tell you not to do so);
• do not offer money to a person you asked to photograph you, better give him or her a small present;
4. Various cultural taboos
There are a lot of them, but let’s just specify the most popular and sometimes harmful, because very often your behaviour can lead to misunderstandings:
• Taboos on social courtesies
So, it is better to forget of naughty words usage, add “la” before a name of a person. Show your respect in everything: take the gift only with 2 hands, while giving wine, tea or other drink, don’t even dare to touch the bottom of bowl. Before drinking a cup of tea or a glass of wine - dip your ring finger in it and flick the wine three time, thus, you will show, that you really respect the heaven, the ancestors and the earth.
• Taboos on behaviors
Do not: step on the threshold while entering the house, use paper with Tibet characters for your personal needs, cross any musical instrument, that is used in the Buddhist mass, enter the house if you see the sign (hanged in front of the house: a fire, for example), touch other people head, come in before the elder people, clap your hands before Tibet people and etc.;
• Taboos on diets
As a rule, people of Tibet, do not eat fish, shrimps, eggs and chicken. As to meat, they do not use monkey, dog and horse.
• Taboos on Belief
While arriving to mountains, do not make rackets (they considered to be provocateurs of rain and storm), do not touch the statue of Buddha, be quiet in a monastery and don’t even dare to kill an animal near a monastery.
Gook luck!
Source: http://travellingboard.net/travel-tips/general-tips-for-travel-tibet/
