Hiking 2009 - Xiahe

Xiahe (also Labrang) is the second most important town for Tibetan Buddhists after Lhasa. The town hosts Labrang monastery with around 1200 Yellow Hat sect monks.




Sunglasses fashion






To get into Labrang






Temple and Institute of Medicine.






Statue made of yak butter. Monks are making new statues once a year during the Tibetan New Year Celebrations around February.
Nomads are often sacrificing yak butter either melted into candles or just in big chunks.






Prayers making the 3km pilgrim path - Kora - around the monastery.





Sunglasses fashion







Mountain people







Monks shopping








Grass






Traditional printshop in the monastery. Sanskrit print forms.







Cutting a new print form







Gelugpa (yellow hats sect) monks daily studies. Debate, the standing monk who is clapping is asking questions, each question is followed by a loud clap. That garden had many of these small groups of monks and a lot of clapping.







Showing/drawing the location of Norway.






Monk going to midday mass.






Labrang from the top.







Mountain people