Free day at Manasarovar - Shigatse, China
Shigatse, China
Today was a free day so the alarm was not set this morning and we slept in a bit. We woke up at the same time as the sun was coming up and slowly made our way for breakfast, two fried eggs between flat bread. After breakfast Drujal took us up to see the Chiu monastery which is up on a hill overlooking the lake. This monastery belongs to the red sect of Buddhism so it was a bit different from the other monasteries we visited which all belonged to the yellow sect, the main sect here in Tibet. The weather cleared up again for us today with not a cloud in the sky so we got great views of Mount Kailash and Gurla Mandata from the monastery. After our visit to the monastery we returned to the guesthouse. We went down to the lake and I walked in up to my knees. I figure the holy water could work some magic on my feet which are pretty beat up from running season. The lake was freezing cold but good once you got used to it. We then came back in and had lunch, veggie fried rice which was delicious. After lunch, with nothing planned we decided to go for a walk along the lake. We walked along the shore for about two hours in one direction. It was very beautiful and the water crystal clear. Gina was trying to get pictures of the ducks but you couldn't get close enough for a good pictures. We think the local dogs have made them fearful of anything that moves. Once we decided we went far enough, we stopped for a break and a small nap on the rocks. It felt nice though you really need to be cautious of any skin exposed to the sun at this altitude as it has a tendency to burn quite rapidly, even with sunscreen on. It hasn't really been much of a concern as it has been cool and windy most days that long pants and long sleeves have been a must. Just your face and back of your hands you have to watch. The more days that go by, the less of a concern burning my face has become since I haven't been able to shave in about 9 days and the playoff beard is coming in nicely. It will disappear as soon as I can shave it, need to look good for crossing the boarder. We returned along the shore the same way we walked heading out and made it back to the guesthouse late in the afternoon. We had tea at the teahouse and read while waiting for supper. We had meat, vegetable and noodle soup which was fantastic. After supper we headed back to the monetary hill to watch the sunset as we had a clear view of mount Kailash with no clouds tonight. The wind was howling at the top of the hill making things freezing cold and nowhere to hide from it. We stayed on top getting great pictures until the sun went down then hurried back to the guesthouse to warm up. We packed some stuff then went and sat in the teahouse until bed time. Who knew mutton ***** were so flammable. Every time the guesthouse host throws more in the stove they seem to blow up with black smoke coming out of every orifice on the stove until it can get enough air to force it up the chimney. Tomorrow we have a long day on the road as we return to Saga. We now start our journey towards the Nepali border. Happy Thanksgiving to everyone at home. André and Gina