Tag: Qinghai

Tsongon Po (Qinghai Lake)

Known as Qinghai Lake in Chinese (meaning Green Lake), Kokonor in Mongolian (meaning Blue Lake) and Tsongon Po (མཚོ་སྔོན་པོ།) in Tibetan (meaning Teal Sea), this largest inland saltwater lake in China is found in the Qinghai Province. Amidst the lofty mountains of Xiangpi, Datong, Riyue, and the South Mountain, Qinghai Lake is spread over an area of 4,500 square kilometers at an elevation of 3,200 meters. The natives believe Qinghai Lake is a miracle bestowed by a deity.

The vast grasslands surrounding Qinghai Lake are dotted with flocks of sheep and goats, shepherds’ tents, golden rape seed flowers, and wheat fields. The Qinghai Lake is dotted with five unique-shaped islands including the Haixin Hill, Gucha Hill, Bird Island, Haixi Hill, and Sand Island.

Bird Island (Niaodao)

To the west of the Qinghai Lake is the Niaodao, which is the ‘Kingdom of Birds’. Bird Island covers an area of 0.11 square kilometers and reaches ten meters above the lake. The island is a natural habitat for more than 100,000 birds of diverse species such as swan, gull, sandpipers, wild goose, crane, and even the rare black-necked crane. During the spring and summer months, thousands of birds from as far as Southeast Asia flock to their kingdom to breed.

Haixin Hill (Hill of the Sea Heart)

25 kilometers from the Bird Island is Haixin Hill, also known as ‘Immortal Hill’. It lies to the south of the central Qinghai Lake. Haixin Hill is covered with granite rocks, sandy soil, and vegetation. Achnatherum splendens, Kobresia, Thermopsis lancaolata, wheatgrass, and Oxytropis falcate Bunge are the common plants species found on the island. The Hill of the Sea Heart also has temples and clear springs.

Marine Life in Qinghai Lake

The Qinghai Lake is abundant in fish, especially the Huang fish reputed for being the King of the Lake by locals, and the lone alpine saltwater fish in China. In northwest China, the Qinghai Lake is the largest natural fish habitat. During the breeding season in April and May, schools of Huang fish swim to the nearby rivers to lay eggs.

The ‘Tour of Qinghai Lake’ Cycle Race

The international ‘Tour of Qinghai Lake’ Cycle Race takes place around Qinghai Lake during July and August every year. Since 2002, this event is among Asia’s top cycling events, and is known for having the highest altitude, averaging over 3,000 meters, of all the international cycling races. With twenty teams, and more than a hundred cyclists from all over the world, the race covers a distance of 1,300 kilometers and takes nine days to complete.

June 21, 2016
Yulshul (Yushu)

Mostly inhabited by Tibetans, Yushu (ཡུལ་ཤུལ།) is located in the Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in the southern Qinghai province of China. The town, also referred to as Jyekundo (སྐྱེ་དགུ་མདོ།), Gyêgu, Gyêgudo or Jiegu is a multi-ethnic town with Tibetan nomadic residents and Han Chinese traders. Yushu lies at an elevation of 4,000 meters and has the fountainheads of Asia’s three great rivers – the Yellow River, the Yangtze River, and the Mekong River. The rivers are part of the Sanjiangyuan National Nature Reserve in the region. Besides the Tongtian River Bridge, a stone column inscribed with the reserve’s name was given by the former president, Jiang Zemin.
Jyekundo Dondrubling Monastery

The Jyekundo Monastery is found on a hill overlooking Yushu Town and belongs to the Sakya sect of Tibetan Buddhism. In the past, a Bon Temple was present on the site, but later in 1398, Jyekundo Temple was constructed in its place. It consisted of 16 temples and was home to around 500 monks before the earthquake of 2010 hit the area.

Gyanak Mani Temple

About 6 kilometers east of Jyekundo Town is the Gyanak (Jiana) Mani Stone Field which has an enormous collection of carved prayer stones depicting Buddha sculptures ad mantras. There are over 2 million prayer stones stacked on top of each other spread across a square kilometer and reaching a height of 3 meters. Pilgrims from across the region pay a visit to the temple and make koras of the stone pile.

Temple of Princess Wencheng

Located 20 kilometers south outside of Yushu Town, the temple honors Princess Wencheng of the Tang Dynasty when she was on her way to Lhasa in the 7^th century. Every Tibetan New Year, devotees visit the temple and perform a kora. The area surrounding the temple consists of thousands of prayer flags and offers picturesque views of the grasslands below and snowy mountains far away.

Row of stupas in Yushu

Qinghai Yushu Horse Racing Festival

Every year on 25th July, a Horse Racing Festival is held in the grasslands of the Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in the Qinghai Province for sturdy Khampas to display their sportsmanship. The Yushu Horse Racing Festival is attended by Tibetan nomads across the Kham region, who set up tents for the week-long festivities. The warm weather transforms the valley into lush green spaces ideal for camping and horse racing. Apart from the traditional horse races, there is also folk singing and dancing, Buddhist ceremonies and various other sports and activities as part of the festival. Tibetan herbs and handicrafts are also widely sold during the event. Women dress in their best traditional gowns and ornaments, while monks are seen clad in red robes. The tribal men wear robes with tiger stripes or panther skins.

May 27, 2016
Rebkong (Tongren)

The town of Rebkong (རེབ་གོང་།) in the Huangnan Prefecture has much to offer travelers. Known throughout the years for its art, monasteries, agricultural and mining community, and even for its cultural revolution, visitors can spend days taking in all this historic town has to offer. While the town of Tongren is known as such in Mandarin (同仁).
Its Humble Beginnings

The town that was established around the Longwu Monastery centuries ago in 1301, and would eventually come to form an administrative system that seamlessly combined the Chinese dynastic rule of the time with Buddhism. The town and Monastery were both widely expanded upon during the Ming Dynasty and had turned what was considered a useless region, into a flourishing town mostly filled with soldiers. Today, the monastery is the home of three separate academic institutions, houses several hundred monks, and sees visitors from around the world on a daily basis.

The architecture for the monestary is full of wild colors and designs.

Beauty In Art

Longwu isn’t the only monastery nearby, nor is it the most visited. In fact, many travelers to the area prefer the Wutong Monastery because of its numerous Thangka paintings created by the monastery’s monks. While many of the original pieces were destroyed in the fallout of the Cultural Revolution, the style and beauty that once was, still lives on with the current population of artistically talented monks. Hand ground pigments and gold leaf are still used with the traditional styles that garnered this monastery’s far reaching reputation.

Authentic Items For Sale

These pieces can take anywhere from a few months to a couple years to create, and this is reflected in the price as well as their unbelievable detail. A large piece can sometimes sell for upwards of ¥50,000 (approximately $820 USD), with much smaller pieces usually selling for around ¥500 (approximately $80 USD). There is still plenty of exotic, fashionable clothing sold in the market, alongside souvenirs and local trinkets as well.

One can see the beautiful Tibetan craftsmanship in there buildings

Taking in The Culture

To really blend in with the locals, you will need to eat and play like the locals. Vendors along the streets often sell a variety of unique delicacies, with dried sheep’s head and yak butter tea being among them. For the less adventurous, freshly made yak milk yogurt can be found being sold by some vendors, and many Tibetan restaurants line the streets with more traditional foods. Roaming the streets between the sights, meals, and shopping, you can usually find a few locals gambling the day away with their own style of card and dice games, but welcoming any new players who are willing to take a chance.

Scenic Beauty

For those more interested in the Tibetan landscapes, snowcapped mountains and natural beauty that is prevalent on the Tibetan Plateau, Tongren does not cease to amaze. Within a reasonable walking distance from here, you can find breathtaking hills and grasslands; sparsely spread out on acres with mountains in the background and the common sights of sheep and yak tended to among the acres.

May 27, 2016
Rongwu Monastery

History of Rongwu Monastery

Named for the Rongwu River, which it is located alongside, the Rongwu Monastery (རོང་པོ་དགོན་པ།)rests in Tongren County, Huangnan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture and is less than 200 km from Xining, the capital of Qinghai Province. The Monastery first began as a site for three temples in 1341. Initially established by Rongwu Samten Rinpoche, his younger brother was the designer and architect for the compound. The Temple of Three Buddhas was the first to be built, followed by the Golden Temple. It wasn’t until the first reincarnation of Rongwu Samten Rinpoche was recognized however, that the monastery was founded at the site of the three temples. Interestingly enough, the Monastery initially began under the Sakya Sect Monastery, however, over the years it became part of the Gelugpa Sect of Buddhism.

Expansion

Over the centuries, Rongwu Monastery has been expanded and updated and in 1991, when the eighth incarnation of Rongwu Samten Rinpoche was recognized, Yarba Chogyi, the Monastery received its newest building and further expansions. Yarba Chogyi built stupas at the four corners of the Monastery as well as a Victory Stupa. He had sayings of Buddha written in gold in various locations and even commissioned statues of Tsong Kapa. His greatest addition however, was the large prayer hall within the compound. Today, there are several significant buildings at Rongwu Monastery including The Great Sutra Hall, The Manjushri Hall, and the Main Assembly Hall.

Monastic Colleges

The first monastic college was established by Shartsang Gyatso in 1630, in which multiple Buddhist dialects were taught. Following several re-incarnations of Shartsang Lobsang Trinley Longtok Gyatso, the college was expanded and new halls were built to host the new colleges that were to come. The Gyamat Tratsang, or The Lower Tantric College, was established next, focusing on the study of the scriptures. This was followed by The Duikor Tratsang, or the college of Kalachakra, the study of the wheel of time.

Cham Dance

Performed during the Monlam Prayer Festival, the Cham Dance is a common sight at the Rongwu Monastery. The dance consists of traditional Tibetan instruments played by the monks and is meant to be a form of meditation and offering to the Gods. While it is not found in all sects of Buddhism, the monks at Rongwu Monastery are known for their impressive displays.

May 25, 2016
Chabcha (Gonghe)

Among the grasslands of Qinghai province, sitting in its own valley, lies the ever growing town of Chabcha (ཆབ་ཆ།). Known in Mandarin as Gonghe (共和县), this prefectural capital of Hainan has everything from crowded markets to beautiful landscapes and over the years has become a center point for transportation and goods due to its geographical proximity to many other attractive locations.

To the north of Chabcha, you can see the edge of Lake Qinghai, the largest fresh water lake on the Qinghai-Tibet plateau and a popular grazing location for local nomadic herders. Nomadic practices were historically predominant and spread throughout most of Asia. These grasslands were perfect for raising livestock as opposed to growing crops in an unsuitable terrain. It is thought that because of these grasslands, the nomadic populations of the region were able to occupy and colonize the area much earlier than other parts of Asia. Among the grasslands above, you can still find many nomads camping and raising livestock.

Surrounding the town are several monasteries and temples, including the Panchen Lama Memorial Stupa. Here the monks have started selling butter candles to both pilgrims and tourists alike, as a source of income. These efforts were put in place to fund efforts to increase international tourism and have since been very helpful. Not far from here you can also find the Jiayi Temple as well.

One of the most notable locations in the area is the branch campus of Qinghai Normal University. Founded in 1956, QHNU has become one of the key universities at the provincial level in China with major focuses on Science and Liberal Arts. Since then the university has established 2 more colleges, 14 departments, a research institute, and 3 branch locations, including the site in Chabcha (Gonghe). It is very common for students to begin their education at this site before moving on to finish their degrees at the university’s main campus.

April 7, 2016