The Ever Changing Lhasa, Tibet

I have traveled China and Tibet for over 25 years watching the changes and the growth.  It has been like watching the U.S. from 1900 to 2014 in the span of just those 25 years.  It is what keeps me going back time and time again to see and watch the changes going on in China.  As a tour operator I work all over China so I see all those changes first hand from year to year.  My first visit to Lhasa was in 1994 when the population was only 250,000 people.  Few hotels on the par of the west but there was an old Holiday Inn at the time which is now under another name.  The others were two and three star hotels and a variety of hostels.  Mostly Chinese and Tibetan food with something similar to western food.  Buildings were only two stories tall and many dirt or gravel streets and roads.  Chinese lived on one side of the town and Tibetans on the other side.  That was 1994 but today when I have been there I can see the difference in these  photos with the population now over 450,000 people.  Motorcycles, cars and the new Tibet train from Beijing have brought many more modern conveniences to Lhasa along with western food in quaint restaurants.  I toured the St. Regis Lhasa Resort Hotel where rooms start at $550 per night to $2,500 per night.  The swimming pool is lined with 24 ct. gold which shimmers with the underwater lights.  There are now 4 star hotels such as the Lhasa Hotel and the Sheraton.  The Monasteries and the Potala Palace are the main sights to visit but the markets and local people contribute to a very cultural tour.  For more information on touring Tibet check my web site with private packaged tours at www.interlakechinatours.com
Click on the photos for a full screen view!