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Xiahe (夏河)
12 June 2019.
At noon, I arrived in Xiahe just in time for lunch! The ride from Xininig to Xiahe took about 4 hours. It gradually dawned on me that despite it’s Mandarin Chinese name, Xiahe is really a Tibetan City in itself. I had read about it online previously and assumed that it would be a predominantly Chinese city with a significant Tibetan population, similar to Yunnan’s Shangrila etc. However, Xiahe seemed to be a City that truly serves Tibetans in their daily lives.
Xiahe Bus Station. Looks like I was the last to retrieve my backpack from the bus after everyone alighted. 1235 hr.
Xiahe is a bustling city surrounded located literally in the mountains. There was the constant backdrop of peaks beyond. It was probably the central city for its surrounding towns as the infrastructure here was much better developed, everyone seemed to be involved in some kind of commercial business.
First sights of this City built in the mountains.
The city layout itself is very straightforward there were two main roads where the heart of commercial activity resides. Essential amenities like the Bus Station, Hospital, Police Station and Bank were lined up next to one another at the center of one of the two main roads. Beside it were the bigger hotels. A small number of streets branched out from these main roads into dwellings and smaller businesses. Since most shops were located near the center and my pre-booked Hostel was in one of those smaller streets, I thus decided to head to the hostel first to settle down before returning to the Bus Station to buy my ticket out of Xiahe and have lunch at a convenient place near the Bus Station.
It took some time to find the homestay on foot. Yang Kor Homestay is run by a Tibetan family who welcomes international guests. 1301 hr.
My booking was a bed in a six bed dormitory. I paid the deposit of 76 yuan for two nights stay over the cashier. I was surprised they did not provide a lock for the door. My dormitory opened up to the common courtyard which was nice despite a sweet Tibetan lady entering the dormitory multiple times to clean the room as I got ready to explore the city. Once, the owner walked in to remind me of their hostel breakfast at 15 yuan which I could consider and pre-order if I wanted. I politely smiled, replying I would consider and wondered how I was going to spend the night with an unlocked door. I was likely the only guest for the night and decided not to think too much about it and headed off to get lunch and visit the famous Labrang Monastery for the rest of the day.
The bus stop. The name of every stop has been written in both Tibetan and Mandarin Chinese. If you do take the public bus, they will even alert you on the next station by indicating a blinking light on a backlit map together with a verbal announcement of the name of the next station.
Xiahe’s local bus station only sold bus tickets departing the next day. As I was intending to stay two nights, I could only come back to buy the ticket the next day. It was alright as Xiahe is a small city, everywhere seemed to be reachable by foot as long as one is not in a rush.
Tried to purchase a ticket to Langmusi, my next destination further south for the day after at the bus station. 1441 hr. They only sell tickets for the next day.
Pricelist at the Bus Station.
More street scenes on the way to lunch.
Lunch at 1539 hr. Total 15 yuan.
The residents of Xiahe are mainly the Tibetans and Hui Muslims. Here, I overheard them conversing in Tibetan whilst I was having my lunch at the shop and got to know that the Hui Muslims picked up Tibetan too back in school.
A local mall ono the way to Labrang Monastery. 1624 hr.
Proceeding to the main attraction of Xiahe, the Labrang Monastery is located at the end of Xiahe City itself. The grounds of the Monastery were sprawingly huge. It was early evening, probably the end of the day for the monks who were all around playing and bringing packed food from the city. And I thought they had meals provided for them. The monks were of all ages, living in stone buildings around the Monastery. A garbage truck rolled through the aisle blasting the wail of a lullaby, notifying the monks of its arrival. Unit by unit it drove to, as the monks opened their doors with white bags in hand that are swung into the back of the truck. The entrance to many of the shrines were still open but I was competing with time. I could only see two shrines before they closed the area at 1800. Nonetheless, the entire monastery was still very much alive and as I walked along the aisle, I came to the pathway of Tibetan pilgrims who were doing the full postrations. Following them, I began to realize that there was a pathway around the monastery which the local Tibetans walked through as part of their circumambulation route. The crowd around me consisted of both young and elderly Tibetans, some walking with their beads in hand, some doing the full postrations.
The locals make three circumambulations every evening, with each round lasting approximately 45 minutes around the sprawling monastery. The circumambulation route around the entire monastery consists of spinning prayer wheels inscribed with mantras around monastery and walking along the hill behind the monastery, rounding up at the entrance of the monastery. Locals circumambulate the route in silence, their minds either focused on silent chanting or being aware of the present. It was an extremely peaceful feeling walking amongst them. The route led to the entrance of Labrang Monastery itself which was the start and end point for most and I decidedly followed the pilgrims past the entrance for another round of circumambulation.
The grounds of Labrang Monastery. 1728 hr.
Not long after, someone greeted me from behind. He was a young Tibetan in his mid twenties and was making merits after work. He wondered why I was there and shared a bit about their daily routine, they would come to Labrang and circumambulate 3 rounds in the evening. He spoke fluent Chinese, and seemed a helpful guide. He recommended me to take a shared cab to Sangke Grasslands the next day instead of flagging down a cab which would cost a hefty sum. Theconversation soon turned to ourselves. He had recently gotten a job as a police officer in Xiahe City and knew quite a bit about the economies of other countries which was quite unusual, wanted to travel, wanted to learn foreign languages – he loved the west. Which was nice to hear until he made a request that stunned me momentarily.
I was more disappointed than anything. My bubbly image of an honest, kind-loving Tibetan which had always held true till today had suddenly burst in an instance. I had let myself down for naively thinking that he was genuinely interested in friendly exchange, that I would never hear such a request from a Tibetan.
“You’re the first Tibetan person I’ve come across who has made such a request.”
“I’m different from the other Tibetans. They are too…traditional. Especially the girls.”
I could not believe the irony of the situation. We were walking a circumambulatory route that is supposedly sacred.
“You are from a big city. I thought you would be more open.”
“Then maybe I’m different from the others in the big cities”
He began to narrate a story of his Tibetan friend who had a rendezvous with a girl from Guangzhou. He tried to convince me, saying we could do a quick one. His eyes started to scan the area, his finger pointing towards bits of shrubbery on the slopes. All this while, we never stopped circumambulating the monastery and I tried to hide my disappointment. Somehow, I trusted that he would not use force and we simply continued walking amongst the pilgrims far and between. He may have made what I thought an unthinkable request but remained respectful and there was no reason why I would embarrass him by creating a scene amidst the other pilgrims. When we finally got to the entrance of Labrang Monastery, I bade farewell.
“Alright. I’ll go another round. We Tibetans need to circumambulate three rounds, remember?” he said.
“Sure, I’ll go off first then.”
“Don’t think too much about what I said.”
“I won’t.”
It was still another half hour till dark and I would totally have loved to make another circumambulation but I could only come back the next evening to do so in the current circumstances. Whilst I appreciate that he remained reserved in his mannerisms, I was gripped by a growing sense of fear. My pace fastened as I walked through Xiahe City back to my hostel. The fact that my dormitory room did not have a lock gave me a sense of unease. I knew that the Tibetan family were trustworthy but I was uncomfortable with the way they could simply appear in front of me by opening a door without warning. I was approaching a hotel with bright lights right in front of me. A group of Mainland tourists had arrived at its doors and the receptionist was settling them in. Suddenly, I was inside this hotel, asking the Tibetan lady receptionists for the price of a room. They only had the standard room for 120 yuan per night. I was on the fence, I told them I might come over later.
I hastened my pace, wondering what I should do. My hostel was just down the street from the brightly lit hotel. The skies were darkening as I half-ran down the poorly lit street back to my hostel. I had already paid for two nights at this hostel and staying in a hotel for 120 yuan was not accounted for when I planned my journey. I decided that the deciding factor will be in my room when I got back to the hostel. If there is another female traveller, I will stay, if I appear to be alone I will change my accomodation.
Back to Yangkor Homestay. The compound looked warm and inviting with its bright lights. The sun sets at an earlier time here compared to Xinjiang. 2046 hr.
No one was at the Tibetan Youth hostel when I reached its entrance. I was the only one in my dormitory. They had left the doors to the other rooms facing the common courtyard opened and I could blatantly see that there was no traveller. It was the low season, of course. I already had my answer, and I started to pack. I thought about leaving a note for the owner. I felt remorseful, it would not be a nice feeling to see a guest suddenly gone without reason. I eventually decided against it though, as I could not bring myself to explain that it was the unlocked dormitory doors that were making me uncomfortable. It was solely a small matter of personal preference, I knew this arrangement would have been totally alright for both the Chinese and the Tibetans, they were a communal society built on trust and generosity. The problem was with me, the only circumstance under which I can accept doors without locks would be when I am not the sole individual in the room.
As I rushed out of the youth hostel, the sweet Tibetan cleaning lady called me out. I had not seen her. She did not speak Chinese and I simply said that I was going to live with a friend. “Friend?” she repeated the Chinese word questioningly, as if trying to recall this familiar word. I bade farewell, hoping that she would relate this word to the boss. It seemed a little more understandable that I would forsake a paid two nights stay at his hostel if my friend suddenly turns up and offered me accommodation.
The sight of Crystal Hotel was comforting. It is located along one of the main roads of Xiahe City. Bright lights and the presence of cars gave me much needed reassurance. 2103 hr.
Back at the hotel, another newly arrived group of mainland tourists stood at the reception. I had to admit, seeing these crowds comforted me. The sight of well-parked cars and people walking along brightly lit streets outside the hotel gave me ease. Being attended to by female receptionists put me through a wave of relief.
“I’m sorry, the non air conditioned standard room you wanted just now it has just been taken by the tour group. I only have the air conditioned standard room left.”
“How much does it cost?”
“180 yuan. But you only need to pay the equivalent of the non-air conditioned room which is 125 yuan per night. It’s a free upgrade.”
Apparently, the female receptionists were feeling apologetic that they had not reserved the room for me when I was here earlier. I distinctly remember that I did not request for them to reserve a room, I had only asked about the price was still considering if I should change accommodation. They were so sincere, the extra amount wasted for changing accommodation seemed uncomparable to the hospitality I was receiving.
“You’re travelling alone?” they asked as they looked through my passport for registration.
“Yes. It’s not always fun.”
“You’re brave. We won’t even think of travelling alone.”
My room was perfect. I was most pleased at the door lock. The hotel was neither big nor posh but it was simple and decent at relatively low cost and I knew I would be safe. As the city retired early for the night, there wasn’t a proper meal to be had near the Hotel thus I got instant noodles, three bottles of water, one gummy and one concentrated yoghurt for 14.50 yuan at a nearby convenience store. Perhalps they do still serve dinner somewhere further out but I wasn’t willing to walk any further in the dark.
Settling down at Crystal Hotel. 2116 hr. Slept earlier around 2330 that night.