Xiahe

 

A few other worthwhile sights lay within a 20km radius. Your only transport options are to hire a taxi from Xiahe for about ¥400 per vehicle, per day 5-8 hours round trip or bicycle. Adventurous travellers can take the early morning bus to Tongren/Repcon 同仁 and get off at Ganjia Town Ganjia Xiang – 甘加乡. From there it would be at least a 10-12 kilometre round trip hike to Bajiao Cheng. You would need to get back to Ganjia town by lunch time to get the bus coming from Xining or Tongren, or catch a motorcycle, taxi, or tractor back to Xiahe.

Sangke grasslands

; wonderful grasslands with many nomad tents and herds of yaks and sheep. 12 km outside Xiahe is Sangke town, where most people who rent a bike go to. There is nothing to see in the town, you really need to go INTO the grasslands to enjoy the wonderful views.

Ancient town of Bajiao

A walled village that was originally built in the Han Dynasty around 2000 years ago. Bajiao Cheng is still inhabited today.

White Rock Cliffs

As you get closer to Bajiao Cheng, you won't be able to miss the cliffs high up in front of you. A small monastery sits right at the foot of the White Rock Cliffs. There is a small village together with the monastery.

Darzong Lake

A highland lake located at just above 3,000 meters 10,000 ft.. Forested mountains surrounding the lake on almost all sides and forests all around. A taxi round trip 2-3 hours costs around ¥100 or take a bus going to Linxia 临夏 or Hezuo （合作）and get off 20km about half an hour down the highway when you see a big sign on the right side of the road. Tell the driver that you want to go to Darzong Lake and he should let you know when you arrive at the turnoff. From there walk about an hour along the dirt road on the left. You will be charged a Â¥10 entrance fee as you pass through the only Tibetan village along the road. Catch another bus from the highway back to town for Â¥5-Â¥10.

 

Literally the centre of town, the monastery is the main focus for visitors and residents alike with all social and commercial activity deriving from it. The Monastery was established in 1709 and expanded greatly in following centuries to become one of the six great monasteries of the Gelukpa sect Yellow Hat of Tibetan Buddhism. The resident monks wear saffron robes, black UGG-style boots and shaggy yellow Mohawk shaped hats, sometimes pitched to impressive heights.

Despite its venerable history, many of the buildings and religious artefacts were destroyed during the Cultural Revolution. What you see now was built during the late 1980s or even more recently. The buildings construction differs from others in the region, being built with stone blocks rather than rammed earth, but the whitewashed multiple-level square designs follow the typical style of Tibetan monastic buildings.

It'd be easy to spend days meandering about the alleys between monks quarters and prayer halls, or follow pilgrims spinning prayer wheels on a loop around the Kora. Despite all the tickets and tours, it's still an active Monastery and you may chance upon the monks engaged in their religious activities.

There are few English signs except for the ubiquitous No Photo, Ticket needed, making it somewhat beguiling to understand what you are looking at. An English tour leaves from the ticket office at 10AM and 3:15PM. Though the guide provides decent explanations as they take you though the halls, some may feel the experience is a bit rushed. As you would expect, no photos are allowed inside buildings and the monks outside are camera shy when conducting a ceremony.

You can explore most of the grounds freely but a ticket is needed to enter some of the smaller chapels ¥10 or the main halls ¥60, whether you join the tour or not. Even with a ticket in hand the halls may be closed or off limits while a ceremony is being conducted. If you prefer to try before you buy, it's not difficult to blunder in for a look without anyone asking for a ticket.

Some places worth seeking out include;

Gongtang Chorten

A newly built golden topped Chorten that you can climb.

Man Jus'ri Temple

Definitely the most impressive hall with several enormous, elaborately decorated, Buddha statues along the rear wall and a pair of small rooms behind. Pilgrims make a clockwise circuit, stopping to make monetary offerings to brightly coloured yak-butter sculptures and pray to silver Chortens containing living Buddhas. At times the hall may reverberate with chanting monks.

Prayer Wheels

Lining about half of the minor Kora are brightly painted wooden drums, spun by an endless procession of mainly elderly pilgrims hopping their efforts will be rewarded in the next life. On each corner is a small room housing huge lumbering wheels that ring a bell with each rotation.

Thangka sunning Terrace

A flat stone slope on the hillside where a giant Thangka is rolled out during the Tibetan New year. The rest of the time its a nice place to sit and get an overview of the Monastery.