Tibet has always been known as The Roof of the World. For millennia it has attracted and enthralled visitors, and touched them with the magic of its mysteries.
Tibet (Tibet Autonomous Region) is situated in the southwest of China bordering the internal provinces of Xinjiang, Qinghai, Sichuan and Yunnan. Externally it is bordered by India, Burma, Bhutan, Sikkim and Nepal. It covers a vast area of 120 sq km. (29,652 acres), standing the second after Xinjiang in China. But it only owns the thinnest population of 2.6 million, more than 90% of which are the Tibetans themselves; other nationalities like Han, Hui, Mongol also found in the two biggest cities of Lhasa, Shigatse and other cities and towns. At the average altitude of over 4,000 m. (13,123 ft.), this region boasts of many huge mountains like Mt. Nyainqentanglha, Karakoram Mountains, Gangdise and Himalayas. The peculiar landscape gives rise to the cold and dry plateau climate in almost all of Tibet except some regions in the south and east like Nyingchi. Despite the adverse conditions, the year-round snow-clad highest mountains still exert a strong pull to mountaineers, adventurers and sightseers near and afar.
Tibetan people in local costume
Tibet is also magically endowed with many other natural wonders like the twin group of sacred mountain and holy lake - Mt. Kailash and Lake Manasarova, the Heavenly Lake Namtso among others. It is also the cradle of many large rivers such as China's Yangtze River, Yellow River, Yarlong Tsangpo River and India's Indus and Ganges. Most geographical features are on a grand scale and one necessarily feels small and insignificant as one stands before the spectacular canyons, valleys, glaciers, and basins and so on in Tibet.
Tibet is actually a land of natural treasures. A number of natural reserves within the region are the home to many rare and valuable wild animals and plants like lesser pandas, yaks, cranes and virgin cypress, spruces and snowdrops among others. The land also produces large amounts of minerals, water energy, wind energy, terrestrial heat and solar energy. Yangpachen is just the first research center for terrestrial heat in China.
Tibet Autonomous Region is located in southwest China and borders Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and Qinghai, Sichuan and Yunnan Provinces.
In south and west, it borders Myanmar, India, Bhutan, Sikkim, Nepal and Kashmir area. It has an area of 1.22 million square kilometers and a population of 2.6163 million. Of its more than 30 ethnic groups such as Han, Monba, Lhoba, Hui, Mongol, Naxi and Nu, the Tibetan account for more than 92.2 percent.
The main part of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, the region has an average elevation of more than 4,000 meters and is famous as the "Roof of the world" and the "Third pole of the earth." The Mt. Qomolangma in the bordering area of China and Nepal is 8,848.13 meters tall, the highest peak in the world.
Tibet has a plateau climate featuring a remarkable change vertically and a big temperature change during the daytime and the night. The North Tibet Plateau is dry and cold. It has a low temperature, a long sunshine time, a strong radiation, less rainfalls and a small density of air.
Agriculture and Livestork are the economic pillars of Tibet, cultivating mainly sheep, goats and yaks, and growing mainly barley, wheat, potato and rape. Also the region produces the famous medicinal such as musk, pilose antler and snow lotus, which enjoy a good reputation at home and abroad. Tibet leads the country in the deposits of hydropower and thermal power and ranks second in the solar energy in the world.
As early as in the late Paleolithic Age the people were found here. In the seventh century, King Songtsan Gambo united Tibet and established the Tubo kingdom. During the seventh and eight centuries, the kingdom established marriage relations twice with the Tang imperial court. In the 13th century, Tibet became an administrative area under the Yuan Dynasty. In the 17th century, the Fifth Dalai Lama established the Kadam Potrang government. The Qing government accepted this local government and sent a minister to the region. After the Revolution of 1911, the Repulican government established a representative office in Tibet in order to strengthen its management of the local goverenment. After the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949 , the Tibet Autonomous Region was founded on September 1, 1965.
Tibet has a long history and beautiful landscape. Its brillint and ancient monasteries and unique local customs attract flocks of tourists. Lhasa, Xigaze, Shannan, Nyingchi, Nagqu, Ngari and Qamdo have different land-forms and fantastic customs. You are welcome to Tibet and to have a look of these rare wonders in the world.
