Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The large, active, Gelugpa-sect Riwo Dechen Monastery sprawls above Chongye's old
town across the lower slopes of Mt Chingwa below the fort. The main assembly hall has a
statue and throne of the 5th Dalai Lama. Just below the monastery is a grand new chörten.
Chingwa Tagtse Dzong
FORT
(, Qīngwǎ Dázī Gōng )
This
dzong
can be seen clearly from Chongye town and from the burial mounds, its crum-
bling ramparts straddling a ridge of Mt Chingwa. Once one of the most powerful forts in
central Tibet, it dates back to the time of the early Yarlung kings. The
dzong
is also celeb-
rated as the birthplace of the great fifth Dalai Lama. There is nothing to see in the fort it-
self, but again you are rewarded with some great views if you hike up from the reconstruc-
ted red chapel near Riwo Dechen Monastery.
