Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
beautified with islands and more picture-perfect villages with wattle fences on the banks.
Princess Wencheng is said to have stayed in the district, known as Powo, during her jour-
ney to Lhasa in the 7th century.
The final uphill stretch from Pomi continues along the Parlung Tsangpo through a land-
scape of pine forests and canyons, until Rawok and its two beautiful lakes.
It's always worth asking your tour agency what additional side routes or destinations
might be open or closed when you plan to visit.
Rutok & Songdo ,
Around three hours' drive from Lhasa is the one-street hot-springs town of
Rutok
(Rìduō)
(elev 4300m), named after the monastery on the north hillside. On the main road you'll
find rows of Chinese restaurants and Tibetan teahouses, as well as a large indoor hot-
spring swimming pool (per person ¥98). Rutok is also the trailhead for the six-day trek to
Lhamo La-tso and the junction with the road heading south toward Tsetang and Samye, for
those who want to finish their loop of eastern Tibet with a visit to the Yarlung Tsangpo
Valley.
Not far from Rutok, after crossing the 5013m Pa-la pass, is
Songdo
(Sōngduō), which
also has hot springs (though they were closed to foreigners at the time of writing) and rows
of Chinese and Tibetan restaurants. Most travellers stop here for lunch on the way from
Lhasa.
Gyalam: the Ancient Tea-Horse Road
Around the 4381km mark on Hwy 318, near the town of Gyamda, is a suspension bridge
festooned with prayer flags. The trail that continues on the other side is part of an ancient
trade route (called Gyalam in Tibetan, and the Ancient Tea-Horse Road, , in Chinese) link-
ing Sìchuān, Yúnnán, Tibet and also India. It was still one of the main trade and commu-
nication routes between western China and Tibet as late as the 1940s. Today, foreign trav-
ellers can follow the trail for a short distance to a lookout and some stones engraved with
Buddhist mantras associated with Amitabha.
