As mentioned in yesterday's blog we changed guides and after meeting Sonam we have a much higher degree of confidence in him explainIng what we are seeing and that he has actually been on this route before. David was not feeling well after we got back from Ganden Monastery because of an acidic stomach. We had eaten a very light dinner of soup and rice up on the hotel roof top looking at the beautifully lite up Potala Palace. He did not get much sleep so after talking to the new guide he went off to procure more stamps for our postcards and David went back to bed. At 1 pm we were off to the Ramoche Temple. The plan had been to see the monk debate at Sera monastery today at 3pm but Sonam informed us there is no debate on Sunday and that the museum was not open today either so we will fit those items in another days schedule. Another example of the inexperience of our earlier guide. Sonam advised us to drink between .5 to 1 liter of water before going to bed as this would help with sleeping and altitude issues.
The Ramoche Lam walking street near the Ramoche temple was very interesting with all kinds of tea houses and stalls selling all kinds of things including saddles, traditional clothes, and Tibetan style tents. It is amazing how the weaving patterns and colors are similar to the Bedouin of Arabia. The Temple is a sister one to Jokhang but small in size and not holding the same importance but actually we thought much more personable. Next door to the Ramoche is the Tsepak Lhakhang, a chapel with an image of Jampa, the Tibetan name for the Future Buddha, it is the favorite chapel of expecting mothers. We saw many pregnant women with their mothers circumambulate the chapel's outer walls. Next door was another small chapel with the monks praying and beating a drum which we felt was more enjoyable than the big halls perhaps because we were the only tourists there. David was still not feeling well so we just stopped by the travel agency in Lhasa to confirm that our travel permit had been dropped off, went to an ATM to get money. We had a late lunch/ early supper and came back to the room. Laundry was done and post cards written as well as organization for our long day trip tomorrow. We hope to ride a yak. We are taking both sets of binoculars as Lake Nam-tso has a bird sanctuary populated with migratory birds between April and November.
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