Lhasa is an old town with a history about 1,300 years and first became the capital of Tibet in the 7th century, from then on it remained as the capital during the following centuries. “Lhasa” means “Sacred Place” or “Buddha’s Land” in Tibetan language for the reason of the Buddhism faith of its people and many Monasteries in the town. In Tibetan people’s mind, Lhasa is the “Mecca” in theirs soul. Almost every on dreams to have a day to visit this sacred place. Before liberation, Lhasa was a small town with a population less than 30,000, but today it has grown into a sizable city with 120,000 people.

Climate in summer is one of the mildest in the world, no fear of heat or coldness. During the raining season it usually rains at night, but daytime is always fresh and sunny. In winter, the night is very cold, the temperature could drop as low as 30 degrees below zero. But the daytime is still mild, temperature could rise back to 15 degrees above zero. The altitude of Lhasa is 3,667 meters above sea level.
　

Potala Palace

      Potala Palace, the palace of Dalai Lama, first built in 7th century by King Songtsan Gampo to celebrate his marriage to Princess Wencheng of the Tang Dynasty and the Nepalese princess, rebuilt by 5th Dalai Lama in the 17th century. Sitting on the top of Red Mountain in Lhasa, the palace consists of thirteen stories, has 1,000 rooms and is divided into two sections, the Red Palaces and the White Palaces. It is about 120 meters in height and 360 in width and takes up an area of 90,000 square meters. It is the quintessence of ancient Tibetan architecture and a treasury of Tibetan culture and arts.

Many precious cultural relics such as sutras, images of Buddha, Thangkas, are kept in the palace. In1994, UNESCO inscribed it on the list of World Heritage.
　

Drepung Temple

    Drepung, built in 1416 by Jamyang Chkoje –a disciple of Tsongkapa is the largest monastery in Tibet, with a holding capacity about 10,000 at one time. The main relics:1) Image of Maitreya (the Future Buddha), which is said to be so passionate and vivid that only seeing the Buddha could release one’s suffering: 2) White Conch Shell, which is said to be dug out from the underground of the Temple during the construction by Tsongkapa.3) The funerary stupas of the 2nd, 3rd and 4th Dalai Lamas.

Jokhang Monastery

   Jokhang Temple is the most scared and oldest temple in Tibet, built in the 7th century particularly for the enshrinement of the Sakyamuni image brought by Princess Wencheng, which is believed to be made in the lifetime of Sakyamuni when he aged 12. Pilgrims are always seen at the main entrance prostrating and paying homage to the Sakyamuni’s image and asking for blessings from it. The annual Great Prayer Festival, participated by all the monks of the three great monasteries, is held here since 1409 during the festival the highest ritual services are performed as if this

Sakyamuni’s image were the living Sakyamuni himself and philosophical debates are held, which are mainly for choosing candidates to anticipate in the examination of the Master of Metaphysics degree. In 2000 it was put on the List of World Heritage of the UNESCO.
　

Norbulingka

   Norbulingka, meaning “the Treasure Park” in Tibetan language, is a park formerly used as a bathing spot by the 7th Dalai Lama in mid-18th century and later expanded into a summer resort for Dalai Lamas in the following centuries. After expansion, the palace became the real center for all political and religious activities, therefore it was also called “Summer Palace”. The palace takes up of 360,000 square meters and is the largest among all man-made parks. With its well-designed architectures, beautiful green tufts, colorful flowers, evergreen trees, bamboos and

apple orchards, the Summer Palace attracts many tourists from all over the world. In 2001, UNESCO had it written on the list of the World Heritage.