I standed near entrance to my guesthouse yesterday and talk with one guy who came to Lhasa recently. Suddenly he bend over, felt and hit concrete floor with his forehead with terrible sound. He gets big wound above his eyebrow. I hired a taxi and together with Tibetan man from the hotel we took him to a hospital. A Tibetan doctor in white overcoat above yakskin clothes put 4 stitches (exactly like to you, LG) and charge $7 for it. I took guy to his hotel.Now he is OK.
What a country, I would recommend everybody to come here for a head injury. In America it would cost you 100 times more. A guy probably had a combine effect of High Altitude Sickness and food poisoning. Lhasa located at 3,600 meters, so everybody get sick in a first time. Every store sell an oxygen in plastic bottles. Air is very dry here so in the middle of night you wake up with completely clogged nose and throat. Hotel provides 2 termoses of hot water and basin. So you can clean your breathing pipes and sleep again. Everybody in my hotel is sneezing, coughing and cleaning nose, me too. I went to pharmacy, only to find a bunch of dried lizards, frogs and seahorses. I like my hotel, Snowland Guesthouse. People are very friendly, mostly young. There is a big balcony inside the yard on which people eat, drink, talk. Soon, you know everybody and everybody knows you.
But I shell continue my story. After I came back from hospital, I went to night market in a company of solo traveling lady from Germany and Israeli doctor. Night market has a lot of restaurant which sell sheep heads, snakes and other yammi stuff. They also sell some suverinires, many made from the human parts. Beautifully curved and painted human skills, drums made from human skills and skin, beautifully decorated clubs made from human leg bones. In a middle of market on the ground a un-consciousness handicapped begger was laying. Crowd of local people smoothly flow around him. A western woman and a doctor cannot pass by such scene. Doctor measured his puls, women tried to find a police to take him to hospital or do something. We collected huge crowd of curious locals. Eventually poor guy gain his concsciousness and walk away on his four. This story remind me a story which happence with our French friend back in Russia. We noticed unusually large amount of hair cutteries. Knowledgeble doctor explained that, them also serve as bordellos. So interesting combination, you get your hair cut and in the same time having a fun. Then we went to Tibetan Disco, which was very interestingly decorated with yalk's skills and horns. We were the only Westerners there and were enthusiastically met by locals. We even went dancing.
I wanted to go by bike to Katmandu, and even made a test ride 40 km out of Lhasa and back. But later I read the description of this route written by the people who made it; about attacking dogs, children throwing stones, and about beautifull hidden campsites. Then, I realized that I am missing most pleasant part of whole endeavour. Without tent and sleeping bag I cannot camp. So I decided to go by land cruizer with side track to Everest Base Camp. I am leaving tomorrow Oct 13 at 7am in a company of two couples, English and American.
There are no Internet Cafes on a way to Katmandu, so you will have a brake from my Travel Notes for 10 days. Lhasa Tibet
Oct 12 2000
10 pm
Alex Mumzhiu