Better in person

So I finally made it to Lhasa. I can't believe it. Partly because I can't think straight due to the altitude. Besides the headache, breathlessness, and beating heart, I don't feel too bad. Hopefully I will be OK tomorrow.

I know it's cliche, but it's true. Pictures simply don't do the Potala Palace justice. It dominates the skyline, and is awe inspiring.

But, for better or for worse, Tibet is a province (don't let the term "autonomous" fool you) of China now, and Lhasa is a Chinese city, with more Han Chinese than Tibetans. Modern Chinese architecture has replaced traditional Tibetan buildings.

Tibet, represented by the Potala, has become a symbol of Chinese progress. Posters of it were everywhere in Chengdu, and it is on the back of the fifty RMB bill. TV commercials show it between shiny new buildings. Then there is the commercial with the young Chinese teacher teaching “backwards” Tibetan children, all smiling happily.

Everyone deserves the opportunity to modernize, and Westernize if they choose. If they would rather eat at McDonald's than at a noodle shop, that's their right. Wanting to keep Tibet in the dark ages so we can go take pictures of pilgrims and monks is selfish. The problem is that the progress and modernization the Chinese brought seems to have mainly benefited the Chinese, while the Tibetans have become marginalized in their own country.