Gansu, the Mainland's Little Lhasa by Tom Carter

Gansu, the Mainland's Little Lhasa by Tom CarterBuddhists from across the region come to worship at
In these over-publicized times of China's new railroadLabuleng, contributing to the colorful activity that gives
to Tibet, one might be better off avoiding the touristXiahe its attractive allure. A three-kilometer kora
circus than rnning away with it. Indeed, unless the(spiritual walking circuit) halos the area and is heavy
reader has a certain fondness for overbooked hotelswith foot traffic from dawn to dusk, whereby
and intrusive, red hat-wearing tour groups, Lhasa iscrimson-robed monks and natively dressed Amdo
hardly the Tibetan delight that travel agencies continuepilgrims spinning hand-held mani wheels orbit the
to bill it as.monastery while breathlessly prostrating themselves
Fortunately, lesser-traveled Gansu province inand chanting.
northwest China offers the cultural charm of TibetIn between turning 1,200 vibrantly painted wooden
without the crowds. Sharing borders with six otherprayer wheels, the resplendently ornamented nomads
provinces except Tibet, it is physically unobvious thatrest beneath stupas to chat and sip yak butter tea, a
Gansu would be home to any kind of Tibetanveritable portrait of Tibetan culture.
population. This, coupled with the great shadows castVisiting the holy capital city of Lhasa on the roof of the
by the ever-popular neighboring Sichuan and Shaanxi,world may sound thrilling, but increasing occupation and
results in Gansu being one of China's well-kept travelrampant tourism has rapidly diluted it from the serene
secrets.The narrowly arching province makes itgetaway it once was. Xiahe, known as Little Lhasa, in
somewhat inconvenient to traverse, yet it is due to thisthe Gansu highlands is a more intimate, and
shapely fact that the northern and southern regionsconveniently closer, alternative for those desiring a
offer dramatically different topography, climate andsecluded retreat of unadulterated Tibetan culture.
culture, lending to Gansu's uniquely varying harm.Transportation
Situated adjacent to both Xinjiang and Qinghai1. Flights from Beijing to Dunhuang Airport, daily at
provinces, the small city of Dunhuang in Gansu's Hexi7:30am (3 hours, 1,880 yuan)
corridor is famed for its mountain-sized sand dunes2. From Langzhou to Xiahe, busses leave the North
and ancient Buddhist grotto cave art. A tree-trimmedBus Station at 7am, 8:30am and 2pm (5 hours, 25
oasis emmed by a limitless expanse of sand,yuan).
Dunhuang, once an important outpost along the SilkAccomodation
Road, is now a travel destination as hot as the outlying1. In Dunhuang, the Feitian Binguan located on Mingshan
deserts.Lu directly across the street from the bus terminal is a
On the theoretically and geographically opposite end ofpopular backpacker hangout, offering dorm rooms and
the province, the mountainous terrain of Xiahe provideshot-water showers for only 20 yuan.
a cool, quiet respite from both the sweltering sands2. There are a number small inns of varying standards
and disorderly tour groups of Dunhuang. Afteralong Renmin Jie in Xiahe, though the Tara and
threading through verdant grasslands grazing with yak,Overseas youth hostels on the west end of town
golden fields of wheat and undulating hills of theseem to be the preferred choice (25 yuan for a dorm
contiguous Qinghai-Tibetan plateau, Xiahe suddenlybed).
appears beneath the surreal blue sky like a monasticRegional cuisine
vision.Hand-pulled noodles and thinner beef-noodle soup
Of the Gannon Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture,(saozi lamian) are provincial favorites. Hui-Muslim
Xiahe is in fact no more than a simple slat-woodinfluences to the north include heavily seasoned mutton
settlement along the Daxia River physically and sociallylamb kabob (yangrou chuan), fresh baked bread (nang)
orbiting the impressive Labuleng, mainland China'sand bushels of fragrant peaches and watermelon.
largest Tibetan monastery. Hugged up against theTibetan fare is simpler, including the notorious yak
surrounding mountainside, the picturesque state knownbutter tea (po cha), a pungent, thick, salty beverage
also as the Labrang Lamma monastery was built inthat Tibetans consume habitually, and Tsampa, a
1710 and accommodates six Buddhist seminaries andnomadic staple of barley flour kneaded with butter tea
over 500 monks of the Yellow Hat sect.to form an edible, nourishing dough.