Dear All,

What people, what a landscape, what political injustice, what an endeavor: after leaving Kashgar 16 weeks ago I arrived in Lhasa in health a few days ago. This stretch of my journey was the hardest so far, both physically and mentally.

Since my departure in Kasgar I cycled 3870km on dusty roads (about 1200km paved, 2670km on gravel), climbed more than 34.000m in altitude difference, crossed 39 passes or plateaus (17 above 5000m, 21 between 4000m and 5000m and a “warm up” of 3300m) and shivered during cold nights in my tent below -20C.

Luckily I could return to civilization gradually; I already spent 6 days in Shigatse, the 2nd biggest city in Tibet. “Returning to civilization” in simple terms means nothing more than harrying the nearest supermarket, finding a warm bed and to stay in there for 2 days eating and sleeping…

Now it is time for a long break: cycle, equipment and driver require some rest and a lot of stuff is in bad shape after the bone shaking ride. Just to mention the major break-downs: my front break went dead more than 1200km ago (making the long and steep downhills even more thrilling), the rear stand disappeared, all fixings of the front dirt board are gone, the front rack makes strange noise, half of the snap-locks of the panniers don’t close anymore, same for all the zippers of the tent and my sleeping mat has a micro hole that requires at least one refill per night before touching the freezing cold ground.

Lhasa is a wonderful place for a winter home. There are only few tourists around but a lot of pilgrims. With decent temperatures during night time (only around -7C) and warm and sunny days we can start every morning with a big breakfast outside on the hotel’s rooftop. As well 4 other cycle friends are staying here making it a pleasant place.

The next weeks I will spend with a lot of repair work, writing the outstanding travelogues (basically all from the start), sorting my pictures and climbing some peaks around the city. Unfortunately my pocket PC got lost or stolen with a full SD card covering 1200km/44 days of photographic documentation. And this on one of the most interesting section in regard to landscape, nomadic life and religious places.

Already for the 2nd time on this journey I wish you Merry Xmas, a Happy New Year 2008 and enough energy to pursue your dreams.

Best Regards from the far distance

Bambi T