|
|
|
home »
tibet »
geography |
|
|
Tibet, a rich and beautiful land, is
located at the main part of Qinghai-Tibet plateau,
south-West frontier of China. Tibet borders with
Sichuan, Yuannan, Qinghai And Xinjiang; to the south
contiguous to India, Nepal, Sikkim, Bhutan and Burma,
and bounded by Kashmir on the west. When the word Tibet
is mentioned something icy chills the readers' nerves.
In fact it snows only once or twice in a year and owing
to the perpetuity of bright sunshine, it is not at all
cold during the daytime even in the coldest of the
winter. Tibet is so sunny that it produces a year-round
sunshine of over 3,000 hours in a year. Its old
name-"land of snow" - the name by which Tibet is almost
popularly known as, is always thickly covered with snow
with hardly any signs Of inhabitation. In fact, it is
correct only when it is referred to the world greatest
ranges located in Ima, the Tisi, and like. These ranges,
run by leaps and bounds across the country showing their
beautiful snow covered peaks against the bluest of
skies. |
 |
|
Geographically, Tibet can be divided into three major
parts, the east, north and south. The eastern part is
forest region, occupying approximately one-fourth of the
land. Virgin forests run The entire breadth and length
of this part of Tibet. The northern part is open
grassland, where nomads and yak and sheep dwell here.
This part occupies approximately half of Tibet. The
southern and central part is agricultural region,
occupying about one-fourth of Tibet's land area. with
all major Tibetan cities and towns such as Lhasa,
Shigatse, Gyantse ad Tsetang located in this area, it is
considered the cultural center of Tibet. The total area
of the Tibet Autonomous Region is 1,200,000 square
kilometers and its population is 1,890,000. The region
is administratively divided into one municipality and
six prefectures. The municipality is Lhasa, while the
six prefectures are Shigatse, Ngari, Lhaoka, Chamdo,
Nakchu and Nyingtri (kongpo). The People's Government of
the Tibet Autonomous Region exercises the highest
administrative authority in Tibet. |
____________________________________________________________________________________________ |
Climate Of Tibet |
Basically, the Tibetan climate is not
as harsh as many people imagine it to be. The best time
of year to be in Tibet is from April to the beginning of
November, after which temperatures start to plummet.
The central Tibet, including Lhasa, Gyantse, Shigatse
and Tsedang, generally has very mild weather from April
to November, though July and August can be rainy - these
two months usually see around half of Tibet's annual
rainfall.
October and November often bring some dazzling clear
weather and daytime temperatures can be quite
comfortable at Tibet's lower altitude.
The coldest months are from December to February. It is
not impossible to visit Tibet in winter. The low
altitude valleys of Tibet (around Lhasa, Shigatse and
Tsedang) see very little snow.
Spring does not really get under way until April, though
March can have warm sunny days and is not necessarily a
bad month to be in Tibet. More specific information in
different areas:
Lhasa - the border of Nepal/China : The Friendship
highway is basically in good conditions year around. But
from December to February, the thawed road could make
some trouble Besides, try to avoid August - landslide
could happen in the rainy season.
Mt. Everest Region : Early May and early October are the
best time to visit Mt. Everest. Due to the clear
weather, you have great chance to see Mt. Everest's true
face. From December to February, it's too cold to go to
this region. But the magnetism of Mt. Everest always
attracts people anytime of the year.
Ali (Mt.Kailash) : Even without climate restrictions,
this area is already inhospitable. Big rain and snow
could make the journey worse. However, for those
determined tourists, the appropriate time is May, June,
July, September and October.
Eastern Tibet : Don't touch this area in July or August,
the rain could ruin the road, and make terrible
landslides. While in winter, the road could be frozen.
Northern Tibet : With the average altitude of 4,500m,
this area offers very limited time for tourists. Summer
is the prime time to enjoy the great plain in northern
Tibet. |
|
|
|
|
