Photo taken on the Jinshanling portion of the Great Wall of China in June 2025.
We were scheduled to arrive at Xining Railway Station at 6am, which meant a 5am wake-up call. Surprisingly, I slept really well on the train. A quick toilet break, wash-up, and packing later, we rolled into Xining often called the “Gateway to Tibet.”
Continue reading “Day 12-13: Qinghai Tibet Railway – Xining – Chengdu – Singapore”After breakfast, we headed to Lhasa Railway Station to board the legendary Qinghai-Tibet Railway, beginning our 22-hour journey from Lhasa to Xining.
Our tour guide shared that most travellers take this train from Xining into Lhasa, hence that route is usually much busier. Since we were travelling out from Lhasa, there were noticeably fewer passengers and, best of all, no worries about altitude sickness. A pretty great start already.
Continue reading “Day 11: Riding the Qinghai-Tibet Railway: Lhasa to Xining”After breakfast, we began our long journey back to Lhasa (about 4.5 hour drive) travelling along the China–Nepal Highway and through the vast Yarlung Tsangpo River Valley. It was one of those drives where you simply sit back, gaze out the window, and let the landscape do the talking.
Continue reading “Day 10: Shigatse – Lhasa”After breakfast, we said goodbye to Everest Town and began our journey back to Shigatse. It felt bittersweet leaving this remote corner of the Himalayas behind.
Continue reading “Day 9: From Everest Town to Shigatse”On our way to Shigatse, our tour guide gave us the option of swapping Day 8 and Day 9 of the itinerary and heading straight to Everest Base Camp (EBC) first instead. After a quick discussion with the group members, we decided to go for it – mainly because the weather was good, and physically, we were still feeling strong. Better to go while we still had the energy and the spirit. So yes… today is the day.
Continue reading “Day 8: Shigatse – Everest Town – Everest Base Camp”We left Lhasa today and headed towards Shigatse, a common overnight rest stop for most tours enroute to Everest Base Camp (EBC). Shigatse serves as an important break in the journey, not just to split up the long drive, but also to allow our bodies to acclimatise gradually. Sitting at around 3,840 metres, it’s a good intermediate altitude before pushing on to Dingri and eventually EBC, where elevations climb beyond 5,000 metres.
Continue reading “Day 7: Lhasa – Yamdrok Tso Lake – Shigatse”Today, there was only one destination on the itinerary – Namtso Lake. And once you hear the logistics, you’ll understand why.
Continue reading “Day 6: Lhasa – Namtso Lake – Lhasa”Another early start today with breakfast at 6.30am. We made our way down to the grand hotel lobby and had breakfast at Cloudtop Cafe. Unsurprisingly, the place was almost empty. Way too early for most people, but we had a packed day ahead in Lhasa
Continue reading “Day 5: A Full Day in Lhasa”Today, we said goodbye to beautiful Nyingchi and made our way toward Lhasa. On our way, we visited Basong Lake, often called the most beautiful lake in Tibet or “The Alps of Tibet.” And honestly, you can clearly see why (pictures below do all the talking).
Continue reading “Day 4: From Nyingchi to Lhasa via Basong Lake”