What they found instead was an affluent, breathtakingly planned, 21st century town, with sparkling six-lane roads and glass-front shops that sold all the top international designer labels. Siddharth dubbed Lhasa the most romantic city in the world.
And yet, the mood of the people was somber. Tibet had been reopened to tourists only a few weeks before, after major riots that had taken place earlier in the year.
Three issues seemed to dominate their thinking: Has Tibet been swamped y outsiders-and has its population been diluted? Is Tibet a self-sufficient land with enormous natural resources? And has Tibet historically been an independent land, a protectorate or a province?
Parvez and Siddharth set out to
find the answers.
