HIGHER and HIGHER: Chapter VI

LHASA: SPIRITUALITY ON THE ROOF OF THE WORLD

In Lhasa, the Haier Brothers find the spiritual connections to their journey run much deeper than they imagined. They take this new found inspiration and use it to help them fulfill their vision: bike to Mt. Everest, the highest point in the world.




Chapter VI FAQ:

1. Do you really need a visa to get into Lhasa, Tibet?
Let us help make a clarification. It's not a visa you need, but a Tibet Tourism Bureau permit. Travel agencies can help attain the permit, which is expensive, and will probably attach a guide as a package. Agencies claim the Chinese government requires tourists have a guide. This is somewhat bogus. To their credit, the guides often can be very knowledgeable, but for our purposes a guide was unnecessary. We were just trying to prepare for the bike trip. We asked for a refund since we didn't need the guide, but the travel agency didn't want to hand us back a few hundred dollars claiming they were responsible for us. Really, the agency couldn't have cared less if we never showed up for a guided tour. Knowing this, we changed our story. We lied and said we were leaving Tibet straightaway. The travel agent then said we needed a train ticket to prove it, but we demanded they just give us the money. After a lot of hemming and hawing, the agent agreed and paid cash. From there, we had our permits and no guide. On a side note, our permits were never examined, not once.

However, there's more to it. Besides the Tibet Tourism Permit, there's another called the Alien Travel Permit that you must purchase if you want to venture most places outside Lhasa. You must go to the Public Security Bureau to obtain the permit. However, guidebooks say the Lhasa PSB won't grant individuals a permit, they must go through an agency which will attach a guide. In a town further up the road (you don't need an ATP to go), called Shigatse, guidebooks say the PSB office there will grant individuals permits. But hold on, we met two foreigners who own a rafting shop in Tibet. Contrary to the advice in guidebooks such as Lonely Planet, they said the PSB in Shigatse wasn't as kind to foreigners, at least not anymore, probably because they felt they were being taken advantage of.

The real point is, these same foreigners laughed off the idea of dealing with these permits if we were riding bikes. On a bike, if you do get stopped by the police, they'll likely just fine you. We in fact were stopped by the police at a check point on the road, but they didn't even ask for a permit. Moreover, they explained that because we were on bikes, we were welcome to continue on our journey. If you want to travel freely in Tibet and disappear into China policy limbo, sit on a bike.

HIGHER and HIGHER: Chapter VII

TOWARD EVEREST: A JOURNEY HIGHER and HIGHER

The Haier Brothers set out across Tibet on bikes. They cross some of the highest, and most daunting, passes in the world, all before a backdrop of pure beauty. It’s almost too big and too high to imagine.




Chapter VII FAQ:

How much did the extreme elevations play into this adventure?
It was hard. I (Brusie) had a sinus infection. The elevation exacerbated the problem in the form of painful pressure headaches. Seabass also had headaches due to the elevation, and on the first two days of the trip experienced altitude fatigue. But our bodies adjusted quickly, and I got some antibiotics in Shigatse.

How long did it take you to complete the trek?
We reached Everest in nine days, or about half the time of what most bike tours take. We reached Katmandu, Nepal in 12.

I'm fifty years old. Do you think I could do it?
If you have a healthy heart, yes. We met a Belgian on the trip; let's just say after we met him we stopped whining so much. He was in his fifties, and had ridden from Belgium to Tibet! We were honored to be in his presence. The man had also accomplished a trip from the north of Africa to the south.

How did you get your bike to Tibet?
Good question. We used China's rail express. It's incredibly cheap and efficient. Although figuring out the pick up/drop off system is a challenge. We bought our bikes in Qingdao, then had them sent to Beijing East Train Station. The bikes arrived a day after we did. To get them, we had to go into a dungeon below the train station. It was fascinating as well as a long walk. From the east train station we rode to Beijing West Train Station. We sent the bikes to Tibet, and they arrived two days after we did. Truly, it was amazing. We feel we were lucky because we didn't do as much research as we should have to deal with the logistic nightmare.

Were those really chickens in the bathroom?
Yes. They wanted out of the rain. We have to admit, it was distressing to use the pit toilets knowing 10 live chickens were next to you at head level.

Did you have a run in with the Chinese authorities in Tibet? Did you see any of the repression often talked about?
Here's an anecdote to consider. The area between Shigatse and Lhatse is an empty desert, devoid of trees, and the road progresses constantly uphill. We ran out of water and decided to hitch a ride to a store to refill. We had a filtration pump, but we were exhausted and, frankly, were lazy. If we could, we wanted a ride up Lagpa Pass too because we were so dead. We lucked out and a Tibetan in one of the huge orange dump trucks (very common on the highways, you see them in the video) picked us up. Of all things, we ran into a Police check point, the first and only one we saw all journey, just a few kilometers up the road. A police officer waved the truck over and told us to climb down. The driver, who we could not communicate with as he spoke very little Chinese, stuck his tongue out at us, we thought as a way to offend us and say "Thanks a lot, jerks." We felt awful. The police officer arrested him. We argued with the officer for about a half an hour, telling him that the driver was helping us. We showed the officer we had no water and added that we would not leave until the man was let go. Finally, the officer relented and said he would let him go, but only after we went up the road. We accepted his promise grudgingly, as how could we know he wouldn't just take the driver away after we left. We felt we had little choice but to take him for his word. We never saw the driver pass us again. Later, I spoke with another Tibetan who knew Mandarin. He told me Tibetans stick there tongues out at you to say they're sorry.

HIGHER and HIGHER: CHAPTER VIII

EVEREST: THE HIGHEST PLACE ON EARTH

Summary:
Eager to fulfill their mission and finally grasp what they’d been seeking, the Haier Brothers make the final push towards Mt. Everest,. But was Everest going to cooperate and offer its inspiration? Suddenly, the Haier Brothers are faced with this most difficult question.




Chapter VIII FAQ:

How high is Everest?
The peak is 8,850 meters or 29,035 feet. It's high.

Are they really going to build a hotel at Everest Base Camp?
The word via the media is yes, however such plans are not official, official. The last official line we've heard is, while there exists no plan, the option is open.

What was Seabass eating?
A dried lamb's leg. It was really good, tasted like buttery jerky.

The pancakes good?
Awesome.

Are you two concerned about the environmental impact of the road to Everest?
Of course, however, we're not so hypocritical to poo-poo the project outright. The idea is politically contentious in some camps, regarding Tibetan autonomy and the environment. But, sometimes letting the world have better, and safer, access to nature's wonders sows the idea that we must take care of them, and everything between them for that matter. Nature's own beauty is its best advocate. Seabass and I are from Washington state in the U.S. We love Mt. Rainier. We have climbed it. The road to the mountain was integral to us visiting the summit; and climbing the summit further solidified our belief that we must care for our earth. By doing so, earth, in it's most natural way, will take care of us.

Did you guys really ride to the peak of Everest?
To know that, you'll have to wait for the sequel.