The problem with going to Tibet is that you need a Travel Permit that only the Tibet Tourism Bureau can issue. To get this permit you need to be part of a tour (made only of yourself if needed) through an agency. You can't get the permit by yourself nor go to Tibet without a guide. It's not very cheap, considering the average travelling cost of China, it's about 400 euro for a 10 days trip when 3 people are travelling. The problem for me is to find travel companions that want to do roughly the same itinerary. There is a couple that wants to do a 11 days trip via the Everest Base Camp and transfer to the border with Nepal, but we would like to find a 4th person to lower the cost. The problem with this is that the agency that can arrange this is based in Xining and I would need to email them my passport and chinese visa copy. While if I found someone here in Chengdu Sim's lovely staff Joy can arrange everything for us. But it would also be useful to leave from Xining instead of Chengdu, and spend a few days in Xining, that is at about 2000 m above sea level, just to start to acclimatise. Altitude Sickness is an issue for travels to Tibet and I would prefer to avoid it. That is why I am not sure I want to join this second couple that is doing more or less the same trip, from Chengdu, but they also want to visit the Namtso lake, that is apparently very beautiful, but even higher, with risk of altitude sickness if you didn't spend enough time in Lhasa to acclimatise (which we won't).
So ... as usual, the eternal undecided ... I am not sure what I want to do.
In the meantime I will go around Chengdu. To some nice park to watch people chill out on a Sunday afternoon.
