My party wanted to ride

My 2 companions, my nephew, Zac and my niece, Karin, both wanted to ride. It was 60 yuan per person just to have the horse led round the field. We got the price down to 50 yuan per person. I had Karin's cellphone camera and my own and had to use both of them as fast as I can. She was pleased with her pictures. I said, that's what I do for my craft.

The temple with the golden roof

Looking at these pictures again, I wondered why I refused to pay the 10 yuan to get in to see it. Regrets are not for the things we did but for the things we didn't do or the things we didn't buy. I have my regrets now, I can't tell you what was inside this temple.

Horses

 Just outside the temple with the golden roof are these horses. Though the horse festival is over, the locals offer horse rides for 60 yuan per person.

The visitors takes rides around the grassland. The visitors are mostly Han Chinese folks from the bigger cities.

 August 4th, 2013 Sunday
the world is so far away
the chants of monks
the chirping of birds
colorful butterflies, flirting with the wild meadow flowers
the hot Tibetan sun above
a gentle breeze
its surreal
wild flower meadow
white, yellow, baby blue, violet, pink
colorful prayer flags
blue sky
big white clouds
rolling green hills and pastures
time is standing still
I can't hold this moment much longer
that's what makes it so precious
only people who have been here can understand the beauty of Tibet.

Friends we meet on our trip join us to stroll the town and some to dine with us at Khampa guesthouse.

Tagong grassland

 The Han Chinese loves to come here for photo shoots. I saw this couple, I don't know what they were supposed to do.

 More photo shoots.

 The grasslands are in its most glorious in late summer with wild meadow flowers everywhere.

A few niomads can be seen up and about or else there's nothing going on and its beautiful.

Tagong

 Tagong, a dusty, one street town stole our hearts. It had so much charm.

 Here are some local women walking the kora around the temple complex. There is one big temple in the center of town.

 All around on the hillside are numerous colorful prayer flags and chortens, a sign of an active Tibetan Buddhist community.

Just outside of town and in the middle of the grassland is this beautiful temple complex, the twmple with the golden roof. Its just a short walk outside of town. It's an absolutely amazing place, can't imagine some place so small and insignificant could hold so much charm.

The Snowland guesthouse in Tagong

 The courtyard, kind of overgrown, the owner and the family lives here too. It is so rustic, almost like a homestay, but very fun.

 Our room, very basic, 2 beds, a shower and squat toilet. Zac stayed in another wing. It was so cheap, 70 yuan per night, about US$13.

 pictures of previous visitors line the wall of the restaurant.

Very often, visitors leave their books, the books became too heavy to haul around in backpacks and on and off buses, so you leave them behind. I've often done it. Or sometimes you would take away some of these left behind books, Sophie has often done that.