Qinghai-Tibet Railway and Tibetan Culture

The remarkable Qinghai-Tibet Railway was put into operation on July 1st, 2006. This railway is of great significance in both the economic development and the cultural protection in Tibet. The experts in Tibetology hold that the communication between Tibet and other domestic regions in China is enhanced after the operation of the Qinghai-Tibet Railway and that enhanced communication is beneficial for the development and spreading of Tibetan culture. The Qinghai-Tibet Railway could bring the excellent Tibetan culture to the other regions in Tibet, such as Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu and Guangzhou.

With a long history, Tibetans had created a special and splendid Tibetan culture. The exquisite mural, thangka and butter sculpture have been important component of Chinese spiritual wealth and a precious part of the world cultural heritage. To better display the Tibetan folk traditions and the ancient history of Tibet, the designers of Qinghai-Tibet Railway integrated the typical Tibetan architectural style into the relevant constructions of the railway. Tourists join the Tibet train tours would find the interesting details if you take a careful look of the constructions along Qinghai-Tibet Railway.

With an altitude of 3600 meters, Lhasa Railway Station is the final stop of Qinghai-Tibet Railway. The Tibetan carpet, traditional sculpture, dark red pillars and colorful Tibetan style mascots in the VIP room in the railway station create a thick Tibetan atmosphere. The local Tibetans with bright Tibetan clothes are also an attractive landscape in the railway station.

Noted as one of the most ancient dramas in existing in China, Tibetan opera has a history of more than 1000 years. A lot of Tibetan opera schools and tracks were on the edge of loss before the operation of Qinghai-Tibet Railway. A large number of young Tibetan opera performers left their team due to the laggard economy caused by the limited transportation. Recent years, Tibetan opera gets more audiences with the increasingly number of visitors from different corners of the world. Some of the restaurants and scenic spots in Tibet arrange certain Tibetan opera performance for tourists interested in exploring the ancient Tibetan culture.

The limited transportation and closed consumer market in Tibet greatly affected the spreading of culture in Tibet. The operation of the Qinghai-Tibet Railway greatly promote Tibet's opening to the out world. The improved transportation not only upgrades Tibet's self-development ability but also attract more visitors to pay a visit to Tibet.

Though tourism has been an important part of Tibet economy, Tibet Tourism Bureau established strict restriction on the number of visitors in the important historical relics, such as Potala Palace. A series of measures were adopted for the protection of the cultural sites in different regions in Tibet, such as Norbu Lingka in Lhasa and Sakya Monastery in Shigatse.

Inheritance and development are the best protection for Tibetan culture. The increasingly communication in economy and culture between Tibet and other regions in China after the operation of the Qinghai-Tibet Highway will promote the Tibetan culture protection. The devout pilgrims in other places could head to Lhasa for pilgrimage by the Tibet trains conveniently and bring back the profound Tibetan Buddhism culture.