March 4, 2011

A Tibetan town with 2 important monasteries and a beautiful mosque

Location: Kirti Monastery, Langmusi, Gansu, China (34° 5' 16 N,102° 37' 41 E)
Date: 28 June 2004, 4.10pm
Camera: Canon 300D with kit lens

Langmusi is a small Tibetan town on the border of Sichuan and Gansu. In fact, the northern part of the town is in Gansu while the southern half lies in Sichuan. The town at an altitude of 3,325m is situated in a beautiful valley surrounded by alpine forests and mountains. The town only has a population of around 4,000, with more than 1,000 of them belonging to the two Yellow Hat monasteries found in the village, Sertri Monastery on the north (Gansu) and the larger Kirti Monastery on the south (Sichuan) side of the town. Apart from these two monasteries, there is also a very interesting mosque in the town; the mosque is so “Chinese” looking that one could have mistaken it as a pagoda. This town is also the location of the only Sky Burial Grounds on the whole of China that is open to the public (well, it was still in 2004). The town has a very peaceful feel and is ideal for spending a couple of days hiking around the hills and mountains to discover more pretty remote villages.

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