Things to do in Shigatse
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Summer Palace of the Panchen Lamas
Though it ranks far below Tashilhunpo, if you have extra time in Shigatse, pay a visit to the Summer Palace of the Panchen Lamas on the south end of town. Recent efforts at rehabilitating the straggly gardens are taking fruit, as is the restoration or reworking of wall murals. While the new paintings cannot compare to the masterly works of the past, they are still quite lovely and, covering every surface of the rooms as they do with vibrant colours and fantastic images, form a rather awesome whole.
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Kelsang Temple
The centrepiece of this remarkable collection of buildings is a large courtyard, which is the focus of festival and monastic activities. This is a fascinating place to sit and watch the pilgrims and monks go about their business. Monks congregate here before their lunch-time service in the main assembly hall. A huge prayer pole rears up from the centre of the flagged courtyard and the surrounding walls are painted with buddhas. There are splendid photo opportunities here.
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Tibet Gang Gyen Carpet Factory
This Tibetan–French joint venture hires and trains impoverished women to weave high-quality 100% Tibetan wool carpets. You can watch carpets being made on the premises and the factory will ship internationally. The entrance is just east of the Gang Gyan Shigatse Orchard Hotel.
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Chapel of Jampa
Walk through the monastery and bear left for the first and probably most impressive of Tashilhunpo's sights: the Chapel of Jampa. An entire building houses the world's largest gilded statue, a 26m figure of Jampa (Maitreya), the Future Buddha. The statue was made in 1914 under the auspices of the ninth Panchen Lama and took some 900 artisans and labourers four years to complete.
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Tashilhunpo Kora
The kora around Tashilhunpo takes just an hour to walk and provides a chance to mingle with pilgrims, turn a few hundred prayer wheels, donate cash to beggars (the other pilgrims will insist you do so) and take some great photos of the monastery from above. About the only negative is that the route is garbage ridden in many spots.
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Tomb of the Fifth to the Ninth Panchen Lamas
Built by the 10th Panchen Lama to replace tombs destroyed in the Cultural Revolution, the central statue is of the ninth Panchen Lama. The 10th Panchen Lama returned to Shigatse from Beijing to dedicate the tomb in 1989. He fulfilled his prediction that he would die on Tibetan soil just three days after the ceremony.
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Tashilhunpo Monastery
The seat of the Panchen Lama and one of Tibetan culture's six great Gelugpa institutions (along with Drepung, Sera and Ganden monasteries in Lhasa; as well as Kumbum and Labrang in Qīnghǎi and Gānsù provinces, respectively). Built in 1447 by a nephew of Tsongkhapa, the monastery is the size of a small village, and lends itself to a half-day or more of exploration and discovery.
In addition to the mesmerising statue of Jampa (Maitreya) Buddha (at nearly 27m high it's the largest gilded statue in the world) in the Temple of the Maitreya, the monastery is famed for the opulent tombs of the fourth and 10th Panchen Lamas. The former saw 85kg of gold and masses of jewels use…
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Tashi Restaurant
Another popular travellers' hangout with a wide range of comfort foods. This Nepali-run restaurant has everything from yoghurt muesli to pizza and Nepali curries to choose from. Staff sometimes give you the impression they've been doing this kind of work for a few too many years. Menu in English.
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Tomb of the 10th Panchen Lama
This dazzling gold-plated funeral chörten holds the remains of the 10th Panchen Lama, who died in 1989. His image is displayed in front of the tomb. The ceiling of the chapel is painted with a Kalachakra (Dukhor in Tibetan) mandala and the walls are painted with buddhas of real gold.
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Songtsen Tibetan Restaurant
This popular Western-style place does hearty breakfasts. It has a great location on the pedestrian-only street, offering views of the pilgrims ambling past as you dine on good Indian, Nepalese, Tibetan or Western fare.
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Traditional Market
Shigatse has a number of shops selling drinks and snacks along Zhufeng Lu and Shandong Lu. There's a traditional market behind the defunct department store selling fruit, vegetables, meats and also breads.
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Gongkar Tibetan Restaurant
This popular local hang-out features the standard momos and noodle dishes, in addition to some easy-to-resist dishes such as yak-tongue soup.
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Victory Chapel
This chapel is a centre for philosophy and houses a large statue of Tsongkhapa flanked by Jampa and Jampelyang (Manjushri). If it's not open, try to convince one of the monks to let you in.
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Kailash Traditional Restaurant
At the end of Zhufeng Lu next to the park is this new travellers' hangout with cosy Tibetan-style seating and decent Nepalese curries, Western breakfasts and sandwiches. Menu in English.
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Zhengxin Restaurant
On a street with a few other Chinese restaurants, the Zhengxin stands out mostly for its English menu and friendly owners. The food is tasty enough but not outstanding. Menu in English.
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Tomb of the Fourth Panchen Lama
The 11m silver-and-gold funerary chörten of the fourth Panchen Lama (1570-1662) was the only tomb chörten to escape destruction during the Cultural Revolution.
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Philosophy College
Not particularly interesting, but you might be lucky and find yourself in time for debating, which is held in the courtyard of the Philosophy College.
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Toread Outdoor Sports
If you are headed off on a trek but totally unprepared you can pick up basic equipment such as tents, stoves and jackets here.
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Jin Long Supermarket
Jin Long Supermarket, on the ground floor of the defunct department store, has a small selection of goods.
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Sifang Supermarket
Sifang Supermarket on the corner of Zhufeng Lu has a wide selection of goods.
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Third Eye Restaurant
There's a great ambience inside this Nepali-run place, with monks sipping butter tea under thangkas, as travellers tuck into spicy Indian dishes.
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