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In recent years, the former residence of the Dalai Lama has drawn an influx of devout pilgrims and curious tourists across the country.

Local officials said that the number of visitors has reached 5,000 a year. These include Buddhist believers, monks, officials and journalists.

A Xinhua reporter saw three monks driving a Volkswagen sedan to make a brief pilgrimage at the site. They took a group photo at the courtyard before leaving.

"The Dalai Lama's home is not far way. I went there twice," said Losang Samdan, a Tibetan Buddhist monk at Chorten Ki Monastery in Huzhu County, which neighbors Ping'an County.

"People can visit here whenever they want, which shows that the country's religious policies are really loose and tolerant," Gonpo said, adding that the government never expressed discontent over the worshipping.

"By means of advanced communication technologies, visitors can easily tell what they see to people they know," he said.

The increasing visitors to Hongai Village also brought residents business opportunities. Tsihen wanted to start a canteen in the village with the money expected from selling caterpillar fungus.

"That will cost 30,000 to 40,000 yuan," she said. "We'll buy a car first before buying stocks."