"It was a hard decision to make," said Wangdu, whose family lives in the Metog Jangse Courtyard in the old part of the Tibetan capital. The famous Jokhang Monastery and busy Barkor Street are well within walking distance.

His parents, in their 70s, strongly objected to the idea of a private toilet inside the family's living quarter. The stink from the old public dry and squat toilet in the courtyard shouldn't enter the house, they argued.

But Wangdu's two school-age children welcomed the modern toilet. They'd tried it in others' homes and loved it.

After serious discussions, Wangdu, director of the Ethnic Furniture Factory in the old Lhasa town, went ahead with installing the new toilet in the renovated family's new home.

Introduction of the modern toilet was only one of the many nut issues local builders and architects encountered during the past two years in the renovation of the old houses in the old town of Lhasa.

City heritage

The project, which started in April 2002, involved a government fund of 70 million yuan (US$8.45 million), covering the renovation of 56 old courtyards in the old Lhasa town.

The old Lhasa town has seen the passage of some 1,300 years.

Of the 56 old courtyards, 47, including the courtyard where Wangdu lives, are homes of ordinary local Tibetans.

As the economy develops and life improves, the local residents desire roomy and clean space instead of their small, low, dark and damp houses.

According to Tashi Dorje, a former Lhasa city top legislator, many of the crowded old houses were rundown with difficult accesses for clean water, and poor fire prevention measures.

Tsering Drolkar's family lives in the Samdo Courtyard. Before renovation, the courtyard's public toilet was next door to her home.

"Urine often seeped through the wall into our house and we had to dig a burrow to get it out," she recalled.

The old-styled public toilet also contaminated the underground water. In winter, the residents drew water from the well in the courtyard and most had experiences of diarrhoea.

Thus for the city government, the renovation project, in part, was to enable the residents to live in a safe and clean environment of modern hygienic and safety standards.

The city also took the chance to improve the infrastructure like electricity and water supply and sewage systems.

However, in the old town of 130 hectares, there are seven third-class cultural protection organizations and 93 protected courtyards proclaimed by the Lhasa municipal government.

The city Administration of Cultural Heritage pointed out the need to protect cultural relics, traditional courtyards, the arrangement and style of the old city (including the arrangement of streets, bridges, historical monasteries, business areas, residential areas and scenic areas).

Preservation would foster the continuation and development of the cultural tradition of the city, such as folk customs, traditional crafts and specialties and cultural and art relics including poetry, drama, music and painting, the cultural heritage officials argued.

As a result, the city has maintained that any renovation must be in harmony with the traditional Tibetan architecture and cultural ambiance.

Preservation measures

The local Tibetan craftsmen and builders took special care when they repaired the four great courtyards around the Barkor Street, namely the Pangdatsang, Phalha, Guisangze and Manggarnu. The four courtyards had been listed as significant buildings in the first protection group of 93 courtyards in Lhasa.

Pangdatsang Courtyard is located in the southeast of the Barkor Street and was owned by Pangdatsang, a famous wealthy businessman in old Tibet.

It is a typical aristocrat's courtyard in construction style.

After renovation, the main three-story building still faces south, allowing it to be bathed in sunshine. The U-shaped two-storey high wall surrounds the yard, setting off the tall and magnificent main building.

Also a fine example of ancient architects, Akang Courtyard, located very close to the Jokhang Monastery, was rebuilt once in the 1970s, but it was obvious that more work was needed.

In 2000, when Jokhang Monastery applied to be listed as a world cultural heritage site, an expert with UN World Heritage Committee demanded certain measures to be taken to eliminate the danger of fire and other hazards in Akang Courtyard.

Efforts were thus made to move it two to three metres to the south away from the Jokhang Monastery, with a passage along the southern wall of the monastery to allow passage for fire engines.

The renovated Akang Courtyard retains the Tibetan architectural style, with the residents living in the courtyard now enjoying a clean and modern style of living.

Yang Pei, the Tibetan municipal official who took charge of the renovation project, said the city construction bureau employed local Tibetan builders and made use of stone, earth and other materials that abound in the local area.

Labrang Nyingpa Courtyard, after renovation, has become more distinguished in the southern part of Barkor Street and adds special charm in the vicinity of the Jokhang Monastery.

Lhoya, 70, was born in Baxoi County in Qamdo Prefecture. Before retiring, she worked in a filling station in Bangoin County, Nagqu Prefecture. After retirement, she came to live in this neighbourhood of Lhasa. After Pangdatsang Courtyard was renovated, her family moved in.

"The house I live in today was the house of aristocrats before," she said with pride.

Darma Ratana, 75 and a Nepalese businessman, has lived for 63 years in Barkor Street. He moved into the commodious and bright storied building but still remembered the previous dark, low and damp house.

He usually spends the winter in Kathmandu, but lives in Lhasa in summer.

He said he has always been pleasantly surprised at the changes of Lhasa, in particular the construction scale and speed of urban traffic, communications, power supply, water supply and drainage and other infrastructure facilities.

Apart from the preservation of the local cultural heritage, the city also listened to the residents for their ideas.

For instance, during surveys, the city learned that only 30 per cent of the residents wanted to install a private toilet in their own homes.

Thus, the builders made sure to build a new public toilet with flushing water on every floor of the old houses.

Meanwhile, old style public toilets were also rebuilt and fortified and their drainage improved, following the wishes of the elderly residents.

Whatever the changes, "the old town of Lhasa will remain the best preserved ancient town in China," Minyak Choskyi Gyaltsen, a well-known Tibetan architecture expert, said.

(China Daily August 3, 2004)