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The eyes of Logzham, a lama with Ta'er Monastery in northwest China's Xining city, are glowing with delight when talking of Qinghai-Tibet Railway that will start trial operation on July 1.
"I am sure to travel to Tibet by train. I'll see Potala Palace with my own eyes and visit other monasteries in Tibet too," said the lama, who has been staying at Ta'er Monastery in the capital city of Qinghai Province for a dozen years studying Buddhist Scripture.
Logzham has never visited Tibet. So every progress of the plateau railway connecting Lhasa attracted Logzham's attention.
"Qinghai-Tibet Railway is the most frequent topic among us lamas," said Logzham, "Lhasa is the sacred land in our heart and I wish I could go to Lhasa as early as possible and exchange views on studying holy Buddhist scriptures with lamas there.
The 1,956-kilometer-long Qinghai-Tibet railway, which was completed last October, runs across the frozen tundras of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau from Xining to Lhasa. It is the first railway connecting the Tibet Autonomous Region with other parts of China. Before completion of the railway, Tibet was linked with the rest of China by several highways and air routes only.
Preparatory work is going on well for making a success of the trial operation of passenger train service on Qinghai-Tibet Railway scheduled to start on July 1.
For instance, oxygen will be supplied by using a system like central air-conditioning in trains operating on Qinghai-Tibet Railway, which can make the oxygen content in carriages reach 80 percent of that in plain areas.
Oxygen masks will also be installed under seats in carriages, which passengers can use in case they still feel sick. In addition, each train will have a doctor and a nurse for emergency treatment of passengers.
Located in Huangzhong County, some 26 km away from downtown Xining, Ta'er Monastery was built in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) in memory of Tzongkhapa, founder of the Gelugba or Yellow Sect of Tibetan Buddhism. It has become one of China's six famous temples of Lamaism and is home to 10,000 Tibetan-style halls and rooms, and more than 20,000 religious paintings, appliques and wooden sculptures.
Qamra Qamzham, deputy director with the committee for administration of Ta'er Monastery, says the Qinghai-Tibet Railway service will not only shorten the travel time, it also means cheap journeys for common Tibetan Buddhist believers.
Qamra has shown great interest in the reports that extra oxygen will be supplied on trains to help passengers combat altitude sickness.
"With the oxygen service, we won't feel sick on the way to Lhasa and may travel there more times," said Qamra.
(Xinhua News Agency June 12, 2006)
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