Tibet: Potala Palace in Lhasa

Potala Palace strikes you as otherworldly the first time you glance at it. It was the seat of 14 Dalai Lama and the central palace in Tibet. The complex rises 13 whopping floors above the valley floor (which itself is at an altitude of 3,700m/12,100ft above the sea level). Just walking the stairs up to the top at this elevation is no joking matter unless you are acclimatized. The palace is built in a traditional Tibetan fortress-like architecture of inward sloping square walls and deep-set windows. The museum inside doesn’t allow photography but it’s beyond insane – there are 1000 rooms, 10,000 shrines, and 200,000 statues inside, many made of pure gold. It’s a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
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