Language

Learning a little useful Tibetan will make your travel in Tibet easier. Close contact with Tibetan locals in their own language is a marvelous experience. Here is a website where you can learn some useful words and phrases: http://wordbridge.com/Tibeng/l. Read the spelled pronunciations, or download the audio and listen.

However, the website will not tell you how to ask the most important question that tourists need to know in any language: "Where is the restroom?" Better plan to use the restrooms at your hotel.


Communication

Communication conditions are greatly improved in Tibet now and it makes communication much easier than before. A number of hotels provide IDD call and fax service as well as there are photocopy facilities in Lhasa. Phone calls can be made from public telephone booths with IC cards or in Telecommunication Centers. There are two Telecommunication Centers in Lhasa, one opposite the Yin Qiao Hotel and the other at the west end of Beijing Dong Lu. Both are next to a post office. IP card service connecting most China cities and many countries is also available in Lhasa. Paging service covers the whole region now. Mobile phone services are also available in Lhasa and other major towns. Pagers and mobile phones with roaming function also provide tourists with a convenient alternative form of communication. International mail service is available at the post offices next to the Telecommunication Centers. Internet is another alternative which is accessible to travelers. There are dozens of internet cafes in Lhasa. The internet service in the Makye Ame Restaurant and the Barkhor cafe are examples. In Chamdo, Ngari and Yadong there are also a number of other internet cafes but they are less reliable.


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