Your tour leader will meet you and transfer you to the hotel. Rest of the day at leisure.

Morning flight to Lhasa via Chengdu.

The pioneering Tibetologist Csomo de Koros - who never got there -called Lhasa �the furthest goal of all travel.� You will marvel on the modernization as we take a flight now to reach here.

As we breath the rarified atmosphere, we will drive along the Kyi Chu river. On the way, we will stop for pictures and scan the huge countryside for the first sight of the Potala Palace.

Being the first day at this height, complete rest is advised on arrival at the hotel.

We have two full days to leisurely explore this fabled city. Lhasa means �country of the gods,� and for followers of Mahayana, or Great Vehicle Buddhism, it was literally so. The Dalai Lama, old Tibet's secular and religious head, is the physical incarnation of the country's patron, Chenrezig (or Avalokiteshvara), the very principle of compassion on earth. Mahayana is an extremely complex and profound philosophy, and one of the subtexts of this story-filled journey will be getting acquainted with its deities, saints, and Buddhas as you roam Tibet's temples and monasteries.

Tibet's spiritual and governmental nexus was the Potala Palace As you walk out of your hotel and wander Lhasa's streets, you'll constantly look up for new views of the �gravely majestic� palace.

You will visit the Potala and explore the grandest of its myriad rooms, its audience halls and the immense, jeweled burial chortens of past Dalai Lamas, its chamber after chapel after shrine of statuary, frescoes, and paintings (called thangkas). Atop the Palace, overlooking God's Country, you'll visit the apartments of the 13th and 14th Dalai Lamas.

The great key that opened the doors of mystery for the Tibetans is Buddhism, which arrived in the country in the mid-600's. The very symbol of the coming of the Buddha Dharma to Tibet is a statue brought to Tibet by the Chinese wife of Songsten Gampo, the country's first Buddhist king. The statue, called Jo Rimpoche (Precious Lord), represents Sakyamuni, the historic Buddha (who was born in what is now Nepal in circa 563 B.C.)

The Jo Rimpoche is housed in Tibet's holiest temple, the Jokhang. No place in Tibet attracts so many pilgrims, so much spiritual longing. When you visit the Jokhang you may want to join the line of smiling and helpful devotees as it wends through side chapels to the Precious Lord. In Altar of the Earth Peter Gold gives a picture of this wonderful scene (and of the deep attraction Buddhism has for some westerners):Lhasa urbanites, nomads, village farmers, monks and nuns all press together now gracefully and calmly. They create an overwhelming sensory brew of mumbling and cantillating sounds; fermented body and yak butter aromas; and woolen and silk, turquoise and coral bedecked forms in quest of an enlightened mind...the air feels electric on entering the shrine of the Jo Rimpoche. The pilgrim's demeanors are reverently intense as they leave money and, temporarily, their butter lamps upon the altar before the sacred statue.

The Jokhang is circled by the Barkhor, Lhasa's old market. Much has changed in Tibet but the Barkhor still has the air of a medieval bazaar.

In Barkhor you may bargain good-naturedly for dorjes, phurbas, thangkas, and other religious tools, for Tibetan hats and boots, books, turquoise jewelry, everyday exotica, wall hangings, and maybe even some Yak butter. You'll get to know the proud, red-tasseled Khampas from eastern Tibet, the monks, mendicants, and pilgrims who circumambulate the Jokhang, and enjoy bantering with the astute and engaging merchants of this bit of old Tibet.

A number of excursions are possible to monasteries outside of Lhasa. You have the flexibility of exploring all of them (depending on available time) or just a few. Visit Tibet's two greatest monasteries, Drepung (due west of Lhasa) and Sera (just North). Drepung once housed 10,000 monks, and Sera almost as many. If you're lucky, you'll quietly ease into a dark columned hall to see and hear the lilting, booming chanting of the sutras, or perhaps sit under a willow tree and watch as the monks engage in theatrical debate.

We have two full days to leisurely explore this fabled city. Lhasa means �country of the gods,� and for followers of Mahayana, or Great Vehicle Buddhism, it was literally so. The Dalai Lama, old Tibet's secular and religious head, is the physical incarnation of the country's patron, Chenrezig (or Avalokiteshvara), the very principle of compassion on earth. Mahayana is an extremely complex and profound philosophy, and one of the subtexts of this story-filled journey will be getting acquainted with its deities, saints, and Buddhas as you roam Tibet's temples and monasteries.

Tibet's spiritual and governmental nexus was the Potala Palace As you walk out of your hotel and wander Lhasa's streets, you'll constantly look up for new views of the �gravely majestic� palace.

You will visit the Potala and explore the grandest of its myriad rooms, its audience halls and the immense, jeweled burial chortens of past Dalai Lamas, its chamber after chapel after shrine of statuary, frescoes, and paintings (called thangkas). Atop the Palace, overlooking God's Country, you'll visit the apartments of the 13th and 14th Dalai Lamas.

The great key that opened the doors of mystery for the Tibetans is Buddhism, which arrived in the country in the mid-600's. The very symbol of the coming of the Buddha Dharma to Tibet is a statue brought to Tibet by the Chinese wife of Songsten Gampo, the country's first Buddhist king. The statue, called Jo Rimpoche (Precious Lord), represents Sakyamuni, the historic Buddha (who was born in what is now Nepal in circa 563 B.C.)

The Jo Rimpoche is housed in Tibet's holiest temple, the Jokhang. No place in Tibet attracts so many pilgrims, so much spiritual longing. When you visit the Jokhang you may want to join the line of smiling and helpful devotees as it wends through side chapels to the Precious Lord. In Altar of the Earth Peter Gold gives a picture of this wonderful scene (and of the deep attraction Buddhism has for some westerners):Lhasa urbanites, nomads, village farmers, monks and nuns all press together now gracefully and calmly. They create an overwhelming sensory brew of mumbling and cantillating sounds; fermented body and yak butter aromas; and woolen and silk, turquoise and coral bedecked forms in quest of an enlightened mind...the air feels electric on entering the shrine of the Jo Rimpoche. The pilgrim's demeanors are reverently intense as they leave money and, temporarily, their butter lamps upon the altar before the sacred statue.

The Jokhang is circled by the Barkhor, Lhasa's old market. Much has changed in Tibet but the Barkhor still has the air of a medieval bazaar.

In Barkhor you may bargain good-naturedly for dorjes, phurbas, thangkas, and other religious tools, for Tibetan hats and boots, books, turquoise jewelry, everyday exotica, wall hangings, and maybe even some Yak butter. You'll get to know the proud, red-tasseled Khampas from eastern Tibet, the monks, mendicants, and pilgrims who circumambulate the Jokhang, and enjoy bantering with the astute and engaging merchants of this bit of old Tibet.

A number of excursions are possible to monasteries outside of Lhasa. You have the flexibility of exploring all of them (depending on available time) or just a few. Visit Tibet's two greatest monasteries, Drepung (due west of Lhasa) and Sera (just North). Drepung once housed 10,000 monks, and Sera almost as many. If you're lucky, you'll quietly ease into a dark columned hall to see and hear the lilting, booming chanting of the sutras, or perhaps sit under a willow tree and watch as the monks engage in theatrical debate.

Head southwest on the high road to Gyantse. Our route follows the Kyi Chu (sometimes called the Lhasa River) to the Tsangpo. We cross the Tsangpo and begin a hairpin ascent to the 15,700 foot Khampa La (�la� means pass in Tibetan). Then a thousand feet down to Yamdrok Lake.

We usually have a picnic lunch by the lake. Though the motor road dates from the 1960s, the route is an old and much-used one.

We head westward along the lake, through grand, treeless landscapes, toward a lovely 23,000 foot snowpeak with the delightful name Nindingdzonka.

After crossing the Karo La (16,432 feet) we descend to the green farmland of the Nyang Chu Valley and Gyantse, just under 13,000 feet. Gyantse was historically Tibet's third largest city (after Lhasa and Shigatse). Despite a Chinese presence in the city, it has a fine, old-fashioned feel to it, though the hotel is new. In the afternoon, we'll visit the Palkhor Chiode, a walled monastery complex in which four major sects of Tibetan Buddhism - the Gelug, Nyingma, Sakya, and Kagyu - had temples and small monasteries. The Palkhor Chiode suffered horribly during the Cultural Revolution, but its centerpiece, the Kum Bum, was inexplicably spared.

The Kum Bum is very striking, even from a distance. The whole of the upper part is gilded and glitters in the sun, and the rest of the building is white or painted in vivid colors. When you go nearer you see that two big, enigmatic eyes are painted on the dome; these give it personality and presence. The Kum Bum is essentially a chorten, a pagoda. As a piece of architecture it certainly lacks the slender, lyrical quality of Japanese pagodas, which are delicate timber traceries, rhythmical poems of roofs and spirals. The Kum Bum is Tibetan; that is to say, it is static and massive, like a mountain or the pyramids.

We follow the Nyang Chu northwest for a few hours, past spangled plow-yaks and waving kids, to Shigatse. (Like many places in Tibet, Shigatse's name has two spellings. The early westerners who visited Tibet, most of them English, listened to the local pronunciations and rendered them Shigatse, Shekar, Namcha Barwa, etc. The Chinese likewise heard, and transliterated into their language, and then, following the Pinyin system of romanization, came out with spellings like Xigaze, Xegar, and Namjagbarwa. Confusion can arise from these differing spellings, and neither is vastly more correct than the other, since both are approximations. We have taken to using the old spellings, but address this issue on an ad hoc basis, that is, we use what we think people will best understand.

As we approach Shigatse we may see , like Sven Hedin more than 80 years ago, "Its golden roofs shining fierily in the rays of the evening sun." (Hedin was probably Central Asia's greatest knockabout. He never made it to Lhasa, though, despite years of trying. After the Viceroy of India, the inimitable Lord Curzon, dispatched Younghusband, Waddell and all those soldiers to bully the Dalai Lama in 1904, he sent a note to his friend Hedin. "I am almost ashamed," Curzon wrote in his heartbreakingly imperial way, "to have taken the virginity of the bride you so ardently desired.")

Shigatse's immense Tashilumpo monastery is the seat of Tibet's second highest incarnation, the Panchen Lama. We'll check into Shigatse's large, modern, and slowly moldering hotel before visiting the walled monastery complex, a rambling warren of chapels, shrines, and halls linked by mysterious alleyways and steep staircases.

At the center of the monastery is a courtyard that was used as a theater for religious dances.

After visiting Tashilumpo, we can walk back to the hotel through the somewhat modern town of Shigatse, stopping for some interesting shopping in its old market.

Morning drive to Lhasa along the Yarlung Tsangpo River for four hours. Afternoon at leisure to wander around in this fascinating city.

Morning transfer to the airport to connect with flight to Kathmandu. Perhaps one of the most exciting mountain flights in the world, we will fly between Mt Everest and Mt Kanchenjunga as we approach the lush green Kathmandu valley.

After getting our visas and arrival formalities, transfer to the hotel. In the afternoon, a walking tour of Darbar Square.

With its ornate palaces, temples and squares, Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal, is a fascinating place. Ideal for exploring by foot, the city offers a startling array of market stalls and craft shops selling locally produced goods. What's more, the people are considered to be amongst the friendliest in Asia. Highlights include the courtyards and chambers of the Royal Palace, Durbar Square with its highly-detailed wooden temples and the Red Towers for a view of the city and the surrounding mountain peaks.

There are various interesting sights in the outlying area around Kathmandu such as Swayambhunath, a 2000 year old Buddhist stupa supporting a lofty conical spire capped by a copper-gilded pinnacle and Boudhanath, the ever present chorten.

Just a little outside is Bhaktapur, an enchanting ancient city with winding alleyways and a stunning palatial complex brimming with architectural gems.

Bhaktapur is world renowned for its elegant art, fabulous culture and indigenous lifestyle. For its majestic monuments, colorful festivals and the native Newars best known for their long history of craftsmanship, the ancient city is also variously known as the "City of Culture", the "Living Heritage" and "Nepal�s Cultural Gem". Given such unequaled opulence in ancient art and culture, Bhaktapur is more like an open museum, and the ambiance here is such that it instantly transports visitors back by centuries the moment they step into its territory.

Located about 5 km south of Kathmandu, on the southern side of the Bagmati River, Patan is another of 3 royal cities in the valley.

A destination for connoisseurs of fine arts, Patan is filled with wood and stone carvings, metal statues, ornate architecture, including dozens of Buddhist and Hindu temples, and over 1200 monuments. The city is known for its rich tradition of arts and handicrafts has one of the best museums of Nepal.

There are various interesting sights in the outlying area around Kathmandu such as Swayambhunath, a 2000 year old Buddhist stupa supporting a lofty conical spire capped by a copper-gilded pinnacle and Boudhanath, the ever present chorten.

Just a little outside is Bhaktapur, an enchanting ancient city with winding alleyways and a stunning palatial complex brimming with architectural gems.

Bhaktapur is world renowned for its elegant art, fabulous culture and indigenous lifestyle. For its majestic monuments, colorful festivals and the native Newars best known for their long history of craftsmanship, the ancient city is also variously known as the "City of Culture", the "Living Heritage" and "Nepal�s Cultural Gem". Given such unequaled opulence in ancient art and culture, Bhaktapur is more like an open museum, and the ambiance here is such that it instantly transports visitors back by centuries the moment they step into its territory.

Located about 5 km south of Kathmandu, on the southern side of the Bagmati River, Patan is another of 3 royal cities in the valley.

A destination for connoisseurs of fine arts, Patan is filled with wood and stone carvings, metal statues, ornate architecture, including dozens of Buddhist and Hindu temples, and over 1200 monuments. The city is known for its rich tradition of arts and handicrafts has one of the best museums of Nepal.

The flight into Bhutan takes you close to the great Himalayas where we will again fly past Choyu, Everest, Lhotse, Makalu and Kanchenjunga. As you enter Paro valley, you will sweep past forested hills with the silvery Pa Chu (Paro river) meandering down the valley below. Paro Dzong (fortress) and Ta Dzong (watchtower) on the hills above the town will be a fine sight. After completion of arrival formalities you will be transferred to Bhutan�s capital, Thimphu, an exciting blend of tradition and modernity.

Overnight at the hotel in Thimphu.

Today's full day of sightseeing in Thimphu valley includes, visit to National Library, which holds a vast collection of ancient Buddhist texts and manuscripts, some dating back several hundred years, as well as modern academic books mainly on Himalayan culture and religion;

Institute for Zorig Chusum (commonly known as Painting School) where students undertake a six-year course on the 13 traditional arts and crafts of Bhutan;

Textile and Folk Heritage Museum: These museums, both of which opened in 2001, provide fascinating insights into Bhutanese material culture and way of life.

National Memorial Chorten: The building of this landmark was envisaged by the third king, His Majesty Jigme Dorji Wangchuck, as a monument to world peace and prosperity. Completed in 1974 after his untimely death, it is both a memorial to the Late King (�the Father of modern Bhutan�) and a monument to world peace. The paintings and statues inside the monument provide a deep insight into Buddhist philosophy.

Trashichhodzong: This impressive fortress/monastery houses Secretariat building, the throne room of His Majesty, the King and various government offices. It is also the summer residence of Chief Abbot and central monk body.

Handicrafts Emporium: This government-run enterprise displays a wide range of beautifully hand-woven textiles and craft products. It also carries a small collection of books on Bhutan, Buddhism and Himalayan culture.

After early breakfast, drive up to Dochu-la pass( 10,130 ft) stopping briefly here to take in the view and admire the chorten, mani wall, and prayer flags which decorate the highest point on the road. If skies are clear, the following peaks can be seen from this pass (left to right): Masagang (7,158m), Tsendagang (6,960m), Terigang (7,060m ), Jejegangphugang (7,158 m ), Kangphugang (7,170 m ), Zongphugang (7, 060 m ), a table mountain that dominates the isolated region of Lunana - finally Gangkar puensum, the highest peak in Bhutan at 7,497m.

Afternoon visit Punakha Dzong, a massive structure built at the junction of two rivers. It was the capital of Bhutan until 1955, and still serves as the winter residence of the monk body. The first King, Ugyen Wangchuck was crowned here in 1907. The fortress has withstood several damages from fire, earthquake and flood. The latest flood of Oct' 1994 caused great damages to the fortress but miraculously spared the statue of Buddha Jojampa

After breakfast excursion to Chimi Lhakhang, situated on a hillock in the centre of the valley, is dedicated to Lama Drukpa Kuenley, who in the late 15th century used humour, songs and outrageous behaviour to dramatise his teachings and due to this also known as �Divine Madman�. This temple is also known as the temple of fertility. It is widely believed that couples who do not have children and wanting one, if they pray at this temple, they are usually blessed with a child very soon. It is about 30 minute walk across field from the road to the temple. The trail leads across rice fields to the tiny settlement of Pana, meaning �field�. It then follows a tiny stream downhill to Yoaka and across more fields before making a short climb to Chimi Lhakhang.

Afternoon drive back to Paro

After breakfast in the hotel, drive to Drukgyel Dzong, a ruined fortress where Bhutanese warriors fought Tibetan invaders centuries ago. The snowy dome of sacred Chomolhari, "mountain of goddess'' can be seen in all her glory from the approach road to the Dzong.

Later take an excursion to Taktsang Monastery, the most famous of Bhutanese monasteries. It is said that Guru Rinpoche arrived here on the back of a tigress and meditated at this monastery hence it is called �Tiger�s Nest�. The excursion to monastery�s view point takes about 7 hours for round trip.

Morning transfer to the airport to connect with flight to Bangkok.