Geographical formation of Tibet; The true history of any region cannot be fully understood without knowing the basic characteristics of a region and of its inhabitants. The Tibetan plateau is neighbouring the mighty Himalayan ranges with average altitudes range between 4000m and 5000m. It has a larger number of world’s highest peaks including Mt. Everest which is located on the Tibetan border. This is why Tibet is often called “the roof of the world” or “the third pole”. Tibet represents about a quarter of its motherland Chinese territory with only 1/500th of its population. It is a land of extreme living conditions and a low population density. The low population is due in part to its high altitude and cold weather. Snow-capped mountains can be seen throughout the plateau and most of the rivers in the Asian Subcontinent originate from this snowmelt. Tibet occupies the site of the ancient sea of Thetis (Tethys), which separated the old Asiatic and Australian continents millions of years ago. The displacement of the tectonic plates broke up the Australian plate into three parts, the northern which formed India was detached and in a rapid displacement towards the north raised sediments of the sea of Thetis (Tethys) and now currently forms the Tibetan plateau and the Himalayas. The central plate formed the Australian continent and the southern one formed the Antarctic continent. In the shock of displacement, basalt and hard stones formed the solid mass of the Himalayas. The sediments which formed the Tibetan plateau are not solid which means it is in a constant state of erosion. The majority of Tibet does not have an outlet with the sea water, thus the creation of large salt lakes and stock piles of salt remained and became basis of foreign trade in Tibet. The largest rivers of India and China, begin from the plateau and these rivers all carry considerable amounts of alluvia which is why the water runs with reddish colour. The silt within these waters also contributed to the richness and fertility of the surrounding countries. It should be noted that all ancient civilizations were born in the same way. Indeed, the banks of rivers became the first sprouts of human civilization. The flowing rivers from Tibet brought with them each year vast quantities of silt. For the Tibetan civilization, it first took began on the bank of the

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The million-dollar question everyone wants to know is how do I get into Tibet? Or how to get the Tibet travel permit? It’s never been the easiest place to visit, but if you make your way then it is definitely an experience of once in a lifetime, travel to Tibet Autonomous Region is radically different from the rest of China and a valid Chinese visa is not enough to travel into Tibet. You will also need the Tibet travel permit from the Tibet tourism bureau, and the Tibet travel permit policy changes timely depending on the political climate in Tibet. Moreover, its amazing nature, rich culture and high altitude need a special consideration to make your experiences more pleasant and worry free. So here our Tibet travel experts from Explore Tibet has pinpointed some important guidelines to help you arrange an authentic Tibetan experiences.