Potala Palace (Tibetan: པོ་ཏ་ལ) is a dzong fortress in the city of Lhasa (ལྷ་ས་གྲོང་ཁྱེར), Tibet. It was the winter palace of the Dalai Lamas from 1649 to 1959, and also the religious and political center of Tibet. Potala Palace is a must go of every tourist who visits Tibet.
Due to the sensitive situation of Tibet, the security check for entering Potala Palace is extremely strict, almost the same as taking a flight.
Before get in, all tourists need to go through a little street, on one side there are temples and prayer wheel (མ་ནི།), while on the other side are noisy shops, heaven and earth.
The palace is named after Mount Potalaka, the mythical abode of the bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara. The 5th Dalai Lama started its construction in 1645 after one of his advisers pointed out that the site was ideal as a seat of government.
The central part of Potala is called the ‘red palace’ from its crimson colour, which distinguishes it from the rest. It contains the principal halls and chapels and shrines of past Dalai Lamas.
Potala Palace has housed countless treasures and art pieces, but it was said that when the current Dalai Lamas was leaving in 1959, he bought most of the treasures with him.
There is a small museum in Potala Palace, which showcases many art pieces such as thangka (ཐང་ཀ) and statues collected in Tibet.
Visiting Potala Palace has so many restrictions, all tourists need to follow the tour guide and cannot walk on their own, and if the whole tour group cannot reach the spot within the given time, the tour guide will be punished.
