Barkhor Street

Basic Information of the Barkhor Street

Chinese Name: 八廓街 Pronunciation: Bā Kuò Jiē or 八角街 Bā Jiǎo Jiē

Length: About 1000 meters

Admission Ticket Fare: Free

Opening Hours: 24 Hours

Suggested Visiting Hours: 1 Hour

Building Time: On the 7th century

Best Visiting Time: All year round

Address: Chengguan District, Lhasa City, Tibet Autonomous Region

Building Function: Barkhor Street was built for the construction of the Jokhang Temple and developed with the Jokhang Temple.

Overview of the Barkhor Street

The Barkhor Street

Located in the old city of Lhasa, Barkhor Street is a famous Buddhist avenue and commercial center in Lhasa, which has preserved the traditional appearance and living style of the ancient city.
 

Built around the Jokhang Temple, Barkhor Street is the most prosperous commercial street in Lhasa. With Jokhang Temple as the center, the street is adjacent to the Building of Tibetan Hospital in the west, Yanhe East Road in the south, Xingfu East Road in the north, and Helinkuo East Road in the east. There is no one in Lhasa who does not know this street.
 

Barkhor Street has a long history of over 1300 years and composed of East Street, West Street, South Street and North Street, with a total length of more than 1,000 meters. There are many branches around the street, with 35 streets and alleys.
 

With the development of the Barkhor Street, shops and businesses were set up. All kinds of delicate and fantastic commodities show all aspects of Tibetan life. Tibetan carpets, swords, national costumes, shoes and hats, gold, silver and jewelry, and various kinds of traditional handicrafts, all of these have strong local style and national characteristics.

Development of the Barkhor Street

The Special Street

Barkhor Street was built for the construction of Jokhang Temple and developed with the Jokhang Temple.
 

In the 7th century, The Tibetan king Songtsen Gambo ordered the construction of Jokhang Temple. At the same time, he built four palaces, which are the earliest buildings on Barkhor Street, around the Qutang Lake, and supervised the progress of Jokhang Temple’s construction. After Jokhang Temple was built, it attracted a large number of pilgrims, and over time, the pilgrims gradually stepped out of a path around the temple, which was the primal Barkhor Street.
 

After the 15th century, Jokhang Temple became the center of Buddhism spreading, and successively, monk dormitories, religious schools and small temple buildings appeared around it. And then many Buddhists also moved around it, and a large number of houses, shops, hotels, handicraft workshops and other facilities gradually appeared on the streets.
 

With the deepening of the religious status of Jokhang Temple, more and more vendors, pilgrims and vagabonds from Mongolia, Handi, Kashmir, Nepal, Bhutan, India and other regions and countries emerged, and this street developed into a block integrating religion, sightseeing, culture, commerce and shopping.

Popular Attractions at the Barkhor Street

The Circumambulation Road（转经道）

The Barkhor Street Circumambulation Road is the most important road to spread the Buddhist scriptures in the mind of the Tibetans. It is often crowded with pilgrims who are from different countries and regions.
 

Makye Ame

 Makye Ame

On Barkhor Street, there is one place one should not miss: the Makye Ame. It is a small restaurant with a bar. It used to be the secret palace of Tsangyang Gyatso. Most of the buildings on Barkhor Street are white, except for this two-floor building covered in yellow walls at the southeast corner.
 

The Makye Ame offers many kinds of foods, including Nepalese food, Indian food, and Tibetan food. If you want to overlook Barkhor Street, the roof of Makye Ame is a good place that you can take a rest and see the people coming and going.

Canggu Nunnery

Canggu Nunnery

Canggu Nunnery is the only nunnery in Lhasa. Located in the city of Lhasa in Tibet (the area around the Barkhor Street), the temple enjoys a high reputation in the Tibetan Buddhism.
 

With its unique tradition and style, Canggu Nunnery is a paradise for female Buddhist, in which they learn various knowledge and culture.

Ways to Get to Barkhor Street

By Bus

Take bus 3, 4, 5, 9, 10, 11, 12, 15, 17, 18, 19 or 24 to Lugu Station and then walk north for 3 minutes to the street.

Take bus 7, 8, 20, 22, 23, 25, 28 or 29 to Cuomeilin and walk south for 3 minutes to Barkhor Street.

By Taxi

Chinese: 请带我去八廓街。English: Please take me to the Barkhor Street.

If you go to Barkhor Street from the Lahsa Railway Station, it takes about 20 minutes (25 yuan).
   
If you go to Barkhor Street from the Lahsa Gongga International Airport, it takes about 70 minutes (260 yuan).

The Square

authorName23242: Yuegui Huang

Date: 09/11/2020

Email: info@chinatourstar.com

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