Seven Years In Tibet

Harrer and Aufschnaiter turned a corner and finally saw the golden rooftops of the Potala monastery in Lhasa, the place where the Dalai Lama lived in winters. They passed through one final village, as well as the monasteries Drebung and Nechung, and soon became (what they assumed to be) the first Europeans to reach Lhasa without a travel pass. Every sight was overwhelming, and the sense of accomplishment was incomparable. 

Harrer and his friend were rejected on their first two attempts, but then arrived at a large house and stopped there. Servants came out and tried to turn them away, but the two men stayed in their place. A “richly clad” Tibetan man came out of the house and spoke in English to them, and they explained they were Germans seeking asylum. The man, named Thangme, gained permission for them to stay one night, which gave Harrer and Aufschnaiter a chance to truly reflect on all they had been through since escaping the camps 21 months prior. Harrer wondered about those still in the camps, and whether he could call himself free while they were not.

Harrer and his friend spent the next few days inside Thangme’s home, as dozens of visitors came to hear their story.