Glimpses Into Other Lives

One of the great joys of travel is the opportunity to catch fleeting glimpses into lives quite different than our own. As a tour driver in Qinghai, China, Yang provides that window for the curious travellers like me who he shuttles from scenery to scenery.

Before taking the wheel as a guide, Yang spent a decade as a long-distance cargo truck driver, hauling loads across the vast expanses of Qinghai to Lhasa where every trip lasted for 4-5 days through the National Highway 109, from Golmud to Lhasa. The highway reaches its highest elevation of 5,231 meters (17,162 ft) at Tanggula Pass. Construction of this section of the highway started on 11 May 1954 and it was tasked with carrying upwards of 85 per cent of goods in and out of Tibet and was dubbed the "Lifeline of Tibet."

The solo life on the road was a lonely one at times, but it put food on the table for his young family.

Now in his 40s, with two children attending university, Yang relishes his current role interacting with visitors from around the world. "I enjoy sharing my province's rich history and culture with others," he says with a warm smile. "But I also learn a lot hearing about their lives back home."

Yang's hometown is a land that straddles extremes, from the lush oasis valleys of the Tibetan plateau to the haunting desolation of the Gobi Desert. Grasslands roll to distant horizons like emerald-green oceans, while mighty rivers slice through this topographical sea of undulating hills. On the shores of turquoise lakes, nomadic yak herders move among their shaggy charges, continuing traditions unchanged for centuries. It's across these starkly beautiful and contrasting landscapes that Yang escorts his passengers, granting them a front-row seat to an endless and enthralling experience where the rugged splendor of Qinghai's natural scenery and culture represents the true star of the show.