Tibetan Sign

The entrance to the Jiunmei Tibetan Medicine for the Well-being of Body and Soul ('Jig med bod sman lus srog bde ster), a Tibetan medicine factory in the same complex as the Tibetan Medical Museum. Judging by 'DSCN1002.jpg' it appears as though the factory is a supplier of 'Qinghai Fearless Hospital' (mTsho ngon 'jigs med sman khang). I was not surprised to find an English translation in the name of the factory; amongst the many industries of Xining, Tibetan medicine has taken to the use of English with perhaps the greatest consistency.

Plaque accompanying the previous thangka in the museum's lobby. It is a representative sample of the style (and level) of English adorning many exhibitions throughout the museum. Similar plaques, spaced roughly five feet apart, run all along the record-holding thangka (not photographed) and give the names of each being or scene depicted. I could not detect any pattern in the curators' choices between giving a Sanskrit name or an awkward English equivalent. In all cases Tibetan (in Wylie transliteration) was also given.

Floormap of the museum's interior. I viewed all exhibitions but forewent the 'Pandita Tibetan Art Store.' Most of these are interspersed with English plaques alongside their Tibetan and Chinese counterparts. Unfortunately, many of the English translations are unintelligible in their reliance on 'google-style' direct translation. For those interested in the current relationship between Chinese politics and Tibetan medicine the 'Exhibition Hall of Tibetan Medicinal History' makes for an interesting study.

A type of milk sold at convenience stores throughout Xining (photo taken across the street from Qinghai Nationalities University - East Campus). Manufactured by Qinghai [Company] (mTshon sngon po). In the average Qinghai supermarket, diary products are most likely to feature bilingual labels. I suspect this has less to do with cultural eqaulity and more to do with the 'authenticity' a Tibetan-labelled diary product carries.

Exterior and stairwell of the Gangs can pa, a Tibetan beerhouse several blocks away from Qinghai Nationalities University - East Campus, and quite popular with students. At night the Gangs can pa features Tibetan dancing, Tibetan songs sung karaoke-style and a mostly Tibetan clientale and staff. On one of my visits I witnessed a heated confrontation, with many bottles smashed in the scuffle; I have since heard that this is not out of the ordinary.