Ani Tsangkung Nunnery (Aní cangkong nigu an)

Ani Tsangkung Nunnery (Aní cangkong nigu an) Review

This small, colorful convent has a livelier atmosphere than what you'll find at Lhasa's monasteries. Beaming nuns encourage you to wander through the courtyards, listen to their chanting, and watch them make ornamental butter flowers. There's a simple outdoor restaurant—popular at lunchtime—where nuns serve up inexpensive bowls of noodles and momos (dumplings). The chief pilgrimage site is the meditation hollow where Songtsen Gampo concentrated his spiritual focus on preventing the flood of the Kyi River in the 7th century. You're free to take photos here without charge—an option not available at many monasteries.