This was one of the most anticipated destinations of our trip. We were planning to visit Lhasa and the Potola Palace as well as many other important historical and spiritual sites in the surrounding area. The flight in over the Himalayas and Mt. Everest would have been outstanding. However because of a number of political and medical factors, we have decided to extend our stay in Nepal and to forgo Tibet. This was a big disappointment, however it was tempered with the discovery that at the time we wanted to go, the Chinese had closed the border and were not allowing any visitors inan attempt to eliminate the spread of SARS.