Tibet Stories

I photographed a family outside their home in Milin village, several hours drive from Lhasa. They had invited me in and served me yak butter tea. (Contrary to what I had read, I found the tea interesting and kind of delicious.) The man was very proud of the fact that they had electricity in their home and pointed to the 40 watt bulb hanging in the living space to show me. As far as I could tell, that was the only use of the power in the house. All the cooking and the only source of heat came from one wood stove. The ceiling above the stove going into the roof was open around the stovepipe. They weren’t concerned with cutting firewood and let long pieces hang out the open door of the stove, burning in the living space. They’d shove them in as they burned, but as much smoke seemed to go into the room and up the opening in the ceiling as went up the pipe. But they did have that 40 watt bulb.


	I photographed a family outside their home in Milin village, several hours drive from Lhasa. They had invited me in and served me yak butter tea. (Contrary to what I had read, I found the tea interesting and kind of delicious.) The man was very proud of the fact that they had electricity in their home and pointed to the 40 watt bulb hanging in the living space to show me. As far as I could tell, that was the only use of the power in the house. All the cooking and the only source of heat came from one wood stove. The ceiling above the stove going into the roof was open around the stovepipe. They weren’t concerned with cutting firewood and let long pieces hang out the open door of the stove, burning in the living space. They’d shove them in as they burned, but as much smoke seemed to go into the room and up the opening in the ceiling as went up the pipe. But they did have that 40 watt bulb.
	© 2005 Forest McMullin			McMullin-181.jpg