Dêgê

Dege (Tibetan: Dêgê - Mandarin Chinese: 德格; Dégé), is in Sichuan Province in south-west China. The city is famous for its Tibetan lamasery which hosts an invaluable treasure of wooden printing blocks with Tibetan Buddhist texts. Historically, it belongs to the ancient Tibetan province of Kham and lies at an elevation of 3100 meters, (10,170 ft). Sharing its destiny with Kangding, Dégé's location in a narrow valley and the resulting lack of space has led to a total demolition of the town's original center and its rebuilding with modern high-rise buildings. Nevertheless the surrounding quarters on the valley's slopes still preserve the old Tibetan traditions including the temple complex that contains a maze of wonderful old style wooden Tibetan buildings just up the road from the temple complex. Dege lies as the last town on the provincial border of Sichuan across from the T.A.R. It is a last stop before the wild Sichuan-Tibet highway leaves West Sichuan and if heading from the east requires a grueling day trip from Ganzi over a 5050 meter pass, well worth the incredible views alone.