From San Francisco to London and Paris to India, protestors are taking to the streets to demonstrate against China’s hosting of the Olympic Games. Angered by the Chinese government’s refusal to meet with the Dalai Lama, as well as the continued suppression of human rights in potential breakaway regions, the world is seeking to punish China on the eve of its long-anticipated coming out party.
For travelers on the ground in China, independent tourism has never been more difficult, especially since parts of the country have now been entirely closed off to the outside world. Following wave of violence that commenced on March 14th, the Chinese government has entirely barred tourists from entering Tibet. As a so-called ‘autonomous region,’ non-Chinese nationals must obtain special entry permits for Tibet.
Sadly, it’s looking like the ‘Roof of the World’ may remain in relative isolation until the Olympic Games have passed, which is a huge blow at a time when tourism in the region was beginning to flourishing. Here in Japan, this was highlighted recently in the news when Mr. Yuichiro Miura, the 75 year-old thrill seeker who once skied down Everest using a parachute as a brake, announced that he was changing his Everest climbing route.
At the young and spry age of 75, Mr. Miura (alongside his son) was planning on climbing Everest from the Chinese side in a bid to regain his title as the oldest man to climb Everest. However, despite all of the preparations that he has made, his climbing permits were canceled following the unrest in Tibet.
Mr Miura first held the record as the oldest person to climb Everest when he reached the top in 2003 at the age of 70. Although his record was broken just three years later, he is determined to regain it despite having to change his proposed route at the final hour. According to Mr. Miura, who is presently in the Nepali capital of Kathmandu, “We are here to climb and so we will.”
Of course, would-climbers on Everest are also saddened by the current political climate in Nepal, which is threatening to topple the nation’s troubled monarchy. And, China is also exerting pressure to not allow climbers to scale Everest until after the Olympic torch has been carried up and down the summit. Needless to say, a protest at the summit of Everest would not be a great PR moment for the Chinese government!
Despite all of these hurdles however, Mr. Miura is confident that he will shatter the Everest climbing record by the end of May. Mr. Miura is best known for having skied down Everest in 1970, using a parachute as a brake, footage of which later appeared in an Oscar-winning documentary. However, his latest bid for worldwide fame is perhaps even more challenging, given that Mr. Miura is a septuagenarian.
Then again, in a country where living beyond the age of 100 is a pretty common feat, perhaps Mr. Miura shouldn’t be too upset if his travel plans are canceled this year…
** Mr. Miura’s photo was taken by the Agence French-Press (AFP). Other images were courtesy of the WikiCommons Media Project. **