Tibetan Houses

Depending on the availability of the materials, Tibetan houses are built with more wood, for those living near forest, or more stones, for those living near mountains. Usually, the walls are one meter thick and built with stones. Theroofis built with scores of tree trunks, and then covered with a thick layer of clay. When it is finished, the roof is flat.

 Farming areas and cities

In the valley area of Southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region, the whole structure is like a castle with small windows as big as gun holes, no doubt, for defensive purposes.

In the city, there are big windows facing south to let sunlight in. The houses are one, two-, three-, or four-story high. For a single-floor house, sometimes a guarding wall is built around to keep animals in and outsiders out.

For a three-story house, the lowest level serves as a barn for animals or as a storage place; the second level as the human living quarters; and the third story as the worshiping hall or sometimes the grain bin. The stairs are outside the house and usually made of a single tree trunk from roof to roof. Once the ladders are withdrawn, the higher levels become inaccessible.

The living quarters contain living rooms as well as a kitchen with stoves and fireplaces. The common fuels are wood and dung. The furniture is painted in bright colors. The lavatory is usually at the highest part of the house as an extension; in this way, the house is clear of the smell of urine and feces.

 Pastoral areas: tents

The pastoral people sometimes build houses as home bases for the old folks and for storage. Otherwise, they usually enjoy a nomad life and live in tents. There are two kinds of tents in the pastoral area: black yak wool tents and white cloth tents.

Black yak wool tent

To make a black yak wool tent, people use yak wool to make big ropes first, and then tie the ropes together. A good size tent, which covers about 28 square meters, requires about 90 kilograms of wool. The tent is square at the base with a window at the top that let smoke out and sunlight in. On a snowy day, the window can be shut.

The front part of the tent is split into two pieces to make a door. There is neither a bed nor a chair inside a tent. Rather, people sit on carpets and cushions. In the middle of the tent, an earthy fireplace is set up. Behind the fireplace, there are fuels (yak dung).
The tent is naturally divided into two quarters. Males occupy the left half, and females the right half. The inner part of the left side is the worshiping place equipped with Buddha statues, scripts, and lamps. The right side is for utensils and food storage.

Outside the tent, sometimes people build a wall of sod or dung to guard the animals or protect them against cold wind.

White cloth tent

Usually, the pastoral people have a couple of white cloth tents. These tents are smaller and elegant, good for traveling. In a religious or racing gathering, people come with white cloth tents. The elders, teens, and guests usually stay in this kind of tents. The fireplace is usually outside the tent. There are big hexagonal tents, well decorated with religious signs, mainly around monasteries or for the use of religious occasions.