Tibet, like every place in the world, has changed with time.  But unlike many other places, the causes and effects of change are exceedingly controversial.  Sixty years of Chinese governance has led to religious restrictions and waves of Han Chinese migration.  There are also positive aspects -- improved education is one -- but these get less publicity in the West.

What the casual observer of Tibet may know least about, however, are the roads.  China, which relishes a good battle with Mother Nature, has constructed across the Tibet plateau a road system that is at times hair-raising and inspiring...and at all times in need of maintenance.

This photo, taken in Deqin, Yunnan, shows a doorway to a temple.  Deqin is the last major town one passes through before crossing the "state line" into Tibet, and to me this picture symbolizes the act of preparing to enter Tibet itself.

And so does this one.  Here a man keeps a pig pinned down while a vet cuts into its side to remove an intestinal polyp.  This photo was also taken in Deqin, and is symbolic of the frothing emotions I felt as I prepared to enter Tibet.  The roads I'd be taking were not only long and sometimes dangerous, they were also illegal to solo foreigners such as myself.  If caught by the police, I, like this little piggy, could be grabbed by the snout.  And while I would have no polyps removed, I would probably be fined and ejected from Tibet.

This photo, also taken in Deqin, is also reflective of my mood.  The man on the left, who sort of reminds me of Chevy Chase in Spies Like Us, had an expression on his face that closely paralleled my own as I looked in the mirror the next morning just before catching a bus to the Tibetan border.

In the next five days, I would see several flat tires changed.  Here on Day One I took heart by the word "Warrior" at my feet as I sat on the bus.

The Mekong River as it flows out of Tibet into Yunnan Province

This is Yanjing, the first town in Tibet and, sadly, where I would be stranded for two nights waiting for a driver to take me further up the road.

In Yanjing, I would spend many hours sharing in sunflower seeds and perhaps a shot or two of whiskey with the locals.  No one here knew English, and I knew no Tibetan and just a few, quickly exhausted words of Chinese.

This young woman knew much more Chinese and Tibetan than me but not as much as the adults drinking whiskey.  And so we had a kinship.

When I asked this man where the toilet was, he pointed to the road outside the window.

Breakfast in Yanjing

After two days I'm on the road again thanks to a bus driver who seemed very relaxed about security issues.  When we passed through a police checkpoint, he nonchalantly said, in essence, "Just hide on your seat."

Seldom would I feel cozy in the days ahead.  But as I looked out on these animals grazing in the cold, for a moment I felt warm and at ease, thankful to be on the bus.

Here is a flat, beautiful stretch of road near the town of Chamdo.  Remember this picture, for in this next installment of this series we'll see nothing like it again.

Joel Carillet, chief editor of Wandering Educators, is a freelance writer and photographer based in Tennessee. He is the author of 30 Reasons to Travel: Photographs and Reflections from Southeast Asia. To learn more about him, follow his weekly photoblog, or purchase prints, visit www.joelcarillet.com.