Tibetans recently observed Monlam, or The Great Prayer Festival, with prayers, ritual dances, traditional foods and giant tapestry-like paintings. Ethnic Tibetans are maintaining their traditional culture while change slowly comes their way. Chinese officials have prohibited the festival in the past, and still discourage participation, and more change will be arriving soon by rail as the Qinghai-Tibet railway between China proper and Tibet is scheduled for completion three years from now. Chinese government officials are now preparing for possible trouble in March, on the 50th anniversary of the 1959 Tibetan uprising, when the Dalai Lama fled into exile, and tens of thousands of Tibetans were killed. Foreign travelers have now been banned from large parts of western Tibet until late March. Several portraits in today's entry come courtesy of photographer Hugo Teixeira . ( 33 photos total