In pictures: Modern Tibet

Religion remains important for ordinary Tibetans, many of whom make pilgrimages to the region’s monasteries and temples.

Pilgrims are as prominent as tourists on Lhasa’s streets, as they walk around sacred sites chanting and clutching prayer beads. Many sites have been restored after being destroyed in China’s Cultural Revolution, when the country was plunged into virtual civil war.

China says there are now more than 1,700 places of worship in Tibet, and about 46,000 monks and nuns.