Potala Palace

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The Potala Palace is located in Lhasa，Tibet Autonomous Region，China.It is named after Mount Potalaka，the mythical abode of Chenresig or Avalokitesvara.The Potala Palace was the chief residence of the Dalai Lama until the 14th Dalai Lama fed to Dharamsala，India，during the 1959 Tibetan uprising.Lozang Gyatso，the Grea Fifth Dalai Lama，started the construction of the Potala Palace in 1645 after one of his spiritual advisers，Konchog Chophel，pointed out that the site was ideal as a seat of government，situated as it is between Drepung and Sera monasteries and the old city of Lhasa.It may overlay the remains of an earlier fortress，called th White or Red Palace，on the site built by Songtsen Gampo in 637.Today，the Potala Palace is a museum.Thirteen stories of buildings with over 1，000 rooms，10，000 shrines and about 200，000 statues and 117 metres on top of Marpo Ri，the“Red Hill”，rising more than 300 m in total above the valley floor.The three main hills of Lhasa represent the“Three Protectors of Tibet”.