A national conference on tourism administration opened Saturday in Lhasa, capital of southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region.

About 40 directors of tourism administration of 16 cities rich in tourism resources participated in this meeting, which aims to enhance close cooperation between these cities.

The tourism officials focused on possible cooperation with Tibet, a vast tableland famous for spectacular scenery and mystery.

Tibet now has about 10 air routes connecting with major transportation points in the country. Last year, it received 344,000 travelers at home and abroad.

To step up Tibet's communications with the outside, China began construction of the Qinghai-Tibet Railway on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, Friday. It is the first railway in Tibet.

The 1,118-kilometer-railway, the first linking Tibet with the rest of China, will extend from Lhasa in Tibet to Golmud in Qinghai Province in northwest China. It will be the longest and the most elevated railway of the highlands in the world.

(Xinhua 06/30/2001)