Residents in Lhasa urged to shop online ahead of New Year

According to the store's statistics, it has received 530 online orders between Feb 1 and Monday, and the transaction volume of online shoppers has hit more than 50,000 yuan ($7,740) during the weeklong period.

Tsering Chophel, a Tibetan resident of Lhasa and a fan of online shopping, said online shopping is part of his life today, and online shopping in Tibet has become popular and convenient.

"Online shopping is very convenient; it is easy to select the products, I can save my time to do other work, and I can get the delivery at my door if I don't want to go out," said he said, adding he could choose self-pickup service after making an online purchase.

The 21-year-old said online shopping was a bit cheaper as the store offered different discounts and coupons all the time, and he mostly bought daily necessities and snacks.

Apart from online shopping, most local Tibetans prefer to shop in offline stores as most traditional New Year products are not available online.

For the Losar New Year, most people place dried fruit, candy, fried bread and chemar boxes - made with a mixture of roasted highland barley flour and butter - at shrines, while cheese, dried yak meat, highland barley wine and others drinks are laid out in living rooms.

During the New Year holidays, Tibetan residents wear their newest and best robes and they would time for religious pilgrimage. The rest of the time is spent giving parties and going to gatherings.