The images of five Fuwas, mascots of the Beijing Olympics, are displayed in flowers in front of the Potala Palace in Lhasa.

The city's main streets are decorated with signboards carrying slogans, such as "Light the Passion, Share the Dream," "Bless the Motherland, Joyfully Greet the Olympics," "Great Ethnic Unity" and "Welcome to Lhasa."

The national five-star red flags are flying on houses and cars with "Go Beijing" signs pasted on their window panes can be seen almost everywhere.

"I'm very excited that I've been chosen to be a torch bearer, which gives me a feeling almost the same as that in 1960 when I reached the top of Mt. Qomolangma," said Gonpo, a 75-year-old Tibetan mountaineering hero.

Gonpo was among the first Chinese to climb to the top of Mt. Qomolangma, the peak of the earth. Gonpo, Wang Fuzhou and Qu Yinhua were also the first to make the successful attempt via the North Ridge.

"I've long wished the Olympics could be held in Beijing, and I felt proud that the Olympic flame reached the top of Mt. Qomolangma on May 8," he said.

"Now, my physical condition is not as good as before, but I'll show my best while relaying the torch --- if I cannot run, I'll walk," he said.

To greet the Olympic torch, 67-year-old Drolkar is busy rehearsing folk dances with a group of retirees.

"Everybody is active and ardent. We hope we can bring more vitality to the Olympics," she said.

The arrival of the torch is also being heatedly discussed in a small village of Douyu on the China-India border, where people of the Lhoba ethnic group live, said Xiaojiayou, the village's Communist Party secretary.

"We learned of the Olympic torch relay via radio and TV. Some of the villagers even plan to go to Lhasa to see the event," she said.

Xiaojiayou, aged 54, is also a member of the Lhoba ethnic group, a small branch of Tibetans with only 2,000 people.

"In the past, villagers here lived an almost isolated life due to poor transport and communications. They didn't even know what an Olympics was," she said.

PEACE RETURNS AFTER RIOT

Three months after the March 14 riot, 36-year-old Tibetan doctor Losang Cering still has a heavy heart. He was seriously injured in the face by rioters wielding knives and clubs when he tried to protect a man of Han nationality and his six-year-old son.

"Being a torch bearer gives me pleasure and relieves my mental pressure. I feel happy that I can be part of the sporting event," said Losang Cering, a surgeon with the Tibet People's Hospital.

The doctor was hailed as a hero for his bravery in the riot, which was organized, premeditated and masterminded by the Dalai Lama clique.

The riot, involving violent crimes against people and property, led to the deaths of at least 18 civilians and one policeman. It also left 382 civilians and 241 police officers injured, businesses looted, and residences, shops and vehicles torched.

Peace has gradually returned, with the resumption of schools, businesses and religious activities, as well as the re-opening of leading monasteries such as Jokhang, Ramoche, Sera and Drepung.

"We're praying for a successful Games, a stronger China and peace in the world," said 75-year-old Tibetan lama Losang Chosphelat the Sera Monastery.

Tibet has also re-opened to tour groups from the mainland, HongKong and Macao, Chen Zhichang, executive vice mayor of Lhasa, told reporters in Beijing on Wednesday.

The re-opening date to foreign travelers would be officially announced when the Tibet leg of the relay ended, Lhasa Tourism Bureau Director Gyangkar said.

The one-day relay will be held in Lhasa on Saturday. The initial plan was for a three-day event from June 19-21, but it was scaled back after the May 12 quake in Sichuan that has left more than 69,000 people dead and more than 17,000 others missing.

The Beijing Olympic torch relay is the longest and most ambitious one, traveling 137,000 km across five continents in 130 days. The torch returned to the Chinese mainland at the beginning of May and was touring Shihezi and Changji in northwestern Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region on Thursday.

Though the torch relay was disturbed in a few overseas cities by Tibetan secessionists, Qin Zheng, of the Tibet Autonomous Regional Sports Bureau, said he believes any attempt to disrupt the event in Lhasa will go nowhere, because people of all ethnic groups are looking forward to the torch and the Olympics.

Phurbu Cering, 52, a famous Tibetan javelin athlete, echoed Qin's opinion.

"The more the hostile forces attempt to sabotage our ethnic unity, the more we should consolidate the relationship," he said.