Tibet (Bradt Travel Guide) - Softcover

Buckley, Michael

4.2

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9781841623825: Tibet (Bradt Travel Guide)

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1841623822 ISBN 13: 9781841623825

Publisher: Bradt Travel Guides, 2012

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Exploring ethnic Tibet independently is a challenge - the ‘land of snows’ possesses some of the wildest and roughest road routes in high Asia. Motoring, mountain-biking and trekking options are all covered in this new edition. Political and cultural issues make Tibet a sensitive destination for Westerners, so Michael Buckley's authoritative advice includes guidelines on cultural etiquette, local customs, and travelling with minimum impact on Tibet's culture and environment. The chapter on language includes a section covering Tibetan script.

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About the Author:

Michael Buckley has travelled widely in Tibet, China, central Asia and the Himalaya, visiting many Tibetan enclaves. He is author of Eccentric Explorers, a book about the exploits of ten fearless adventurers to the Tibetan plateau, and of a travel narrative, Travels in the Tibetan World. For Bradt, he has also authored Shangri-La: A Travel Guide to the Himalayan Dream – a concept guidebook that covers contenders for the Shangri-La crown across the Himalayan range. In the course of numerous journeys to Tibet, Buckley has hitchhiked overland from Chengdu to Lhasa, trekked around Mount Kailash and mountain-biked from Lhasa to Kathmandu.

1. ‘Intense' is a word that applies to many aspects of Tibet. It applies to the amazing resilience of the Tibetan people in the face of extreme adversity. Their battle has been largely a pacifist one, of suffering and enduring – a game of ultimate patience and tolerance. 'Intense' captures the feel of the landscape. The intensity of colours at this elevation is extraordinary, with glacial-blue lakes, luminous-yellow fields of mustard, deep reds and browns of barren rock landscapes, and then, up on the horizon, looms an ethereal Himalayan snowcap, backed by piercing blue skies. The colours practically glow: when you show photographs of these landscapes to people who haven't been there, they question the unreal colours – what kind of filter did you use?

2. Tibet is a land of monks and mystery, of high adventure – and high controversy. The ‘land of snows’ boasts the world’s highest peaks and its deepest gorges. Despite Chinese incursions, you can experience the timeless rhythms of the ancient Tibetan civilisation, as nomads herd their yaks, pilgrims make their way around sacred Mount Kailash, and monks chant in prayer halls lit by yak-butter lamps.

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