Beyond the Sky and the Earth: A Journey into Bhutan

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Summary: A must read for anyone who is really interested in Bhutan
Review: As someone from Eastern Bhutan, I think Jamie has done a really wonderful job of portraying Bhutan as it is. Having been away from Bhutan for quite a long time, this book really helped bring back fond memories. Many times while reading this book, I couldn't help myself from thinking "yes, that's exactly how it is there". I really like her style of writing and her sense of humor, and I personally feel that this is the one book that really describes Bhutan the most accurately. I disagree with the reviewer who says that she comes off as being self centered and shallow. This book is all about explaining Bhutan. If you are planning on visiting Bhutan because you are interested in it's people/culture, this book is a must read.

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Summary: "The most remarkable place, after all."
Review: Part journey into Bhutan, and part inner journey, Zeppa's book startsout as a five-star memoir with the 23-year-old teacher's arrival inParo, Bhutan. "All around, the mountains rise and rise, palegold and brown in the February light. At one end of the valley,beyond a wall of black, broken peaks, one white summit shimmers; atthe other end, the mountains grow tamer, softly rounded and turningsmoky blue in the distance. On the slopes I can see clusters ofprayer flags, long narrow strips of white cloth raised on toweringpoles, floating in the wind" (p. 3).

From her new home in thePema Gatshel valley, Zeppa observes the "verdant confusion. . . it makes my head hurt, looking down the green steepness, lookingup into the empty sky. There are long moments when I cannot rememberwhere I am. I feel completely unfamiliar to myself, almost unreal, asif parts of me have dissolved, are dissolving. The Buddhist view thatthere is no real self seems completely accurate. I have crossed athreshold of exhaustion and strangeness and am suspended in a newinner place" (p. 45) During her five-month tenure there, Zeppatravels from worries and "what ifs," to the Buddha's"way of seeing and living in the world" (p. 21). Shearrives in Bhutan with a worried mind: "Will the road be open,will the strike really last one hundred days, will I run out of food,will I get sick, will my mail get through, will there be water in thetaps, will those dumplings give me amoebic dysentery" (p. 86).She soon realizes "how seamless everything is" in Bhutan."You walk through a forest and come out in a village, and there'sno difference, no division. You aren't in nature one minute and incivilization the next. The houses are made out of mud and stone andwood, drawn from the land around. Nothing stands out, nothingjars"(p. 179). She also discovers that everything is moremeaningful because there is less of everything in Bhutan. "Everybrown egg is precious. I make yogurt out of sour milk, and turnoverripe fruit into jammy desserts. A plastic bag is a rare andimmensely useful thing . . . I clean out jars and tins and plasticcontainers and save the tinfoil liners from cartons of milk powder. Istand in my kitchen, satisfied with the meaning of every item,thinking that my grandfather would be pleased. I am beginning tothink that his cautious saving and counting and putting away have moreto do with this measure of meaning than fear of future lack"(pp. 137-8).

Despite prevalent health problems like diarrhea,scabies, lice, parasites, conjunctivitis, boils, tuberculosis,leprosy, and malaria (p. 77), Zeppa shows that Bhutan is nevertheless"the most remarkable place, after all" (p. 110). Herjourney to Bhutan teaches her the difference between arrival andentrance. "Arrival is physical and happens all at once. Thetrain pulls in, the plane touches down, you get out of the taxi withall your luggage. You can arrive in a place and never really enterit; you will get there, look around, take a few pictures, make a fewnotes, send postcards home. When you travel like this, you think youknow where you are, but, in fact, you have never left home. Enteringtakes longer. You cross over slowly, in bits and pieces. You beginto despair: will you ever get over? It is like awakening slowly, overa period of weeks. And then one morning, you open your eyes and youare fully here, really and truly here. You are just beginning to knowwhere you are" (p. 101).

We watch as Zeppa's students--"mykids, my dear, sweet, smiling, smelly, runny-nosed, barefootkids" (p. 146)--become her teachers. One eight-year-old teachesher how to cook rice (p. 75). Other students teach her the world isnot permanent, and "isn't that why it is so beautiful in thefirst place?" (p. 184). "What matters is not what youbelieve but what you do" (p. 185). "Buddhism teaches us notto get involved in politics. It distracts us from the realthings" (p. 193) Lakes are holy (p. 197).

Zeppa's memoir thenends as a three-star book. I admit I started losing interest inZeppa's otherwise compelling account at page 153, the point at whichshe transfers from teaching elementary students at Pema Gatshel toteaching students her own age at Sherubise college. And I then foundher sexual relationships with two students (and resulting pregnancy)troubling, an unfortunate metaphor, perhaps, of Western influence uponBhutan, where tourism remains limited for good reason. I neverthelessrecommend visiting Bhutan through Zeppa's book. Based on her Bhutanexperience, it is easy to imagine that Zeppa returned to Canada with afaraway look in her eyes, a part of her living always inBhutan.

G. Merritt

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Summary: An exploration of the world and a mind...
Review: I really enjoyed this book, as I thought that it was a frank depiction of one woman's journey to a strange and curious world. I found Zeppa's ability to tell her experience as a story very unique and it really drew me in and made me feel like I was experiencing first hand her emotions and thoughts. I loved the first half in particular, because the picture of the village and especially Zeppa's relationship with the students was really vivid and touching. The second half was a little bit more jumbled in terms of what she was getting across, but overall, it was such a fresh breath of light on a country that I knew little about and reminded me of how incredible and enriching it is to experience and understand other cultures. Definitely recommended, especially for those with a sense of adventure and an appetite for travel.

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Summary: A GREAT BOOK ABOUT A STRANGE AND EXCITING EXPERIENCE
Review: I had just been browsing through amazon.com to find a book to read which must be different from usual line of investments. I just thought I would order this book and check it out. I was most pleased by my quick and random selection!

This book really proves that if you set out to achieve something, there can be no barriers whatsoever. It also shows a sense of real bravery to visit and stay in a place where the author's grandfather was himself scared about. It also shows how strange one can find one's destiny, since the author got married to a native Bhutan, something no one in her family nor herself could imagine about before embarking on such a journey. We can also learn that many of the things that we take for granted is so precious in a world where they almost do not exist. The author herself being an English lecturer could not find any better words of description to enliven our understanding of her stay in Bhutan. This is a nice book, read it!

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Summary: Wonderfully written, honest
Review: This is a beautiful book, the kind you will wish would never end. I'm surprised by the criticism of the author in some of the reviews listed here. Although some of her actions could, by western standards, be considered questionable, she makes clear her misgivings about both of her "improper" relationships and her struggle to come to terms with her desires and actions. And of course she incorporates western values when judging the school and political events in Bhutan - it would be impossible for her to refrain from doing so if she were to relate her experience, because that is her cultural background. She is, after all, sharing HER experience and HER thoughts with us. But she also very clearly prefaces her "judgments" with acknowledgments that (1) she recognizes her own bias, and (2) that she is not always certain how to reconcile her western perspective with her desire to be properly respectful of Bhutanese culture (this point specifically relates to her comments about the political events). Again, the book is an account of her experience - it would hardly be appropriate if she were not honest with her audience in relating her thought process, even (especially!) if that process were not always perfectly objective. The reader cannot demand complete objectivity and moral perfection from the author - she is a human being, after all, and this is a memoir, not a New York Times article analyzing Bhutanese politics. I think she did an excellent job of confessing her own inadequacies and moral failings. What's more, she divulged many personal details that were no doubt painful to her, for the benefit of the reader - those of you who criticize her for lacking judgment would do well to remember your own imperfections and shortcomings, and give her a little latitude. As for the book itself, it is beautifully written and incredibly honest. If you have a bit of the wanderlust in you, don't hesitate to read it. It will set you to wondering about the "what-ifs" of your own life, and perhaps help you rediscover a part of yourself that you lost during the quest for "success".

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Summary: Beautifully written - Nostalgic feelings
Review: The book 'Beyond the Sky and the Earth : A Journey into Bhutan' is beautifully written. It's more of personal account and Jamie's years stay in Bhutan especially the time spent in the east. This book will be loved by all who visited the Eastern Bhutan and served the community for a while. Some of the encounters brought my good old days memoir - my college days at Kanglung.

Some of the reviewrs have gone far by accusing of her being self centered, over indulgence and immorality. She tried her best to get into the prevailing culture and customs of the society. 'Night Hunting' the exact term used is a part of the culture of the society in the east Bhutan. You'll surely find some of the things strange in this culture intially. Your initial fear will be overcomed by your temptation to join for 'Night Hunting'.

Jamie took a moderate look at the political developments as it was the peak of political movement in Bhutan which started from the colleges and institutions by the students and the youths from southern Bhutanese of Nepalese origin. She tried to understand the development from both perspectives. Usually the expatriates would side with the government or the ruling Drukpa elite.

It's a wonderful and touching story.

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Summary: This is one of my favorite books!
Review: This is one of my favorite books! From start to finish, I couldn't put it down. Having dreamt of joining the Peace Corps but never having enough courage to do it, I loved reading about Zeppa's experience. Coming from a life similar to Zeppa's I was drawn into the details of her experience. I sympathized completely with her initial fears and her need to experience something more from life than higher education and married life with a white picket fence.

Zeppa beautifully describes her experience; her fears, her culture shock, and her transition into loving a country and culture so different than her own. She really brings Bhutan to LIFE and does an excellent job of recounting what it is like to be a foreigner in this pristine country. Her insight on Bhutan's political conflicts and how she learns to look at things in a different light, trying to let go of her Western ideas, is wonderful. And a touching love story to boot! The book literally brought me to tears.

I'm a firm believer that pushing yourself beyond your limits makes you a better person. I wish I had Zeppa's courage...

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Summary: She can't have it both ways
Review: Such a shame. A Canadian woman's experiences teaching in the small nation of Bhutan has the potential to be an engrossing and enlightening read. Sadly, though Zeppa's efforts, while commendable, end up suffering from her desire the have it both ways.

A memoir is indeed about personal thoughts and experiences, and here the author does a good job of revealing these. But soon, as she begins to be taken with her new surroundings she begins to be critical of the western values she grew up with while at the same time wishing to impose these same set of values on certain aspects of the Butanese culture (such as the running of the school where she is teaching). Even worse is her appalling attitude concerning the sexual relationships she begins with not one, but two of her students. Not once during her discussions of this aspect of her life in Bhutan does she express any regret for this thoroughly unprofessional, immature, and highly unethical behavior. Her only qualms, it seems, involve the consequences that will befall her should she get caught (qualms that do not prevent her from continuing with one of the relationships and getting pregnant from it).

All this is a shame as Zeppa has undoubtedly had experiences that the vast majority of westerners will never have. A memoir of her personal experiences is most welcome, but it is too bad she does not seem to understand that there is a big difference between self reflection and self absorption.

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Summary: A wake-up from Walden dreams
Review: If you have fantasies about nine bean rows, this book is the cure. The author was young in the time frame described and had gained perspective by the time she polished this book. Her efforts to use Buddhist practice to overcome her reactions to dashed romantic fantasies are detailed beautifully. Another book that is surprisingly similar is Claire Mowat's The Outport People. Interesting how similar a nineteen fifties Newfoundland community was to a village in Bhutan around nineteen ninety.

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Summary: A journey for any reader prepared to enter remarkable world
Review: This is a beautiful book that is at once funny, sad, informative and always honest. This book is truly a "journey into Bhutan" for both writer and reader. Zeppa's recounts her early experiences in Bhutan and the proccess of adapting to a vastly different foreign culture in a way that is both humourous and rings true. Her love story with Bhutan's landscape and its people is obvious, and her language carries the reader every step of the way. Zeppa's subsequent realization of her idealized perspective and understanding of the country's true complexity is a theme to which any overseas adventurer can relate. The book ends a bit abruptly, but overall a moving and wonderful read.

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