Himalaya

Rating:
Summary: Simply superb!
Review: Himalaya is an excellent book that takes you through some of the most dramatic geography that exists on this planet. From the peaks and passes of Pakistan, to the plateus of Tibet, to the alluvial plains of Bangladesh, Palin's adventure through the Himalayas will go down as a classic travelogue - hillariously funny, poignantly observant, and extraordinarily descriptive. Best read alongside the video documentary version.


Rating:
Summary: Wonderful book
Review: I have read all of Michael Palins books and have enjoyed all of them. This new book, Himalaya is very good. This book like the others has beautiful pictures as well and you can see the places Mr. Palin is writing about.

Rating:
Summary: Traveller's account on 3,000 miles across Himalaya
Review: Michael Palin became well-known through his work with Monty Python. He has also written various travel books, based on his previous travels which have been shown on British TV.

In the Introduction Palin describes how the idea for an expedition across the Himalaya was sprung while looking for a new adventure after his previous trip through Sahara. This book is a "traveller's account" and not a "mountaineer's account" of Palin & Co.'s journey through six countries and 3,000 miles of Himalaya. The journey took about 18 months of planning and about 6 months of filming/travel. "Apart from missing out some rest days and days at airports, I've presented the journey as a continuous narrative because that, in effect, is exactly what it was."

Of course certain problems were known from the outset on this highly sensitive part of the world: The British Foreign Office advises against all but essential travel to most areas; the whole Khasmir region was/is highly volatile; the Maoists in Nepal are engaged in a guerrille war with the government; the Chinese government is highly sensitive about film crews in Tibet; the Indian government has concerns about safety in Assam. On top of this, there is (still) the East/West-tension following 9/11 and the deadly SARS epidemic in China.

Palin breaks down the journey on a country-by-country basis, starting at the Khyber Pass on the Afghanistan/Pakistan-border on the western side of Himalaya, passing through Pakistan, India, Nepal, Tibet, China, Bhutan and eventually finishing at the Bay of Bengal in Bangladesh on the east side of Himalaya. Palin uses a witty, entertaining writing style to detail the adventures, findings, and observations in and of each country. He is rarely opinionated, although he sometimes places questions about lifestyles, etc. I don't want to discuss too much details in this review, but the variety of landscapes, climates, lifestyles, religions within this 3000 miles distance is astonishing. The text is accompanied by lots of beautiful photographs taken by Basil Pao.

Yes, I do like this book which accompanies the BBC-series with the same name. The book is easily readabble with lots of fantastic pictures describing this enormous journey across this bizarre area of our planet. Whether you like the TV-series or book better is a personal choice, I have also seen the series and like both. I would like to conclude the review with some words from the book: "... Himalaya was a wonderfully, magically, brilliant journey, with more gasps of astonishment per square mile than any other in my entire life. And for once, I think I might be right."

Rating:
Summary: Peak viewing
Review: Palin has become a British institution, reinventing himself in the post-Monty Python years as everyone's favourite traveler. In an era where holidaying has often become an excuse for booze, sex, and coarse behaviour, regimented by airlines, tour operators, and the lure of grotesque theme parks, Palin has demonstrated that travel and adventure can be a gentlemanly, gentle act. He appears genuinely interested in the people he meets, is able to convey a polite humanity and sense of wonder, and proves that you can travel the world without glossy brochures.

Obviously, Palin and his team spent a lot of time planning this latest adventure - originally designed as a BBC television series with the book as a spin-off - but he conveys a gentle, unstressed sense of traveling without worry or hurry. The Himalayas Palin explores is a fascinating, beautiful, awe-inspiring stretch of the world ... and the scene of centuries old military flashpoints and cross border rivalry. The ruggedness of the countryside and of the peoples who inhabit this vast landscape comes across. Palin takes people as he finds them; his approach is anything but judgemental. It's a lesson we could all learn - maybe you won't get to the Himalayas next year, but next time you decide to just go for a quite walk in the country, pause to wonder at the world around you and smile at the people you meet.

Palin is a wonderful ambassador for traveling and meeting people. The book of the TV series, beautifully illustrated, charming, good humoured, good natured, and a tonic in which you can indulge yourself over winter while you plan some sort of adventure for next year!



Rating:
Summary: Good Writing, Good Pictures, Strange Places
Review: This is the companion book to go with the Himalaya television program beginning on the BBC on the 3rd of October. For the show, Michael Palin (Monty Python member for many years) traveled with a small photo team from one end of the Himalaya at the border of Afghanistan to southwest China, 1800 miles of the highest mountains in the world.

Six months of hard and sometimes dangerous traveling were involved. Altitudes as high as 17,500 were crossed, treks through some of the world's deepest gorges, filming was done in political flashpoints like terrorist-torn Kashmir.

This book is compiled from Palin's diaries and records the pleasure and pain of this breathtaking journey.