No comments about Silk Road Countries Map.

2 comments about In the Shadow of the Himalayas: Tibet - Bhutan - Nepal - Sikkim A Photographic Record by John Claude White 1883-1908.

1. this book shows the above counties'sights by photo from 1883 to 1908.you may say this is an old records.however,especially the kingdom of sikkim,
   the records on this book are very very variable and important matwerial even if you have not any interest in this country.because many people never heard the name of "sikkim",that's the important point.we thought we know all countries around this small globe,but it's not correct.because we never know about sikkim at all,even the name of this coutry.I hope you agree with me about this point,at least.today you can touch and know every countries at book stores except sikkim.hope you may have the same feeling and thoughts about this small black hall in this world.how can i say...we have to know more about sikkim any way . thank you.



2. This extraordinary book presents 113 sepia-toned photographs, with commentary, of the people, architecture and landscape of Tibet, Bhutan, Nepal, and Sikkim, taken by a career British officer in the late 19th and very early 20th century. Anyone with an interest in this region should be enthralled by his remarkable photographs of these remote mountain worlds. The photos represent an important historical record, and give us a fascinating view of these mysterious hidden kingdoms. The book is beautifully designed, and the authors provide important historical background on the photographer (John Claude White), his life and times, and the history of the region.

5 comments about Over the Moat: Love Among the Ruins of Imperial Vietnam.

1. This is a first person memoir. It engaged me from the start perhaps because I had a draft lottery number that was the next one to be called before the Vietnam War ended. I have always considered how lucky I was and yet still eager to find out and understand the country and the people better. The war was such a turning point in the history of America. It was equally a turning point for the Vietnamese. The narrator takes a bike ride through Vietnam, makes a fortuitous stop in Hue, an old provincial capital city and that too becomes a turning point for his life. A quiet book, well written, enchanting. Enjoy!



2. 
   James Sullivan seems to have invented a new genre: the romance-thriller. Not one in which knife wielding, masked lunatics leap out of the bushes to threaten sex-crazed teenagers, but one in which the exigencies of the love itself, the longings and hesitations and misunderstandings, and the barriers raised by external forces, keep you on the edge of your seat. I stayed up until 2 in the morning finishing this one, dragged along by the compulsion to know what would happen next, what new byzantine twist would arise to thwart the lovers and how it would be overcome.
   
   I cannot recommend this book too highly. I give it four stars instead of five only because of some awkwardness in the writing, occasional lapses of grammar, and confused narrative flow (notably at the beginning), and because of a few omissions noted below. But the subject matter, the story, is so compelling and uplifting that I urge you to simply go with the flow and if you have to paddle a bit to get into it, soon you'll be swept away by a powerful current.
   
   Very briefly, the story is that of a young man, the author, who on a lark joins a friend for a bicycle trip in Vietnam, which they will write up for a sponsoring magazine. In the old-fashioned city of Hue, they meet Thuy, a young woman with whom they are both smitten, Jim seriously so. On the return trip by train, after a brief and cryptic visit, Jim jumps ship and spends several weeks getting to know her and her family. If they are ever to have a future, she tells Jim, he must return for a year so she can "know his temper".
   
   After some time (it's not clear whether it's the promised two months or much longer) with his working class family and neighborhood near Boston, full of doubts and childhood/youth reminiscences, Jim gathers together enough money to live for a year, and returns. Over several months, their relation proceeds in the stately progression of a traditional courtship (interestingly contrasted with tales of the lurid sex trade Jim seems constantly exposed to, especially in Thailand, where he must return to renew his visa and for other business). As the relation gets serious, obstacles begin to appear, many seemingly due to one of Thuy's other suitors who works in the very department through which all paperwork relating to foreigners must come. We are also treated to a bit of travelogue, as Jim and Thuy visit a variety of sites or Jim deals with life as an outsider, and get to know Thuy's large family and their history, and the handful of foreigners living in Hue. I won't say more, so that you can discover this story for yourself.
   
   Much as I love this book, much as I urge you "go out and get it", it does have problems. Time is often maddeningly unclear. The author sometimes takes on an almost Asian allusiveness -- I'm still unclear what the exact duties of the "mah-sah" girls in his Hue hotel were, which would be fine if he didn't go on at such coy length about it. The philosophical interludes are annoyingly sophomoric, along the lines of "when I was ten years old, playing stick ball, this four year old girl whom I was destined to love was ..." or all the possibilities that he might not have met Thuy, or missed her on the return trip ... the whole unique miracleness of it all. Practical details that would enhance the reader's understanding are missing; e.g., it would have been nice to say something about how Vietnamese names are structured (why is Thuy's family "the Nguyens" yet her parents are Mr. and Mrs. Bang?).
   
   There are puzzling omission -- Though Jim sometimes thinks about it to himself, could he really never have spoken with Thuy about how their life would be in the US, what would be strange and daunting, what familiar, what difficult? Did he never tell her they would not be rich? Though Jim goes on about his Irish Catholic upbringing, why was no connection with Vietnam made -- either in that the slow traditional courtship is maybe not so strange to him, or to the Catholic influence in Vietnam from French colonialism? In light of the barriers put up by the Vietnamese government to their marriage, it would have been fair to mention that many American GI's who married Vietnames women during the war were denied permission to bring them to the States by the US government (not all those Americans who were "good at leaving" intended to leave their families there permanently).
   
   Nonetheless, this is a book to treasure. Eager as I was to find out what happened, I was also reluctant for it to end. Let's hope the author has a sequel in the works!



3. Transport yourself to another time and another place through this love story, set in ancient Hue. James Sullivan did a great job explaining his thinking and feelings, and tried his best to explain how Vietnamese think. He did an excellent job giving the reader a feel for Vietnamese culture and beliefs from a very personal perspective. The story took a while to develop, and the jumping back-and-forth between various periods of time can be confusing at first. A must read for anybody who is thinking of traveling to Vietnam. Hue has changed much since this story (I visited there last year), so this book captured a Hue that's in the past.



4. This is the true story of an American who, on a bike tour through Vietnam, is suddenly smitten by a girl at a kiosk in Hue. On the way back from Hanoi to Saigon by train, he impulsively gets off and goes back to her house to ask her to be his. She says that she can't answer yet, she can't answer till she's known him for a year. Can he wait a year? Can he wait a year in Hue?
   
   It's a great setup for a book, but I was hoping to enjoy it more than I did. The problem is that the author is a bit incurious. The love story unfolds slowly, and during the time it unfolds -- a whole year -- it's not clear what he does. He writes in notebooks, but it all seems to be observations of himself. He can't get a job because of local regulations, except for some occasional work teaching English, so he isn't thrown into situations where he encounters Vietnamese other than Thuy and her family on a daily basis; and he doesn't try to integrate with other Vietnamese groups, perhaps to avoid causing trouble for them; so it means that the only Vietnamese he encounters are friendly barmen and hotelkeepers, and opponents in the police force and the immigration services. There are some nice descriptive passages and some of the turning points in the love story are genuinely tender and touching, but there are also some startlingly infelicitous sentences for a writing workshop graduate: "You couldn't forge mettle with the notes of an inspirational soundtrack running through your head" or "On day seventeen, my appetite quietly called for more than the couple of spoonfuls that had been satisfying it". The Publisher's Weekly review on this page comes closest to matching my own feelings: if the author had dug deeper and spoken more directly the book could have been much, much stronger.
   
   Pleasant, but I was hoping for more. I would recommend Andrew X. Pham's Catfish and Mandala instead as a truly insightful Vietnamese-American cultural encounter, though from a different angle. And it has bikes too!



5. This real-life story reads like a novel. Our book club had a good discussion about Over the Moat. I hope James and his family live happily ever after.

1 comments about LUXE Beijing (LUXE City Guides).

1. Well written, funny and sarcastic. This is a great guide for the non-touristy, off beat sites to see in Beijing. Tends to be higher end venues so if you are a budget traveler, look elsewhere

No comments about Lingolook JAPAN (Lingolook Flashcards for Foreign Travel).

4 comments about Insight Guide Shanghai (Insight Guides).

1. This guidebook is impractical to use. It is thick and bulky so makes it impractical to carry around in a purse. Bring a backpack to carry this mini telephone book around.

   The writing is somewhat dry and out of date as well.

   I found the Lonely Planet guide much better for getting around. It can fit in a handbag or pocket




2. If you are looking for a cheap, pocket-size guidebook full of hackneyed cliches about Shanghai, and have the attention span of an MTV- and video game-addled ten-year-old, then by all means, don't buy this book. But if you are looking for something more substantial, the kind of guide that you can sink your teeth into and absorb valuable information about the city's history, society, culture, cuisine, arts and entertainment, then this is the book for you. Having lived in Shanghai for several years, and having spent the past ten years studying the history and culture of the city, I can state definitively that this is by far the most substantial guidebook to Shanghai on the market today. Kudos to editor Francis Dorai for gathering together so many experts to reveal the city's mystique and explain its mysteries.



3. I got the new 2003 Edition, and it is much more compact and light than the previous one. Amazing colorful pictures on every page and impressive narrative. Compared to Frommer's that I also bought for my trip, this one wins hands down. It's a very interesting reading, superbly informative and perfectly up-to-date. I also added Insight Shanghai Fleximap to my order and was pleasantly surprised by the quality of design. So if you are heading to Sanghai or just want to explore the city without leaving your bed, this book is made for you.



4. This book gives ou a nice overview of the region, and incredible specific tips for visiting Shanghai.

5 comments about Philippines Travel Guide.

1. The topics covered by the author as far as attractions, accomodations, transportation and local customs are very accurate. This is a must read not only for foreign visitors but for Filipino travelers too because most Filipinos only know about Boracay! Not too many locals have gone and visited the Banaue Rice Terraces as a good example. This book describes a Philippies that has other worthwhile places to visit aside from the usual white sand beaches.



2. I really don't know why everyone is giving this book five stars. I purchased this book based on the recommendations I saw here, despite the fact it is a year older than the latest Lonely Planet. I do have the Lonely Planet guide that Jens Peters wrote from years ago, so I figured I'd go with his latest. I was wrong. I found his suggestions and assessments incomplete compared to the recent LP and the book is peppered with advertisements, which make me question whether or not these ads influence his writing. I have returned this book and purchased the latest LP Philippines. I'm very happy with my decision. With a dearth of updated Philippines travel guides in the first place, I'd go with LP... at least until Moon Guides update their version!



3. This book is very thorough, but I actually like The Rough Guide to the Philippines better.



4. A heavy book to carry, but it is the best there is right now. I use it every trip.



5. Jens captured the top local favorites with places, sights to see, and esp restaurants His quotes on prices and description on lodging is on the mark I just came back from the Philippines and knowing the language and speaking to locals during my backpacking, they were surprised that a German guide book author know their restaurants of choice The only downside is that the author needs to elaborate on some local festivals and also missing information in areas like Cavite, Tagaytay etc But it's definitely a great guide book to have it was my bible during this year's visit and got courageous on venturing out on my own Have fun

1 comments about Sailing Through China.

1. A funny account of one man's cruise down the Yangtze with a group of American millionaires... Insightful, biting humor. An accurate description of tour-isms.

5 comments about South of the Clouds: Exploring the Hidden Realms of China.

1. I've spent over 8 years in Asia with much of it in China and have always enjoyed reading books about China. Many though, do not come close to capturing the modern thoughts of China as it changes from an agricultural to industrial power as this book does.
   
   If you are looking for a deeper understanding of how many Chinese feel on the street, with threads of intrigue, history and current events I heartily recommend this book.



2. 
   Faison brings us closer to the people of China and gives us an honest view of himself and how his own personal uncertainties influenced his choice of going to China and his life there. He dates a woman, who like China, has deep secrets, and he dates another who's personal choices help him understand himself. He visits the sauna massage to have a human touch and someone to talk with.
   
   I like this sort of armchair "travel" book because it skips the tourist sites, hotel/restaurant reviews and encyclopediac history in favor of narratives about the people and the times. You will not read about the Great Wall nor Summer Palace here, and the Xian soldiers are only here because they are part of a story about real, everyday people.
   
   These narratives are rich and memorable: the emmigrants and their familes of Fujian, a bootlegger, a sadly compromised government guide in Tibet, the slow build up to and the ensuing confusion of Tienamen Square. The sky burial, haunts me now, a day after finishing the book.



3. Wow... I just started reading this book two days ago and I'm completely engrossed... wished i had started reading it on a weekend, in order to read it faster!!!
   Having been in China just a couple of months ago, I wish I had read this before my trip. Seth Faison provides lots of information about China society, culture, history and politics without sounding too judgemental. This is one book I'm sure I'll come back to. Essential reading for these times!



4. I'm sure that with technology, there are no secrets. I give it four stars instead of three stars because people who take issue with his contradictions will want to read this. Break out the highlighter pens. I laughed when he acknowledges for the first time (and then frequently throughout the book) that Chinese women are fodder because I've heard the lengthy and boring explanations by those who refuse to admit that about themselves. Use a different color to highlight the many times he feels that Chinese have developed an "obsession for money" and that Chinese women use him to get magazines, currency exchange and see him as marriage material while they cannot afford his expat coffee or sundae. (The kinds of things he was asked for, many people would have no problem giving without the burden of the economic and racial differences between the giver and the receiver. Obtaining magazines are a big deal FOR EXPATS in China. There have been some socially retarded incidents of too much asking but I think the Chinese are better at showing when that's been inappropriate of Chinese so I think he could have been clearer about that.)
   
   Then use a third color highlighter for the many times that he is reliant on the generosity not just material but the generosity of Chinese attention that helps him acclimate and get his job done. People and perhaps especially Chinese fail to draw the comparison that the percentage of Chinese immigrants who enjoy that thorough a level of generosity overseas is much less than the percentage of nonChinese who are helped by Chinese in China. I bear him no rancor though I can't imagine he would appreciate this review. I haven't laughed so much READING in a while. The pungent motives and unspoken assessments are not a shock and I think he's very clever and remembers that many Chinese know this so he presents them for consumption. It's his admissions that save him just as when Kip Fulbeck's narrator admitted that he wouldn't want his daughter dating someone like him. LOL. I wonder if M. Faison (French Huguenot! LOL) has ever been frustrated that Chinese don't realize how clever he is. This book is not about "dating." It's about world politics and its instruments. And his cleverness is not in his confessions of eliciting confidences but in the entire book.
   
   A good companion to this book is Thailand Fever written from both Western and Thai perspectives (as interpreted by a Westerner apparently) with tips on how to successfully navigate the cultural misunderstandings to forge successful romantic relationships. The tone of Thailand Fever is different because the goal for the Westerner is different. I don't think that the authors of either books speak for all Westerners although Thailand Fever tends to generalize. Some expats may welcome South of the Clouds and refer to it to reinforce their criticisms; however, this book fails to explain that Asians and notably the Chinese are very good at ignoring other people and becoming invisible when they are not being appreciated or well-regarded sincerely so there is something to be said when they help you.
   
   I'm fed up with the lack of Asian male faces in American media while Asian women are left exposed and devalued so that this kind of reporting is part of the mainstream depiction instead of just a blip. I'm calling quits on going to the movies and closely considering every American media purchase I make (including magazines) from now on. I've had it!



5. I recently re-read Seth Faison's marvellous book on a return trip through China. I was in Beijing, Chengdu, Shanghai and then Hong Kong all in the space of a week. Faison's book was like a becalmed harbor that I could return to -- every time I got on a plane or settled down to bed. His crackling prose and incisive view of China and the gentleness with which he explained what is a tangled and complex place were something I looked forward to each day. It's a great book and deserves the widest possible attention.

No comments about Raghu Rai's India: Reflections in Colour.