No comments about South China Map (China).

2 comments about Lonely Planet Best of Beijing (Lonely Planet Encounter Series).

1. Perhaps I have to chalk it up to my nearly-fifty-year-old eyes, but this guidebook is virtually impossible to use without a magnifying glass. Every time I read a review that harps point size I usually take it with the proverbial grain of salt, but this one really is very difficult to use. The maps of Beijing are even worse than the text, as the captions are printed in colors that do not stand out from the background. I thought this would be a nice little pocketbook to carry, that would fulfill both guidebook and map requirements, but in the latter case, it just isn't useful at all!
   The guidebook itself is pretty concise, however, so that is a redeeming factor. A lot of the info seems to be imported from the LP China volume. I would just get that, plus a real map of Beijing. (And I have found that the Insight map of Beijing does not have any captions in Chinese characters. Maybe it was an older edition? I would think that is requisite for a city map to be at all useful!)



2. Why beware? Well, Beijing is undergoing massive reconstruction in advance of the 2008 Olympics. I went to one location this guide mentioned, hoping to find the "Cool World CD Store" and instead found an open construction lot.
   
   Snap.
   
   Fortunately, the big places - The Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square, etc. - are still there, so you shouldn't miss those. The maps are superior and were the things I'd refer to most frequently there. They're strategically located on the endflaps, not buried in the pages of the book. If I ever go to Beijing again, I'll have this little travel bible by my side, you can be assured of that!

No comments about Mountain in Tibet: The Search for Mount Kailas and the Sources of the Great River of Asia.

1 comments about Tibet: Caught in Time (Caught in Time (Garnet Pub)).

1. I'm more into photography than anything else, which is why I read this book. The photos are fabulous -- Tibet is so complex and fascinating and funny! Not just monks and solemn things, also farmers having picnic lunches with beer, kids playing, markets, festivals, fabulous costumes and headdresses. Really, if you want to see how extraorinary and intricate Tibetan culture was (before the Chinese, at least!) this is the book to buy. Fab fab fab!

5 comments about Buddhist Himalayas.

1. This book has the most beautiful photographs of the Himalayas that I've ever seen. The photographers captured the essence of this region in perfect, minute detail. Interspersed between the photos are articles written by prominent buddhist lamas and scholars, including HH the Dalai Lama. It demands its own book stand and place for display in your home. The book is very large. The photos are borderless and some span both pages. This is truly something to have to pass down in your family. For lovers of Buddhist thought and for those who just appreciate great photography.



2. The photos in this book are simply extraordinary. The composition of each shot is lyrically beautiful. The images of great masters are radiant and inspiring. The quality of the reproductions is wonderful and unusual (I think) in a book at this price. Anyone with a love of
   Tibetan Buddhism should surely have this book. (By the way, I bought this in a bookstore and paid about twenty dollars more)



3. I purchased this somewhat expensive book with much anticipation, since I already owned The Spirit of Tibet, by Ricard. Buddhist Himalayas left me unsatisfied, chiefly for the reason that it's size and title suggest a more expansive survey than is offered by the experiences of the authors. Several of the photographs by the Follmis consist of plain and uninspired subjects. Numerous short essays, however, provide a more satisfying description of the world of Tibetan Buddhism. With the image of the re-incarnate Khyentse Rinpoche on the book cover, I come to the conclusion that this is one more book about the remarkable man the authors were privileged to know, but hardly justified by the contents.



4. First, the book is very well produced. The quality of the
   book for this price is awesome. It should hold
   up to good use. The reproduction of each and every photograph
   is extremely good.
   Quite a few of the photographs in this
   book are exquisite. All the photographs are well composed.
   It is obvious that the photographers have a special
   sympathy to the subjects of their lenses -- as another reviewer remarked, there is a radiance about the subjects that comes through in the photograph. The photographs of people are great -- it is marvelous to see the reflection in the eyes of the subjects of what they are looking at. Some of the photographs
   are so stunning that it is quite natural that other photographs
   in this book do not quite live up to that impact. The text is
   well written. Highly recommended.



5. This is a gorgeous book with exquisite photography and interesting and sensitive text. The only problem was the poor quality of the binding which fell apart the first time I opened it. Otherwise i would rate it 5 stars.

No comments about Travels in Imperial China.

No comments about Beijing (Global Cities).

No comments about China Calls: Paving the Way for Nixon's Historic Journey to China.

4 comments about A Guide to Ethnic Food in Los Angeles: Restaurants, Markets, Bakeries, Specialty Shops for the Food of Cambodia, China, Ethiopia, Greece, Guatemala,.

1. When this book first came out about 10 yrs. ago or more it was a revelation. In one collection it guided you through EVERY major ethnic community in the greater L.A. region and told you which were the best restaurants, bakeries, markets, etc. I don't know of any other book that comes to close to being this comprehensive & incisive.

   If you ever spend any time in L.A. & you are interested in ethnic food, you must have this book.




2. This is the greatest book on the best ethnic restaurants in LA. Hopefully, the author will put out a new edition. I have it. It's about 10 years old, and I'm not going to sell it. It's better than any new guide out there. Even if you don't go to these places, it's an interesting read.



3. This is a fantastic compendium of ethnic food in LA. It gives you everything you'd ever want to know: best bakeries, best markets, best restaurants. It divides categories by geography (important in LA) & by ethnic cuisines.

   While the 1992 printing will make some info out of date (restaurants for example), this book is one of a kind & the best in its genre.




4. Although 13 years old, much of the info in this book is still relevant. Despite the youthfulness of Los Angeles, there are restaurants and markets that have managed to survive for decades. These places are invariably great and almost institutions in their community. Hence, many of the listings in Burum's book still survive in this megapolis. You'll have fun tracking down that obscure German sausage maker who has had his shop for some 30 years...as well as the occassional let down upon discovering that the old Japanese immigrant, who made fresh tofu daily at the back of his grocery store, decided to call it quits a few years ago.
   
   This book is not only a guide to the ethnic markets in LA, but also serves as an introduction to the cuisine of LA's ethnic groups. Interspersed within the listings, you'll find glimpses into the history of LA's immigrant communities, and what they really eat that you don't get at the mainstream ethnic restaurants. If you're the type that prefers to eat where you're the only one not of the ethnic group the restaurant caters to, get this book. It lets you in on not just the basics of a people's cuisine, but makes you feel comfortable with the unfamiliar (and much more authentic] dishes.
   
   The book is organized into the following chapters, which fairly represents the demographics of Los Angeles:
   China; Japan; Korea; Thailand; Vietnam; Southeast Asian [Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Phillipines]; India; Mexico; Central/South America and Caribbean; Europe; Greece, the Middle East and Africa.
   
   Overall, an indispensable introduction to LA's greatest asset: It's diversity of people and cuisine.

5 comments about Blind Corners: Adventures on Everest and the World's Tallest Peaks.

1. Tabin is a FREAK! :-) Blind corners recounts Geoffs many adventures around the globe. An excellent mixture of mountaineering and other adventures; an inspiring book. It'll make you want to quit your job and move to Iran Jayra. The book will keep you wondering how Tabin ever found time to earn his doctorate.



2. Blind Corners is the most fun adventure book I have read in a long time! It sucked me in from the start, had me laughing out loud and held me in suspense. I did not put it down until I finished. My only complaint was that it was too short. I wanted more. It brings you along for a wide range of adventures from the invention of Bungee Jumping to the first ascent of a new route on Mt. Everest to starting an eye hospital in a remote area of Pakistan. It gives a different perspective on climbing Mt. Everest from "Into Thin Air" and other tragedy oriented accounts. "Blind Corners" focusses on the joy of climbing, the joy of adventure and the joy of life. It is a must read.



3. This book caught me by surprise. I would not have noticed this book on my own, as the title does not grab me. However a friend recommended it to me, and I like adventure books, so I picked it up. It is extremely well written, taking the reader along on fast paced and humerous adventures-from Africa to Antarctica to New Guinea; from the invention of Bungee Jumping to scaling the last unclimbed face of Mt Everest. So on one level it works brilliantly as a fast paced, interconnected collection of short stories describing amazing and crazy adventures by the author and by a cross section of his amazing and crazy acquaintances. But it is more than that. As I read the various vignettes, I found myself viewing adventuring from the unique perspective of the author. Not "thrill seeking", but as a life long quest to maximize life's experiences while maintaing deep respect for the physical and human landscapes encountered along the way. It also gave me a deeper understanding of the events and personalities that led to the recent tragedies on Mount Everest, a view perhaps clearer and certainly different from that gained by reading "Into Thin Air". Finally I was extremely impressed by the authors description towards the end of the book of the author's recent efforts to cure cataract blindess among the peoples of the Himalayas. These passages are not written as self-aggrandizing, but rather continue the themes of the rest of the book, atking the reader into a different part of the world with both humor and insight. Throughout, the book emphasizes that one does not need to go to the ends of the world or be a world-class athlete to live adventures. By the end, the adventure stories and the descriptions of the humanitarian efforts together left me inspired to think about my own life and how I might try to maximize my own fun quotient and perhaps do more good at the same time. Any book that leaves you rethinking your own life while fantasizing about doing more has to be at the top ones read list. This is a wonderful book-and given its limited exposure, it is a hidden gem.



4. Having read and enjoyed the first edition of Blind Corners, I became curious about the second edition from the comments Amazon.com provides. Sure enough, I am glad I ordered it. Tabin's encounters with the people of the Himalayas are unique since his adventures now include the way in which medical care is usually given there and the amazing way in which he and his team manage to cure blindness there. As another reviewer says, this read inspires me to think of adventure, and at the same time doing good, in my everyday life. It surpises me to be thinking about my life because of a book that is so much fun.



5. Geoff is the 4th person who climbed the 7summits including Carstensz Pyramid. And his book is one of my all-time favorites; this guy is not only an explorer but a crazy adventurer as well. Great stories about the first bungee jump and standing on Carstensz summit without permit, but with penisgourds...

   Now there is a 2nd edition! This new and extended edition contains extra chapters about Geoff's amazing cataract surgery projects in the Himalayas and Karakoram.
   Also there are new chapters about guiding &, other climbers: George Lowe & Rob Slater (in addition to the part about Lou Reichardt) and some older chapters are updated.

   Geoff shows that a life of adventure can be combined with doing great things for others. His cataract project has changed many thousands of people's lives, as they turned from being completely blind to seeing for a few dollars worth of materials and strong determination of Geoff and a few others.

   It's hard to say what the biggest adventure is: climbing the east face of Everest or being bitten by a rat while operating in Pakistan without lights, but one thing is sure: "it just doesn't get any better than this".

   "Dayenu" & "Kay guarnay" are 2 themes in this book written by an eloquent and smart pragmatic man. Just read it and find out what it means... then head off to your next adventure; who knows, it might just make the world a better place to live in...

   But the best thing about this book is that it's available again as it is not to be missed by anyone who has ever felt even the tiniest spark of adventure in his or her brain. Now in paperback, cheaper than ever, but richer than ever as well.

   ps: it's 235 pages (not 304 as [stated by Amazon.com]);