My Journey to Lhasa - by Alexandra David-Neel (Paperback)

About the Book

Book Synopsis

"Involves us intensely in a world that no longer exists--that of free Tibet. . . . Fervent and admirably unsentimental . . . [David-Neel] had to exercise the utmost ingenuity to survive."-- New York Times Book Review

Originally published in 1927, My Journey to Lhasa is a powerful, entertaining record of danger and achievement that has become one of the most remarkable and inspirational of all travelers' tales. Disguised as a beggar, Alexandra David-Neel tackled some of the roughest terrain and climate, suffered primitive travel conditions, frequent outbreaks of disease, the ever-present danger of border control, and the military to become the first woman to penetrate Tibet and reach Lhasa--and the first Western woman to have been received by any Dalai Lama.

From the Back Cover

An exemplary travelogue of danger and achievement by the Frenchwoman Madame Alexandra David-Neel of her 1923 expedition to Tibet, the fifth in her series of Asian travels, and her personal recounting of her journey to Lhasa, Tibet's forbidden city.

In order to penetrate Tibet and reach Lhasa, she used her fluency of Tibetan dialects and culture, disguised herself as a beggar with yak hair extensions and inked skin and tackled some of the roughest terrain and climate in the World. With the help of her young companion, Yongden, she willingly suffered the primitive travel conditions, frequent outbreaks of disease, the ever-present danger of border control and the military to reach her goal.

The determination and sheer physical fortitude it took for this woman, delicately reared in Paris and Brussels, is inspiration for men and women alike.

David-Neel is famous for being the first Western woman to have been received by any Dalai Lama and as a passionate scholar and explorer of Asia, hers is one of the most remarkable of all travellersߴales.

Review Quotes

"My Journey to Lhasa . . . involves us intensely in a world that no longer exists-that of free Tibet. . . . [David-Neel's] descriptions of the landscape are fervent and her understanding of the Tibetans admirably unsentimental. Her Tibet is not at all the philosophers' kingdom of Lost Horizon; it is a fierce . . . frequently dangerous place, where she had to exercise the utmost ingenuity to survive." -- New York Times Book Review

"A scholar of Eastern religion and Tibetan language, David-Neel was indisputably a fearless traveler, a rogue's rogue who, in 1923, disguised as an illiterate pilgrim, became the first Western woman to reach Tibet's forbidden city. Her account has the power to awe even today." -- Outside magazine

"The sort of thriller yarn that keeps you up all night and is too soon over." -- Ms. magazine

"As a traveler, she has performed a brilliant feat." -- New Statesman

"Fascinating.... A striking portrait of the Tibetan people and their culture, as seem by a most remarkable woman." -- Good Books for the Curious Reader

"In 1923, at the age of fifty-five, the author disguised herself as a pilgrim and made her way to Tibet's forbidden city of Lhasa. This is a lively account of her journey and a classic portrait of Tibet, its region, and its people." -- Bloomsbury Review

"David-Neel was indisputably a fearless traveler, a rogue's rogue. Her account has the power to awe even today." -- Outside magazine

"My Journey to Lhasa . . . involves us intensely. . . . [David-Neel's] descriptions of the landscape are fervent and her understanding of the Tibetans admirably unsentimental. Her Tibet is not at all the philosophers' kingdom of Lost Horizon; it is a fierce, filthy, frequently dangerous place, where she had to exercise the utmost ingenuity to survive." -- New York Times Book Review