Travel is a journey into the unseen, the unfelt and often the untried. And then everyone has a story to tell. But the excitement takes over right from the moment the first thoughts of a trip touches our mind. However the last two years have been very different and a difficult one for the traveler in us. Yet there are stories to inspire as you read more. Stories of many years back, during the pandemic and now. But this one is a class apart. And a story from the time of my good old younger days. It’s exciting. It’s the Himalayan connection.
The last two years have also been about visiting a lot more places through the eyes of a fellow blogger. And it has been so heartening to see so many female travelers who are bloggers themselves sharing their experiences of this beautiful world. And their stories of solo travel, courage, grit and determination to face adversity with success and a smile. It’s been a real pleasure traveling with them on their journey to the unexplored.
A New Discovery
But when I chanced upon this story couple of days back, all memories of my growing up days in the 60’s & 70’s in the land of Buddha Bodh Gaya, 1983 the year I passed out of my university, the memories of Nepal as a teenager and the trips to the Himalayan ranges over the years here in India came flashing back. And I continued to read on. A book on a journey from within by ‘Amy Edelstein’, the celebrity writer, researcher, teacher and author.
The Story
The 1970s were a hard decade for independently-minded young women to come of age in America, especially in an East Coast industrial city that was more like the lumbering Midwest than the forward-thinking eastern seaboard. When Amy Edelstein looked around the Pittsburgh neighborhood she grew up in, she concluded that if she was going to find someone who might be able to offer more than a shred of insight and guidance on a path to a life nobly-lived, she knew she had to head much further afield.
And so, she did. Leaving Cornell University to celebrate her 21st birthday in the mountains outside of Pokhara, Nepal. And then she decided to spend the next few years walking in the high Himalayas, studying philosophy and meditation with the best teachers she could find, and doing everything she could to tame her restless, anxious, and self-critical mind. She was on the perennial quest.
Determined to find that elusive awakened consciousness, in 1983 Amy journeyed to the remote western corner of the Tibetan Plateau in Zanskar, India. Carrying a crumpled Indian Army map to guide her, with dotted lines tracing footpaths and concentric mis-shaped ovals marking elevations she set out to walk several hundred miles in the oldest Buddhist valley in the world. Traveling alone, without mountaineering gear or guides, she crossed mountain passes as high as 16,000 feet, traversed glacial snow bridges, and slept in caves, shepherds’ huts, and outdoors under a brilliant star-studded sky.
Sounds exciting? Well my copy has just reached me. And can’t wait to lay my hands on this exciting book. Moreover you too could order yours right here on Amazon.
Adventure in Zanskar
This account of Amy’s journey reveals a world of our recent past, yet one radically different from our present— a world prior to the ubiquitous mobile phone and its globalizing influence. A world where we could still adventure and discover great treasures of generosity, wisdom, and kindness. And in Amy’s words, a world where the Buddha’s teachings were in fact embedded in every aspect of life.
About the Author – Amy Edelstein
IPPY-award winner and #1 Amazon bestselling author Amy Edelstein has a unique perspective on the relationship between the inner journey and outer change. She is a Cornell University College scholar and the author of six books, including The Conscious Classroom.
‘Happy Holi’ Amy from all of us in India. Thank you so much for connecting. And thank you for the copy. I eagerly look forward to reading the book first and then our one-to-one interaction around the middle of next month. It would be a pleasure chatting up.
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