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Loading... Beyond the Sky and the Earth: A Journey into Bhutan (original 1999; edition 2000)by Jamie Zeppa
Work InformationBeyond the Sky and the Earth: A Journey into Bhutan by Jamie Zeppa (1999)
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Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. No current Talk conversations about this book. written in the 1990's, no internet, cell phones or global economy yet. Jamie is at a cross-roads in Canada. She sees an ad for English teachers in Bhutan and thinks why not? Massive culture shock in a land that's very mountainous and the people very poor - but she discovers that they are content. She is then posted to a larger school, where there are more amenities, but still very primitive. And she falls in love with the country and one of the students. In the end, she returns pregnant to deliver her child in Canada, but moves back in the end and marries her lover. ( ) At age 24 Jamie Zeppa, a Canadian who had never been outside of North America, said goodbye to her fiancé and her plans for graduate school and moved to Bhutan, a remote Buddhist kingdom in the Himalayas. Beyond the Sky and the Earth is an autobiographical work that details her experiences and transformations after spending three years in Bhutan. It is as much a book about Zeppa's day-to-day life in Bhutan as it is about the personal awakenings and realizations that she had while living there. Visitors to Bhutan, an increasingly hot tourist destination, are still few and far between, largely because of tight government restrictions on entry, visa requirements, and a law requiring tourists to spend at least $200 a day there. There aren't many books on Bhutan, and even fewer first-hand accounts of life there. Beyond the Sky and the Earth stands out as both an informative introduction to the people and culture of Bhutan and as a beautiful piece of travel literature set against the backdrop of one of the most remote and unspoiled places on earth. Very moving and interesting book written by a Canadian English teacher sent to Bhutan to teach English as a 2nd language. She really connected with the people after a rough start as the culture is very different from hers. We are visiting Bhutan soon and it really gave me a feel for the country and the people. Here is my review or rather my ramble of why this book means so much to me. http://girlsguidetoscifi.blogspot.ca/2013/02/brief-interlude.html Here is my review or rather my ramble of why this book means so much to me. http://girlsguidetoscifi.blogspot.ca/2013/02/brief-interlude.html
Zeppa's lucid descriptions of the craggy terrain and honest respect for the daily struggles of the natives bring the tiny land to life in a way that is reverent but real. Though she tries to avoid what a friend terms "that Shangri-La-Di-Da business" and grapples with the poverty, sexism and political squabbles in Bhutan that bother her, there is little doubt that she sees the place in a largely positive light and is tempted to remain. In the end, Zeppa's is a lively tale of her earnest efforts to reconcile what she has learned with what she has known.
Jamie Zeppa was 24 when she left a stagnant life at home and signed a contract to teach for two years in the Buddhist hermit kingdom of Bhutan. Much more than just a travel memoir, Beyond the Sky and the Earth is the story of her time in a Himalayan village, immersed in Bhutanese culture and the wonders of new and lasting love. Whether you're travelling to Bhutan, looking for the best travel writing around, or wishing to be transported to a culture, mindset, and spiritual ethos wonderfully different from your own, Beyond the Sky and the Earth is a joyous and lush memoir that will transform the way you think of faith, Western life, and love. No library descriptions found. |
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Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)954.98History and Geography Asia India and South Asia Other South Asia BhutanLC ClassificationRatingAverage:
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