Hoary stereotypes and exaggeration make a molehill of the mountains.
Nice title, I thought. Walking the Himalayas. Except for the unnecessary pluralising. Seemed reminiscent of Running the Himalayas, an account of an astounding adventure by cousins Richard and Adrian Crane over 30 years ago. The kind of understatement you’d expect from a sporting adventurer.
I had already read accounts of three of the four other well-known treks traversing the Himalaya from as far back as 1980, and had been involved in supporting a women’s traverse of the Himalaya in 1997. I, therefore, cracked the book open eagerly. Wood doesn’t take us to the beginning of his walk till the sixth chapter, by when we are already about a third of the way through the book’s 18 chapters; the previous five being a near-stalling preamble. A touristy visit to Nepal, and two entire chapters in London, where Wood tells us, among other things, of his ‘tours’ with the British Parachute Regiment to war-ravaged Afghanistan. How he “…relished the experience of living life on the edge. The danger, the unknown and total immersion of being alert 24/7, constantly on the lookout for the enemy and roadside bombs…”, and how regrettably, he could not get enough of it. For him and his fellow infantry soldiers, he confides, “… it was the best time of their lives”.
Denne historien er fra August 08, 2016-utgaven av India Today.
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Denne historien er fra August 08, 2016-utgaven av India Today.
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Killer Stress
Unhealthy work practices in Indian companies are taking a toll on employees, triggering health issues and sometimes even death
Shuttle Star
Ashwini Ponnappa was the only Indian to compete in the inaugural edition of BDMNTN-XL, a new international badminton tourney with a new format, held in Indonesia
There's No Planet B
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THE MAHINDRA INDEPENDENCE ROCK FESTIVAL PROMISES AN INTERESTING LINE-UP OF OLD AND NEW ACTS, CEMENTING ITS REPUTATION AS THE 'WOODSTOCK OF INDIA'
A Musical Marriage
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THE PRICE OF FREEDOM
Nikhil Advani’s adaptation of Freedom at Midnight details our tumultuous transition to an independent nation
Family Saga
RAMONA SEN's The Lady on the Horse doesn't lose its pace while narrating the story of five generations of a family in Calcutta
THE ETERNAL MOTHER
Prayaag Akbar's new novel delves into the complexities of contemporary India
TURNING A NEW LEAF
Since the turn of the century, we have lost hundreds of thousands of trees. Many had stood for centuries, weathering storms, wars, droughts and famines.
INDIA'S BEATING GREEN HEART
Ramachandra Guha's new book-Speaking with Nature-is a chronicle of homegrown environmentalism that speaks to the world
