Trans-Himalaya: Discoveries and Adventurers in Tibet. Sven Hedin

This book is an account of the iconic expedition through Tibet. It was one of the first expeditions of the kind, and it had a tremendous role in the development of Tibetan geographics. The explorer and author, Hedin, was the first European to reach the sacred and legendary Mount Kailash. According to the Buddhist tradition, this mountain is the midpoint of the Earth. He started the expedition in 1906 from the Central Persian desert basins and the western Tibetan highlands. Then, he crossed the Transhimalaya region and discovered new territories. Later, the area of his route was called the Hedin Range. Then, he visited the 9th Pachen Lama in Shigatse. After, he reached the Indus and Brahmaputra rivers' sources and descended the Indus returning home. One of the most significant achievements of this journey is mapping the previously unknown areas of Tibetan highlands. Yet, Hedin wasn't just a prominent explorer but a great storyteller too. From the first pages of the captivating memoir, a reader's attention is entirely absorbed by the vivid description of the exotic places and adventures. Those days, the Indian and Tibetan region was a total mystery for a European. Now, a century on, we know just a little more. So, it is exciting to read about the cultures that are now distant to us geographically and historically. Another bonus you get from this book is a feeling of pioneering. What does a person feel, knowing that they are the first European in Tibet? How is it leaving your home for a long journey full of dangers? You can read about all these things in this beautiful realistic, and captivating memoir.