The Dolpo region in western Nepal is one of the most remote regions on Earth and is home to the Dolpo-pa. Their way of life, their society and the challenges of adaptation to the changes the world has thrust upon them are still relatively little understood. Gerda Pauler’s contribution, then, is salutary and her study helps illuminate this remote part of the western Himalaya. The strength of the book is its combination of photography and commentary from locals. Her photography captures the stark beauty of the region, while the portraits evoke both Dolpo’s heritage and contemporary changes.
DOLPO: PEOPLE AND LANDSCAPE GERDA PAULER
Gerda Pauler was born in the late 1950s outside Munich and soon found out that she had inherited her mother’s passion for adventure. Whereas her female friends spent all their money on stylish clothes, she used hers for rucksacks, sleeping bags and travelling. However, she was almost thirty years old before she set out on her first trip to Nepal, and it was then that she developed a genuine love for the mountains. Now, twenty-five years later, she looks back at countless trips to the Himalaya and Central Asia – and knows that she will never get tired of visiting the area. She is the author of Great Himalaya Trail (Bâton Wicks, 2013). Dolpo: People and Landscape is her second book.
Writers, film directors, scientists and tourists have all described Dolpo as a ‘last paradise’, the land of the snow leopard, full of myths and magic; a home to untouched nature and unspoilt Buddhist and Bon culture. One of the most remote mountain regions in the world, Dolpo is among the least-developed rural regions of Nepal. A culturally Tibetan region in the upper Dolpa district of north-western Nepal, Dolpo lies along the border with Tibet (China) and has been closed to foreigners for decades. A breathtaking backdrop of snow-capped peaks, rugged ridges and barren, brown-grey mountains contrasts with the green irrigated pastureland in the region’s glaciated valleys. Sitting in the rain shadow of the Dhaulagiri massif, Dolpo receives very little annual rainfall, and its agriculture depends on irrigation. Largely ignored by the government, the people of Dolpo have developed a self-sufficient lifestyle that involves hard work, daily risk taking and a constant fight for survival. In Dolpo: People and Landscape, Gerda Pauler explores the individuals, communities and culture that make Dolpo one of the most fascinating regions of the Himalaya. Interviews with Dolpo’s inhabitants, meticulous research and stunning photography make this book a must-read for anyone with an interest in Central Asia and Nepal.
FROM THE FOREWORD BY DR KENNETH BAUER
PEOPLE AND LANDSCAPE
ISBN 9 7 8 1 8 9 8 5 7 3 9 6 8
9 781898 573968 >
512i BW Dolpo Photography Book_OFC.indd 1
GERDA PAULER
FOREWORD BY DR KENNETH BAUER
£14.99
30/10/2015 14:42