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A Season in Heaven: True Tales from the Road to Kathmandu
"It wasn't hard to Nixon, the Vietnam War, the Bomb... it's fair to say that I was interested in Indian things... but I knew very little." A Season in Heaven presents the true stories of travellers who hit the hippie trail in the late sixties. David Tomory, himself a veteran of the road to Kathmandu, interviewed a group of travellers who went looking for enlightenment and discovered a world that changed their lives. In Iran and Afghanistan, in Indian ashrams, mountain villages and dubious hotels, a generation of young people got hip, got busted, lost their luggage, and sometimes even found themselves. A Season in Heaven travels with the Americans, Europeans and others who took the trip overland from Europe to India, Pakistan and Nepal. By turns funny and fascinating, spiritual and sensual, their experiences reflect one of the most significant and rarely described social movements of recent times. A Season in Heaven will stir the memories of those who went, and reveals the attraction for those who wish they had.
- GenresTravelNonfictionIndia
256 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1996
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
September 19, 2017
In this book, the author has collected statements, stories, diary entries and the like from thirty seven people, as well as recording his own memories, all of the 'Road to Kathmandu' (or 'Doing India', 'the Hippie Trail', etc) - travels from 1965 to 1975.
With so many contributors, we get a variety of viewpoints from Brits, Americans, Europeans, Aussies & Kiwis and even Japanese. It well covers the 'main route' - Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Nepal & a brief mention for Sri Lanka. India is well covered off - split into many chapters for the different States.
Split into seasons, and trying to bring together all of these memories and opinions, the books tries to give a background to the why, the what was expected, the what were the experiences, and the actual mechanics of the travel, the lifestyle, the spiritual & religious experience.
It is an interesting era, one I missed out on by a long period, but one I probably would have enjoyed experiencing. There was a lot to look forward to with this book, but for me it under-delivered. I really struggle with the format - there was a paragraph from one contributor, a couple of pages from the next. It was either disjointed, or repetitive, and lacked a flow. It did make it easy to read in short bursts, but overall it didn't work. There is also the unfortunate problem that reading about these idealistic, baby-boomers is really quite dull. Don't get me wrong - it was a part of the culture that i would have been comfortable enough taking part it, it just isn't interesting to read about as a third party. I think the readers who would enjoy this book the most are those looking to read about the times they spent - to reminisce, remember - even fill in some gaps maybe.
3 stars.
With so many contributors, we get a variety of viewpoints from Brits, Americans, Europeans, Aussies & Kiwis and even Japanese. It well covers the 'main route' - Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Nepal & a brief mention for Sri Lanka. India is well covered off - split into many chapters for the different States.
Split into seasons, and trying to bring together all of these memories and opinions, the books tries to give a background to the why, the what was expected, the what were the experiences, and the actual mechanics of the travel, the lifestyle, the spiritual & religious experience.
It is an interesting era, one I missed out on by a long period, but one I probably would have enjoyed experiencing. There was a lot to look forward to with this book, but for me it under-delivered. I really struggle with the format - there was a paragraph from one contributor, a couple of pages from the next. It was either disjointed, or repetitive, and lacked a flow. It did make it easy to read in short bursts, but overall it didn't work. There is also the unfortunate problem that reading about these idealistic, baby-boomers is really quite dull. Don't get me wrong - it was a part of the culture that i would have been comfortable enough taking part it, it just isn't interesting to read about as a third party. I think the readers who would enjoy this book the most are those looking to read about the times they spent - to reminisce, remember - even fill in some gaps maybe.
3 stars.
March 15, 2019
for travelers and dreamers like me who went on the trail to discover...the dreamers who sought freedom in places with magical names
February 10, 2016
True stories from one of the most fascinating overland routes during one of the most fascinating social periods in history.
I would have loved to have been able to take this journey from London to Kathmandu but as this may never be a possibility in my lifetime it was nice to read first-hand accounts of those who have.
There were some really beautiful reflections and some really vivid descriptions of places, and I found myself dog-earing a number of pages so I could go back and read those beautiful sentences again.
However, I cannot say I found the layout of the book very friendly. Contributors are introduced by full name the first time they appear but in subsequent appearances they are only referred to by their initials so you constantly have to refer to the back of the book to remember who they are. Also, throughout the book the editor appears randomly here and there with his own thoughts and experiences.
The majority of the book is about the contributors' travels in India. I love reading about India but I also wanted to read more about the experiences in Iran and Afghanistan and Nepal.
Overall this is an interesting, insightful book but by no means a comprehensive account of the Hippie Trail.
I would have loved to have been able to take this journey from London to Kathmandu but as this may never be a possibility in my lifetime it was nice to read first-hand accounts of those who have.
There were some really beautiful reflections and some really vivid descriptions of places, and I found myself dog-earing a number of pages so I could go back and read those beautiful sentences again.
However, I cannot say I found the layout of the book very friendly. Contributors are introduced by full name the first time they appear but in subsequent appearances they are only referred to by their initials so you constantly have to refer to the back of the book to remember who they are. Also, throughout the book the editor appears randomly here and there with his own thoughts and experiences.
The majority of the book is about the contributors' travels in India. I love reading about India but I also wanted to read more about the experiences in Iran and Afghanistan and Nepal.
Overall this is an interesting, insightful book but by no means a comprehensive account of the Hippie Trail.
April 25, 2018
A very unique book. This is a collection of stories from westerners traveling the silk road to India and Nepal in the 60s and 70s. It's striking to discover how very young and naive many of these travellers were, and entrancing to read about their wildness and willingness to take on the adventure of travelling across a continent to such an unknown place.
It's wonderful to see these stories collected and captured, and it is a good book, but I felt like this was just scratching the surface. I would love to hear the stories from each of these contributors in more detail.
The book is sometimes disorienting as stories jump around from teller to teller and there is very little linear links between each chapter.
It's a fascinating topic and a great glimpse into the mindset of people from another time.
It's wonderful to see these stories collected and captured, and it is a good book, but I felt like this was just scratching the surface. I would love to hear the stories from each of these contributors in more detail.
The book is sometimes disorienting as stories jump around from teller to teller and there is very little linear links between each chapter.
It's a fascinating topic and a great glimpse into the mindset of people from another time.
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April 20, 2021Very interesting book! Kathmandu is a city full of magic, faith and present in the imagination of people from all continents. The capital of Nepal holds a precious cultural, historical and religious treasure. There are temples, sacred images, historic palaces, a very peculiar gastronomy and a diverse population in terms of customs, beliefs and physiognomies.
Kathmandu , the largest city in Nepal, is the country’s political and cultural capital, where Nepalese arrived from all corners of the country and were assimilated.
I would like to recommend this article, about this amazing city:
https://marcozero.blog.br/kathmandu-a...
Kathmandu , the largest city in Nepal, is the country’s political and cultural capital, where Nepalese arrived from all corners of the country and were assimilated.
I would like to recommend this article, about this amazing city:
https://marcozero.blog.br/kathmandu-a...
January 10, 2024
It was such a different time and I miss it. The time when a few set out from Europe to the "Far East" with little money and usually no onward plan. Confident that it would all work out in the end. There were few package tourists in the countries along the road and westerners had not yet worn out their welcome. Yes - I miss that time. (Purchased secondhand from Amazon)
April 11, 2018
Great stories about spiritual seekers, off the beaten path adventures, and bohemian excess, documenting a moment in time never to be relived, an era with a kind of innocence and colorfulness that seems missing nowadays.
May 13, 2022
There were some moments of interest, but also a lot of inane western youthful stupidity. A few ‘got it’ and came away better people.
November 6, 2007
The overland trail from Istanbul to Kathmandu brought thousands of idealistic young Americans and Europeans into the Indian subcontinent between around 1965 and 1975. These travelers, who often wandered East on little to no money, sought spiritual enlightenment, a more open and understanding society, or just loads of marijuana and LSD. By the mid-1970s, however, the phenomenon was over as more and people just flew into India, and political changes made the overland route increasingly difficult. In A SEASON IN HEAVEN David Tomory, himself a veteran of the trail, has collected reminisces by 37 others who had wild times in this golden era.
These oral histories touch on many aspects of the India experience. Of course, drug use plays a major part and there's hardly a page without mention of it. But some of the stories treat more substantial themes, and show how within the same milieu people could have vastly different experiences. Take, for example, religion. Stephen Batchelor, a contemporary Buddhist and author of the provocative BUDDHISM WITHOUT BELIEFS, tells of how he was so enchanted by Eastern spirituality that he decided to stay in India and dedicate himself to constant study. Other writers, on the other hand, found the holy men that they fell in with to be outright charlatans and left India disappointed.
Since the contributors passed along the route at different times over its ten-year span, this collection helps to show how India changed under the onslaught of Western freaks, tourists, and pilgrims. In Tomory's book, Goa and Sri Lanka pass from a beach paradise with no electricity and understanding locals to impersonal thronged resorts.
Though I found Tomory's collection interesting as a frequent wanderer myself, I was unsatisfied with the editing. The focus is almost entirely on India and Nepal, with the bulk of the overland trail getting little attention (Iran almost none), and indeed some of the contributors didn't even take the trail. The sequence of the stories in one part is out of whack, with a history of adventures in Nepal coming long before the Nepal chapter. Finally, I wish the editing of these oral histories had been done to the standards of ethnological research as published by university presses.
Nonetheless, for all its faults, I would highly recommend this book to those who like to travel slowly overland, get in touch with local cultures, and maybe even find themselves.
These oral histories touch on many aspects of the India experience. Of course, drug use plays a major part and there's hardly a page without mention of it. But some of the stories treat more substantial themes, and show how within the same milieu people could have vastly different experiences. Take, for example, religion. Stephen Batchelor, a contemporary Buddhist and author of the provocative BUDDHISM WITHOUT BELIEFS, tells of how he was so enchanted by Eastern spirituality that he decided to stay in India and dedicate himself to constant study. Other writers, on the other hand, found the holy men that they fell in with to be outright charlatans and left India disappointed.
Since the contributors passed along the route at different times over its ten-year span, this collection helps to show how India changed under the onslaught of Western freaks, tourists, and pilgrims. In Tomory's book, Goa and Sri Lanka pass from a beach paradise with no electricity and understanding locals to impersonal thronged resorts.
Though I found Tomory's collection interesting as a frequent wanderer myself, I was unsatisfied with the editing. The focus is almost entirely on India and Nepal, with the bulk of the overland trail getting little attention (Iran almost none), and indeed some of the contributors didn't even take the trail. The sequence of the stories in one part is out of whack, with a history of adventures in Nepal coming long before the Nepal chapter. Finally, I wish the editing of these oral histories had been done to the standards of ethnological research as published by university presses.
Nonetheless, for all its faults, I would highly recommend this book to those who like to travel slowly overland, get in touch with local cultures, and maybe even find themselves.
January 23, 2012
Found this book in a second hand bookstore for $5. The best $5 I have spent in years. I've been trying to find people who made the overland trip in the 60's / 70's but apart from finding some blogs have had no luck.
I was born at the start of the Seventies and was too young to do my own trip but have done a similar trip more inclined with my own generation. Flew to Istanbul and even visited the Pudding Shop although couldn't find the Gulhane!!!! Leaving Turkey I flew to India. I'm fascinated with the hippy trail and the scene on/at the Gulhane, the Amir Kabir, Chicken Street, Freek Street and Kathmandu / Varanasi.
This book is full of crazy stories and interviews about people trying to escape from where they came from trying to discover another world and in doing so discover themselves. The observations on returning to the west are accurate. The first day I returned from India to the west I walked around whispering as the streets seemed so empty. As the book points out, everyday is like Sunday in the west.
I was born at the start of the Seventies and was too young to do my own trip but have done a similar trip more inclined with my own generation. Flew to Istanbul and even visited the Pudding Shop although couldn't find the Gulhane!!!! Leaving Turkey I flew to India. I'm fascinated with the hippy trail and the scene on/at the Gulhane, the Amir Kabir, Chicken Street, Freek Street and Kathmandu / Varanasi.
This book is full of crazy stories and interviews about people trying to escape from where they came from trying to discover another world and in doing so discover themselves. The observations on returning to the west are accurate. The first day I returned from India to the west I walked around whispering as the streets seemed so empty. As the book points out, everyday is like Sunday in the west.
September 16, 2016
An excellent travel read of an experience that is no longer wise to follow because of the world situation. But more importantly,away from the druggy hippie lifestyle, there are small nuggets of wisdom here and small windows through which the mystical truths of ancient India are once again recorded by very modern man and through linking these small insights in with my own experiences I have been able to come to what I feel is a deeper understanding of the reality beyond the illusion that we call life which I have faithfully recorded in 'Candles on The Ganges'.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews