Tigers, Mountains and Pagodas The story of a special and adventurous life At the end of 1923 Stanley Robins passed out of Sandhurst as a prize-winning cadet. He was commissioned into the North Staffordshire regiment, at the time based in British India. Stanley was "thrilled" at this posting as he saw army service in India as the gateway to a "special and adventurous life"; and so it turned out to be. In India Stanley became an expert and highly knowledgeable big game hunter, especially of tigers, including man-eaters and gained a deep affinity with the Indian Jungle and its wildlife. He became a lifelong friend of Jim Corbett; the greatest of the big game hunters. Like Jim he was to be an advocate for wildlife conservation and condemned post World War II hunting methods, especially in Africa. Army postings sent Stanley to the dangerous and volatile North-West Frontier, where "no man's life was safe". He was decorated for gallantry in one of the hardest fought operations on the Frontier. Despite the dangers of nearly constant action against the war-like border tribes he gained a deep knowledge of its people, the country and the culture. Whenever military postings allowed he was keen to visit and learn about the India that had put a "spell" on him; its varied peoples, culture and history and to visit the areas of India rarely seen by most Europeans. As international tensions grew in the late 1930s Stanley was transferred to what became the 14h Army in Burma, playing a vital part in the Allied fighting withdrawal from the "Land of Pagodas" and was decorated for his distinguished service. He was the last man out of Rangoon and the first through the Taukkyan Roadblock, by which the Japanese army hoped to trap Allied forces in Burma, in their lightning campaign. During the Allied liberation of Burma Stanley was personally selected by General Slim, commander of the 14th Army, to ensure effective, critical and growing logistical support for Allied forces, US, Chinese and British, in their advance against the Japanese. At Indian independence Stanley's actions and decisions on that day prevented what might have been a massacre of Europeans and loyal Indian Army soldiers at Nagpur.

This richly illustrated book examines the changing significance of ruins as vehicles for cultural memory in Chinese art and visual culture from ancient times to the present. The story of ruins in China is different from but connected to “ruin culture” in the West. This book explores indigenous Chinese concepts of ruins and their visual manifestations, as well as the complex historical interactions between China and the West since the eighteenth century. Wu Hung leads us through an array of traditional and contemporary visual materials, including painting, architecture, photography, prints, and cinema. A Story of Ruins shows how ruins are integral to traditional Chinese culture in both architecture and pictorial forms. It traces the changes in their representation over time, from indigenous methods of recording damage and decay in ancient China, to realistic images of architectural ruins in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, to the strong interest in urban ruins in contemporary China, as shown in the many artworks that depict demolished houses and decaying industrial sites. The result is an original interpretation of the development of Chinese art, as well as a unique contribution to global art history.

With more than 300 vivid photographs, this inspirational guide reveals the planet's best destinations for hikers, skiers, divers, rafters, and more. Combining adventure with cultural experiences, this one-of-a-kind collection leads readers to new heights of exploration.

Huang Xiangjian, a mid-seventeenth-century member of the Suzhou local elite, journeyed on foot to southwest China and recorded its sublime scenery in site-specific paintings. Elizabeth Kindall’s innovative analysis of the visual experiences and social functions Huang conveyed through his oeuvre reveals an unrecognized tradition of site paintings, here labeled geo-narratives, that recount specific journeys and create meaning in the paintings. Kindall shows how Huang created these geo-narratives by drawing upon the Suzhou place-painting tradition, as well as the encoded experiences of southwestern sites discussed in historical gazetteers and personal travel records, and the geography of the sites themselves. Ultimately these works were intended to create personas and fulfill specific social purposes among the educated class during the Ming-Qing transition. Some of Huang’s paintings of the southwest, together with his travel records, became part of a campaign to attain the socially generated title of Filial Son, whereas others served private functions. This definitive study elucidates the context for Huang Xiangjian’s painting and identifies geo-narrative as a distinct landscape-painting tradition lauded for its naturalistic immediacy, experiential topography, and dramatic narratives of moral persuasion, class identification, and biographical commemoration.

[Demonic Concealment Spell, Unlimited Way] Rising and declining in troubled times is the destiny of the line of the west of Hunan. In the corner of the west of Hunan, the clan of Yuehan wishes for generations to be able to chase the corpses for a career. The legend of zombies in the world of guardians lasts for thousands of years. Fang Wei, a descendant of the Fang family, followed his grandfather out to drive away the corpses and fell into a thick layer of fog. Xiang Xi, a thousand years old, had been known among the common folk to drive away corpses and corpses, a cruel and indescribable ground filled with corpses and corpses, an old man of a hundred years old, a ghost girl holding a lantern made from human skin, a man who endured death by altering a tombstone by herself, had pulled open a bizarre world of ghosts that could not be seen under the sunlight. The snow was falling heavily, and the only thing that could be seen was Chenzhou Sand. Without asking about the afterlife, the gods of the common people, The evil spirits, the evil spirits, the ten sins, respect my heart Liu-Li tower. With one slash, Phoenix's head was severed. One step further, Bodhisattva lowered his eyebrows. Listening to the wind, listening to the rain, listening to the afterlife, Listen to nursery rhymes. = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = In the west wing, the sun shined brightly. There was a girl lover in the west wing, Mom and Dad do not care about the heart injury The child was hungry, not full, not warm ... Skin to make clothes, meat to make soup ...

Another life-altering quest, another struggle between honor and lust for power, another generation of warriors forging alliances and enmities. The adventure, romance, and artistry of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon continues in this novelized companion to the first ever Netflix debut film, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: Sword of Destiny based on the novel by Wang Dulu. Seventeen years after the legendary fighter Mubai dies protecting the world-conquering sword The Green Destiny, four great warriors are called together to guard the formidable weapon once more. The forces surrounding the sword irrevocably altered the life of Shulien, Mubai's lover, but seventeen years later she is still honor-bound to defend the blade from the power-hungry warlord Hades Dai. The young fighters Wei-fang and Snow Vase, switched at birth, also have heritages and inheritances that inextricably link them to both each other and the fate of the sword. And Silent Wolf, Shulien's former fiancé, returns from presumed death to thwart Hades Dai—and rekindle an emotionally isolated Shulien's feelings. Jam-packed with all the hallmarks of an epic adventure—sacrifice, battles, betrayal, vengeance, redemption, and destiny—this saga also explores the deeper meaning of true heroism and virtue. As Wei-fang and Snow Vase search for identity and forge their places in the world of warriors and heroes, Shu-lien and Silent Wolf struggle to reconcile both the traditions and heartbreak of the past with a fragile hope for the future.

The third book in the gripping Tigers Curse series! With the head-to-head battle against the villainous Lokesh behind her, Kelsey confronts a new heartbreak: in the wake of his traumatic experience, her beloved Ren no longer remembers who she is. As the trio continues their quest by challenging five cunning and duplicitous dragons, Ren and Kishan once more vie for her affections-leaving Kelsey more confused than ever. Fraught with danger, filled with magic, and packed with romance, Tigers Voyage brings Kelsey and her two tiger princes one step closer to breaking the curse.This fast-paced novel includes a sneak peek at Tigers Destiny (Book 4) and a smartphone Tag code on the back cover that links to the series website.

Vietnam is host to a unique mix of natural beauty and cultural diversity. It has one of the most ancient cultures of Southeast Asia, with relics of its rich history found at tourist-friendly sites such as the Hindu temples of My Son and Ponagar Tower. Its landscape ranges from mountain passes to lush rice fields and some of the world's most beautiful beaches stretched along 1,860 miles (3,000 km) of tropical coast. This comprehensive and beautiful illustrated guidebook offers walking and driving itineraries to well-known wonders and hidden treasures within the country, as well as useful maps to navigate your way. Active travelers will find plenty of opportunities to stretch their legs with self-guided walks through the shops of the Old Quarter of Hanoi, along the legendary Mandarin Road, and through tunnels used by Viet Cong during the Vietnam War. Thrill seekers can find adventures from kite-surfing in Mui Ne to spotting tigers in Chu Mom Ray Park. And for a taste of authentic Vietnam culture, visit the markets of the mountain tribes. With practical information on when to go, where to stay, what to eat, and what to do, this is the ultimate guide to the best of Vietnam.

One hundred years before Columbus and his fellow Europeans began their voyages of discovery, fleets of giant junks commanded by the eunuch admiral Zheng He and filled with the empire’s finest porcelains, lacquerware, and silk ventured to the world’s “four corners.” Seven epic expeditions brought China’s treasure ships across the China Seas and Indian Ocean, from Japan to the spice island of Indonesia and the Malabar Coast of India, on to the rich ports of the Persian Gulf and down the East African coast, to China’s “El Dorado,” and perhaps even to Australia, three hundred years before Captain Cook’s landing. It was a time of exploration and expansion, but it ended in a retrenchment so complete that less than a century later, it was a crime to go to sea in a multimasted ship. In When China Ruled the Seas, Louise Levathes takes a fascinating and unprecedented look at this dynamic period in China’s enigmatic history, focusing on the country’s rise as a naval power that briefly brought half the world under its nominal authority. Drawing on eyewitness accounts, official Ming histories, and African, Arab, and Indian sources, many translated for the first time, Levathes brings readers inside China’s most illustrious scientific and technological era. She sheds new light on the historical and cultural context in which this great civilization thrived, as well as the perception of China by other contemporary cultures. Beautifully illustrated and engagingly written, When China Ruled the Seas is the fullest picture yet of the early Ming dynasty—the last flowering of Chinese culture before the Manchu invasion.