Planet Bhutan
Bhutan
by Stan Armington
Lonely Planet Hawthorn (Australia), 1998
309 pp, USD 12.99
ISBN 0 86442 483 3
Bhutan is one of those South Asian destinations meant for a few hardy tourists, and even fewer researchers, scholars and development workers. Isolated geographically at the eastern end of the Himalaya, and culturally by a policy that discourages hordes of visitors, it remains a remote and intriguing place; the locals have limited access to the international media—national television and Internet will be arriving only later this year. Visiting Bhutan is an honour, and living and working here (as this reviewer does), all the more so. Thus, it's welcome that a new and truly well-written book about the country, its geography, history, culture and society, has appeared.