Dalai Lama
Spiritual Leader of Tibet

Amdo :  The Region where the 14th Dalai Lama was born.  This is a disputed region, which is culturally Tibetan.  The Chinese recognize this region as Chinghai, and parts of Sichuan provinces.  The Tibetans contend that this region has been traditionally a part of Tibet.

Bomdila: The Indian town to which the 14th Dalai Lama first fled in 1959. He recuperated here for several weeks before moving to their first home in Massoorie.

Dharamsala: The present home of the 14th Dalai Lama and the Tibetan community in exile.

Kumbum:   The monastery where the 14th Dalai Lama stayed when he was first recognized as a reincarnation.

Lhasa:   The capital of Tibet and the home of the 14th Dalai Lama from 1939 to 1959.

Massoorie:   The first location of the Tibetan community in exile.  The 14th Dalai Lama and his group were later moved to Dharamsala, where they live today.

Taktser:   The birthplace of the 14th Dalai Lama.

Aung San Suu Kyi
Fearless Voice of Burma

Rangoon :  
Aung San Suu Kyi's birthplace and location she is kept under house arrest.

Thimphu , Bhutan :
Home of Aung San Suu Kyi and her husband Michael Aris when they were first married.  Michael was a tutor for the royal family and Suu Kyi worked for the Foreign Ministry.

Becoming Buddha

Map 1
Map 2

Sir Edmond Hillary
To Everest and Beyond

Badrinath: The mountainous source of the Ganges River. The final destination of Hillary’s "Ocean to Sky" expedition.

Bhatgaon: The start of Hillary’s 1953 Everest expedition. It is 10 miles east of Kathmandu and it is where the roads end and the trekking begins.

Calcutta: A large city along the Ganges River, it was the first stop on Hillary’s "Ocean to Sky" expedition.   It is 60 miles from the mouth of the Ganges.

Dodh Kosi: One of the rivers that needed a bridge built over it. Hillary raised money for this project.

Ganges River: A river 1,500 miles long running through India. It is six miles wide in some places. Hindus believe it is a goddess who came to earth from Shiva’s hair. Many Hindus make a pilgrimage to it believing it will wash away their sins and impurities.   When they die, their ashes are thrown into it.

Kathmandu: The capital of Nepal.

Khunde :  Hillary raised money to build a hospital for the Sherpas here. It is also the home of his trusted friend Mingma Tsering's widow.

Lukla:   Site of an airport to which most trekkers fly when embarking on an Everest expedition. It is 9000 feet above sea level. It was not built in 1953 when Hillary was beginning his first Everest expedition.

Mt. Everest: The highest mountain in the world at 29,028 feet above sea level.

Mt. Makalu:    Hillary’s team would climb this peak on their "yeti" expedition in 1960 in an effort to study the effect of the altitude on the climbers. They wanted to learn how and why people’s bodies adapt to thin air and to find the highest level at which humans can survive. They wanted to climb Makalu without extra oxygen. Hillary had to give up the climb due to altitude sickness, and eventually strong winds caused the entire team to turn back. On this expedition, Hillary developed his great respect for the Sherpa people.

Nandaprayag:    A ten-foot waterfall near the source of the Ganges River. Hillary and his "Ocean to Sky" team made it this far in their boats. After this point they walked along a pilgrimage road.

Tengpoche Monastery :  Hillary and his team reached this site 16 days after leaving Bhatgaon. Hillary spent a significant amount of time here on his later trips to Everest. The monastery was burnt down in 1989 and rebuilt as a grand structure.

Varanasi: The holiest city in India. Hindus come here to wash themselves in the Ganges River to get rid of their impurities. The halfway point of Hillary’s "Ocean to Sky" expedition along the Ganges River.

Deng Xiaoping
Leader in a Changing China

Beijing :      Capital of the People’s Republic of China, established here by Mao Zedong on October 1, 1949.

Chongqing:      City in Sichuan Province where Deng Xiaoping attended prep school in 1919. Later, when the People’s Republic of China was established, Deng became the major of Chongqing.

Guang’an County :      A county in Sichuan province where Deng Xiaoping was born and lived from 1904 to 1020. He lived in a small town in this county called Paifeng.

The Long March :      The year long Communist party retreat in which 80,000 Communist soldier, 15,000 government and party officials and 35 women marched more than 17 miles a day, in total 6,000 miles.

Nanchang:      In Jiangxi Province, Mao sent Deng Xiaoping and his family here in 1969 as punishment for what Mao viewed as disloyalty to the communist party and anti-revolutionary acts. Deng and his wife worked in a tractor repair shop there. They were forced to live here until 1973.

Nanjing:       The capital of Chiang Kaishek’s nationalist Guomindang government

Taiwan :      The island to which Chiang Kaishek fled with his Nationalist Guomindang forces in 1949. He established his capital in the Taipei.  The island is still disputed territory today.

Tibet:      In the 1950s, it was Deng Xiaoping’s job to bring this area under Chinese control often by use of force.

Wuhan :      Location of the Communist Party Center where Deng Xiaoping went after leaving Feng Yuxiang’s army in Xi’an. It was here that he met Mao Zedong. The center was soon moved to Shanghai due to fighting from the Nationalist soldiers (the army of Chiang Kaishek).

Xi’an:       The city in Shaanxi Province to which Deng Xiaoping was sent in 1927 after his training in Moscow at Sun Yatsen University. His assignment was to teach Feng Yuxiang, a warlord, about Communist theory and political strategies.

Yan’an:       In Shaanxi Province, near the end of the Long March and the new base camp of the Chinese Communist Party in 1935.

Yangtze River :      A powerful river in China in which Mao Zedong decided to swim in 1966 despite the strong currents and undertows. The act was meant to show that Mao was invincible.

Mao Zedong

Beijing :      Capital of the People’s Republic of China, established here by Mao Zedong on October 1, 1949.

Chongqing:      City in Sichuan Province where Deng Xiaoping attended prep school in 1919. Later, when the People’s Republic of China was established, Deng became the major of Chongqing.

Guang’an County :      A county in Sichuan province where Deng Xiaoping was born and lived from 1904 to 1020. He lived in a small town in this county called Paifeng.

The Long March :      The year long Communist party retreat in which 80,000 Communist soldier, 15,000 government and party officials and 35 women marched more than 17 miles a day, in total 6,000 miles.

Nanchang:      In Jiangxi Province, Mao sent Deng Xiaoping and his family here in 1969 as punishment for what Mao viewed as disloyalty to the communist party and anti-revolutionary acts. Deng and his wife worked in a tractor repair shop there. They were forced to live here until 1973.

Nanjing:       The capital of Chiang Kaishek’s nationalist Guomindang government

Taiwan :      The island to which Chiang Kaishek fled with his Nationalist Guomindang forces in 1949. He established his capital in the Taipei.  The island is still disputed territory today.

Tibet:      In the 1950s, it was Deng Xiaoping’s job to bring this area under Chinese control often by use of force.

Wuhan :      Location of the Communist Party Center where Deng Xiaoping went after leaving Feng Yuxiang’s army in Xi’an. It was here that he met Mao Zedong. The center was soon moved to Shanghai due to fighting from the Nationalist soldiers (the army of Chiang Kaishek).

Xi’an:       The city in Shaanxi Province to which Deng Xiaoping was sent in 1927 after his training in Moscow at Sun Yatsen University. His assignment was to teach Feng Yuxiang, a warlord, about Communist theory and political strategies.

Yan’an:       In Shaanxi Province, near the end of the Long March and the new base camp of the Chinese Communist Party in 1935.

Yangtze River :      A powerful river in China in which Mao Zedong decided to swim in 1966 despite the strong currents and undertows. The act was meant to show that Mao was invincible.