BBC - MYTHS AND HEROES: SHANGRI LA

During 2003 and 2004 I was fortunate enough to be asked to travel with Michael Wood during the filming of his BBC / PBS series "In Search of Myths and Heroes". The series was made by MayaVision International, and my photographs illustrate the accompanying BBC Publications book. 

The first chapter tells the story of Shangri La, the mystical land depicted in James Hilton's book Lost Horizon. Hilton did not invent this concept - it has long been a theme in Tibetan mythology, where it is known as Shambala.  

Our journey in the footsteps of the Jesuit priest Antonio de Andrade, who, in 1624 was the first European to cross the Himalaya, took us from the sweltering heat of India, across the Himalaya to the freezing plateau of Western Tibet. In Humla and Limi - remote valleys in north-west Nepal, our arrangements were made by The Nepal Trust, whose medical and aid projects in the area are an inspiration. 

These images of Old Delhi, Haridwar, Badrinath, Kathmandu, Western Nepal and Tibet were taken with a Nikon F5 and Fuji Velvia slide film.