I don't know if or when any of you is going to find himself / herself in this particular area, but anyway here it is...

This is the latest edition (8th) that was released only about a year ago. Things really changed in this edition compared to its predecessor; more authors are involved and new and updated information is added (though many sections remain).

Important note: When it comes to Myanmar, things can change for better or worse overnight due to the nature of the ruling government, while some other things tend to stay the same. Especially here, pay close attention to all the small details given in the chapters "Facts for the visitor", "Getting there and away" and "Getting around" - they matter greatly.

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As a whole, the guide will be a valuable asset for you if you're planning on traveling there, and there is absolutely no doubt whether to buy it or not - it's an essential purchase. To a great extent it will help you plan your budget, your destinations, how to get there and when, what to bring and so forth.

You should know that there are some beautiful places to visit in the country. One of them, the Shwedagon Paya in Yangon, strikes me as one of the most beautiful man made structures in the world. Imagine a 100 meters high Stupa (Buddhist religious monument), all covered with golden leaves, set on top of a hill, in the center of smaller golden temples and Buddha statues. The sight was breathtaking and alone was worth coming. Another famous place, yet less astounding, is Bagan, the city of Stupas in the north. There you can find numerous Stupas some of which were built more than 1000 ago. And yes, almost in every city and town you will see at least one golden Stupa (that immensely contradict the poverty of the people) that give Myanmar the name "The Golden Land".

The tagline on the cover of this book is "should you go?" It is misleading due to the fact that the answer they give inside is "yes". If you want to go - go, the political status is not of your concern, you're a traveler not a world freedom fighter. You wouldn't help the local people by avoiding the country - they benefit from your staying there - and that is all that you should care about.

Nevertheless, the authors don't really prepare you for the level of poverty you're going to meet there (the same way another author hasn't done in the Cambodia book yet); this is one of the poorest countries in the world and that's why you should always be careful and never trust anybody - they're there for your money (mostly). I really don't like, after being around, the attitude of "the locals are so nice and we can learn so much from them"; some of them are really nice and helpful, but others are nice because you spend your money there and it's downright blatant. Expect it; don't fall for it and BE CAREFUL of forced and immediate friendliness. Remember that as a tourist you're regarded as very rich and compared to them you are.

I want to mention the fact that as a traveler and a guest you will receive the best services even in budget hotels - they treated my friend and me like royalty in each and every hotel, and that was something we really enjoyed and appreciated. It's the best service all over South East Asia, and it does say something about the people as a nation.

I hope their days of freedom will come soon. ...

- Two exceptional writers have combined talents in showcasing the most popular as well as some of the more lesser-known, eclectic destinations the Distrito Federal has to offer. Mexican photographers Pablo Monasterio Ortiz, From Planeta Journal - Raul Ortega and Maritza Lopez contributed exceptional black and white photos that along with Bob Race's illustrations complement the text. Sideboxes examine environmental issues and even city websites. Travelers will find the book is not limited to the megalopolis, but it also profiles nearby destinations, including Valle de Bravo, Puebla and Taxco.

I used this book extensively during the three years I lived in Texas. I liked its mix of history and practical where, when, and how information.
Organized regionally around the major cities, the Texas Handbook also includes numerous towns and sights of interest in the surrounding vicinity and places between. It does a remarkably good job of covering such a large state.
Hopefully a new addition is in the works. Because it was published in 1998, most prices will be out-of-date, but it's so easy to now get hours & admission via web sites, that it's not that big of a problem once you've used the handbook to identify all the interesting places you want to visit.

Making my move to Bangkok, this book has well equipped me for the transition, and has made me more excited and prepared. This book gives an endless supply of information on Bangkok, but doesn't stop there. It goes on to talk about culture, history, and other parts of Thailand, but keeping it relevant. This book is a must have if you are planning on learning, visiting or living in Bangkok! I only wished that this book had more pictures, but the author made up for it in his fun to read writing style.

This book will save you time, money, frustration, and give enjoyment and satisfaction. Bangkok is a huge city with many attractions and lots of traffic. This guide will tell you where you can go and what you can do based on *your* personal preferences. You can fit your accomadation, lifestyle, budget, culinary likes, night life play-time, and temples, into this guide, and most importantly, get there quickly and affordabley. All of the river taxi and Sky Train routes and stops are listed. Information on the arriving Metro is included as well. The maps are accurate. Plenty of cultural, visa, legal, medical and food information. Very pleasant areas outside of, but near Bangkok are noted. If you spend time in Bangkok, and only use the LP South East Asia or LP Thailand, you will miss many things that you may want to experience in Bangkok. The Bangkok city guide is worth picking up for those who have the country LP.

4 days in Bangkok and this book was right on the money with locations, reviews of sights and maps.

A wealth of information on driving, fishing, boating, where to sleep, camp and have fun. I love this book! It's helped us find out of the way places the average traveler doesn't look for.

I think it's even better than the 4th edition!

This book is just great. It starts out with a good basic overview of the area. I used the book on a recent trip to La Paz. The maps are excellent and very easy to use. The prices are a bit off at times but still in the range. The hotels are broken down into price categories, that was very helpful. The book helped with getting around by bus and the restaurant sections gives good accurate descriptions. This book was just super. If your going to Baja, anywhere in Baja, get this book it is well worth the price.

We went to Cabo San Lucas and used the guide extensively for dining references. We were not disappointed. Not only were the reviews on the mark, we were able to find some wonderful restaurants off the beaten path that we would not otherwise have found. When we decided to take a day trip to Los Santos, we found the book indispensable not only for dining, but also for finding our way around the landmarks and shops. The brief histories of the various towns were interesting, as well. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in maximizing their enjoyment of Baja.

Buddhist Stupas in Asia: The Shape of Perfection by Bill Wassman (Photographer), et al, offers a sweeping and broad overview of the epitome of Asian Buddhist architecture. The photographs are good and the succinct commentary is informative enough. This is not a book for hardcore history buffs though, as the very short accompanying analysis would not suffice; nevertheless, in most cases the photographs more than compensate by offering quality glimpses of a divine form of architecture. One drawback: some of the photographs are too small for the subject to be really appreciated (some are as small as approx. 3cm x 3cm!). All in all: an enjoyable mind-trip through the very essence of Buddhist architecture.

This book covers Buddhist architecture across its known history, from its origins in Northern India through Southeast Asia to Indonesia, to Nepal and Tibet, into China, Korea, Japan and Vietnam. The emphasis is clearly on architecture, but it covers the relevant backgrounds in Buddhist art and philosophy as well. If you want a book about Buddhist cultures or thought, this is not it. But if you want a book about Buddhist architecture, this is a great beginning. It is well-written, well-designed, and the photography is excellent. I wish it were much longer and went into much greater depth... but then it would be much more expensive!

I received this book as a surprise gift, and I think it makes a great gift: it's the kind of thing someone would want and enjoy, but would not buy for themselves.

The author, Joe Cummings, also writes the Lonely Planet guidebooks for Laos, Thailand and Myanmar (Burma), and they are excellent. I've been to all three places, and so I've seen many of the stupas covered in this book, and his guides have helped me more than most do.

When I opened this book in the bookstore, I was knocked out by the photos, which cover stupas all the way from Taxila, Pakistan, to Tokyo, Japan. The stupa photography is particularly strong in the chapters on India, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Nepal and Tibet. An entire chapter is devoted to Borobudur and satellite stupas in central Java.

Dipping into the text at home, I was pleasantly surprised by how authoritative and complete the coverage of this complex topic was. Not only does the author do an excellent job of explaining the symbolism of stupas in various Buddhist cultures, he also links it to the history of Buddhism throughout Asia, no small task. Although I'm a longtime amateur student of Buddhism and Asian art history myself, I found much new material to ponder.

I was most impressed by the way Mr Cummings has carried out original research as well as reporting on the research of other scholars who came before him. This is something I didn't expect from a hardcover pictorial such as this. Kudos to Lonely Planet for publishing a seriously good book.

This book adds both novelty and inspiration to an otherwise dull coffee table or mind. More touristically, this is one of the special books that make you go to the place and find where the interesting buildings not in the travel guides are. The pictures are excellent, not cropping so much as to glamourise rubbish, and not putting things out of context: in short, well edited text and visuals. One note, it has nothing to do with the experience of being in a third world country, but it is for the visual pleasure only.

I own at least a dozen books in which the second word of the Title is "Style", but this is certainly one of the best. Well organized, informative and full of beautiful photographs. Looking through this book you can learn about the Architecture and Design of Myanmar. The book is divided into sections dealing with Religious and Secular Architecture, Early and Modern Architecture and Arts and Crafts. At the end of the book there is a section of Textiles and Costumes, and another entitled the Pagoda Market which shows photographs and gives descriptions of vendors of various types of handicrafts. Thus a cross section of the different aspects of the Myanmar Style are given, without adaptations by Western Interior Decorators. Some "Style" Books are misleading because they show the adaptations, primarily in the West, of Stylistic Elements. While these books are ok, I prefer to see the Style as it actually is in Myanmar, not a Architectural Digest type of interpretation. This book is free from this. The text is concise and informative. Not overloooked should be the quality of the photographs and the paper and printing, which in this case are all excellent. Some other books of this genre are not up to high quality. No worries here however. I highly recommend this book. It will make you want to visit Myanmar, or at least think about redesigning in your home.

Finally, a book on art and design in Myanmar/Burma that does justice to the living traditions as well as the colonial and pre-colonial empires. Superb photography, thoughtful text, and some quirky subjects, too, such as the chapter The Great Pagoda Alley. Enjoyable.

This concise guide covers the bottom quarter of the Baja California peninsula from La Paz to Cabo San Lucas. It's chock full of useful data and advice cultivated over four editions. The sports and recreation sections are admirable, and there's good information on the local food and drink. The hotel listings are useful too, although exact room prices are not quoted for some reason. Instead there are price ranges with "under US$25" the lower end category. Restaurant meal prices are also missing - "moderately priced" can mean anything - but opening hours and menu descriptions are provided. None of this will be a real problem for the vast majority of visitors, but low-budget backpackers will be left guessing at times. I found the coverage of city bus services skimpy, although inter-city buses are adequately described. I sought and didn't find tips on getting too/from the airports on the cheap (US$14 per person for a colectivo to cover the 12 km to/from La Paz Airport doesn't sound like the cheapest option to me). Maybe Cabo just isn't a shoestring destination the way Thailand is - and I know Joe Cummings is very familiar with Thailand. Joe has plenty of helpful hints for motorists, but I couldn't find anything about parking. Is free, secure parking so universally available around Cabo that's it's not even worth a mention? Travelers who have used the Moon Handbooks series in past will be impressed by the resigned format exemplified in this volume. Cummings himself took most of the black and white photos, and I like the way sites are clearly labeled on the maps and not listed in cumbersome keys the way they are in Lonely Planet. However, 18 maps in a 288-page guidebook seems too few to me. These minor caveats aside, Moon Handbooks Cabo is value for money and it will serve the independent, adventuresome traveler well.

My family just returned from 2 weeks in Cabo. During this time we used the Moon guide (3rd ed.) extensively. We visited San Jose, Cabo SL, Todos Santos, and east cape as well as various remote points in between and found the book accurate every step of the way. This book is very well researched and complete - although pricing was a couple of years out of date. I assume the 4 th edition corrects that. This book is a "must have" for travelers to Cabo who want to do more than just stay in a pre-packaged all inclusive resort.

I thought this book was highly accurate in its description of restaurants and hotels in the main places people visit in Baja California del Sur. It even has info on places you mainly just drive through from one larger place to another with information on the tiny town's history, places to eat there, etc. You can rely on the information in this book. I'd not hesitate to buy another travel book by this author.