Under the Bright Sky: A Memoir of Travels through Asia

Under the Bright Sky: A Memoir of Travels through Asia brings together ten personal travelogues set in ten Asian countries over a period of several decades. Each story is a snapshot of a distinct time and place, covering a vast and complex landscape, both physical and emotional. A father revisits Sri Lanka, where he had been posted fifty years earlier during WWII; a spouse searches for long-lost relatives in the small villages of southern China. A widowed husband mourns; the stages of a new romance are celebrated in India and Indonesia. Cultural conflict is encountered in Turkey; cultural cooperation in Vietnam. Together, these intimate recollections are a meditation on the relationships between cultures. Interlaced with each new experience is a sense of familiarity and appreciation as Scott places his own travels into the context of those before him, exploring our interconnectedness—a Thai Buddhist abbot in search of the perfect piece of BC jade, and the first Japanese visitors to the Pacific Northwest, a group of seamen who arrive the hard way, drifting in their disabled vessel for more than a year. In Under the Bright Sky, award-winning author Andrew Scott ventures through time and space in search of connection and meaning. His devotion and insight will inspire travellers and historians alike.