Kanchung—Taboos and Mysteries Summary and Analysis

Back in Europe, Bulle feels helpless among the crowds and Messner sympathizes. He has a long lecture circuit to undertake and can hardly wait to get back to the Himalayas. Even so, he enjoys the tour's question-and-answer interchanges with audiences, who often want to know about his plans for the future. They also ask why he climbs, and if he is running away from something, and he is happy to explain his pursuit of the challenge to be his best. He does not like signing autographs, and his mood toward his fans soon turns sour. He thinks they pursue him mostly because they are lonely and frightened, and want fantasy in their lives. Halfway through the lecture tour, he reads that eight mountains in China, including Everest, will be open to foreign alpinists...