James Hilton portrayed Shangri-la as a magical place, hidden away high in the Himalayas, in his popular novel Lost Horizon. It was a place where time seemed to stand still and there were no worries or strife. Shangri-la was about as close to heaven on earth as you could get. The catch? As soon as you left the magical world, time and the reality world would catch up with you.

          For many years the presidential retreat in the mountains of Maryland, USA was called Shangri-la. It was not until the 1950’s that then President Eisenhower changed the name to Camp David in honor of his grandson, David Eisenhower. In Honolulu the home of Doris Duke has been turned into a museum that houses an impressive collection of Islamic art. Her home is also called Shangri-la. The Botanical Gardens and Nature Center in Orange Texas, is know as Shangri-la too. There have been many hotels and resorts that, for obvious reasons, have been named Shangri-la. But is there a real Shangri-la and if so, where is it?

            Many towns in China have taken the name Shangri-la to promote tourism and to boost the local economy. One such town, formerly known as Zhongdian, has been transformed from a fading farm town into a major tourist attraction complete with five-star hotel with an enclosed year-round swimming pool. The redevelopment, though initially expensive, has paid off. The tourists come in droves and the economy has flourished and the local population has opportunities they never dreamed of before. Education, home ownership, good paying jobs connected to the further expansion of the town are all beneficial to not only the people, but to the local environment. Trash dumps have been cleaned up, clean water is now sanitary, electrical wires are buried and sewers installed. Though not the fabled Shangri-la, this once little village does have a magical quality that was not even thought possible a few years ago. Could this truly be a new Shangri-la?

            This month you are invited to read the novel Lost Horizon and then visit this fabled place whether in Hawaii, Texas, China or any of the other thousands of places that you can find heaven on earth.