Jade Screen Hotel & CNT-Revisited

Once in awhile I get an email or a note about one of my images which helps me feel good about being a photographer.

About one year ago Conde Nast Traveler licensed my Jade Screen Hotel image to lead a story called "Going to Extremes"; a portfolio of images of remote hotels from around the World. I wrote about it in a previous post.

In December, I received a very moving message from a woman in Montana who had seen the article.
With Jamie's kind permission, here is what she wrote:

 12/14/11

Jake, 
I saw your photo of the Jade Screen Hotel in Conde Nast Traveler when I was in the hospital undergoing intensive chemotherapy for leukemia. That picture was good medicine. It took me far away from a place that I really didn’t want to be.I saved that shot, even made it the wallpaper on my phone. It just made my jaw drop every time I looked at it—both because of the scenery itself and because of the magical way you captured it. It looked like something straight out of a fairy tale, so remote and elusive.When I finished my last treatment, I took my new lease on life and headed straight for Huangshan. I climbed those stairs, and I stayed! at the Jade Screen. It was a dream come true. Is there any way I could get a copy of that print? I feel like I have carried it around for many miles… or maybe it has carried me. 

And then.....

12/16/11

Jake,
Many thanks to you for taking that photo! From the first moment I saw it, I wanted to go there. On my way to China, I kept showing people where I was headed. Like me, no one could quite believe that such a place existed. Someday, I’d like to hear about your trip. How did you possibly discover Mount Huangshan?
BTW, thanks for asking about my health. I am in complete remission and done with all my treatments. It was a long haul, but now my hospital visits are simply routine checkups.

It really was a thrill to climb those steps.... such a far cry from the days when I couldn’t breathe without being on oxygen and when a few steps around the room was a major accomplishment.

Thanks again for inspiring me to go!

Jamie

Jamie & I have corresponded many times since I received her email, and she has sent a letter to the magazine, letting them know about her trip to the Huangshan Mt's. It will be published in the March 2012 issue of CNT.



Thank You Jamie! I look forward to meeting you someday!