Alexandra David-Néel (1868-1969)

Passionate about Asian philosophies, Alexandra David-Néel is known for her free and non-conformist spirit and went down in history as the first European woman to explore Tibet. After an eight-month march on foot disguised as a Tibetan, Alexandra arrived in 1924 at the city of Lhasa, the capital of Tibet, which was then forbidden to foreigners. In 1927 she published Voyage d'une Parisienne à Lhassa, a travelogue in which she described the atmosphere of the country in the 1920s and the lifestyle of the Tibetans.