After Tibet broke the chains of feudal serfdom it leaped a thousand years in only ten years, thrusting the old Tibet of darkness aside and surging into a thriving new socialist society. This is the strongest impression of our two-month, 5,000-kilometer tour through this vast autonomous region on China's southwest border. The wealth of scenes captured by our cameras and the many moving stories recorded in our notebooks made us want to help the reader see how freedom from serfdom has released the wisdom and creativity of a courageous and industrious people, and examine the significance of the tremendous changes which they have brought about in such a short time under the leadership of Chairman Mao and the Communist Party in this corner of the People's Republic of China.