Over the summer of 2011, Dervla Murphy spent a month in the Gaza Strip. She met liberals and Islamists, Hamas and Fatah supporters, rich and poor. Used to western reporters dashing in and out of the Strip in times of crisis, the people she met were touched by her genuine, unflinching interest and spoke openly to her about life in their open-air prison. What she finds are a people who, far from the story we are so often fed, overwhelmingly long for peace and an end to the violence that has so grossly distorted their lives. The impression we take away from the book is of a people whose real, complex, nuanced voice has rarely been heard before. A MONTH BY THE SEA gives unique insight into the way in which isolation has shaped this society: how it radicalises young men and plays into the hands of dominating patriarchs, yet also how it hardens determination not to give in and turns family into a towering source of support. Underlying the book is Dervla's determination to try to understand how Arab Palestinians and Israeli Jews might forge a solution and ultimately live in peace. Dervla looks long and hard at the hypocrisies of Western and Israeli attitudes to peace', and at Palestinian attitudes to terrorism. While this shattered people long for a respite from the bombings that have ripped a hole, both literally and psychologically, in their world, it seems that politicians have an agenda that pays little attention to their plight.

Following A Month by the Sea, her acclaimed exploration of life in Gaza, Dervla Murphy describes with passionate honesty the experience of living with and among Jewish Israelis and Palestinians in both Israel and Palestine. In cramped Haifa high-rises, in homes in the settlements and in a refugee camp on the West Bank, she talks with whomever she meets, trying to understand them and their attitudes with her customary curiosity, her acute ear and mind, her empathy, her openness to the experience and her moral seriousness. Behind the book lies a desire to communicate the reality of life on the ground, and to puzzle out for herself what might be done to alleviate the suffering of all who wish to share this land and to make peace in the region a possibility. Meeting the wise, the foolish and the frankly deluded, she gradually knits together a picture of the patchwork that constitutes both sides of the divide - Hamas and Fatah, rural and urban, refugee, indigenous inhabitant, Russian, Black Hebrew and Kabbalist to name but a fraction. She finds compassion and empathy in both communities, but is also appalled by instances of its lack on both sides - a Palestinan woman who will not concede the suffering of Jewish civilian victims of a suicide bomber, and the Jewish inhabitants of Hebron who make the lives of their Muslim neighbours a living hell. Clinging to hope, Dervla comes to believe that despite its difficulties the only viable future lies in a single democratic state of Israel/Palestine, based on one person, one vote - a One-State Solution.

In February 2025, Michael Palin travelled to Venezuela to get a sense of what life is like in one of South America's most culturally rich, vibrant but also troubled nations.

In the journal he kept during his trip he gives a vivid account of the towns and cities he visited, the landscapes he travelled through, and the people he met.

Illustrated throughout with colour photographs taken on the trip, and permeated with his warmth and humour, this is a vivid and varied portrait of a complex country from the best-selling author and beloved travel writer.

_______________ 'A passionate love letter to language and to Italy ... a bold and quirkily engaging self-portrait' - Lee Langley, Spectator 'A writer of uncommon elegance and poise' - New York Times 'A fascinating account of her linguistic exile' - Erica Wagner, Harper's Bazaar _______________ In Other Words is a revelation. It is at heart a love story of a long and sometimes difficult courtship, and a passion that verges on obsession: that of a writer for another language. For Jhumpa Lahiri, that love was for Italian, which first captivated and capsized her during a trip to Florence after college. Although Lahiri studied Italian for many years afterwards, true mastery had always eluded her. Seeking full immersion, she decided to move to Rome with her family, for 'a trial by fire, a sort of baptism' into a new language and world. There, she began to read and to write - initially in her journal - solely in Italian. In Other Words, an autobiographical work written in Italian, investigates the process of learning to express oneself in another language, and describes the journey of a writer seeking a new voice. Presented in a dual-language format, this is a wholly original book about exile, linguistic and otherwise, written with an intensity and clarity not seen since Vladimir Nabokov: a startling act of self-reflection and a provocative exploration of belonging and reinvention.

The written travelogue of Ella Sykes' historic first journey across central Asia, this book has been considered a classic of women's studies as well as a historic travel account. Detailing the impressions of Sykes while traveling with her diplomat brother through central Asia in the nineteenth century, this illustrated volume has a wide appeal to those interested in Iran as it used to be.

Award-winning travel writer Lawrence Millman tromps through western Ireland's rugged countryside to record the oral history of its people before their hard-earned traditions are permanently stifled by industrialization and development. In doing so he produces a "lovely nugget of good writing" (New York Times) that relays the stories of traditional laborers-tinkers cartwrights, rat-charmers, coopers, thatchers, farriers, gleemen, pig-gelders-with candor and depth.

The book is originally a journal or diary of our journey to Tripoli, Libya and the things we saw and did there. In those days there was no such thing as a "jet set" because jet planes were not in use, and travel to other countries was a rare event to most people. When I set out for Africa with three children in tow, it was quite an event in our family. Everyone was urging me to write it down in a journal so I wouldn't forget anything, and I could tell them all about it when I came home. This book is the result of that journal. During the last few months of our stay in Tripoli I decided to put it into the form of a book, with chapters instead of so many dates and times, to make it easier to read. When my family got together it was difficult to get a word in edgewise every now and then, let alone telling a two-year saga. A few years ago our children asked me to give them a copy of the book. When I reread it, I realized that the whole story was not there. I had glossed over some of the more difficult situations to keep the family from worrying if we went overseas again. I n addition to that, I had not known some of the details that were released later. I added these in the Perspective at the end of each chapter. Our children enjoyed the result, and they have been after me ever since to have it published. Since there are so few books about military service written from a wife's viewpoint, I decided to give it a try. And here it is.

FRIDTJOF NANSEN ... TOP-. THROUGH THE CAUCASUS TO THE VOLGA Translated by G. G. WHEELER ILLUSTRATED NEW YORK W W NORTON COMPANY, ING Publishers From a sketch made at Geneva, 1929 PREFACE The journey described in this book was made in the summer of 19255 and was the continuation of the one described in an earlier book, Armenia and the Near East Gjennem Armenia . The author gladly uses this opportunity to express his gratitude to Presidents Sainursky and Korkmazov in the Repub lic of Daghestan for the extraordinary hospitality shown to his fellow-traveller and himself during their interesting stay in this remarkable land. He would also like to thank the local authorities in the different places they came to, especially in Astrakhan, for their friendly welcome. It is not possible in a short sketch such as this to give in any way complete impressions of the lands and the many peoples the journey took them through, especially when it was made so quickly, and the impressions were so changing and over whelming. For fuller information as to the natural conditions and the manifold peoples in the Caucasus and Daghestan the reader may be referred to the following among others Erckert, Der Kaukasus und seine Volker, 1887 Merzbacher, AILS den Hochregionen des Kaukasus, 1901 Freshfield, The Exploration of the Caucasus, 1902 the various descriptions of travels by C. Hahn Aus dem Kaukasus, 1892, and others in 1896, 1900, and 1911. A good account of our knowledge of the anthropology and customs of the 5 THROUGH THE CAUCASUS TO THE VOLGA Caucasian peoples will be found in Arthur Byhan, Die kaukasischen Volker in Buschan, Ulustrierte voL II, part 2, 1926. The most Important sources for the study of theCaucasian peoples 3 long-drawn-out fight for freedom against the Russians are the many Russian military reports from the campaigns, and the many Russian accounts of the course of the fighting and so on. It Is mainly on these Russian printed sources that J. F. Baddeley based his work. The Russian Conquest of the Caucasus, 1908, which describes the struggle of the Daghestaners and the Chechens for freedom. As a result of the nature of these sources and the lack of sources from the other side, it is only to be expected that this valuable work, in part at least, should express the Russian outlook on the course of the fighting and the conditions In Daghestan, even though the author has tried his best to guard himself against this. Bodenstedts account in Die Volker des Kaukasus und ihre Freiheitskdmpfe gegen die Russen, 1855, seems, on the other hand, to be less coloured by a Russian point of view but he did not have access to the rich Russian material we now have. Olaf Lange, Kavkasus, Copenhagen, 1891, gives an entertaining survey of Muridism and Daghestans fight for freedom, mostly based, it is true, on Bodenstedt. The Pole, Lapinski Tefik Bey, in his Die Bergwlker des Kaukasus und ihr Freiheitskampf gegen die Russen, 1863, gives an interesting description of 6 PREFACE the fighting by the Circassians and Abkhasians, and of Ms share in it. These introductory words cannot be brought to an end without my hearty thanks to Captain Vidkum Quisling for his untiring kindness as a travelling companion, and for the valuable help he has given the author through his knowledge of Russian and his many-sided attainments. FRIDTJOF NANSEN LYSAKER, Mommber 1929 CONTENTS CHAPTER PAGE PREFACE 5 I. TIFLIS 15H. THROUGH THE CAUCASUS 33 HI. THE MOUNTAIN PEOPLES NEAR THE MILITARY ROAD 53 IV. OVER THE CAUCASUS 73 V. TO DAGHESTAN 93 VI. MURIDISM AND THE FIGHT FOR FREEDOM 121 VII. SHAMYL 139 VHI. EXCURSIONS IN DAGHESTAN 179 DC. OVER THE CASPIAN TO ASTRAKHAN 2Og X. THE VOLGA 225 INDEX 253 ILLUSTRATIONS DR...

Travel writing has, for centuries, composed an essential historical record and wide-ranging literary form, reflecting the rich diversity of travel as a social and cultural practice, metaphorical process, and driver of globalization. This interdisciplinary volume brings together anthropologists, literary scholars, social historians, and other scholars to illuminate travel writing in all its forms. With studies ranging from colonial adventurism to the legacies of the Holocaust, The Long Journey offers a unique dual focus on experience and genre as it applies to three key realms: memory and trauma, confrontations with the Other, and the cultivation of cultural perspective.

Originally published in 1879. Author: Richard F. Burton Language: English Keywords: History Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. Obscure Press are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork.

By the YouTube sensation with two and a half million followers, the inspiring account of a young woman who, in a moment of personal crisis, embarked on an epic, transcontinental motorcycle ride—and along the way found a new sense of purpose.

Noraly Schoenmaker was a thirtysomething geologist living in the Netherlands when she learned that her live-in partner had been having a long-term affair. In desperate need of a new beginning, she decided to quit her job and jet off to India. But her plans were dashed when she fell quickly and helplessly in love: with a motorcycle. Behind the handlebars, she felt alive and free—nimble enough to trace the narrowest paths, powerful enough to travel the longest of roads.

First, she set off toward the Pacific, through the jungles of Myanmar and Thailand, then into Malaysia. Rather than satisfy her appetite for the open road, this ride only piqued it. She shipped her bike to Oman, at the base of the Arabian Peninsula, and embarked on a journey through Iran, across Tajikistan along its border with Afghanistan, over the snowy peaks of Central Asia, and into Europe, all the way back home to the Netherlands. She covered remote and utterly unfamiliar territory, broke down on impossibly steep mountains, and pushed too many miles along empty roads, farther and farther from civilization. But through her travels, she discovered the true beauty of the world, the kindness of its people, the simplicity of its open spaces, and a new and unshakable belief in her capabilities.

Free Ride is an inspiring story of self-discovery and renewal. Filled with unforgettable figures, hilarious disasters, and powerful human connections, it shows you what happens when you open your heart and let the world in.

Part foreign affairs discourse, part humor, and part twisted self-help guide, The Geography of Bliss takes the reader from America to Iceland to India in search of happiness, or, in the crabby author's case, moments of "un-unhappiness." The book uses a beguiling mixture of travel, psychology, science and humor to investigate not what happiness is, but where it is. Are people in Switzerland happier because it is the most democratic country in the world? Do citizens of Qatar, awash in petrodollars, find joy in all that cash? Is the King of Bhutan a visionary for his initiative to calculate Gross National Happiness? Why is Asheville, North Carolina so damn happy? With engaging wit and surprising insights, Eric Weiner answers those questions and many others, offering travelers of all moods some interesting new ideas for sunnier destinations and dispositions.

Diary of a Journey Across Tibet Originally published in 1894, this is Captain Hamilton Bower's detailed diary of his travels through Tibet and China before the turn of the century. The book is extemely rare in its original format, and this is the first time it has ever been republished. The book contains a great deal of information for bot hhistorical and geographical interest, along with over 30 illustrations. Excerpt - This book is the plain unvarnished diary kept during my journey across Tibet and China, written often with half-frozen fingers in a tent on the Chang, or by a flickering light in Chinese rest-houses, a chapter on the Country, Religion, Fauna, etc., only having since been added. Contents include: From Simla to the Frontier, Commencement of Exploration, Deserted by our Guides, Meeting with Nomads, In the Neighbourhood of Lhaha, Negotiations with Lhaha Officials, Marching Northwards, Entering Inhabited Country, Country With Stone Houses, Deserted by the Guides, In the Neighbourhood of Chiando, Chiando to Garthok, Garthok to Lithang, Lithang to Ta Chen Lu, Through China back to India, Religion, Country, People, etc. + Full Index. Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. Obscure Press are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork.

• Story of J. R. "Model-T" Tate's thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail
• Recollections of grueling climbs, knee-wrecking descents, mountaintop thunderstorms, snakes underfoot, and the myriad characters encountered on an AT thru-hike
• Conveys the beauty of the trail and the community that surrounds it

For centuries creative people in all fields have had a thinking place - a private retreat where they have worked regularly, hoping to find inspiration. The authors have chosen thirty-one creative people who vaulted from their thinking places to well-deserved fame or international recognition. These special retreats varied from architectural jewels to humble huts to chosen sites in nature itself. George Bernard Shaw's was a simple garden hut with one window and one door - and a turntable underneath. Shaw captured the prevailing sunlight with a push and a turn.
In their journeys, Carolyn and Jack Fleming discovered that many thinking places still seem to exude an atmosphere of creativity. The Flemings have recorded the details of their searches for you, the reader to duplicate - in reality or in imagination. In their travels the authors discovered much little known information, which they have included in sprightly written vignettes. What was Charles Dickens' long kept secret? What beloved figure did Life magazine proclaim "the unofficial president of the United States"? Who received what the U.S. Patent office states is the most valuable patent ever issued? What two leading educators rose from slavery and extreme poverty to world-wide fame? The reader will discover that the thirty-one people selected were as intriguing as they were creative.
Besides descriptive journeys, vignettes and thinking places, the reader will also receive thirty-one instances of lagniappe, a Cajun word for "a little something extra." Read Thinking Places and see what something extra may be in store for you.

Purchase one of 1st World Library's Classic Books and help support our free internet library of downloadable eBooks. Visit us online at www.1stWorldLibrary.ORG - - THIS volume of papers, unconnected as they are, it will be better to read through from the beginning, rather than dip into at random. A certain thread of meaning binds them. Memories of childhood and youth, portraits of those who have gone before us in the battle - taken together, they build up a face that "I have loved long since and lost awhile," the face of what was once myself. This has come by accident; I had no design at first to be autobiographical; I was but led away by the charm of beloved memories and by regret for the irrevocable dead; and when my own young face (which is a face of the dead also) began to appear in the well as by a kind of magic, I was the first to be surprised at the occurrence. My grandfather the pious child, my father the idle eager sentimental youth, I have thus unconsciously exposed. Of their descendant, the person of to-day, I wish to keep the secret: not because I love him better, but because, with him, I am still in a business partner-ship, and cannot divide interests.

Reclaiming Home is the diary of Lesego Malepe’s travels in South Africa in 2004, the 10th anniversary of South Africa’s democracy. The book begins with Malepe taking the bus from Pretoria, where she grew up, to Cape Town, where she visits Robben Island—the prison where her brother served a life sentence during apartheid days. She interrupts her travels to return to Pretoria, where she attends the ceremony marking the official settlement of land claims for her parents’ property and her grandmother’s property in Kilnerton, Pretoria, which were confiscated by the apartheid government when Malepe was four, forcing her family—along with the rest of their community—to move to Mamelodi township for Africans. Over the course of her travels, Malepe traverses much of her home country, visiting locales including Pietermaritzburg, Durban, Port Elizabeth, Thohoyandou, the University of Venda, and Giyani. Ultimately, hers is a sprawling, revealing journey that illuminates the ways South Africa has changed—and the ways it has remained the same—since the end of apartheid.

Often through ordinary things and ordinary events we glimpse the divine. Living the Sacred Story tells of a seemingly ordinary journey that yielded extraordinary spiritual growth and understanding. From her arrival in Istanbul to her extended sojourn in the Old City of Jerusalem, Bonnie Glassford recounts scenes from an ancient landscape in which people of today live and work. From the perspective of the Ecce Homo Convent in Jerusalem, she encounters Christians, Jews and Muslims living their lives against the rich backdrop of the Holy Land. Living the Sacred Story follows the footsteps of Biblical figures. It combines travel, spirituality, humour, pathos, new insights, personal growth and Biblical reflection. Within an exotic landscape that is the cradle of western civilization, through encounter with the lands described in classical literature and the Bible, and through meeting the people who now live in those lands, the reader becomes aware of a rich inner landscape that we carry around with us. Ultimately the story arrives at the awareness that in the most ordinary events, and the lives of the most ordinary folk, we see the divine.