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Books > Travel > Travel writing > General
Airportness takes the reader on a single day's journey through all the routines and stages of an ordinary flight. From curbside to baggage, and pondering the minutes and hours of sitting in between, Christopher Schaberg contemplates the mundane world of commercial aviation to discover "the nature of flight." For Schaberg this means hearing planes in the sky, recognizing airline symbols in unlikely places, and navigating the various zones of transit from sliding doors, to jet bridge, to lavatory. It is an ongoing, swarming ecosystem that unfolds each day as we fly, get stranded, and arrive at our destinations. Airportness turns out to be more than just architecture and design elements-rather, it is all the rumble and buzz of flight, the tedium of travel as well as the feelings of uplift.
Beautiful, empowering and exhilarating: She Explores is a spirited celebration of female bravery and courage, and an inspirational companion for any woman who wants to travel the world on her own terms. Combining breathtaking travel photography with compelling personal narratives, She Explores shares the stories of 40 diverse women on unforgettable journeys in nature: women who live out of vans, trucks, and vintage trailers, hiking the wild, cooking meals over campfires, and sleeping under the stars. Women biking through the countryside, embarking on an unknown road trip, or backpacking through the outdoors with their young children in tow. Complementing the narratives are practical tips and advice for women planning their own trips, including preparing for a solo hike, must-haves for a road-trip kitchen, planning ahead for unknown territory, and telling your own story. A visually stunning and emotionally satisfying collection for any woman craving new landscapes and adventure. Gale Straub is the founder of She-Explores.com, a media platform for curious, creative women who love travel and outdoor adventure. For any woman who has ever been called outdoorsy... or who wants to be. Beautiful, empowering, and exhilarating, She Explores will inspire even the most outdoor-averse woman to connect with the landscape, take a leap of faith and find her community. Makes a wonderful birthday, graduation, or new going away gift for an adventurous woman. Great coffee table book to spark conversation about travel and exploration.
For every woman searching for her voice, Anna Kloots shares her story
of starting over by trusting the magic that was always within...
Shortlisted for the 2021 Stanford Dolman Travel Book of the Year Award Shortlisted for the 2020 Wainwright Prize for UK Nature Writing Alone on a remote mountaintop one dark night, a woman hears a mysterious voice. Propelled by the memory and after years of dreaming about it, Jini Reddy dares to delve into the 'wanderlands' of Britain, heading off in search of the magical in the landscape. A London journalist with multicultural roots and a perennial outsider, she determinedly sets off on this unorthodox path. Serendipity and her inner compass guide her around the country in pursuit of the Other and a connection to Britain's captivating natural world. Where might this lead? And if you know what it is to be Othered yourself, how might this colour your experiences? And what if, in invoking the spirit of the land, 'it' decides to make its presence felt? Whether following a 'cult' map to a hidden well that refuses to reveal itself, attempting to persuade a labyrinth to spill its secrets, embarking on a coast-to-coast pilgrimage or searching for a mystical land temple, Jini depicts a whimsical, natural Britain. Along the way, she tracks down ephemeral wild art, encounters women who worship The Goddess, falls deeper in love with her birth land and struggles - but mostly fails - to get to grips with its lore. Throughout, she rejoices in the wildness we cannot see and celebrates the natural beauty we can, while offering glimpses of her Canadian childhood and her Indian parents' struggles in apartheid-era South Africa. Wanderland is a book in which the heart leads, all things are possible and the Other, both wild and human, comes in from the cold. It is a paean to the joy of roaming, both figuratively and imaginatively, and to the joy of finding your place in the world.
Marcia Pirie's account of her travels across the Pacific Ocean.
Undertaken for the purpose of promoting legitimate trade in Central Africa, the Richardson mission was a compound of philanthropic and diplomatic interests advocated by Richardson. His main targets were the Sahara, Bornu and the Sudan.
The Danes are the happiest people in the world, and pay the highest taxes. 'Neutral' Sweden is one of the biggest arms manufacturers in the world. Finns have the largest per capita gun ownership after the US and Yemen. 54 per cent of Icelanders believe in elves. Norway is the richest country on earth. 5 per cent of Danish men have had sex with an animal. Michael Booth has lived among the Scandinavians, on and off, for over ten years, perplexed by their many strange paradoxes and character traits and equally bemused by the unquestioning enthusiasm for all things Nordic and hygge that has engulfed the rest of the world. He leaves his adopted home of Denmark and embarks on a journey through all five of the Nordic countries to discover who these curious tribes are, the secrets of their success and, most intriguing of all, what they think of each other. Along the way a more nuanced, often darker picture emerges of a region plagued by taboos, characterised by suffocating parochialism and populated by extremists of various shades. 'The next Bill Bryson.' New York Times Winner of the Best Narrative Travel Book Award from the British Guild of Travel Writers
After one too many late night discussions, football journalist Paul Watson and his mate Matthew Conrad decide to find the world's worst national team, become naturalised citizens of that country and play for them - achieving their joint boyhood dream of playing international football and winning a 'cap'. They are thrilled when Wikipedia leads them to Pohnpei, a tiny, remote island in the Pacific whose long-defunct football team is described as 'the weakest in the world'. They contact Pohnpei's Football Association and discover what it needs most urgently is leadership. So Paul and Matt travel thousands of miles, leaving behind jobs, families and girlfriends to train a rag-tag bunch of novice footballers who barely understand the rules of the game. Up Pohnpei tells the story of their quest to coach the team and eventually, organise an international fixture - Pohnpei's first since a 16-1 defeat many years ago. With no funding, a population whose obesity rate is 90 percent and toad-infested facilities in one of the world's wettest climates, their journey is beset by obstacles from the outset. Part travelogue, part quest, Up Pohnpei shows how the passion and determination of two young men can change the face of football - and the lives of total strangers - on the other side of the world.
An important work for the nineteenth century history of East Africa. It contains a new introduction with a biographical sketch of Krapf.
Morocco has long been a mythic land, firmly rooted in the European colonial imagination. For more than a century it has been appropriated by travellers, explorers, writers and artists. It is just these images and imaginings that are now being reconstructed for nostalgic consumption. In Moroccan Dreams, Claudio Minca examines this aestheticised re-enactment of the colonial, exploring the ways in which Moroccans themselves have become complicit in the re-writing of their homes and lives. Richly illustrated, the book provides a fascinating journey that will engage and delight all those enamoured of Morocco and its extraordinary geographies.
The river Tigris is in danger. It has been the lifeblood of ancient Mesopotamia and modern Iraq, but geopolitics and climate change have left the birthplace of civilisation at risk of becoming uninhabitable. In 2021, adventurer Leon McCarron travelled by boat along the full length of the river, in search of hope. From the source, where Assyrian kings had their images carved into stone, McCarron and his small team journeyed through the Turkish mountains, across north-east Syria and into the heart of Iraq. Passing by historic cities like Diyarbakir, Mosul and Baghdad, McCarron kept the company of fishermen and farmers, but also artists, activists and archaeologists who rely on the flow of the river. Occasionally harassed by militias, often helped by soldiers, McCarron rode his luck in areas still troubled by ISIS and relied on the generosity of a network of strangers to reach the Persian Gulf. Wounded Tigris is the story of what humanity stands to lose with the death of a great river, and what can be done to try to save it.
Mountain Stories is an illustrated memoir of journeys through some of Scotland’s most beautiful landscapes, including Skye's Cuillin, Knoydart, Assynt and the Far North. Writing during lockdown, author and artist Heather Dawe finds telling these stories a powerful means of reconnection with the mountains when they are physically inaccessible. Dawe's journeys are made by walking, running, cycling or sea-kayak. The stories are a reflection of the importance of wild places and the inspiration, art and culture associated with them.
In June 2016, Rodrigo Duterte won the Philippine presidential election by a landslide. Infamous for his bombastic temper and un-PC wisecracks, he is waging a brutal drug war that has killed more than 12,000 people so far. Over the last nine years, British writer Tom Sykes has travelled extensively in the Philippines in order to understand the Duterte phenomenon, interviewing friends and enemies of 'The Punisher' -- as he is known -- in politics, the media, the arts and civil society. Sykes witnesses anti-government demonstrations in the capital Manila and visits the provincial city of Davao, where Duterte began his crusade against crime using police and vigilante death squads. By delving into Duterte's troubled childhood of violent rebellion, Sykes discovers what motivates the man today in his pursuit of a merciless 'war on the poor' -- as Amnesty has described it -- that has no end in sight. The Realm of the Punisher also examines oppressed and marginalized groups in the modern Philippines through encounters with a transgender rights campaigner, an 86-year-old former sex slave to the Japanese in the Second World War, a public artist who must work while under attack from Maoist rebels, and slum-dwellers resisting violent eviction by a real estate company. The past is never far away from these present-day problems and Sykes' travels to festivals, cemeteries, war memorials and a tomb housing an embalmed corpse reveal the ways in which key figures in Philippine history -- from Jose Rizal to Ferdinand Marcos -- have influenced current affairs. Funny, tragic, enlightening and uncompromising -- and infused with the author's strong sense of social justice -- The Realm of the Punisher is the first major travel book by a Westerner to explore Duterte's Philippines.
Paris is the world capital of memory and desire, concludes one of
the writers in this intimate and insightful collection of memoirs
of the city. Living in Paris changed these writers forever.
Wander off the beaten track to uncover the world's most secret destinations through insightful text and beautiful hand-drawn illustrations: discover an ancient gateway to the Mayan underworld, a mysterious underwater monument sunken off the Ryukyu Islands in Japan or a prehistoric village covered for centuries by a huge sand dune in the Orkney Islands. In Inspired Traveller's Guides: Hidden Places travel journalist Sarah Baxter's evocative words instantly transport you to 25 of the world's most obscured places. From remote locations that visitors must trek and wade just to catch a glimpse of, to forgotten cities only recently revealed and places purposefully hidden as sanctuaries from persecution, each destination has a very human story at its heart. Featured locations: Tyneham, Dorset, England Skara Brae, Orkney, Scotland Menlo Castle, Galway, Ireland Ladby Ship, Kerteminde, Denmark Our Dear Lord in the Attic, Amsterdam, Netherlands Montsegur, France Kaisertal, Austria Black Forest, Germany Rok Runestone, OEdeshoeg, Sweden Villa of Tiberius, Sperlonga, Italy Bulnes, Cabrales, Spain Lalibela, Ethiopia Great Zimbabwe, Zimbabwe Turpan Oasis, Turpan, China Phnom Kulen, Siem Reap Province, Cambodia Yonaguni, Yaeyama Islands, Japan Mount Borradaile, Arnhem Land, Australia Curio Bay, Southland, New Zealand Spirit Island, Alberta, Canada The Green Mill, Chicago, USA Havasu Canyon, Arizona, USA Plymouth Church of the Pilgrims, New York, USA Actun Tunichil, Belize Choquequirao, Peru El Mirador, El Peten, Guatemala Savour a moment to delight in the serenity and seclusion of the secret escapes collected in this beautifully illustrated guide, full of surprise, wonder and sights otherwise unseen. Each book in the Inspired Traveller's Guides series offers readers a fascinating, informative and charmingly illustrated guide to must-visit destinations round the globe. Also from this series, explore intriguing: Artistic Places (March 2021), Spiritual Places, Literary Places and Mystical Places.
Two middle-aged ladies, one Penelope Chetworth, the other her 12-year old mare La Marquesa, explored the high sierra north of Granada in 1961. Together the travellers brought out the best in their Spanish hosts and Chetwode's compelling account - warm, witty and candid - is informed by her infectious personal fascination for horses, religion and Spain.
A city with a reputation to maintain, Melbourne is famous variously for being Australia's coffee capital, the Europe of Australia and consistently ranked amongst the top most liveable cities in the world. CultureShock! Melbourne takes both long- and short-term residents through the city's inner workings. The city offers world-class urban landscapes and experiences, spiced with a uniquely Melburnian spirit: a stroll along the Yarra River surrounded by a glittering skyline and artisanal sandwich in hand, top-drawer entertainment, restaurants helmed by celebrity chefs, or even a simple breakfast of toast with smashed avo' and a flat white at a legendary cafe along a boulevard. Get the most out of your stay in Melbourne with this essential guide to one of the jazziest, most cosmopolitan cities in the world.
The Guide to the World's Most Iconic Road Known as America's Main Street, or the Mother Road, Historic Route 66 is more than just a road, it is the artery that connects America's heart with its head, a road-worthy metaphor of the nation's post-war rebirth of innovation and industrialism along the way, as well as a representation of freedom (and loss) for many of the nation's peoples. Route 66 is the place to get your kicks, don't forget too. A stretch of road with so many stunning stories and secrets to share and roadside attractions, and billboards, to see, all of which were built along its path to glory through its hundred-year tenure, a past that is now celebrated as a pilgrimage for millions of drivers and dreamers, truckers and tourists, yearning to reconnect with the country's golden age. So, come and get your kicks with The Little Book of Route 66. Full of facts, stats, quotes and quips - the perfect driving companion for those long family road-trips. If the road is a metaphor for life, then Route 66 is the road. Buckle up, because this is going to be a road-trip of a lifetime... and a journey to remember. SAMPLE TEXT: For the first twelve years of its existence, only 800 of its 2,400 miles were paved. The rest were dust and dirt tracks making for very bumpy riding. The highway was not finished being laid with tarmac until 1938.
Some books about foreign travel provide the reader with a basic list of what to do and where to go when visiting an unfamiliar country. In Memoirs of China, however, readers get to see what daily life in China, and Beijing in particular, is really like. From his thoughts about leaving home alone and arriving in Beijing for the first time, to his daily experiences in teaching and interacting with students and faculty at China Youth University for Political Sciences, the author provides personal reminiscences that give readers an almost-palpable sense of life in modern China. In this book you will read about the author's experiences at some well-known sites, such as the Great Wall and the Summer Palace. But you will mostly discover the real China. You will learn about the "English corner," a spot at People's University where every Friday night hundreds of people gather to speak and listen to English. You will learn what it would be like to attend the Beijing Auto Show, visit a kindergarten class at a Montessori school, get lost in a women's dormitory, and take a four-hour pedicab trip operated by an unlicensed guide. And, most important, you will learn about the friendships that can develop when one person travels alone to a foreign country. As the author points out, even though he went to China to teach, he probably learned as much, if not more, than his students. Readers of this book will likely feel the same way.
This is Botswana takes the reader on a panoramic journey of discovery from the arid vastness of the Kalahari Desert to the lush waterways of the Okavango Delta. It is a compelling visual essay on the country, its people and its wildlife. More than 250 stunning photographs provide an exciting and diverse overview of the country. These are complemented by a detailed introductory text that both establishes historical perspective and offers insight into the realities of a country moving hesitantly, but with hope, into a challenging future.
The late Phil Llewellin, described by "Octane" magazine as 'motoring's own Bill Bryson', was an award-winning writer whose adventures enthralled readers of leading magazines and newspapers worldwide. His two million motoring miles - in everything from classic cars to powerful American trucks - took him to wild places like Afghanistan, China, Sudan, Alaska and Borneo. He went to the end of the world's southernmost road in Tierra del Fuego and, of course, to Muckle Flugga, the northernmost point of the British Isles. Now in paperback, this highly readable book chronicles some of his most exciting journeys.
Virginia Thorndike, Maine's own version of Studs Terkel, traveled to all the Maine coast islands that still maintain a year-round population and persuaded the islanders to talk openly about their lives. The result is a compulsively readable, unvarnished, and appealing portrait, much of it in the islanders? own words. The 15 islands not accessible by bridge that still have year-round populations are: Isle au Haut, Islesboro, the Cranberry Isles (near Mt. Desert Island), Eagle Island, Long Island (Frenchboro), Long Island (Casco Bay), Matinicus, Monhegan, North Haven, Swans Island, Vinalhaven, Peaks, Chebeague, Great Diamond, and Cliff.
We get to share in his personal discoveries through the humour and good fellowship of the road, full of entertaining misadventures. But there is never any doubt that there is an ultimate purpose to these journeys: a passionate need to bear witness to the truth about the past, after centuries of persecution by an alien ruling class. So through the dense clouds of historical tragedy, Wright exchavates hope that a revival of pride and dignity in Andean culture is possible.
AUTHOR OF INTERSTATE, STANFORD DOLMAN TRAVEL BOOK OF THE YEAR 2016; "Iberia" is Julian Sayarer's account of his impromptu journey across Portugal and Spain, from Lisbon towards Barcelona, undertaken during a pandemic on an old blue bicycle named Miles.; Finding himself in Lisbon amidst a pandemic, Julian Sayarer decides simply to ride. Through hazy landscapes and on baked roads, he pedals east. During long hours in the saddle, his thoughts traverse matters big and small - hopping from post-colonial culpability to the supremacy of an orange picked at the roadside; Across 900 miles of sun-drenched olive groves, vast mountainscapes, and dormant towns glimpsed through driving rain, Sayarer's journey is punctuated by fleeting, beautiful moments of human connection. Iberia is a celebration of a shared humanity and community found in a uniquely fragile time; Sayarer is a brilliantly thoughtful writer ... One can't help thinking that the future of travel writing lies in this adventurous, post-modern genre -- Sara Wheeler; Sayarer has made something of a specialism of reporting on the world from the roadside. -- Daily Telegraph; On the Road for the Occupy Generation -- Open Democracy; Sayarer's love of the open road and his ability to evoke the beauty of travelling by bike are a potent combination that makes you itch to go cycling -- Cycling Active
By the time Benacerraf received a Nobel prize in 1980 for his discovery of immune response genes, he had travelled a long way - literally on the road to success. He was born in Venezuela in 1920 to Sephardic Jewish parents from Algeria and Morocco. Benacerraf's childhood was spent primarily in Paris, until fear of war with Nazi Germany compelled his family to flee to Venezuela in 1939. Persuading his parents to send him to New York that same year, Benacerraf attended Columbia University, beginning a peripatetic existence that lasted until he landed in Boston in 1969, where he has held prominent positions at Harvard Medical School and the Dana Farber Cancer Institute. In the meantime, his passion for medical research gained him numerous prestigious appointments and awards. In addition to chronicling developments in his personal life, Benacerraf offers up rather dry accounts of his most important research projects - as well as his prediction for advances in cancer treatment and his somewhat crotchety opinions on the state of science education today and the research grant business. Despite colourful early years and his impressive accomplishments, Benacerraf paints his life in a two-dimensional fashion and presents insights without enough imagination to sustain the average reader's interest for long. |
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