Browse Results

Showing 301 through 325 of 9,188 results

Voyages and Discoveries: Northeastern Europe, And Adjacent Countries; Volume 2

by Richard Hakluyt Jack Beeching

Renaissance diplomat and part-time spy, William Hakluyt was also England's first serious geographer, gathering together a wealth of accounts about the wide-ranging travels and discoveries of the sixteenth-century English. One of the epics of this great period of expansion, The Principal Navigations, Voyages, Traffiques and Discoveries of the English Nation describes, in the words of the explorers themselves, an astonishing era in which the English grew rapidly aware of the sheer size and strangeness of their world. Mingling accounts of the journeys of renowned adventurers such as Drake and Frobisher with descriptions by other explorers and traders to reveal a nation beginning to dominate the seas, Hakluyt's great work was originally intended principally to assist navigation and trade. It also presents one of the first and greatest modern portraits of the globe.

Call-out: A climber's tales of mountain rescue in Scotland

by Hamish MacInnes

Call-out is the definitive collection of tales about early mountain rescue in the Highlands of Scotland from Hamish MacInnes – Everest pioneer and arguably the most famous Scottish mountaineer of the twentieth century.In the late 1960s, MacInnes led the Glencoe Mountain Rescue team and together they developed innovative techniques and equipment in order to save lives – often risking their own in the process – whether night or day, and always at a moment’s notice. He was a central figure in the rescue during the 1963 New Year tragedy in the Cuillins on the Isle of Skye, and led groundbreaking rescues on Buichaille Etive Mor, Ben Nevis, Bidean nam Bian and many other legendary Scottish mountains.At the heart of the stories in Call-out are the unique characters in the team and wider Glencoe community who demonstrate faultless camaraderie, and – by virtue of MacInnes’s engaging storytelling – inject an almost comical slant into these sometimes-grim accounts of misadventure in the mountains.The dark allure of the frozen Scottish peaks provides a foreboding backdrop against which we learn of Hamish MacInnes’s concern for human life under even the most extreme conditions. Call-out offers an inspiring portrayal of responsible and dedicated mountaineering practice, which is as pertinent today as ever.

England and the Discovery of America, 1481-1620: From the Bristol Voyages of the Fifteenth Century to the Pilgrim Settlement at Playmouth: The Exploration, Exploitation and Trial-and-Error Colonization of North America by the English (Routledge Revivals)

by David B. Quinn

First published in 1974, England and the Discovery of America places the early explorations of the English in North America in the broad context of 15th and 16th century history. Marshalling evidence that cannot be pushed aside and sifting a mass of fascinating detail (including problems of cartography and the Vinland Map controversy), Professor Quinn presents circumstantial indications pointing to 1481 as the date or the discovery of America by Bristol voyagers – fishermen seeking new sources of cod, and merchant sailors with maps carrying promise of unexploited Atlantic islands. Whereas England did little to follow up her early lead, Quinn demonstrates that English initiatives from the 1580s onward, though slow, were of great importance. He brings to life the men involved in a variety of rash and heroic experiments in colonization and casts new light on their fates. He makes it clear that it was this very profusion of trial and error and trail again, as well as the conviction that settlement in temperate latitudes in North America could be effective if tenaciously enough sought, that enabled the English to strike and maintain routes in their new American world. This book will be of interest to students of English history, American history, colonial history and naval history.

England and the Discovery of America, 1481-1620: From the Bristol Voyages of the Fifteenth Century to the Pilgrim Settlement at Playmouth: The Exploration, Exploitation and Trial-and-Error Colonization of North America by the English (Routledge Revivals)

by David B. Quinn

First published in 1974, England and the Discovery of America places the early explorations of the English in North America in the broad context of 15th and 16th century history. Marshalling evidence that cannot be pushed aside and sifting a mass of fascinating detail (including problems of cartography and the Vinland Map controversy), Professor Quinn presents circumstantial indications pointing to 1481 as the date or the discovery of America by Bristol voyagers – fishermen seeking new sources of cod, and merchant sailors with maps carrying promise of unexploited Atlantic islands. Whereas England did little to follow up her early lead, Quinn demonstrates that English initiatives from the 1580s onward, though slow, were of great importance. He brings to life the men involved in a variety of rash and heroic experiments in colonization and casts new light on their fates. He makes it clear that it was this very profusion of trial and error and trail again, as well as the conviction that settlement in temperate latitudes in North America could be effective if tenaciously enough sought, that enabled the English to strike and maintain routes in their new American world. This book will be of interest to students of English history, American history, colonial history and naval history.

The Fearful Void

by Geoffrey Moorhouse

'It was because I was afraid that I had decided to attempt a crossing of the great Sahara desert, from west to east, by myself and by camel. No one had ever made such a journey before . . .'In October 1972 Geoffrey Moorhouse began his odyssey across the Sahara from the Atlantic to the Nile, a distance of 3,600 miles. His reason for undertaking such an immense feat was to examine the roots of his fear, to explore an extremity of human experience.From the outset misfortune was never far away; and as he moved further into that 'awful emptiness' the physical and mental deprivation grew more intense. In March 1973, having walked the last 300 miles, Moorhouse, ill and exhausted, reached Tamanrasset, where he decided to end his journey. The Fearful Void is the moving record of his struggle with fear and loneliness and, ultimately, his coming to terms with the spiritual as well as the physical dangers of the desert.

Ice with Everything: In climbing mountains or sailing the seas one often has to settle for less than one hoped. (H.W. Tilman: The Collected Edition)

by H.W. Tilman

‘For most men, as Epicurus has remarked, rest is stagnation and activity madness. Mad or not, the activity that I have been pursuing for the last twenty years takes the form of voyages to remote, mountainous regions.’H.W. ‘Bill’ Tilman’s fourteenth book describes three more of those voyages, ‘the first comparatively humdrum, the second totally disastrous, and the third exceedingly troublesome’.The first voyage describes Tilman’s 1971 attempt to reach East Greenland’s remote and ice-bound Scoresby Sound. The largest fjord system in the world was named after the father of Whitby whaling captain, William Scoresby, who first charted the coastline in 1822. Scoresby’s two-volume Account of the Arctic Regions provided much of the historical inspiration for Tilman’s northern voyages and fuelled his fascination with Scoresby Sound and the unclimbed mountains at its head.Tilman’s first attempt to reach the fjord had already cost him his first boat, Mischief, in 1968. The following year, a ‘polite mutiny’ aboard Sea Breeze had forced him to turn back within sight of the entrance, so with a good crew aboard in 1971, it was particularly frustrating for Tilman to find the fjord blocked once more, this time by impenetrable sea ice at the entrance.Refusing to give up, Tilman’s obsession with Scoresby Sound continued in 1972 when a series of unfortunate events led to the loss of Sea Breeze, crushed between a rock and an ice floe.Safely back home in Wales, the inevitable search for a new boat began. ‘One cannot buy a biggish boat as if buying a piece of soap. The act is almost as irrevocable as marriage and should be given as much thought.’ The 1902 pilot cutter Baroque, was acquired and after not inconsiderable expense, proved equal to the challenge. Tilman’s first troublesome voyage aboard her to West Greenland in 1973 completes this collection.

I Can't Stay Long (Penguin Modern Classics)

by Laurie Lee

'They are memorials to times and countries whose best is probably past and gone . . . I was lucky to have known them when I did, before darkness began to fall from the air.'In this much-loved volume, a mature Laurie Lee returns to the Gloucestershire childhood familiar to readers of Cider with Rosie, a world lost even at the time of writing to the march of twentieth-century technology. Lee also explores the post-war travels that took him to, amongst others, the Netherlands, Tuscany, Mexico and the West Indies. With pieces dating from the 1940s and 50s, Lee captures a world now for ever changed by war and mass tourism, 'when to be a traveller was not yet to be just a labelled unit'.

Moon Minneapolis & St. Paul (Travel Guide)

by Tricia Cornell

Bustling, modern, and hip, the Twin Cities are far from hibernating. See what makes them shine year-round with a local in Moon Minneapolis & St. Paul.Explore the Twin Cities: Navigate by neighborhood or by activity, with color-coded maps of the most interesting neighborhoods in Minneapolis and St. PaulSee the Sights: Browse contemporary art at the Walker Art Center and Sculpture Garden (and play mini-golf on the roof!), learn about local history at the Minnesota State Capitol, shop at the Mall of America, or stroll along the banks of Lake CalhounGet a Taste of the City: Pop into a hole-in-the-wall Vietnamese restaurant on Eat Street, sample the flavors of Minnesota's Polish past, order from a fusion food truck, or grab a table at an innovative farm-to-table restaurantBars and Nightlife: Catch a performance at the Dakota Jazz Club, see where Prince got his start, sip fruity concoctions at a tiki bar, find the best spots for microbrews, or visit the Twin Cities' most popular gay barsLocal Expertise: Minneapolis local Tricia Cornell shares insider know-how on her two favorite citiesItineraries and Day Trips: Explore nearby Stillwater, Duluth, and Lake Superior, or follow city itineraries designed for budget travelers, outdoor adventurers, and moreFull-Color Photos and Detailed MapsHandy Tools: Moon provides background information on the history and culture of the Twin CitiesSee the Twin Cities with a local with Moon Minneapolis & St. Paul.Exploring more Midwest cities? Try Moon Chicago. Craving some fresh air? Check out Moon 75 Great Hikes Minneapolis & St. Paul.

Moon Nevada (Travel Guide)

by Scott Smith

Whether you're an adventure junkie, road-tripper, or card shark, Nevada has something for you. Pull off the perfect trip to the Silver State with Moon Nevada. Inside you'll find:Strategic itineraries for road-trippers, campers, skiers, and moreThe best road trips through Nevada, from three days on "the loneliest road in America" to a week covering Death Valley and the Extraterrestrial Highway, plus detailed information on travel times, distances, and directionsThe top sights and unique experiences: Explore caves and glaciers at Great Basin National Park, or go fishing, swimming, or boating on Lake Tahoe or Lake Mead. Marvel at the Hoover Dam, camp at a secluded alpine lake, and experience the authentic Wild West in a ghost town saloon. Try your hand at a slot machine and eat your way through an epic Las Vegas buffet, or visit one of Nevada's major festivals and shop for local turquoise jewelry in a Gold Rush townLocal tips from longtime Nevadan Scott Smith on where to stay, when to go, and how to get around, plus advice for families with children and travelers with disabilitiesFull-color photos and detailed maps throughoutThorough background information on the landscape, climate, wildlife, and local cultureFocused coverage of Reno, Las Vegas, Death Valley, Tahoe, Central Nevada, Elko, the Ruby Mountains, and moreWith Moon Nevada's practical tips and local insight, you can plan your trip your way.Spending more time at the lake? Try Moon Tahoe. Headed to the parks? Try Moon Yosemite National Park or Moon Death Valley National Park.

Moon Norway (Travel Guide)

by David Nikel

Explore magnificent fjords, museum-hop in Oslo, and bask in the glow of northern lights: Get to know your inner Viking with Moon Norway. Inside you'll find:Flexible itineraries including three days in Oslo, the best of Norway in one week, four days in Arctic Norway, and a two-week fjord road tripStrategic advice for outdoor adventurers, families, history buffs, foodies, road-trippers, and moreDo more than sightsee: Hike to cliffs that soar over glacial lakes and take the perfect photo of Geirangerfjord's slender waterfalls. Hop in the car and drive over islets and skerries on the Atlantic Road, wander through fishing villages along Norway's dramatic coastline, or admire the architecture in cosmopolitan Oslo. Savor sustainable salmon at Michelin-starred restaurants, taste farm-to-table delicacies, or mingle with the locals at a neighborhood pub. See the impressive restored vessels at the Viking Ship Museum or trek to the best spots to see the mystical aurora borealis dance across the skyDiscover the real Norway with expert insight from Norwegian transplant David NikelFull-color photos and detailed maps throughoutHelpful tools including a Norwegian phrasebook, packing suggestions, and travel tips for international visitors, families with kids, seniors and LGBTQ+ travelersDetailed background on the landscape, climate, wildlife, and cultureWith Moon Norway's practical tips and local insight, you can experience the best of Norway.Exploring more of Northern Europe? Try Moon Copenhagen & Beyond or Moon Iceland.

Moon Ohio: Getaway Ideas, Outdoor Adventure & Family Fun, Creative Cuisine & Culture (Travel Guide)

by Matthew Caracciolo

From cities with old-world charm to endless family adventures in the great outdoors, experience the best of the Buckeye State with Moon Ohio. Inside you'll find:Strategic, flexible itineraries for thrill-seekers, outdoor adventurers, families, and moreUnique experiences and fun highlights: Wander Columbus&’s trendy neighborhoods on foot or escape to quiet Amish Country. Feel a rush of adrenaline at the famous Cedar Point amusement park, hit the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, or spend a day at the zoo with the whole family. Kick back at a brewery (or stay at the world&’s first craft beer hotel!) and chow down on authentic German foodThe best outdoor adventures: Hike to stunning waterfalls in Cuyahoga Valley National Park, explore hidden caves, or head to the Lake Erie Islands for a quintessential summer camping tripExpert advice from Columbus local Matthew Caracciolo on when to go, how to get around, and where to stayHelpful resources on Covid and traveling to OhioFull-color photos and detailed maps throughoutThorough information on the landscape, climate, wildlife, and historyWith Moon's local insight and practical tips, you can experience the best of Ohio. Exploring more of the Midwest? Try Moon Michigan or Moon Wisconsin.

Moon Ohio: Getaway Ideas, Outdoor Adventure & Family Fun, Creative Cuisine & Culture (Travel Guide)

by Matthew Caracciolo

From cities with old-world charm to endless family adventures in the great outdoors, experience the best of the Buckeye State with Moon Ohio. Inside you'll find:Strategic, flexible itineraries for thrill-seekers, outdoor adventurers, families, and more Unique experiences and fun highlights: Wander Columbus&’s trendy neighborhoods on foot or escape to quiet Amish Country. Feel a rush of adrenaline at the famous Cedar Point amusement park, hit the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, or spend a day at the zoo with the whole family. Kick back at a brewery (or stay at the world&’s first craft beer hotel!) and chow down on authentic German food The best outdoor adventures: Hike to stunning waterfalls in Cuyahoga Valley National Park, explore hidden caves, or head to the Lake Erie Islands for a quintessential summer camping trip Expert advice from Columbus local Matthew Caracciolo on when to go, how to get around, and where to stay Helpful resources on Covid and traveling to Ohio Full-color photos and detailed maps throughoutThorough information on the landscape, climate, wildlife, and history With Moon's local insight and practical tips, you can experience the best of Ohio. Exploring more of the Midwest? Try Moon Michigan or Moon Wisconsin. About Moon Travel Guides: Moon was founded in 1973 to empower independent, active, and conscious travel. We prioritize local businesses, outdoor recreation, and traveling strategically and sustainably. Moon Travel Guides are written by local, expert authors with great stories to tell—and they can't wait to share their favorite places with you. For more inspiration, follow @moonguides on social media.

Rick Steves Best of Germany: With Salzburg (Rick Steves Travel Guide)

by Rick Steves

Hit Germany's can't-miss art, sights, and bites in two weeks or less with Rick Steves Best of Germany! Inside you'll find:Strategic advice from Rick Steves on what's worth your time and money Short itineraries covering Munich, Bavaria, Rothenburg and the Romantic Road, the Rhine Valley, and Berlin, plus Salzburg, Austria Rick's tips for beating the crowds, skipping lines, and avoiding tourist traps The best of local culture, flavors, and haunts, including walks through museums and atmospheric neighborhoods Trip-planning strategies like how to link destinations and design your itinerary, what to pack, where to stay, and how to get around Over 400 full-color pages with maps and vibrant photosSuggestions for side trips to Dachau Memorial, Würzburg, Nürnburg, Burg Eltz, Cologne, Baden-Baden, Frankfurt, Dresden, and Hamburg ​Experience the old-world romance and modern-day excitement of Germany with Rick Steves. Planning a longer trip? Pick up Rick Steves Germany, the classic, in-depth guide to spending two weeks or more exploring the country.

Rick Steves Snapshot Naples & the Amalfi Coast: Including Pompeii (Rick Steves Travel Guide)

by Rick Steves

With Rick Steves, Naples and the Amalfi Coast are yours to discover! This slim guide excerpted from Rick Steves Italy includes:Rick's firsthand, up-to-date advice on the Amalfi Coast's best sights, restaurants, hotels, and more, plus tips to beat the crowds, skip the lines, and avoid tourist trapsTop sights and local experiences: See ancient art at Naples' Archaeological Museum or travel back in time at the Pompeii Forum. Relax on the beach in Positano, go for a cliffside stroll along the coast, or feast on pizza where the dish was first createdHelpful maps and self-guided walking tours to keep you on trackWith selective coverage and Rick's trusted insight into the best things to do and see, Rick Steves Snapshot Naples & the Amalfi Coast is truly a tour guide in your pocket.Exploring beyond the Amalfi Coast? Pick up Rick Steves Italy for comprehensive coverage, detailed itineraries, and essential information for planning a countrywide trip.

Urban Worrier: Adventures in the Lost Art of Letting Go

by Nick Thorpe

Hunched exhausted at his computer one ordinary Monday morning, world-class workaholic Nick Thorpe has reached the end of his tether. Fearing for his health and family life, he knows something has to change. But where to start when trying too hard is part of the problem? Nick makes a bold resolution: he will spend a year learning to let go. Beginning with a plunge off a Cornish cliff, he soon graduates to wing-walking on a bi-plane, city-centre clowning and a revealing weekend at a naturist convention. But the more he tries to relax, the bigger the questions: can you be happy if you're not in control? Is true contentment all in the mind? And what does his small, brown dog know that Nick doesn't?From a school where pupils make the rules, to meditation and rafting in Sweden; from the chaos of a Durban street shelter to a silent monastery in New Mexico, URBAN WORRIER charts a humorous and often moving quest for the ultimate modern grail: how to find balance and fulfilment in today's high-speed world.

A Cure for Serpents: The Life And Adventures Of A Doctor In Africa

by Alberto Denti di Pirajno

In 1924, the irrepressibly curious Alberto Denti arrived in Libya to work in Italy’s African colonies. With a natural ear for a story and a passionate interest in his work, he must have been as good a doctor as he was a writer. Though equally at home in an embassy or a brothel, Denti appears to have preferred the company of Berbers and Eritreans to that of his fellow Italians. He conjures up the dignity of local chieftains, the palpable charms of celebrated courtesans, the excitement of Tuareg entertainers and the love lost between himself and a wounded lion cub with all the charm of a man who boasted of the ‘inestimable satisfactions known only to those who have lived in Africa’.

Design for Tourism: An ICSID Inter Design Report

by Michael M. Gorman Frank Height Mary V. Mullin

Design for Tourism: An ICSID Interdesign Report contains the proposals and recommendations of professional designers in the areas of holiday accommodation, transport, general equipment, and color and materials to develop tourist areas. The book describes ""pioneer new concepts in design"" in tourism and its implications for the social and physical environment in Ireland and other countries interested in tourism. For holiday accommodation designs, the book describes an almost generic type of hotel buildings and the two design proposals that focus 1) on new buildings or conversion of existing ones and 2) on the equipment and furnishings. In the area of transport design, the book addresses the traffic problems, forest development, rural built-up areas, the open country, and inside towns and villages. The book also discusses the general equipment that go along with tourism. This includes facilities for garbage collection and disposal, rest rooms, refreshment stands, and directional signs. The town of Ennis is used as a case study where the recommendations under the classification of general equipment can be used. For color and materials, the book examines the nature of the Irish landscape and presents the findings into diagrams and graphic terms. The text then describes the visual quality of the landscape, particularly those areas that are not readily recognized or identified as pleasing. The book is useful for city planners, tourist officials, tour operators, students of environmental planning and design, and administrators of local or rural places who wish to develop their tourism potential.

The Lost World Of The Kalahari: With 'The Great and the Little Memory' (Virago Modern Classics)

by Sir Laurens Van Der Post

Laurens van der Post was fascinated and appalled at the fate of this remarkable people. Ostracised by all the changing face of African cultural life they retreated deep into the Kalahari desert. His fascinating attempt to capture their way of life and the secrets of their ancient heritage provide captivating reading and a unique insight into a forgotten way of life.

North Wall: The gripping story of a two-man attempt to conquer the Alps' most demanding mountain

by Roger Hubank

‘Far off on the horizon the snowfields sparkled, and across the meadow the Piz Molino towered formidably above the glacier, its snow cone glittering in the pale blue sky.’North Wall is award-winning writer Roger Hubank’s first novel. The premise is one familiar to those with a thirst for adventure at high altitude: two men attempting to climb one of the world’s most challenging peaks; yet at its core this is a story that examines the nature of climbing itself: trading familiar earthbound comforts for the allure of the mountains and risking it all to achieve the extraordinary.Following a first ascent that ended in tragedy, the Alps’ most demanding mountain – the staggering 3,753-metre Piz Molino – awaits a second ascent. Two very different climbers step up. Raymond, an experienced mountain guide, is struggling with demons after being left the sole survivor of a previous expedition. Daniel is an amateur torn between his need to climb and his responsibilities as a husband and father. Together they attempt the treacherous 1,200-metre North Face.‘Perhaps that is why we have been reduced like this … deprived of those we love – stripped of all certainty – so that we may learn what it is to be ourselves.’North Wall takes the reader on a gripping journey. We follow Raymond and Daniel through tragedy and triumph as they face both the physical challenges of the dangerous ascent and the psychological turmoil of finding themselves along the way.A must-read for anyone interested in the quest to complete life’s more extreme feats.

The Pavlova Omnibus

by Austin Mitchell

An omnibus containing Austin Mitchell’s classic books THE HALF-GALLON QUARTER-ACRE PAVLOVA PARADISE and PAVLOVA PARADISE REVISITED, available for the first time in ebook.

Where the Indus is Young: A Winter in Baltistan

by Dervla Murphy

In Where the Indus is Young , Dervla Murphy's indomitable will is matched by that of four-footed Hallam and her six-year-old daughter Rachel. Together they make a mockery of fear, trekking through the awe-inspiring Karakorum mountains not only in the heart of winter, but close to Pakistan's disputed border with Kashmir. They work their way up beside the perilous gorge carved through the mountains by the Indus, lodging with locals and eating, sleeping and bargaining with the Balts, who farm one of the remotest regions on earth. Despite the hardship, Dervla never forgets the point of travel, retaining enthusiasm for her magnificent surroundings and using her sense of humour to bring out the best in her hosts, who are often locked into the melancholic mood of mid-winter.

The Shining Mountain: Two Men On Changabang's West Wall

by Peter Boardman

'It's a preposterous plan. Still, if you do get up it, I think it'll be the hardest thing that's been done in the Himalayas.' So spoke Chris Bonington when Peter Boardman and Joe Tasker presented him with their plan to tackle the unclimbed West Wall of Changabang - the Shining Mountain - in 1976. Bonington's was one of the more positive responses; most felt the climb impossibly hard, especially for a two-man, lightweight expedition. This was, after all, perhaps the most fearsome and technically challenging granite wall in the Garhwal Himalaya and an ascent - particularly one in a lightweight style - would be more significant than anything done on Everest at the time. The idea had been Joe Tasker's. He had photographed the sheer, shining, white granite sweep of Changabang's West Wall on a previous expedition and asked Pete to return with him the following year. Tasker contributes a second voice throughout Boardman's story, which starts with acclimatisation, sleeping in a Salford frozen food store, and progresses through three nights of hell, marooned in hammocks during a storm, to moments of exultation at the variety and intricacy of the superb, if punishingly difficult, climbing. It is a story of how climbing a mountain can become an all-consuming goal, of the tensions inevitable in forty days of isolation on a two-man expedition; as well as a record of the moment of joy upon reaching the summit ridge against all odds. First published in 1978, The Shining Mountain is Peter Boardman's first book. It is a very personal and honest story that is also amusing, lucidly descriptive, very exciting, and never anything but immensely readable. It was awarded the John Llewelyn Rhys Prize for literature in 1979, winning wide acclaim. His second book, Sacred Summits, was published shortly after his death in 1982. Peter Boardman and Joe Tasker died on Everest in 1982, whilst attempting a new and unclimbed line. Both men were superb mountaineers and talented writers. Their literary legacy lives on through the Boardman Tasker Prize for Mountain Literature, established by family and friends in 1983 and presented annually to the author or co-authors of an original work which has made an outstanding contribution to mountain literature. For more information about the Boardman Tasker Prize, visit: www.boardmantasker.com

Arabia: Through the Looking Glass (Picador Bks.)

by Jonathan Raban

Intrigued by the Arabs, dressed in floor-length robes and yashmaks, who began holidaying in London after the 1970s oil boom, Raban wanted to discover the reality of their home lives and world view. His quest took him through Bahrain, Qatar, Abu Dhabi, Yemen, Egypt and Jordan.What he discovered was a far cry from the camel, tent and sand-dune archetypes of early European explorers. Oil wealth had seeped into almost every corner, and Bedouin encampments had been replaced by cosmopolitan boomtowns, camels by Range Rovers. The sons of Bedouin nomads were now studying medicine in Europe and engineering in New York. Yet in this fast-moving world, old certainties remained.Raban’s gift for friendship gives us a series of affectionate individual encounters which collectively create a true and invaluable picture of Arabian society.

Guide to Greece: Southern Greece

by Pausanias Jeffery Lacey John Newberry

Written by a Greek traveller in the second century ad for a principally Roman audience, Pausanias' Guide to Greece is a comprehensive, extraordinarily literate and well-informed guidebook for tourists of the age. Concentrating on buildings, tombs and statues, it also describes in detail the myths, religious beliefs and historical background behind the monuments considered. In doing so, it preserves Greek legends, quotes classical literature and poetry that would otherwise have been lost, and offers a fascinating depiction of the glory of classical Greece immediately before its third-century decline. This, the second of two volumes, explores Southern Greece including Sparta, Arkadia, Bassae and the games at Olympia. An inspiration to travellers and writers across the ages, including Byron and Shelley, it remains one of the most influential of all travel books.

Journey to Armenia

by Osip Mandelstam

Osip Mandelstam (1891-1938) was a Russian poet and essayist. He visited Armenia in 1930 and was inspired to write an experimental meditation on the country and its ancient culture. Includes the companion piece Conversation About Dante. 'It takes its place among the outstanding masterpieces of twentieth century literature.' - Bruce Chatwin.

Refine Search

Showing 301 through 325 of 9,188 results