Travel Writing & Commentary

One of the most important and influential books of the past half-century, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance tells the iconic story of a father and son's motorcycle trip across America in the 1960s....

In Neither Here nor There Bill Bryson brings his unique brand of humour to bear on Europe as he shoulders his backpack and journeys from Hammerfest to Istanbul on the cusp of Asia....

Vikrant Pande and Neelesh Kulkarni's quest to retrace the trail of Rama's fabled travels during his years in exile began with their trying to locate Chitrakoot on the map and realizing that they had little idea where it might be....

American-born Paul Theroux had lived in England for 11 years when he realized he'd explored dozens of exotic locations without discovering anything about his adopted home....

Aside from love, few actvities seem to promise us as much happiness as going traveling: taking off for somewhere else, somewhere far from home, a place with more interesting weather....

On October 6, 1973, Ted Simon knew there was no going back. He loaded up his 500cc Triumph Tiger in the pouring rain and said good-bye to London....

The Great Railway Bazaar is Paul Theroux's account of his epic journey by rail through Asia....

Rain in the Mountains brings together some of Ruskin Bond’s most beautiful works from his years spent in the foothills of the Himalayas in Mussoorie. Through vivid images and lucid writing, Bond evokes the everyday sights and sounds, and captures the essence of mountain life....

When Englishman Chris Broad landed in a rural village in northern Japan he wondered if he'd made a huge mistake. With no knowledge of the language and zero teaching experience, was he was about to be the most quickly fired English teacher in Japan's history....

Arising out of Naipaul’s lifelong obsession and passion for a country that is at once his and totally alien, India: A Million Mutinies Now relates the stories of many of the people he met traveling there more than 50 years ago....

In India's tropical paradise, stands a town wrapped around a giant roundabout, where a canny caretaker with a French connection holds sway. Vying for his attention are two competing neighbours.

Step inside this captivating account of Paulo Coehlo's pilgrimage along the road to Santiago. This fascinating parable explores the need to find one's own path....

Before climbers Joe Simpson and Simon Yates were able to reach the unclimbed West Face of the remote Siula Grande, disaster struck....

Michael Palin's epic voyages have seen him circumnavigate the globe, but perhaps the greatest single challenge he has faced is his latest, a crossing of the vast and merciless Sahara Desert....

Vagabonding is about taking time off from your normal life - from six weeks to four months to two years - to discover and experience the world on your own terms....

William Dalrymple's highly praised and greatly entertaining account of his 1986 trip made while a student at Cambridge which retraced Marco Polo's route across land from Jerusalem to Xanadu....

This gripping story of courage and achievement is the account of Robert Falcon Scott's last fateful expedition to the Antarctic, as told by surviving expedition member Apsley Cherry-Garrard....

In Made in America, Bryson de-mythologizes his native land....

A landmark in travel writing, this is the incredible true story of Heinrich Harrer’s escape across the Himalayas to Tibet....

With a brand-new, original introduction from Rick reflecting on his decades of travel, For the Love of Europe features 100 of the best stories published throughout his career. Covering his adventures through Europe, these are stories only Rick Steves could tell....

When he set out to visit all of the planet’s countries by age thirty-five, compulsive goal-seeker Chris Guillebeau never imagined that his journey’s biggest revelation would be how many people like himself exist—each pursuing a challenging quest....

In 1834, Ralph Waldo Emerson, formerly a Unitarian minister, began a new career as a public lecturer. Nature (1836), his first published work, contained the essence of his transcendental philosophy. This collection contains 11 of his most celebrated and memorable essays....

A vibrant, enchanting tour of the Seine from longtime New York Times foreign correspondent and best-selling author Elaine Sciolino, The Seine offers a love letter to Paris and the most romantic river in the world, and invites listeners to explore its magic for themselves....

Paesaggi, umori, incontri, riflessioni, racconti di un viaggiatore sterniano che scende con pietas e con humour lungo il vecchio fiume...

Long renowned as one of the smartest writers on the loose, David Foster Wallace reveals himself in Consider the Lobster to be also one of the funniest....

Um die Vorzüge und Nachteile einer Auswanderung in die Vereinigten Staaten von Amerika möglichst lebensnah jenseits aller Klischees der Öffentlichkeit zu Verfügung zu stellen, entschließt sich der Ich-Erzähler (die Unkosten werden von einem Verlag getragen) die typische Auswanderungs-Route von Hamburg per Schiff nach New York zu unternehmen und für einige Zeit dort privat zu verweilen. Im zweiten Teil erreichen wir "die Insel der Tränen", auf welcher sich Passagiere der 2ten und 3ten Klasse indiskreten Fragen und ruppigem Verhalten der amerikanischen Zollbehörden ausgesetzt sehen.

The countryside is almost sacred to many Britons. There is a depth of feeling about rural places, the moors and lochs, valleys and mountains, cottages and country houses. Yet the British countryside, so integral to our national identity, is rarely seen as having anything to do with British colonialism. In Our Island Stories, Corinne Fowler brings rural life and colonial rule together with transformative results. Through ten country walks with varied companions, Fowler combines local and global history, connecting the Cotswolds to Calcutta, Dolgellau to Virginia, and Grasmere to Canton.

Pamela Mulloy has always loved train travel. Whether returning to the Maritimes every year with her daughter on the Ocean, or taking her family across Europe to Poland, trains have been a linchpin of her life. As COVID locked us down, Mulloy began an imaginary journey that recalled the trips she has taken, as well as those of others.

A memoir of homecoming—Heidi Across America is a gritty story of how opening our hearts to others enables us to open our hearts to ourselves and love what we find there.

Um die Vorzüge und Nachteile einer Auswanderung in die Vereinigten Staaten von Amerika möglichst lebensnah jenseits aller Klischees der Öffentlichkeit zu Verfügung zu stellen, entschließt sich der Ich-Erzähler (die Unkosten werden von einem Verlag getragen) die typische Auswanderungs-Route von Hamburg per Schiff nach New York zu unternehmen und für einige Zeit dort privat zu verweilen. Im ersten Teil werden nach dem Vorwort die wichtigsten Vorbedingungen und Voraussetzungen zusammengefasst, die wenigstens teilweise erfüllt sein sollten, damit das Vorhaben nicht in einem Desaster endet.

Fürst Pückler war eine der schillerndsten Gestalten des 19. Jahrhunderts: Er war Aristokrat und Publizist, Abenteurer und Frauenheld, Landschaftsgärtner und Reiseschriftsteller, der für Eindrücke und Erlebnisse so aufgeschlossen war wie nur wenige seiner Zeitgenossen. 1835 startete er seine Reise in den Orient, die fast fünf Jahre dauern und ihn nach Algier, Tunis, Ägypten, Sudan, Jerusalem, Syrien und Konstantinopel führen sollte. Heinz Klevenow, Christian Rode und Günter Witte lesen aus seinen Berichten, die so lebendig sind wie die Reise selbst.

Catalogado como el youtuber de viajes más importante de Colombia, Juan Díaz presenta su audiolibro Inadaptados. Una reflexión profunda sobre distintas culturas, una crítica social a los sistemas de diferentes países y potencias mundiales, en un crudo viaje que dejará a sus oyentes una postura sobre la falsa idea que nos venden del mundo, el éxito, el romanticismo, la felicidad, el turismo y la búsqueda del propósito.

Ein Mann, ein Plan, ein Familienessen. Und eine Reise. Was tun, wenn der Geburtstag naht? Was tun, wenn die italienische Familie bekocht werden will und der Schwiegervater ein ausgewiesener Feinschmecker ist? Man(n) fragt bei den Besten nach! Zwischen Venedig und Triest stehen sie mit Rat und Tat zur Seite: der smarteste Barkeeper der Welt, die Königin der Cicchetti, der Kapitän der Sarde in saor, der Padrone der Pasta, die Winzerin der Wasser-Reben, der Frico-Feinschmecker, der Bändiger des Baccalà – und natürlich Pino aus der "Bar in Italien", der dem Autor beruhigend die Hand hält, wenn der Nervenzusammenbruch droht.

After college getting her dream job in New York City, Kristen Van Nest thought she had everything a modern millennial was supposed to want: a sexy zip code, a boyfriend, and a corporate job. But instead of feeling content, she soon realized she had no idea who she was and what made her happy. Naturally, she did what any sane person would do: hopped on a plane and spent the rest of her twenties living abroad and traveling the world in search of love, adventure, and new and exciting places to eat bread.

Mettersi in cammino vuol dire scegliere un'altra vita. Una vita semplice, in cui ogni incontro è una porta, ogni volto un viaggio, ogni sentiero una via per esplorare se stessi e il mondo. Farsi nomadi per essere liberi. Un libro prezioso che ci esorta a incamminarci, ciascuno con il proprio passo, verso il nostro destino. "Ci sono estati chiuse come scatole, sigillate. Sono estati che trascorri in una stanza, in ufficio, o su un letto d'ospedale, in una cella, in uno spazio delimitato da pareti che ti sono ostili.

Since his time on Hildasay, Chris’s adventure has only gotten wilder. No one was more surprised than Chris when, in November 2020, he had an unlikely (seemingly destined) encounter with fellow adventurer Kate. The two turned out to be kindred spirits and – even more astonishingly – Kate made the bold decision to join Chris on the walk of a lifetime. Day in, day out, as they trekked the coastline down from Scotland together, their relationship grew, and soon the couple were thrown in at the deep end when their first child – baby Magnus – arrived.

Komm mit zum Haareschneiden im Central Park, Tofumachen in Chinatown, Schwimmen am Brighton Beach und Jazz hören in Washington Heights! In Hallo New York besuchen Christina und Felix ihre Lieblingsmenschen, um herauszufinden: Wie machen die das? Wie leben und überleben sie? Was treibt sie an? Wie geht das: widerstandsfähig sein, flexibel bleiben. Immer wieder aufstehen, wenn einen das Leben gerade umgehauen hat. Eine Gemeinschaft bilden, vor allem in schwierigen Zeiten. Christina und Felix sind preisgekrönte Journalisten. Sie leben seit mehr als zehn Jahren in New York, inzwischen mit zwei kleinen Töchtern.

When Susan quit her job in London and set sail off the south coast of England on her beloved sailboat, Isean, she was unaware this spontaneous departure would lead to a three-year journey spanning several countries across the continent. With only the very basics on board, resourcefulness becomes an unexpected source of joy and contentment. But for all the physical and navigational challenges of her journey, the other side of her story reveals a more important change - an inner journey - that took place along the way.

Nie kann Doris Dörrie der Versuchung widerstehen, von einer Reise etwas mitzubringen: eine Origami-Schnecke aus Japan, eine Ringermaske aus Mexiko, die Figur einer Reisgöttin aus Bali, Boxerstiefel aus New York oder Borotalco, ein Wundermittel gegen Flecken aus Italien. Nützliches, Krimskrams, exotische Lebensmittel, Zauberutensilien und kitschige Staubfänger. In der Begegnung mit den Dingen erzählt Doris Dörrie auf ihre unverwechselbar persönliche Art vom Leben, Schreiben und Reisen.

Georg Forster war gerade einmal 17 Jahre alt, als er an der zweiten Weltumseglung von James Cook teilnehmen durfte. Er war aber auch kein gewöhnlicher Jugendlicher. Schon mit 13 machte er sich als Autor und Übersetzer einen Namen – selbst Goethe bewunderte Sprache und Erkenntnisschärfe des jungen Schriftstellers, der später auch noch Naturforscher und Revolutionär wurde. Frank Arnold liest aus Georg Forsters 1777 publiziertem Werk "Reise um die Welt", auf der er Eisberge mit den eigenen Händen berührte oder sich am Strand von Tahiti für die Bewohner der Südsee begeisterte.