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Armchair Traveller

Go away without going away: great travel books and DVDs including Islands of Fate, Sahara with Micahel Palin, Temptations of the West; How to be Modern in India, Pakistan, Tibet, and Beyond and more.

La Bella Figura: A Field Guide to the Italian Mind

Beppe Severgnini

A columnist for Milan's daily Corriere della Sera, Severgnini is a keen observer of the Italian culture and character. The Italian family is described variously as a bank, an employment agency, a market, a residential-care home, an infirmary, a restaurant, and a news service. There are a multitude of comparisons drawn between the American tourist and his Italian counterpart.

The Chains of Heaven: An Ethiopian Romance

Philip Marsden

Returning to Ethiopia after 20 years, the author embarks on a gruelling trek across the mountains and chasms of Tigray, the historical heartland in the north, to the ancient city of Aksum. Along the way he meets monks on pilgrimage, hermits, rebels and local farmers.

How to Travel Practically Anywhere

Susan Stellin

Use web resources to research your destination, choose the right tour and get the best deal when booking plane tickets, lodgings, cruises and car rentals online. Protect yourself by purchasing the travel, medical, and auto insurance you need and plan for other emergencies that may arise.

Islands of Fate

Fred Bruemmer

Twenty-five island histories are accompanied by colour photographs and maps. Read about the convicts’ life on Devil’s Island, French Guiana and Selkirk’s real-life Robinson Crusoe existence on the Jan Fernandez Islands, Chile. Journey to the Canadian Arctic and view the archaeological remains of the Vikings.

Jewish Heritage Travel: A Guide to Eastern Europe

Ruth Ellen Gruber

This guide for people seeking their Jewish roots takes visitors to hundreds of synagogues, cemeteries, Jewish quarters, museums, and other sites in major cities and small villages throughout Eastern Europe. Each chapter provides a brief historical overview, and a list of readings and related websites.

Mirrors of the Unseen: Journeys in Iran

Jason Elliot

Following on the success of his first book, An Unexpected Light, Elliot turns from Afghanistan to Iran, a world cultural centre where the arts flourished for many centuries. Visit the capital, Tehran, consider the sublime architecture of Isfahan, ride on horseback across the bleak landscape of Kurdistan, and explore such monuments as the tower of Qabus, and Persepolis.

One Hundred & One Beautiful Small Towns in France

Simonetta Greggio

Plan a trip to the small towns lavishly illustrated in colour in this the newest of Rizzoli’s 101 series. Visit coastal fishing villages, medieval towers, palaces in the countryside, and glamorous beaches.

Sailing Away from Winter

Silver Donald Cameron

The author and his wife sail a 33 year old Norwegian-built ketch from D’Escousse, on Cape Breton Island, to the Bahamas in 236 days. They stop at historic towns along the way and survive gale force winds off the coast of New Jersey.

Temptations of the West; How to be Modern in India, Pakistan, Tibet, and Beyond

Pankaj Mishra

Karaoke bars and video game parlours stand next to Buddhist temples in Dharamsala, home of the Dalai Lama. Officially atheist and opposed to a free Tibet, Chinese officials are opening Tibet up to tourism. This collection of short travel essays explores evolving cultures in South and Central Asia.

Three Gorges of the Yangtze River; Chongquing to Wuhan

Raynor Shaw

This richly illustrated guidebook describes the social history and economy of the river region. Travellers will find updated maps, photographs of the main sights, and tips on cruising the Yangtze.

The World’s 200 Must-see Places

Dorling Kindersley Limited

This Eyewitness travel guide features many sites included on the UNESCO World Heritage list. Floor plans and colour photographs introduce readers to cathedrals, palaces, monasteries, and other architectural and cultural wonders of the world.

DVD's

MidwestUSA

Globe Trekker

Take Route 66 south from Chicago, stopping off at Springfield, Illinois to meet Abraham Lincoln and then head over to Berlin, Ohio to visit the Amish community. Take a ride on an early model Ford at the Henry Ford Museum in Detroit and then experience frontier life in Deer River, Minnesota.

Sahara

Michael Palin

Sharing the food and observing local customs in places like Timbuktu, Mali and Tunis, Tunisia, Michael Palin continues his series of epic journeys, this time across the Sahara on train, jeep, boat and camel. A diverse landscape of mountain ranges, sand dunes, waterways and oilfields and many architectural highlights from the Roman and Islamic world are visited.

Walking the Bible: A Journey by Land through the Five Books of Moses

Bruce Feiler

This DVD of a series of Public Television broadcasts is a companion to the bestselling book by the same title. Search for the site of the Garden of Eden and the remains of Noah’s Ark. Journey into Egypt and then along the path of Moses and the Israelites.