I don’t write airline or hotel reviews on my site. My focus is travel literature. But I had such a great flight on Turkish Airlines last week that I wanted to share it with you. If you haven’t flown Turkish Airlines, then I recommend you give them a try. In my opinion, they are the best long haul airline in Europe in terms of hard product, catering and service. I flew Turkish economy class last...
It’s that time again. I typically read about 100 books a year. Everything from travel literature to poetry, history, psychology, fiction and memoir. I love reading lists and recommendations, and I bet a few of you do, too. So at year’s end, I like to take a moment to share my top reads of the past twelve months. Here are the books that got my Road Wisdom Stamp of Approval, from one book lover to...
I apologize for writing about a movie on a site normally devoted to travel and books. But I’ll bring it full circle if you read to the end. It really does matter, because… …the magic is back. This feels like a movie made by a Star Wars fan for other fans. And if the original shaped your childhood like it did mine, then you’re in for a treat. The Force Awakens erases the stain of the prequels and...
Our greatest living travel writer does it again. I think this may be Paul Theroux’s best travel book in years. It’s more considered and introspective than some of his previous (all thoroughly excellent) books. Perhaps because it’s based on repeated journeys through the same places over the course of four seasons, rather than a journey through a place wth an end goal in mind. He...
The desert is on my brain these days… I’m gearing up for a big expedition to the Tibesti mountains in northern Chad. And I’ve been going through my library of Sahara books as the anticipation builds. I want to share one of my favourites with you today. It’s called Operation Salam. And one of the coauthors, Andras Zboray, is a good friend. I traveled with Andras to the remote Jebel Uweinat back...
I’ve never been the sort of traveler to obsess over frequent flier points, or to spend hours trying to game the system. Where my time is concerned, quite frankly, I’d rather have more of it than save a few bucks or get the occasional free upgrade. But my friend Craig Ballantyne of Early to Rise recently turned me on to a couple of cool “mileage hacker” newsletters. And when an opportunity came up...
I believe every trip has a soundtrack. That special album which entrances you on long journeys by bus or rail, occupying your conscious mind and allowing insight to float up from the depths. Those songs soak up the landscape, the smells and the very feeling of the place you’re travelling through. And they colour the way you see it, just like different shades of glass colour a sunny day. Well...
The Philosopher and the Wolf is a profound and original book. But I never would have found it if it hadn’t been recommended to me. Even after I ordered it, it sat on my shelf for over a year before I finally picked it up. I can understand why the back cover copy didn’t grab my attention, because this is a rather difficult book to describe. It’s not quite an autobiography, because the author is...
I read a very good book this week called The Longest Way Home. It reminded me of myself in so many ways. And I wanted to share it with you. The author, Andrew McCarthy, is probably best known as an actor. I first saw him on cheap night at the Parkdale Cinemas in Brockville. I think it was Tuesdays or Wednesdays in the summer, when we got in for $2. I went there every week with my Grade 10...
I read something like 100 books a year. All sorts of stuff, from travel literature, history, fiction, classics, philosophy and memoir. And I like to end each year with a quick wrap up of what I liked best. These are the books that stood out for me in 2013. Have a look through the list, and pick up a few. You won’t be disappointed. Weeding out the best from the borderline — so you don’t have to...
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