In the 19th century, Sir Richard Francis Burton-Oxford-educated spy and adventurer-became the first Englishman to enter the Muslim city of Mecca. Disguised as a dervish, Burton braved the harsh desert climate, Bedouin bandits, and the scrutiny of Muslim travelers to reach the forbidden city. He recorded his experiences in this book, a fascinating adventure of unique anthropological significance.
The classic tale of a proper English gentleman who bade a resounding adieu! to the status quo and hopped aboard a freighter bound for the Amazon in the winter of 1909.
Outfitted with a pair of ratty sand shoes and a knapsack full of trade goods, Eric Hansen set off to cross the rainforest of Borneo, one of the last places on earth largely untouched by Western civilization. For seven months Hansen hunted wild pig, gathered roots, and lived among tribes whose longhouses were still decorated with the headhunting swords of their ancestors, completing one of the great adventures of our time.
Three men and a dog in a boat on one of the prettiest waterways in the world-the Thames-in summer. Idyllic, wouldn't you say? Perhaps, if George hadn't insisted on camping, and if someone had remembered the can-opener, and if . well, maybe not idyllic, but certainly hilarious, as you'll discover when you take the trip yourself with three men and their dog.
