"Ever been obsessed with something? I mean really obsessed? Ever lain awake dreaming about it: a new car perhaps, your dream house, a person? I guess we all have them, only my obsession is a little offbeat. Mine is plants. . ." After making a strange discovery on a childhood trip to Ikea, Chris Thorogood dreamed of becoming a botanist and would stop at nothing to feed his growing addiction to plants. In his hair-raising adventures across Europe, Africa,...

How can we think more deeply about travel? This was the question that inspired Emily Thomas's journey into the philosophy of travel. Part philosophical ramble, part travelogue, The Meaning of Travel begins in the Age of Discovery, when philosophers first started taking travel seriously. It meanders forward to consider Montaigne on otherness, John Locke on cannibals, and Henry Thoreau on wilderness. On our travels with Thomas, we discover the dark...

"Japan is arguably the preeminent food nation on earth, a Mecca for the world's greatest chefs, with more Michelin stars than any other country. The Japanese go to extraordinary lengths and expense to eat food that is marked both by its exquisite preparation and exotic content. Their creativity, dedication, and courage in the face of dishes such as cod sperm and octopus ice cream is only now beginning to be fully appreciated in the sushi and ramen-saturated...

"From "one of our most original writers" (Kathryn Schulz) comes an expansive and exacting book -- firmly grounded, but elegant, witty, and always inquisitive -- about travel, unexpected awareness, and the questions we ask when we step outside ourselves. Geoff Dyer's perennial search for tranquility, for "something better," continues in this series of fascinating and seemingly unrelated pilgrimages -- with a tour guide who is in fact not a tour guide...

Set against the backdrop of the race to exploit Africa by the colonial powers, a story of courage and adventure brings to life the rivalry between two enemies -- a decorated soldier and a young aristocrat/Army officer -- as they set out to find the mysterious headwaters of the Nile River.

Henrietta Lovell is best known as 'The Rare Tea Lady'. She is on a mission to revolutionise the way we drink tea by replacing industrially produced teabags with the highest quality tea leaves. Her quest has seen her travel to the Shire Highlands of Malawi, across the foothills of the Himalayas, and to hidden gardens in the Wuyi-Shan to source the world's most extraordinary teas. Infused invites us to discover these remarkable places, introducing us...

Follow in the footsteps of some of the world's most famous authors on the journeys which inspired their greatest works in this beautiful illustrated atlas. Some truly remarkable works of literature have been inspired by writers spending time away from their typical surroundings. From epic road trips and arduous treks into remote territories to cultural tours and sojourns in the finest hotels, this book explores 35 influential journeys taken by literary...

"In recent years Naples has become, for better or worse, the new 'destination' in Italy. While many of its more esoteric features are on display for all to see, the stories behind them remain largely hidden. In Marius Kociejowski's portrait of this baffling city, the serpent can be many things -- Vesuvius, the mafia-like camorra, the outlying Phlegrean Fields (which, geologically speaking, constitute the second most dangerous area on the planet)....