5 comments about Lonely Planet South Africa, Lesotho & Swaziland (Lonely Planet Travel Atlas).

1. Instead of being a travel guide as I expected and paid for, I find this book to be more of a political "manifesto." Could Jon Murray only be a pen name for Karl Marx? Seems those Africaneers are only getting what they deserve according to the author. After reading this disappointing book I've decided to vacation elsewhere. If I should return to Australia I will not bother with another Lonely Planet "guide" like I threw out after only two days the last time I was there.



2. Instead of being a travel guide as I expected and paid for, I find this book to be more of a political "manifesto." Seems those Africaneers are only getting what they deserve according to the author. After reading this disappointing book I've decided to vacation elsewhere. If I should return to Australia I will not bother with another Lonely Planet "guide" like I threw out after only two days the last time I was there.



3. This book is an absolute dud and rates/deserves zero stars. Not only is just about all the information 3 years old, but this pathetic attemp misinforms travellers about everything especially safety. It would seem that this is just a reprint spiced up with one or two new details. I've been in tourism in SA 8 years and was astounded while reading sections. Places gets recommended you wouldn't see me dead in like an all night Steers fast food place in Durban centre for example - a definite/guaranteed redistribution of wealth waiting to happen. Then in Jo'burg 4 hostels mentioned after each other have all been closed for 3 years or more. I wouldn't even have picked up on that but the traveller who had the book tried them when arriving and he wasted about half an hour. He said he was also going to dump the book after i brought him up to speed on the Durban section. To Jon Murrays' defense (though i haven't met him) i don't think he is the guilty party. To my knowledge he hasn't even been in SA since 1996. But Jeff Williams has - a whole 3 weeks since 1996 of which he apparently spend 5 days in Swaziland. His political views on SA is well known in the industry here as is his alcoholism and his unprofessionalism. Although he has been tolerated up to now he will not be in future - not after this publication.



4. This must be one of the worst researched books ever written. IT IS OUT OF DATE! Too many places mentioned have closed down 3 years or more before printing. An unacceptably high number of telephone numbers are wrong. Advice given is quite out of date - this can be costly in Africa! This guide is badly rated by just about anyone that have used it. Of an estimated 600 or more pax that i have met that have used this ancient "bible" about 5% said it was OK, the rest hated it. I cannot recall 1 person saying that they have found it useful. I would seriously recommend that anyone contemplating buying this online first compare this with other travel books available. Pick a couple of things that interests you and compare the different guide books. Not Recommended at all.



5. While travelling in SA for 4 motnhs I found this book amazingly helpfull. It had the best advices on how to save money, it had the best maps...I acctually knew more than the buss drivers sometimes and ended up advising them...hostels recommandations were great too. I have been looking into other guides to SA and found this one to be the absolute best.

No comments about A Year\'s Housekeeping in South Africa.

5 comments about Let's Go 2001: Spain & Portugal Incl Morocco: The World's Bestselling Budget Travel Series.

1. I used Let's Go Europe a couple years ago and am going back to Spain next year. I just bought this guide and it's great! I especially like how they rate the accommodations - very helpful. Let's Go guides are definitely the most helpful for students and low budget travel.



2. I am currently studying in Spain for the semester. Everywhere I go I bring my Let's Go guide; it is the most dog-earred book I own. My friend and fellow traveler owns both Let's Go Spain and the Lonely Planet Guide to Spain - the Lonely Planet guide sits on her shelf, unused and abandoned.

   The format of Let's Go is very logical - the book is organized into countries (Spain, Portugal, and Morrocco), and within countries there are regions, within regions provinces, within provinces cities, within cities the towns surrounding them. Many of the larger cities listed have basic maps as well. Each place listed has a brief introduction/history, and information on transportation, orientation and practical information, accomodations, food, sights, entertainment, and daytrips. The authors attempt to list schedules and such for attractions and buses and trains, but as one will find out, the Spanish are constantly changing their schedules due to some religious holiday or the siesta. It is best to check the schedule of each place yourself, which is suggested in the book. You must take into account that it was written in 2000 for 2001 - that also accounts for discrepencies in times and prices. Despite this unavoidable issue, I have found that Let's Go provides an honest, down to earth, mostly accurate, and cheap guide to getting around Spain. I would really be literally lost without it! The accommations info is particularily useful; there are only about a million pensiones in each pueblo in Spain. Let's Go helps narrow the list down, and guarantee that you get your money's worth. Even if you don't need to travel on a small budget, I would recommend this guide because of the wealth of information.

   One of my favorite features of the book is the part that lists daytrips. Sometimes you need to, and want to, get out of the city and explore things that are a little off the beaten track. The daytrip section is perfect for this! Sad to say, I didn't have a Let's Go book for my recent travels across eastern Europe (i had an old copy of a Lonely Planet Central Europe on a shoestring). My friends and I missed Let's Go's commentary and easy to use format. If the guide to Spain is anything to go by, I know I will buy Let's Go guides for my travels across the world!




3. The 1993 and 1999 editions have gotten me though Spain with maximum fun and minimal money. The 2001 edition is helping me plan my third trip. Sure, there are other good guides out there, but Let's Go is written by real travelers, passing on their knowledge and experience to the reader. Each section also comes with a brief, yet detailed history and list of suggested stops along your way. Even if you are not going anywhere, Let's Go is a great read. After you are done, you will want to travel.



4. It was my first time alone in a foreign land. My Spanish was rough, and my brain was working about half as fast as my tongue. The street names were barely visible on the sides of buildings. When I thought all was lost, I reached in my backpack and pulled out my Let's Go. I'll tell you, from that point on, I always knew where I was going, where to sleep and eat, and finally, what to expect at all times. Let's Go Spain and Portugal helped me get around both countries with ease and delight. With handy maps of cities of all sizes and helpful commentaries on popular tourist sites, I had a most splendid vacation on the Iberian Peninsula. I highly recommend it. It's accurate and a breeze to follow.



5. This book made traveling very easy and inexpensive. The restaurants they mentioned were the best ones that we tried and really helped us find vegetarian cuisine in such a pork-obsessed country. The maps and information were accurate. The writing style was witty and to the point. I recommend this book to any student or budget traveler who is thinking about going to Spain. They (the book and the country) are an adventurer's delight!

No comments about Valley of Life: Africa's Great Rift.

2 comments about I Speak of Africa - The Story of Londolozi Game Reserve.

1. After visiting Londolozi and purchasing this book there, it was wonderful to learn about the background and evolution of this very unique game reserve from the founding family. This book is a must for those planning a trip to the "bush" as well as for those fortunates that have been to Londolozi or anywhere to share space with the magnificent animals of the transvaal.



2. I visited Londolozi in 1997. I ordered and received the book almost a year after I returned home. It captured everything I remember from the animals and the landscape to the wonderful people themselves. I am able to pick up the book, now 2 years later, and still get the same feeling.

No comments about The Rough Guides' Marrakesh Directions 2 (Rough Guide Directions).

1 comments about Pleasures of the Canary Islands "Wine Food Beauty and Mystery".

1. This is the type of travel book that used to be written by Victorian gentlemen about the exotic places they found as soon as they stepped outside England. It feels more like a long letter from a dear friend than a short guide book; and even though it is 10 years old (published in 1992)it is a wonderful companion to have if you are to visit these islands. It complements well the second edition of "Canary Islands" published by Lonely Planet, which I have also reviewed.

   Its point of view is that the traveler should gain and explore the natural pleasures of the islands, in food, in wine, in scenery, in its inhabitants, and in the sheer joy of being there. Ann and Larry Walker run a restaurant in California (or did when they wrote this book) and they cannot shake the laid-back bonhomie that marks people with such a background. Of course, importing laid-back anything to the Canaries is like taking the proverbial coals to Newcastle, for this is the land of the slow, of the meditative, of the "aplatanado," a wonderful word that can be translated as "bananified," but which means to convey the state of being exquisitely beyond the reach of pressures of any kind.

   The Canaries consists of 7 inhabited islands, close to the coast of North Africa, and the book takes them one by one, in the order in which they were conquered by Spain. Because each island is so distinctly different from the others, each must be addresses separately. The Walkers write delightful essays about each, telling you where to stay, where to eat and what to do. They hold your hand, as it were, and urge you to look at the night sky in La Palma, or to dip the local fish into the mojo sauces that arrived at your table on the island of Hierro. These are wonderful companions with which to course over all the seven islands.

   The book, little as it is, has some spectacular pictures taken by the authors, a section containing local recipes, and fine discussions about the island wines. Can't ask for much more in so small a package.

1 comments about Three-wheeling through Africa,.

1. My brother gave me this book, which I have found not only readable, but kept in my library as one of my favorite books to read again. This true story was summarized in National Geographic magazine in the early 1930s,and captures much of the adventure of these young men who dreamed of taking the first coast to coast motorized transit of Africa from West to East. It is accompanied by maps and photographs of the journey they made. It is truly an amazing story of their perseverance riding two motorcycles with sidecars across untravelled territory. The highlights are of their struggles,and the people that befriend them on the journey. You dont have to be a motorcycle enthusiast to enjoy this book. It is going to remain in my library of favorite reads.

No comments about Between Sea and Sahara: An Orientalist Adventure.

3 comments about Madagascar: Or Robert Drury's Journal During Fifteen Years' Captivity On That Island (1890).

1. Having been raised and then later worked in southern Madagascar, this book could not have been a rewrite of "Robinson Crusoe" as has been often been the critique of this rare jewel. You can find a copy of this rare book in the Western Bank Library of the U Of Minnesota. A must for any serious anthropologist studying southern Madagascar culture!



2. Assikuh, tih menf ughast ifg ushphizxim. Medhabis Vif igyamas, neu semmotes nosdervji inh aghs der mixz iphouteh. Parcsec mi jeemma iveg noh genna, fegiz no hadaghshi.



3. Considered by John Robert Moore as a work by Daniel Defoe and contested by A. W. Secord (with the discovery of a real Robert Drury). This work is important not just because its investigation into Madagascar, but because it has been wrongly given as the work of Drury. It was transcribed by Defoe from meetings with Drury. See Moore "Defoe in the Pilory and Other Studies."