4 comments about Don Quixote in China: The Search for Peach Blossom Spring.

1. Don Quixote in China is one of those travel books that is as entertaining as it is informative. I learned a lot about Chinese people and culture while I laughed out loud. The author has a lot of fun in his search for a kind of utopia that in all probability doesn't exist anyway. But the fun and the learning experience is in his search. Well written and informative.



2. The author of this book sets out to locate a Chinese arcadia in the mountains of China based on clues in a fourth century poem written by a Chinese poet who was always pretty high on Chinese wine, anyway. So he heads off into China to try to locate this remote community called Peach Blossom Spring. The book is interesting, sometimes very funny, and sometimes hilarious. Although he is not afraid to criticize the Chinese it is clear he has a great love for them as well as quite a thorough knowledge of Chinese history and culture. He spends some time describing his encounters with Chinese women such as "Miss Pong" but that is part of the fun of his style.

   I can highly recommend this book to anyone who wants a good read and wants to learn about China at the same time.




3. A really great book on China and a great way to learn about a Chinese poet. The writer searches the hills of China for a utopia which it is quite clear never existed in the first place (except maybe in his weird mind) and in that way we learn about China in a way textbooks can't teach us. Far out! I cracked up laughing in places, something I seldom do with travel books. I like the writer's weird way of looking at things. No bull, just lots of insight. A great read!



4. Dean Barrett's search for the legendary blossom spring provides an excellent narrative unerpinning for his adventures and travels in China. He is a fine writer with unique insights. A great book.

No comments about MGA 4: The Travels of Marco Polo (MyEclectica.com Great Adventures).

No comments about A Record of Buddhist Monasteries in Lo-Yang (Princeton Library of Asian Translations).

1 comments about Lonely Planet Citiescape Hong Kong (Lonely Planet Hong Kong).

1. As you might have guessed, this isn't a guidebook. It can however serve as a good general guide on the sort of things to do in Hong Kong or the sort of things you might have done while there. Great images!

3 comments about Time Out Beijing (Time Out Guides).

1. After reading the book in preparation for another trip to Beijing, I was unimpressed by the poor humor that was wildly disseminated throughout this guide. Even if you were to overlook the poor humor
   that only the most obsequious, blunted toad would laugh at, the guide was
   chalk poor in providing information valuable to the visitor.
   This guide was an absolute waste of money and time. Try another travel guide and line the parrot cage with this one.



2. The Time Out guides are consistently gorgeous. Though short, they are full-color and have great interviews of influential people in Beijing-- restaurant owners, locals, and travel experts, so you can get a better feel of the city before you go. Once you go, however, it's hard to find your way around using this guide alone - none of the Chinese venue names or addresses are provided, and even if you speak Mandarin (like me) they only provide you with anglicized and incomplete pinyin forms of the original Chinese characters, so you can't even try to pronounce the names to your cabbie without butchering the names! It would be impossible getting around with this guide alone, but it has great content for the hip 20-30 crowd, and I had my trusty iPhone loaded with the HoodHot Beijing Taxi Guide, which translated all the English names to Chinese and had addresses too (score!), so I just read about the places I wanted to go in the Time Out guide, left it at the hotel, and only had to bring my iPhone to get to the places I wanted to go (NOT looking like a tourist, thank you very much!). Pick up a local city weekend guide or the time out magazine to get local event info too.



3. This Time Out Guide provides decent information in terms of the nuts-and-bolts of getting around Beijing. On that score, Time Out equals the Lonely Planet Beijing book. In terms of recommending restaurants, shops, bars and markets, however, the Time Out book wins hands down. Time Out led us to several excellent restaurants we never would have found on our own (plus one that was not so hot). We brought both books, but after a couple days left the Lonely Planet book in our room, never to pick it up again.

No comments about Northwest China Map (China) (China).

No comments about A Court on Horseback: Imperial Touring and the Construction of Qing Rule, 1680-1785 (Harvard East Asian Monographs).

5 comments about National Geographic Traveler: Taiwan (National Geographic Traveler).

1. I brought both the Lonely Plant and National Geographic Guide to Taiwan. The Lonely Planet book was great, because the names of places were given in both English and Chinese characters. The Chinese characters are a must for taxi drivers. There are not a lot a pictures, so the National Geographic Guide came in real handy as well. If you are only buying one, the lonely planet guide is esssential.



2. Beyond some nice photography, there's not a whole lot of substance to this guide book. Descriptions are brief and not entirely comprehensive. One positive was the introductory pages that explained the history and culture.



3. I purchased this book based on reviewers' comments. I'm delighted with the book and will use it, in conjunction with Passport Taiwan, to map out our itinerary. I would certainly recommend both books -- and a map of Taiwan -- to anyone considering a trip to that country.



4. Of course, this being a National Geographic travel guide, one can expect a fantastic array of visual delights and in that regard the National Geographic Travel Taiwan edition gets full marks. Within its covers you'll find a wide variety of high quality, glossy photographs. But that's not all. There are plenty of decent diagrams and maps too, on top of some fair descriptions and a good amount of general information. However, in and of itself, it's probably not enough for a jaunt around Taiwan nor would it work as a prepatory volume for working or studying there. Travelers will probably need another book (Rough Guides and the Lonely Planet are both good choices) while those planning on longer stays might want to look for something more substantial. Enjoy your travels.
   
   Troy Parfitt, author



5. I found this book to be about the most useful travel book I have ever purchased. I work for a major US airline, was formally a college Geography professor, and have traveled to over 30 countries, so I have used just about every kind of travel guide. I purchased it because I read a review by a person who also swore by Lonely Planet (as I have always done), but ended up using this more on her trip--which was exactly what I ended up doing. I purchased both this one and the Lonely Planet Taiwan, and hardly used the Lonely Planet. This National Geographic guide made my whole trip better, and enabled me to see more than I ever would have using the other guide. I rented a car from Taipei and drove almost the whole country in 3 days--stopping at all of the major interest points along the way with the help of this book. It has driving maps with all of the important things listed along the routes, and best of all has glorious photos of things, so you know what you want to see in the first place. I would suggest anybody going to Taiwan purchase this fantastic book! I would also suggest that anybody driving in Taiwan purchase a Taiwan map before you go. It is hard to get a good map over there. Driving over there is pretty easy, as long as you stay out of the big cities. You can't see the many beautiful national parks on the east coast without a car.

No comments about One's Company - A Journey To China.

No comments about Shanghai Chic: Hotels, Restaurants, Shops, Spas (Chic Destinations).