3 comments about eat.shop paris: The Indispensible Guide to Stylishly Unique, Locally Owned Eating and Shopping (eat.shop guides).

1. If you are sick of all the Frommers, Lonely Planet Guides etc, - or you have absorbed all they have to give you, have a look at this gorgeous little guide. Great photos, brief but informative and personal narrative. I have been to Paris several times, but plan to take this guide with me next time - just to find those little shops that you might not go into without a nudge, and actually ALL of the cafes look good!!



2. On a recent trip to Paris, this was the only "guide book" my husband and I used...and each recommendation was a pleasant surprise. Unique locations in each arrondissement and a variety of meal options from traditional French dinners to low-key drinks. The shops were unique and interesting as well. This book fills a void for those looking for something off the beaten track and with a strong dose of French flair. I will highly recommend this book to my friends traveling to Paris!



3. Beautiful photography, concise writing, enticing descriptions---I already have the basic travel guides telling me how to exchange money and get around on the train, this guide tells what to do to have a truly Parisian experience. If you love locally owned restaurants and boutiques, this is like pornography. Absolutely yummy.

1 comments about The Rough Guide to The Netherlands 4 (Rough Guide Travel Guides).

1. It is a good book to start exploring the Netherlands. It contains important information about what you must not miss, details about most important cities and places of interest.
   
   But Netherlands has so many things to show, I believe it would be impossible to get them all into a book of this size, which you can still carry with you :)
   
   Overall, it is a good insight on Netherlands. Very good for people who want to spend 1 to 4 weeks in Netherlands. Although if you have more time and want to see and find out more about this beautiful place, you'll have to just ride your bike or go by car from town to town, because all the nice and interesting places do not fit in any book of this size.

5 comments about Italy With Kids (Open Road Travel Guides Italy With Kids).

1. I bought this book prior to a trip to Italy with my 3-year-old son and was highly disappointed. The authors stick to only the most obvious siteseeing destinations and didn't provide the nitty gritty that a traveler with children really needs. For example, the chaper on Venice of course describes St. Marks, but makes no mention of the playground right near the train station. The Milan chapter mentions "The Last Supper" but overlooks a park we discovered that has a collection of dinosaur statues and a carousel.

   Another major omission: the authors made no mention of the fact that many youth hostels offer accommodations for families, and the YH in Verona was a real gem -- gorgeous grounds to run around on, a spacious room, and cheap meals. It was also about one block away from a playground. None of the accommodations listings mention the hostel option.

   Bring Lonely Planet and leave this book behind -- the luggage space is better used by a spare coloring book or toy.




2. We own every European travel book that exists. I can honestly say that this one is by far the worst one I have seen, hands down. The coverage of accommodations is sparse and only includes extraordinarily expensive hotels, for the most part, and the dining recommendations are little better. There are no unique tips in this guide and it really covers 6 cities, and not very comprehensively. I give an extra star for making the attempt to write a kids travel guide, since they are not common.



3. As other reviews have stated, this book is far from perfect. But I bought it as soon as I read the art-gallery hint (take crayons and paper). We just got back from a Picasso museum, and our 6-year-old was begging for freedom even though she learned about Picasso in kindergarten. The crayons would have been a lifesaver.
   
   On the upside, the authors understand what kids like and need, and give good hints on things they will like. On the downside, they don't seem to be the brightest bulbs on the planet (the book is filled with howlers like "wet your appetite" and "taxi cues"). They also seem to have a heck of a lot more money than I do (and I'm far from poor). Their idea of an inexpensive hotel is 95 Euros a night for a double (and the kids are extra!). That's my idea of splurging. I shudder every time they tell me that a particular cafe is "a bit pricey, but a good place to relax". I translate that to "lunch will cost more than you ought to be spending on a room."
   
   The second edition also suffers from sloppy proofreading. There are lots of places where prices are still given in lira. The Euro has been around long enough now that I have no clue what 5,000 lira would equate to.
   
   Even so, I'm glad I bought the book. I'll be able to sit down with my daughter and plan the trip together, and that alone is worth the price.



4. I was very disappointed with this book. I took 2 books it was ITALY DISCOVERY JOURNAL I turned to and it is the one my kids enjoyed the most. Pat had great insight about how to make your kids part of the experience, they will always remember this trip as with ITALY DISCOVERY JOURNAL they were part of the decisions.



5. So far we have found this book helpful in planning our trip. It seems most useful for the larger cities.
   
   We especially like the section with the specific kid phrases to translate.
   
   However, we have found that we are still going online to get additional information. We really like www.ciaobambino.com for child friendly accommodations and have used www.itravelitalia.com to help plan our trip which has provided trip specific info for our needs.
   
   Overall, I would say it has been an average book in planning our trip.

5 comments about Germany Eyewitness Travel Guide (Eyewitness Travel Guides).

1. .
   Summary:
   Every Dorling Kindersley Guide has been a great and interesting book... and delightful to have and use, even if you are not traveling to that location, but are only interested in learning more!

   The Guides are well organized in a logical and easy to follow manner. They are beautifully illustrated, well developed with accurate information (it is unusual for hotel and restaurant information to be that accurate), have enough history to help the reader understand the people and cultural background, and have a lot of useful travel information and useable maps in the appendixes.

   But, the really great attraction to this book is several fold; it is:
   ............Very complete
   ............Easy to read
   ............Beautifully and artistically completed
   ............Good shopping, safety and other tips
   ............Gorgeous photographs too numerous to list.

   Summary Negative:

   The country books are too general to really satisfy all your needs in any given location. So, if your entire trip is spent in Munich, for example, you will also want to get the specific guide for that city (but, the Berlin Section is fairly good)

   Guide Specifics:

   The guides are organized as follows:

   How to use this guide
   Introduction to Germany
   ............Portrait of Germany
   ............History of Germany
   ............Germany Through the Year
   Berlin, Area by Area
   Germany by Region
   ............Eastern Germany
   ........................Specific Cities / Towns
   ............Southern Germany
   ........................Specific Cities / Towns
   ............Western Germany
   ........................Specific Cities / Towns
   ............Northern Germany
   ........................Specific Cities / Towns
   Travelers Needs
   ............Hotels
   ............Restaurants
   ............Shopping
   Survival Information
   ............Practical Info.
   ........................Police, safety, buses, trains, etc.
   ............Travel Info.
   ........................Maps, tours, currency, etc.
   ............General Index
   ............Phrase Book

   Discussion:
   The book begins with "A Portrait of Germany", including a complete map, a review of Germany, it's history, and Germany's History (very interesting), and Germany thought the Year - including events, etc.,

   Region with an "At a glance" overview, then has subsections of Cities / Towns, then specific locations, churches, historical monuments, bridges, galleries, etc.

   Architectural reviews include various views, and cutaways; given greater understanding and better perspective. They are all attractive, if not works of art - honestly.

   The travelers' Info. offers good and valid info. on prices, currencies, customs, important words, etc. I used the reviews on resorts, hotel's restaurants and nightclubs, etc. and found they were useful and accurate, and helpful with my touring and site decisions

   The books are so well thought out that it has multiple maps, with various lookup tables, and the book's flaps are designed to be used as bookmarks for map pages.

   Negative:
   The country-wide guides are by definition more general than the specific city guides. So, if you are going to Munich, get the specific "Munich" guide (another great guide). If you decide to get the "Germany" guide for your 3, or 4 city tour of Germany, understand that this guide may be a little to general for all your local travel needs.

   Conclusion:
   As the President, CEO of an International Meeting Planning Corporation we have many resources and techniques to learn about places we have meetings / groups at as well as the cities and sights. But, as a traveler, this book really is top notch and I would recommend it to anyone going on a personal trip, or wanting to learn about a city, or location.




2. We purchased an Eyewitness travel guide when we went to London and it was terrific. Unfortunatly the Germany book did not live up to the previous book. While there are many nice pictures there is virtually no information on how to get to the sites. Part of the problem is the book tries to cover too much. Germany is a large and varried country and as such is hard to cover in a such a small book.



3. Eyewitness Travel Guide to Germany from DK upholds a great dradition in quality from this publisher. This is a very good book with plenty of colour photographs and maps. The street maps are very good and help you get around when other maps fail. It gives you the option to compare directions with other maps! I am very pleased with this book and others I own on Italy all from DK.



4. I am in the US Navy and am stationed over seas. I have relied on Eyewitness Travel Guides (ETG) for travelling throughout Italy (and specific ones for Florence, Venice, Sardinia, & Naples), Germany, and France. ETG descibes the qualities in every location so that you can tailor the trip to met your agenda and desires. They describe everything from churches to ruins to castles to festhalls. I even knew where to purchase tickets for watertaxis, buses, theatres, and shows. I once was stuck unintentionally in an area due to a flight problem, but due to ETG, I had the time of my life. I would not have known what was in the area without it. Don't leave home without it. Forget Rick Steve's guides. They are too specific and assume that you don't want to know about what else is in the surrounding areas.



5. I did not find this book of much use during my trip. It did not go deep enough into the attributes of the cities I wanted to visit. I took it with me but did not use it.

5 comments about Betsy and the Great World (Betsy-Tacy).

1. I have read "Betsy and the Great World" so often that I know much of it by heart. When I travelled to Italy this spring, and stepped into St. Mark's Square, I could hear the Harvard Man yelling at Betsy's "tourist trick" with the pigeons. And when I went on a gondola ride, Betsy and her Marco were in the gondola that floated by on the other side of the Grand Canal. Any author who can make her characters live so completely deserves to be read. It takes a very special young woman to understand the pleasures of a simple life well-lived, but for her, this series will provide richness and memories to last a lifetime.



2. I'm kinda getting too old for this series, but I can't stay away from it. I'm a sucker for history.



3. I was a bit disappointed when I opened this book up, and read the first sentence. I didn't think it was right of Mrs. Lovelace to just skip college, to think we missed it! So, I had to imagine college and Bob, and the relationship between Betsy and Joe.
   Not only do you miss out on what happens in college, but it's somewhat odd to be going from high-school Betsy, to grown woman. I kept on wondering why there wasn't at least one book made about Betsy going to college.
   Although I said this, I would still suggest reading this book, it's a great book, and Betsy doesn't change too much. But through the whole book I felt weird. It didn't matter how many friends and 'crowds' Betsy made, or how many admirers she gained. The original crowd just wasn't there.
   But don't worry, Betsy is still pretty much the same, she makes friends, and there is quite a bit of romance in the book.



4. Wonderful way for children and teens to learn about the life of children and teens in the early 1900s. I fully recommend it!



5. This is the eighth book in the Betsy-Tacy series, which follows Betsy Ray from kindergarten to marriage at the turn of the 20th century. Betsy, now in her early twenties with two years of college behind her, finally realizes her dream of traveling through Europe. The story unfolds in four main acts/settings: the voyage across the Atlantic, study and friendship in Munich, romance in Venice, and the inauguration of war in London. Artfully and intimately told, the story is also rich with cultural details that I appreciate more now than I did reading this book as a child: Betsy's excitement about gaining weight, her careful circumspection with regard to proper ladylike behavior, her sweet and chaste romances - all of this combined with a zest for life and an indefatigably adventuresome spirit.

5 comments about England's Thousand Best Churches.

1. This is an absolutely fascinating book that is indespensable if you are touring around England and want to see some amazingly lovely off-the-beaten-track places.
   
   Mr. Jenkins has compiled a listing of one thousand churches throughout England that he feels are worth seeing. Each church is given a description, including a specific reason why it ranks among the top thousand. There is such a splendidly wide array of reasons: from architectural details, to unique contruction tecniques, to interesting historical context, that it never gets dull.
   
   My parents are taking the book quite seriously, and are trying to visit each of the churches (I think they are a quarter of the way through, and their copy of this book is alrady completely covered with marginalia!). I have visited several of the churches with them, and always find the experience enlightening and interesting. Each church truly is unique, and it is always fascinating to see how.
   
   Since the publication of the book, many of the churches that are on the list have taken an active interest in their own history. When my parents first started touring the churches, they were usually met by blank stares and a "why on earth do you care about our little church?" from the locals... but a few years later they find that frequently the whole community has rallied around the idea that they had an undiscovered treasure in their midst, and something to be quite proud of. For that reason alone, I think it's a great book.



2. This is a well-written and well-organized compendium of interesting churches throughout England. Useful for the those looking for the road less traveled (by other tourists.)



3. The historical background is good; very helpful as a travelogue. Author should have lessen his personal architectural taste. Splendid photos, specially the details. Good general information; but not so helpful for my purpose of getting ideas in designing small chapels.



4. I lived in England for a couple of years and travel back with regularity. On every visit, I make time to visit some of these ancient churches so, to put it mildly, I'm very biased in favor of this subject. Almost nothing compares with going to a weather worn parish church and finding the font where your ancestor was baptized some four hundred years before still in use - an experience I had some years back. With this background in mind, I'll simply say that Mr. Jenkin's work here is monumental and I don't use that term lightly. There are of course church's noticeably absent and one wishes the author could have found a way to include some of England's cathedrals but that does not diminish his achievement. The English church is inextricably linked with English history and he has done them both a great justice by writing this book.



5. ....on the history and architecture of England's Best Churches.
   
   The main purpose of purchasing the book was to explore the architecture of these churches. The book is crammed with so many wonderful and descriptive pictures, it just makes the mind soar to new heights.
   
   The imagination and engineering that went into these classic buildings is nearly incomprehensible.
   
   If you love the beauty and the history of these majestic buildings, then this book is a must.

1 comments about Baltic Capitals, 3rd: Tallinn, Riga, Vilnius, and Kaliningrad: The Bradt Travel Guide.

1. I took a two-week trip through the Baltic states in August 2007 and, thanks to this practical book, we had a wonderful time! The hotel and attraction descriptions were especially useful for planning the trip and were well-organized for easy reference. Once we arrived, the maps made it easy to find our way on-the-fly, and the restaurant listings helped us to pick winners every time. The walking tours were also a great way to see the cities, especially after the museums, etc. had closed for the day. If your itinerary is going to focus mainly on the capitals and nearby excursions, the only supplements to this book that you may need are a more extensive vocabulary book and some additional info about other sights in the countries that you may not want to miss.

5 comments about An Hour from Paris.

1. I buy way too many travel books and I am quite often disappointed. This book far exceeded my expectations. I have not yet used it "on the ground", but plan to on my next visit to Paris. The destination descriptions are clear and interesting, the walking/training directions are simple and clear. And the author gives just enough suggestions for cafes/restaurants to make it interesting. If you've only got 5-7 days in Paris, don't leave Paris! If you've got more time than that, buy this book and plan a day trip so you can say you visited not only Paris, but France as well.



2. By Bill Marsano. Is it possible to be tired of Paris? Bored with it? Amazingly, it is, and at such times one may long for a brief escape, a short trip into the countryside. To the rescue comes Annabel, a Briton long resident in Paris who has obviously felt the same uneasy stirrings, because she has compiled a very attractive assortment of little breakaways, none of which takes more than an hour to reach, and deftly compressed them into her small but very useful pocket-sized book.
   
   She's assembled--and thoroughly researched twenty daytrips, and most of them are bound to surprise even veteran Paris habitues. There's a thrice-moated town to the east, a cathedral in an ex-chocolate factory, canalside walks, and an huddle of peaceful islands at the end of a Metro lines. (And at the end she also throws in Versailles, Giverny and the like, just for lagniappe.)
   
   Simms knows the territory very well; she writes briskly and supplies history, background and local lore as well as specifics on finding the tourist offices, restaurants and museums at each stop. There are good photos and maps, too. Being British, she also includes numerous walking tours, and being a walker myself, I liked that best of all.
   
   All of these destinations are accessible by public transport, for which Simms gives excellent details. (All too often, a concierge or tourist office in Paris will reflexively urge you to rent a car.)
   
   I stumbled upon this book while in Paris last month, and the daytrip I took was a hghlight of my visit. If you're planning to visit Paris, get this book before you go--you'll want to build at least one of Simms's recommendations into your itinerary.--Bill Marsano is an award-winning American travel writer.



3. I've now tried 6 out of the 20 recommended destinations in this book, and while the author has selected some beautiful and interesting places that I'd never have found on my own, and there's a nice historical background on each place, an annoying defect keeps appearing and ruining my day trips: her directions for walks are terrible. Reality just doesn't match up to what's in the book, so for example you might find yourself looking at a map that shows a straight path from A to B, and you'll be reading the accompanying text that says to just go left at the stream, but you won't find any stream and you won't find any straight paths. Not, that is, until you've gone way too far, you retrace your steps and then realize the author neglected to mention that there are two parallel paths within 10 yards of each other and it does matter which one you're on. (That particular scenario happens at Champs-sur-Marne. Creteil is surprisingly tough to follow, too.) Still a good book to have just for ideas on where to go, but be sure to bring a GPS system or a local with you if you want to find anything.



4. Coming from a Frenchman who has lived in the Paris area for twenty-five years this may seem incredible, but An Hour from Paris has proved extremely useful and informative, it has helped me to discover places I didn't even suspect. Typical is the trip from Herblay to Conflans-Ste-Honorine : neither place is particularly outstanding but the riverside walk was truly a revelation, each step offering views like Impressionist paintings. Without the guide I would have never discovered this, and I have tried several other suggested trips with equal success. A far cry from the Michelin guide, especially the recent dumbed-down editions. Warmly recommended.



5. I was very happy to find this book and enjoyed reading it. The author's personalization of the text makes it a pleasure to read. I'm looking forward to trying some of her suggestions soon.

5 comments about The Amateur Historians' Guide to Medieval and Tudor England: Day Trips South of London - Dover, Canterbury, Rochester (Capital Travels).

1. If you are interested in travel sites in England, than this is the book for you. Not meant as a serious treatise on English history, it is a look at sites south of London and what is worth seeing and what you should skip. These two ladies obviously are having a great deal of fun with their writing, and when you pair this with their earlier book on Medieval and Tudor London, you have a fun, light-hearted look at one of the best places to tour on vacation - merry ol' England!



2. With all due respect to "pink-slipped-arizonian," as far as I'm concerned this guidebook (and the one that preceeded it by the same authors) is a marvelous work -- witty, yes, but I hardly see that as a drawback! I spent quite a bit of time teaching high school history, and believe me, if you can find a high school student who knows 1/3 of what this book imparts, then it is one who has a real fascination with history and has made it a deliberate area of study. This guidebook is intelligent, full of useful practical information, replete with accurate basic knowledge of British history and stuffed with intriguing details and fascinating trivia. I have been studying Tudor history for over 20 years, and this book delves into some of the more obscure bits from that and many other eras. I reviewed this book and its predecessor for Renaissance Magazine (see the upcoming August issue) and stand behind every word I wrote in those reviews. These two books are excellent, and I give them an unalloyed five stars, the highest possible recommendation.



3. I love the style of this book, as well as the first--the anecdotes and wit keep even a non-history-buff like me interested! We're planning a family trip to London later this year, and we're having great fun picking the sites to see and learning all the fun and interesting facts we didn't cover in history class, as well as brushing up on those we did.



4. What I want in a travel guide is what I want in a good traveling companion: one that is passionate and persuasive about the journey, but not pedantic. I want one that is mindful of the economies of time (history) and distances (geography) and what can be comfortably accomplished in traversing both. Moreover, I want a guide with good cheer and that knows just the right way to pick up the pace and energy at any given moment with a touch of wit and memorable wisdom. Kettler & Trimble deliver all this...again. Their first volume of Medieval & Tudor London firmly established their credentials and "Days Trips South of London" proves they are no one-hit wonders. Even if you prefer solitary travel, I cannot imagine a more fitting duo to accompany you. Their real charm lies in that rare balance of being highly organized and efficient, yet deceptively spontaneous in spirit. What a way to go...and come back.



5. This book is not only exremely well written but, it is also more than helpful when it comes to traveling around England.

5 comments about D. H. Lawrence and Italy: Sketches from Etruscan Places, Sea and Sardinia, Twilight in Italy (Penguin Classics).

1. D.H. LAWRENCE AND ITALY is composed of three stories: 'Twilight in Italy', 'Sea and Sardinia' and 'Etruscan Places'. The first two "books" seem to be based on journals he wrote while traveling with his German born lover then wife Frieda, whom he refers to as q-b for queen bee, through various villages on the mainland of Italy and the island of Sardinia. Lawrence does not record his experience of "famous" sights in these two books, in fact he says he is not interested in historical places, museums etc. but rather he wishes to see the people and the places in the out-of-the way areas of Italy. He and Frieda travel by bus, train, and boat--close to the ground.

   Those who have read Lawrence's fiction will recognize his writing. He describes what he encounters with a visceral language--people, clothing, food, establishments. Some of the places are stunning and some so filthy you wonder how he could have stayed overnight. He visits lemon and olive groves and various high places along the coast and in the interior valleys. His writing is graphic--the reader will be as appalled and enchanted. He reflects Italy just before and after WWI.

   In the third book, 'Etruscan Places', Lawrence describes his visits to various Etruscan sites, including the painted tombs of Tarquinia. His writing is less descriptive than that of the first two books. He is concerned with nothing less than the meaing of life, and the conflict between religion and truth (he died a few short years later at age 44 so his reflections seem almost prescient). He muses that societies are organized around death or life. He speaks of the use of fertility symbols such as fish and lambs for Christians and dolphins and eggs for Etruscans; the significance of the color vermillion -- male body painting by warrior classes where red paint connotes power contrasted with the the red skin coloring of the Etruscan tomb portraits which seems to have connoted the blood of life. He says the Etuscans loved life and the Romans who subdued them loved power.

   Lawrence's book provides good background for those who would know more about Italy. Many of the places he describes have changed since the 1920s--some for the better. The people have changed--their clothing, homes, etc. are less unique and colorful, but they are better fed, warmer in winter, and cleaner. Hopefully their lives are better, but I don't think Lawrence would agree.




2. If i were to read only two travel books then this would be the second one, although both my wife and an English friend read it in German translation and reported that it was terrible. Maybe it doesn't translate well. Lawrence, as young man, describes a thread running through his life as he starts the journey by heading south toward Italy on foot from Bavaria with Frida, a way of travel that many Germans still understand very well. Descriptions of people are attractive, like the one-legged Italian who tried to seduce the cold, northern women at a dance. I liked best his description of his own Alpüberquerung, his description therein of the hurried English hiker, the way that Italins have ruined the alpine valleys with industrialization. And I felt loss at his growing distance from Frida. The book made me want to see the lemon and olive trees above Lago di Garda and the villages high above the lake, but we haven't done that in spite of our nearness to the region. Gardasee is completely overrun by German tourists now, not just by those wearing heavy hiking boots.



3. These essays are classics. Etruscan Places almost single-handedly revived "modern" interest in the Etruscans and was essential to the preservation and study of their tombs and paintings. Throughout, Lawrence is sensitive and insightful. An added patina to these works is the fact that they were written in the 1930s during the build-up toward WWII. There is an immediacy mixed with nostalgia here that is compelling.



4. I could only read about 20 pages of this book, it was
   not clear to me that Lawrence needed to leave England to
   write this . The new Landscapes, villages, and people only
   seem an excuse to get a never ending internal dialogue involving
   his views and prejudices. I want a travel book to be like
   good reporting, with the author only visible by the style of writing.
   Joseph Mitchell is without peer in this method.
   
   It might be more enjoyable if his views were not uniformly obvious or
   boring.



5. The book was not quite what I expected. It did not add much to my store of knowledge, and did not sharpen my perceptions. It is one of those "must" books, which is generally thought to be of importance, and nobody dares argue with the decree. I did not mind reading it, but I lacked the necessary enthusiasm for it.