No comments about Germany Country Map by Hema.

No comments about Discovering England's Smallest Churches: A Countrywide Guide to a Hundred Churches and Chapels.

No comments about Cool Shops Hamburg (Cool Shops).

No comments about Berlin Intelligence Map.

5 comments about Europe For The Senses: A Photographic Journal.

1. I live in Germany, myself, and this book was made by one of our (school) student's parent. No bias here, really, when I say this is the best book I've ever seen like this. Europe has a lot of beautiful books published about various sites and cities. This one tops them all! Just absolutely beautiful!



2. I was thinking about a trip to Europe, but after a friend showed me a copy of "Europe for the Senses" Wow, I have to go. The pictures are so inspiring along with the discriptions, I'll make sure I don't miss the Black Forest. Such a great book, it now has a home on my coffee table.



3. Europe For The Senses: A Photographic Journal by author, traveler, and photographer Vicki Landes is a breathtaking collection of full-color photographs from around Europe. Images range from wildflowers to the Leaning Tower of Pisa juxtaposed against an aerial view of flying to Pisa, to Luxembourg's American Military Cemetery, and much more. Most photographs have a brief commentary in the form of text, printed in a handwriting-style font and reminiscing fond memories as well as recounting historical facts about the images that portray classic locations. A joy to page through, and the perfect giftbook for Europhiles.



4. Reviewed by Irene Watson for Reader Views (12/06)
   
   World traveler, Vicki Landes, portrays Europe in the most delightful way one can imagine. She captures, through her precise eye, sights of delight, wonderment, and beauty in her enchanting coffee table book.
   
   Enchanting it is as Landes takes the reader through various areas of Europe, evoking not only sight through pictures, but through the other senses. Although one would think that her photos would only induce appreciation through site, Landes' photos are so defined that they look real. I found myself touching the pictures, expecting to feel the bright green ferns. I imagined the smell of the water blooms, and almost heard the pipe organ in the Fraumunster Church.
   
   The other thing I found delightful was to see photographs of places I've been to: Linderhof Fountain, Temple of Venus, city view from a castle in Heidelberg, Cologne Cathedral, and of course the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Going through Landes book was like revisiting Europe.
   
   "Europe for the Senses" is more than a picture book. Landes also explains some of the architecture as well. An example is, "Pisa a collection of clay-colored roofs being interrupted by a pallid square of marble structures. Contain a smirk when you ponder Pisa's only claim to fame is an engineering failure; imagine the perplexing mixture of pride and embarrassment for its creator, knowing the world remembers you for this crooked tower too unstable to ring its own bells."
   
   Landes adds a wonderful section on Austria. To me, Austria is one of the most beautiful countries I've ever been to. The photos of garden urns and fountains are magical. I love the statues in the gardens and have tried to recreate the same atmosphere in our own courtyard. She also adds photos of the various frescoes in the St. Charles Cathedral.
   
   Secondly, I love the Netherlands, and of course Landes added a wonderful section. She explains "Rows of colorful tulips as far as the eye can see...it's tulip time in the Netherlands. As each flower greedily reaches for the sun, countless visitors at the Keukenhof Gardens snap pictures and purchase bulbs and seedlings." It is obvious that Landes was one of those snapping pictures. The rainbow of colors that are portrayed in the photos of "Europe for the Senses" is spectacular and the hyacinths are so true to form that I feel like putting my nose into the picture. In fact, I'm sure I can even smell the flowers!



5. I feel so ripped off. I'm astounded by the other reviews unanimously giving this book 5 stars. They must all be the author/publisher's friends, is the only explanation I can come up with. It is not worth the money at half or a quarter of the price. In fact, if this was on a sale table going for ridiculously cheap, I still wouldn't buy it. It is small, it is paperback (I know I should have looked more carefully at the description), it is not printed on paper that is conducive to showing off photography. Even if it was, the pictures themselves are nothing special. They are faded, not artistic shots at all. It appears to me that it is a third generation copy of leftover postcards from 20 years ago. I was hoping for something like a glossy, high-quality coffee table book. I have learned an expensive lesson. Pay attention to who the publisher is. If it's not from a big name publishing co. it is probably because it was rejected by them and was self-published by the author hoping to make a buck off some unsuspecting internet customer. I'm disappointed that Amazon allows this.

No comments about The Wittelsbach Palaces: From Landshut and Hochstadt to Munich (Prestel Museum Guides Compact).

3 comments about Michelin Germany, Benelux, Switzerland, Austria, Czech Republic: Tourist & Motoring Atlas (Michelin Tourist and Motoring Atlas).

1. Excellent map book. This is NOT a guide, it is a spiral book with detailed maps of these countries. The scale is:
   1:300,000 (1 cm=3km) for Germany and 1:400,000 for the others
   At the back there is an index of cities and also half page maps for the most important cities.
   The maps are very detailed and one should not get lost with them. They are ideal for driving, but also an excellent resource for studying Germany. I use them for my WWII research, but will surely take the book to my next trip to Germany. For US$ 15, it is a great bargain.



2. Every major city is on the spiral, which makes it difficult to read the highway names around the city. Also, the detailed views of the major cities didn't show enough of the surrounding area. Many city maps had only 2-3 highways shown, with no other details.



3. I love these Atlas books. They are usually easy to navigate and links to the map continuations are numbered on the edges of each page.
   
   However, I would like to have seen a few of the major cities better detailed. And also, the road numbers were not always clear and weren't repeated often enough along the roads on the map. More than once I asked myself, "Is that a mileage, or is that the road number?" More often than not, it was the mileage.
   
   Oh well, it got the job done and I only got turned around in some of the major cities. That's probably more the fault of the lack of street signs in German cities.
   
   I'd be interested to know if there are any other good atlases for touring this region, but despite it's deficiencies, I was happy to have this in the car with me.

No comments about Germany (The European Union: Political, Social, and Economic Cooperation).

No comments about Leipzig (CitySpots Guide Series).

No comments about The Rhine: A Tour from Paris to Mayence by the Way Aix - LA - Chapelle.