1 comments about The Brave Ones: The Journals of the 1911-12 Expedition Down the Green and Colorado Rivers (Colorado River Chronicles, 1).

1. Anyone wanting to know more about the history of the Grand Canyon and river running in general will love this book. The Kolb brothers are truly amazing people. Their courage, vision and entreprenurial skills made them unique individuals in the history of the Grand Canyon. The writing style is sometimes difficult to get through it is well worth your time because of the wonderful history it reveals.
   
   If you are ever on the south rim of the Grand Canyon, take time to visit their studio. It is like taking a walk back in time. Also, I highly recommend seeding the video they shot of their riving running exploits. Although it is very grainy you still get an idea of what an accomplishment it was to both run the river and make a film of doing so. Lots of fun!!

2 comments about Bus Across Mexico.

1. This book is not a general tourist guide...it should be thought of as a supplement for those that are interested in traveling by bus.

   This book is valuable for anybody that is planning on traveling outside of the largest cities, and has the time not to fly.

   The bulk of the book consists of DETAILED information about the bus network and how it operates. There are descriptions of the different bus classes, companies, and amenities at the stations. There are over 200 pages of bus schedules and travel times between almost every city.




2. I bought this book eagerly because I could find nothing else similar. Sure enough, there is a great introduction to buses in Mexico and a well organized book of schedules, stations, fares and so forth. And, the book comes with a CD labeled "2004 Updates." The problem is that the CD requires a password. You are told to email bengi@yahoo.com for a password and request Password Number 18. I did. No response after several weeks. The author also provided his email address. I wrote him. No response after several weeks. The book is outdated and apparently the author figured out the importance of updates yet there is no way to open the CD. So, the book is helpful in providing an overview, but limited in its use due to lack of updating.

2 comments about Gift of Yucatan: A Different Mexican Cuisine.

1. Ms. Sauri has made a wonderful contribution to the world of cooking. What makes this book unique is how she relates the recipes to a specific region of the world, thus giving the reader a feel for the daily life of the Yucatecan. Alternately, she shows ways to make some of the recipes using shortcuts, or more "modern" touches. She organizes the recipes by menu, reinforcing the glimpses into life in the Yucatan. The recipes are much too difficult for children to attempt unassisted, but do lend themselves easily to family participation.



2. A fun book of recipes for Mexican cooking. The directions are clear and concise and the accompanying photos tantalizing. Children- and adults - will be inspired to try these delicious-sounding recipes. As with all cooking, children will need some help in the kitchen. As they work alongside their parents and perform hands-on tasks they can actually complete, the together effort will foster a time of family fun and create a beautiful dinner at the same time.

No comments about Cruising Under Power - Pacific Coasts of Mexico and Central America.

5 comments about Rand Mcnally 2007 Deluxe Midsize Road Atlas: U.S./ Canada/ Mexico (Rand Mcnally Deluxe Road Atlas Mid Size).

1. Bought this Atlas for my fathers birthday. He had a pitiful atlas in his car that he'd received free, but he liked the size. I found this one in the size he liked. It's more manageable with the ring binder and in addition to great city maps it has all kinds of additional information including things to see and do. He LOVES it and claimed it as his favorite gift this year.



2. I think they should substitute "Small" for "Midsize" in the description of this item. I just returned it because it was too small. Entire states are on one letter-size page and only major roads are shown. I bought it because the Large Scale Atlas is not available in spiral bound except for the one with the Travel Guide which makes it too big and heavy. I have now ordered the Travel Guide version and intend to tear out the Travel Guide section.



3. This book is much more than an atlasRand McNally 2007 Road Atlas: United States-Large Scale (Rand Mcnally Large Scale Road Atlas USA)



4. I was so happy to find an Atlas with the features I've been looking for so I bought two of them, one for each vehicle.
   
   The book size is nice, it fits perfectly underneath my seats. No more Atlas with ruined covers from being stuck between the seat and the console!
   
   Speaking of the cover, this version has a cover made from heavier stock thus can take a bit of a beating.
   
   The spiral-bound books are a necessity in my opinion. I don't know why there are still Road Atlas's being released that aren't spiral-bound! It's so nice to have the book opened flat without having to crease pages.
   
   The only Con I found with this book is really the most important function of a book - the content. I expected that many of the smaller roads would be unable to fit in the smaller size however several recent trips have left me extremely frustrated when even state highways and large secondary routes were missing. There are also many towns missing, some of them larger towns with reasonably sized junctions.
   
   I love the features (size, spiral-bound, cover) but without the content these features are pointless. I have two brand new copies if anyone needs an Atlas showing nothing but Interstates!
   
   Release this book with better content in the next publish and it gets 5 stars. IMO, until then, put your money elsewhere.



5. My husband and I did a cross country road trip from Seattle, WA to Atlanta, GA this past summer. This atlas was our bible on the entire trip. It served us true except in Las Vegas and Atlanta. Some of those directions were incorrect. However, the other 5587 miles, it served us well. :-)

5 comments about The Sharks of Lake Nicaragua: True Tales of Adventure, Travel, and Fishing.

1. Randy Wayne White is an authentic character. I suspected as much from reading his fiction efforts, usually involving Doc Ford. But in this collection of essays about his travels, you can see that he does not subscribe to Travel & Leisure or Conde Nast Traveler. He picks the damndest places to go, the damndest things to do when he gets there and writes about his experiences in a completely entertaining and very informative fashion. These are not your traditional outings and Mr. White would have it no other way. Hunting crocs with some authentic, although somewhat legal poachers, chasing pigs through cathedrals, exploring the seldom traveled parts of Australia, or fishing for fresh water sharks in Nicaragua (legend has it they exist), he is seldom far from disaster and you perversely kind of wish you were there..but not totally. He shows another side of himself with the gifts he brings to share with unknown Nicaraguan youngsters. I won't spoil the fun of finding out what it is...but it shows a softer side of the author, which is as welcome as his normal personna.



2. A very quick read. Somewhat entertaining, but not much substance for prospective travelers to Nicarauga or elsewhere. The cover, or dust cover, of this book I bought via Amazon in May of 2000 looks nothing like the artwork on the Amazon web page I bought it from. Recommend you get this book in the library, read it and put it back on the shelf, as this is easily accomplished in a short library visit.

   -John




3. I've read all 3 of his "Outside" compilations. They all are, in my mind, great. Reading these books allows you to get lost, while you are in your living room. I wish there were more of them. If there is wanderlust in your heart, then you should read these stories. Some are better than others, some are more interesting to me than others, but that's why they make different flavors of ice cream too.



4. Some dated material does not detract from the fine writing.



5. This is an easy read, and more something you would pick up and look at from the library for an hour rather than actually buy. Only one story is about Nicaragua (though it's a good story). The rest are about the many, many other places the author has been. Though the author seems to have had quite an interesting life off the beaten path, a lot of the stories are written with shallow prose and lack depth. Not worth buying.

1 comments about Global Access Spanish: Deluxe Language Course (Global Access).

1. I am an advanced Spanish student who has a library of books, a Rosetta membership, etc. with regard to learning Spanish. I have also traveled to Central America to practice the language and my husband is fluent.
   
   My biggest problem is that I feel a little intimidated to interact in spanish because my listening skills are not perfect and my brain takes longer than I am comfortable with to come up with the Spanish I would like to speak. I just got this course yesterday and listened to it for an hour in the car. I was pleasantly surprised at the breadth of topics covered. I guess for a traditional spanish student, you tend to learn grammar, vocab, etc. and you don't focus on one-shot spanish courses like "travel spanish."
   
   This course actually starts with travel spanish in mind, and even though I started on the basic lessons it is more advanced than I expected in that many different verb tenses are used right from the get-go. What a great way to hear those tenses used with many things the advanced learner would already be familiar with - so you can really focus on the tenses and at the same time get a great review of words you may not have completely committed to memory. The only parts I have skipped so far were those covering numbers, and skipping is easy to do because each short lesson is a track on your CD.
   
   Also the kit comes with vocab flashcards. They are not as basic as you might expect. Sure, the majority is made up of words like train, tree and yesterday, but also you will find ones for ankle, gloomy, crowd, etc.
   
   Since I just got this yesterday, I will come back and add more if my opinion changes. I am very pleased so far and I look forward to my next 1 hour in the car tonight!

1 comments about Harmony of Reflected Light: The Photographs of Arthur Wesley Dow.

1. This was an interesting book, but by todays standards the photos are noting to write home about. For the time they were very innovative.

1 comments about Fodor's Cancun, Cozumel, Yucatan Peninsula 2005 (Fodor's Gold Guides).

1. My husband and I took this with us on our honeymoon to Cozemel. What an EXCELLENT resource it proved to be! The reviews and suggestions were right on the money. We appriciated the personal input and specifics for sites, activities, resturants, etc - it was as though a good friend was giving you traveling advice.
   
   The book is well layed out and easy to navigate.
   
   We carried this with us during our site-seeing adventures both on and off the island and it proved to be invalueable. There is no question that our trip would not have been as outstanding had we not had it.

4 comments about Lonely Planet Yucatan.

1. JUST BACK FROM THE YUCATAN AND THIS BOOK WAS INDESPENSIBLE! IT TOOK ME TO THE LITTLE SPECIAL OUT OF THE WAY PLACES I NEVER WOULD HAVE FOUND ON MY OWN. THIS IS THE BOOK FOR THE INDEPENDENT TRAVELER.



2. I am a college student who lived in Merida, capital of the Yucatan state, for 3 1/2 months with 16 other students through Centre College. Much of our time was spent with our host families or traveling to different parts of Mexico and South America, but I was given this book as a Christmas present before I left. Each weekend during our stay was a 3-day weekend, so we spent much of our time exploring the peninsula and the Caribbean. This book, while a little Cancun-heavy, is a definite must for anyone spending a short or long period of time in this area of Mexico. It guides you to any accomodations and activities you might find interesting, and it outlines everything in an easy-to-find and understand manner. There were so many times we were "those tourists," clutching what we referred to as the "Yucatan Bible" while wandering around places unknown and using this book as a guide. It's completely indispensible, not to mention the fact that Mr. Doggett is a phenomenal author who managed to find humor in everything, from spectacular wonders the Yucatan has to offer to warnings and dangers. It is a definite must...don't leave your hotel without it!



3. I've used Lonely Planet guides for 20-odd countries and found this one to be solid and reliable for my recent trip there. As usual, this one has its quirks, but the problems were pretty minor. It hasn't gotten very dated yet, so most of the prices and transportation options are still on track--except for the fact that collectivos were seldom mentioned on the routes I was traveling, even though they were hard to miss. Good background info on the Mayan ruins and local culture.

   Tim Leffel, author of The World's Cheapest Destinations




4. I got this book when I first came to Yucatan, a year ago. I have lived here ever since. This book is a great resource, as are most of the LP books. Definitely worth getting.

   I live in Merida now and love it...