2 comments about Landmark Visitors Guide Cayman Islands.

1. One of the best travel book series, with attention to detail, plus numerous color photographs and fine maps. Lots of instructions regarding practical travel matters. (Travel Books
   Review)



2. If these delectable guides' plentiful pix don't get you drooling to explore, you need to get your salivary glands checked. The text is also noteworthy

5 comments about Lusty Traveler: The Complete Sex Tourism Guide of Erotic Vacations for Men, Rio De Janeiro.

1. Bought after searching Amazon for a singles vacation guide.
   Great book. Advice for fishing, hotels, and most importantly, sex tourism.
   
   Complete travel advice on: visa requirements, tour companies to use, taxis, hotels, and the brothels and bars to check out. For daytime activity, you'll find all the tourist stuff as well. Short, sweet and to the point. A fun read.



2. I was so surprised on how accurate this book is. Rio is a true male bachelor's paradise. One of my male friends that travels the world put me on to this book. Highly recommended to anyone who wants to be in this fraternity of world class sex tourists.



3. It's a firsthand insider's perspective that you won't find in any other book: what to do, where to go, places to avoid, etc. Where to meet local women.
   
   I saved time and money using this guide, and after my vacation can say it's accurate, and helps you find the best party spots without screwing around. If you're single or just looking to mingle, this book is what you want.



4. My friends and I went to Rio for a bachelors party. We had the best time and owe much of it to this book. It's anyones guess if the groom will actually go through with the wedding. One of the guys in our crew booked a hotel that was not listed as "guest friendly" and he had to pay 150 extra just to bring a girl back. Don't get ripped like that, buy the book and save the hassle.



5. What more can you say. Funny, accurate, and fits in your pocket. Everything you need to prepare for your Rio vacation. A great investment for guys that are traveling all the way to Brazil.

5 comments about The Rough Guide to Brazil 6 (Rough Guide Travel Guides).

1. Just to be upfront about everything, this review is based on the 3rd edition of this book. But based on that book, I won't buy this one.

   Here's just 2 reasons why:

   1) The basic introductions to the each area/city are a great idea, but I couldn't seem to find one that ever made the place sound interesting. I live in Brasília, and granted it hasn't got the excitement of Rio, but it's much more interesting than they make it sound, and Natal, despite having the second cleanest air in the world sounds like a drag.

   2) The information is incomplete and rather superficial. The section on Pirenópolis, a great little spot in Goiás, for example, has no mention of the dozen or so waterfalls (with guided tours if you need them) in the area.

   Perhaps the authors are just used to travelling in "1st World" countries, or maybe they know little or no Portuguese, or maybe it's something else altogether, but wherever they're coming from and whatever their experience, this book has ended up a somewhat depressing, and extremely rough guide that misses much of this enormous, gorgeous, and amazing country.




2. Well, one of the first positive things I can say about the Rough Guide is that it is noticeably superior in coverage and writing quality to the LP guidebook, which in my mind has been the #1 reigning worst guidebook to Brazil on the market.
   
   My biggest complaint about this book is that the writing quality is incredibly uneven. Frankly, it is quite evident that the authors have not visited all of the places the write about. For example, I found the description of Mossoro (Rio Grande do Norte) superbly written. Not only was the description true to the way I remember Mossoro on my last visit 11 years ago, but I ended up learning a great deal about historic sights in Mossoro that I was never aware of. On the other hand, the coverage of Barreirinhas and the Lencois Maranheses National Park was pathetic, to put it mildly. It is abundantly clear that none of the authors have ever been near there. I visited Barreirinhas 13 years ago (when there were already 4 pousadas in town) and slowly travelled down the coast to Rio Novo and Tutoia, and then by boat from Tutoia to Parnaiba. It was a fantastic trip, but you wouldn't be able to do it with this book because as far as Rough Guide is concerned, Tutoia doesn't even exist. Off the coast of Tutoia there is a very exclusive privately owned island that has small ecotourism visits called "Ilha do Caju"... also no mention in the Rough Guide.
   
   But the biggest scope-of-coverage oversight to me seems to be the shoddy coverage of Sao Paulo state. SP state has an abundance of excellent tourism opportunities. Maybe the authors' travel priorities are just different from mine, but when I think of "Brazil" I think of outdoor adventure travel. And frankly, ecotourism is a huge part of the Brazilian tourism industry. But this book is all about big cities, beaches, and architecture. Sao Paulo state has great rafting, mountain biking, hiking, camping, and fishing opportunities, but you wouldn't know it from this book. Likewise, the Central West (Mato Grosso, Goias) have INCREDIBLE rock climbing opportunities. No mention here.
   
   We get an idea of where these authors' priorities are when we read on p. 497 that "Goiania and Anapolis, with their rising affluence and acres of new high-rises, already look like the cities of the paulista interior - and are about as inetresting to visit, which is not very." Clearly this book is of the "urban-poverty-chic" genre of travel guides... If you are into that.. this book is for you. If you plan your trips with a goal in mind - snorkelling in the Caribean, mountain climbing in Mexico, bike riding in Utah - this book will not help you at all with your Brazil vacation.



3. This is one of the poorest guidebooks on Brazil, if not the worst. And I've used all of them. For starters, it is horribly out of date. But the major problem with this book is that it focuses on random road-side towns while barely paying attention to popular and happening spots (AKA places where people are actually interested in going). It is as if the writers took at trip around, wrote about a few obscure places where they stayed and disregarded the rest.
   
   The best guidebooks on Brazil right now are the newish Let's Go (although they tend to only focus on major towns) and the new Lonely Planet.



4. Have the other reviewers been using the same guide book as I have? The Rough Guide is simply the best guide book to Brazil. The Lonely Planet offers no understanding of the country, the book is written for idiots and the much of the material is seriously out of date. The authors of the Rough Guide seem to really know, understand and appreciate Brazil. The chapters for Rio, the South and the Amazon are, in my opinion, the most comprehensive, including lots of detail on places that Brazilians I know were unaware of. The Northeast is probably the weakest chapte but the area is so vast. One problem is prices, but you quickly learn to ditch the price guides -- seriously out of date and in US dollars and not in Brazilian "reis".



5. I just spend 3 weeks in Brazil. I too decided to veer from the Lonely Planet to check out a new guide. They're all the same, right? WRONG. Rough guide is terrible for Brazil - maps are horrid, exaggerated descriptions of supposedly cool places that actually are a dump (especially for fortaleza), and simply a lack of good info (Salvador, the islands nearby/excursions; Fortaleza - beaches and routes; Sao Paulo generally with important/updated bus info and airport info). If I didn't speak Portuguese like a goofy gringo i would have been in serious trouble. The only reason why I still have the book is because I intend to burn it when winter comes-the only true death for such an abomination.

No comments about Culture Shock! Argentina: A Survival Guide to Customs and Etiquette (Culture Shock! Guides).

5 comments about Paddle to the Amazon: The Ultimate 12,000-Mile Canoe Adventure.

1. This is a great book. It is also an easy read. I have had many friends & co-workers curse me for lending them "this stupid book I can't put down" ...and then they ask if they can lend it to another friend. Pages are falling out in the middle becuase it is so well used.



2. I read this about 8 yrs ago,found it in a used book store.I still think about it.A wonderful fish-eye view of a long journey with good and hard memories.The dynamics between father and sons juxtaposed with vibrant scenery make this a book you wont want to put down.Bravo!



3. I felt like I went to the Amazon with these guys without the bugs, dirt, starvation, and near death experiences. I enjoyed every page, the good and the bad. I think most people have the dream to do something like Don Starkell but few of us actually do it. It's been about a month since I read the book and I'm still thinking about all they went through. He doesn't sugarcoat details, he just tells it like it was. I'm glad you went Don, and took your sons with you, but more than that, I'm glad you wrote a book a about it!



4. What a great read. The author, fresh from a devastating divorce, started planning this epic father-and-sons canoe journey from Canada to Brazil. After some years of cooling off and preparation, amid the usual hail of well-deserved dire warnings such adventures generate, he actually pulled it off.
   
   From the cover blurb, I assumed I'd be reading another insipid, feel-good father-son story, and I was prepared to dislike it. Boy, was I wrong. Most of the text is pulled directly from Don's actual journals written during the trip, words he appears to have kept for himself and only later decided to share with the world.
   
   The tale is heart-wrenchingly frank about everything from the constant physical and emotional challenges to Don's personal doubts to occasional and agonizing strife with his sons. Rather than distracting, it richens his descriptions of the journey itself--filled with colorful notes about the terrain, animals, plants, and (especially) bugs along the way--and helps point the harsh light of reality on the adventure. Particularly delicious are his observations on the ever-changing nature of local human behavior along the 12,000 miles. Also, Don's references to tales of the long-ago explorers who visited parts of the journey's route have given me a wealth of new books to put on my reading list.
   
   By no means would I call this a feel-good book, though I finished it feeling inspired and delighted--and yes, good. Though an easy read, the book did no hand-holding through any of the journey's rough spots; the story is regularly gruesome, occasionally hair-raising, now and again embarrassing, but through it all jaw-dropping. This is as real as it gets.
   
   Like adventure? Read this.



5. I started reading this book with high expectations based on the other reviews posted here and Don Starkell's reputation as an outstanding adventurer. I was disappointed in both the book and the author. In fact, many stretches of this book left me completely dumbfounded, unable to believe that this is not a comedy.
   
   For example, I thought it was a funny idea of Don Starkell to paddle into the center of the Colombian drug trade while displaying big US Coast Guard decals on his canoe. Even funnier was that he started wondering why that made people slightly suspicious and they subsequently intended to kill him. It was a bit repetitious, though. I guess after he unsuccessfully tried to get himself killed by paddling into Honduras and Nicaragua at a time of political unrest, he probably thought that this could be accomplished in Columbia.
   
   Completely immune to reason, this "world class paddler" obviously thinks that safety gear such as personal floatation is only for whimps and just keeps relying entirely on his luck to be rescued, e.g. after capsizing and being swept out to sea in a turbulent river mouth. Much to his surprise, the next river mouth is just as turbulent and he faces similar problems on the next, and the next, and the next...
   
   One particularly hilarious moment ensues when Don Starkell harasses a 20ft, 300 pound Anaconda for kicks, which he mistakenly believes to be a Boa Constrictor, falsely relying on the water-avoiding behaviour of the "Boa" for protection. Or, imagine Don Starkell's surprise after entering Brazil, where sometimes he was able to understand the Brazilians with the Spanish he learned along his trip, but more often than not, it appeared to him "as if they were speaking an entirely different language". I think he might still be trying to figure this one out...
   
   This list goes on and on - and in what appeared to me as a bad mixture of the "Three Stooges" and "National Lampoon" the Starkells clown their way down the coast and finally, against all odds make it to the mouth of the Amazon.
   
   On the downside, I thought that the way Don Starkell, a well-off Canadian, relied on mooching supplies and shelter from some of the poorest people in the countries they visit was just sickening. He proudly writes about his method of identifying a leader in a group of strangers and wooing him or her with golden Canada Maple Leaf pins to gain access to the supplies they need. He could as well have brought glass pearls. Don Starkell aptly named his canoe 'Orellana' after "the first white man to navigate the Amazon River in 1541". And quite often his behavior seems to be that of a modern-time Francisco Orellana, who gained a sorry reputation for raiding settlements along the river for supplies and burning down entire villages, including their inhabitants. I was left with the impression that most of the people the Starkells "visited" were rather happy when they were gone again.
   
   I was most interested in Mr. Starkell's motivation for performing this trip. He writes at the beginning of the book that he mainly did it to compensate feelings of insufficiency after a rough childhood and a painful divorce. As a consequence, his interest in this journey is mostly centered on gaining bragging rights. He doesn't actually seem to enjoy any of this trip, other than the four-month long stay in Veracruz, Mexico. His only drive to get up in the morning is mileage. Because of this, Starkell's saga is often not much more than the description of a "canoe treadmill" experience. It remains obscure to me why somebody would think that spending two years on such a lost quest for psychological completeness would be a sane idea. It probably did for him what a big truck or butt-implants did for many midlife-crisis shaken fellows, i.e. nothing. Therefore, the almost complete lack of reflections or attempts to find meaning in this journey came as no surprise.
   
   To add insult to injury, Starkell seems to regard his son's as mere paddling power - motors desperately needed by him to complete his insane task. As for the father/son dynamics in a small boat over two years: we can only guess about this complex and intricate topic, because the author doesn't really write anything about that, which is probably the greatest disappointment of the book.

4 comments about Belize Map by ITMB (International Travel Maps).

1. I just returned from driving thru Belize for 7 days and this map was indispensable. We put over 400 miles on our car and never got lost. It was pretty current with the highway system (such that it is) in Belize and it held up pretty good. I would only question the use of the term "main road" vs "secondary road" and "seasonal road" as most other roads other than highway are dirt roads. And all the dirt roads looked seasonal.



2. I lived in Belize for six years, and carried this map most of the time. I was always sorry I didn't have it at my fingertips, particularly when flying over the cayes, or driving someplace new. There are plenty of road signs in Belize, but you need THIS MAP in order to really understand the layout.
   
   sr. ric



3. This is a great map. It is very detailed, and doesn't fold out too big. It lists all the roads both major and minor, very good if you intend to rent a car.



4. Good map....plenty of detail, good if you just enjoy maps....necessary if you plan to visit.
   
   Expect the traditional folding and paper quality........still a good buy.

5 comments about Insight Guide Amazon Wildlife (Insight Guides Amazon Wildlife).

1. After living on the Rio Negro for a month near Manaus, constructing a jungle garden with the local Caboclos, I figured I wanted a book with more information on the Amazon than the "Insight Guide to Brazil". Finally the book arrived and I was displeased greatly. For one thing, the first 160 pages are about Birds, reptiles and mamals, which is only covered with 5 pages each. It lists the animals scientific and vague little descriptions, totally useless info. only you're an Entomologist or Herpologist,etc. However if you really are a scientist, you wouldn't be looking at this book, but something more in depth than what this book covers. AND, I don't even understand why they bothered to include the animals they did, you're NEVER going to see them!! And if you do see those animals, you pudgy old tourists will most likely be with a Guide who will explain it better than this book. The only cool little reviews worth reading are Endangered Animals, Life in a Jungle Village, and Amazonian Indians.

   And as far as places, that was the big disapointment. I thought it would list more museums or sites in Manaus which I could see, HOWEVER, The Insight Guide to Brasil lists MORE than this Amazon book, why they did that is beyond me. So in sum, if you want in-depth info on birds and mamals, there are far better books, or even old National Geographics(which you can buy here at Amazon.com). And if you want a bigger list of museums, aquariums, sanctuaries in whatever country you're at(Colombia, Peru, Brasil), buy the Insight Guide FOR that country.

   I ONLY would recomend flipping through this at the book store to read the sections I listed above or seeing some photos, definitly not worth paying $... Hope you found this useful, although cynical, it's the truth.




2. I have relied on Insight Guides many times in the past on foreign travel, including recently to Peru and the Amazon. I found these guides to be complete, reliable and generally very informative. I was disappointed in the Amazon Wildlife Insight Guide in that it is not organized in any useful way and definitely not complete, especially as far as the Amazon flora is concerned.



3. I was disappointed in this book. It has absolutely beautiful pictures, and is worth thumbing through just for that. The writing is very uneven, even amateurish in places, and much in need of editing. Insight Guide Amazon Wildlife seems to have been written by a committee that never agreed on who the target audience would be. It oversimplifies in places, and provides useless detail in others (e.g. paragraph-long lists of scientific names of species). To be sure, there is much useful information in the book, but no real story line. I learned things, but got no perspective.



4. This book is very interesting in the choice of animals it makes and has interesting facts about the Amazon and its species. However, its proposition to be a full guide is too ambitious and cannot be achieved in so short a space.
   
   Some of the most significant deficiencies relate to the flora, which is only sparsely described. It is not too helpful in identifying species, especially given the abundance of the region.
   
   I recommend this guide to an amateur who is interesting in identifying a few species, especially of fauna, who is not too particular about identifying specific ones. It is full of interesting facts that a first time visitor would certainly enjoy.



5. I got this book and enjoyed very much. We can see many unusual kind of animals and amazon bird. There are good color and beatiful pictures!!

4 comments about Boston: A Topographical History, Third Enlarged Edition.

1. This book is ideal for anyone looking for a general account of Boston history. It acquants one with many of the important stages in the development of the city; covering the period from the colonial to approximately 1970. The information regarding the colonial period is excellent, as is the book itself. It is not specific, but provides an introduction to many great way points for further study.



2. This is very good book about the City of Boston, as it was developed in stages. The Book explains the development and expansion of the city in time and according to location. It is very vivid and especially if you have been a pedestrian offen on the streets of Boston, It starts to make sense and starts to give joy. As I read the book I started to appreciate more and more the efforts of BRA and Back Bay Society.unfortunately before they acted quite a number of beautiful structures has gone.Book has very extensive history from 1700 to 1970's and than it is summary or may be it is a living history for you. There are numerous pictures but the number of pictures is not as much as those you may find in other types of books, like Boston in Pictures, etc. After all it is a narrative book but there is sufficient amount of pictures to help you visulize. I wish a more comprehensive book were to be produces to show in same pages all the developments, similar to "Boston, Than and Now" but with more older pictures and more story as this book has. Read this book and sit across the Charles on Cambridge Side than you start to see Trimont, Mill Dam, Neck. It is great book.



3. This book is a fascinating account of how Boston grew and developed. It stays on the point, is concise, and really improves the understanding of this city. A must read for a Bostonian.



4. I first read this book when I moved to Boston in the mid-1980's. Only after reading this book did I understand why I always got lost driving around the city. The old cowpath myth is far too banal compared to the real cause of the city's twisting mysteries: the perpetual reshaping of the city's landmass begun during the Mass Bay colony and continuing today. There's a reason the Big Dig happened here.
   
   I love this book. This is history told from a unique perspective and by a real pro. Whitehill's reputation as a distinguished historian is what initially drew me to this book. His skill as a storyteller and his dry New England wit kept me thoroughly engaged. I have re-read this book many times. It is at the top of my books-to-read-about-Boston list. I always recommend it to any new Bostonian I meet.
   
   I wish the old man had lived to see the Big Dig in all its engineering glory. His history of this grand project would have been a true delight.

5 comments about The Rivers Ran East: Travelers' Tales Classics.

1. I AM VERY PLEASED WITH THE BOOK THAT I THOUGHT WAS OUT OF PRINT. A GREAT BOOK AND A GREAT AUTHOR. I FIRST HEARD OF LEONARD CLARK SOME YEARS AGO FROM A MAN WHO ACTUALLY LIVED IN SOUTH AMERICA AND WAS FAMILIAR WITH CLARK.I SO GLAD THAT AMAZON CARRIED THIS BOOK. I JUST TOOK A CHANCE AND TYPED IN THE BOOK NAME AND AMAZON HAD IT. THANKS SO MUCH



2. I bought a copy of this (in hardback) about 45 years ago as a gift for my then fiance. He had heard about it and was so excited about getting a copy. I then made the mistake of loaning it to someone and they did not return it. I then tried to order it, but it was out of print. Several years ago I was able to get a paperback copy. I WILL NOT LOAN THIS ONE OUT. I have read it several times and enjoy it each time. I am in the process of ordering "A Wanderer Till I Die". I would recommend this book to anyone (except someone who is afraid of snakes, bugs, etc.).



3. I found an old original copy of this book in my step-fathers library in Adelaide Australia that I was going through after he passed on. Some time later I sat down to read it.....what a book! couldn't put it down for a minute. It has everything you want in a good book. You can actually hear and smell the jungle, what! and with fast paced action! just had me out of breath reading it! Best of all, it is actual adventure! nothing arrogant about it, nor was it into boring chatter of any kind to eat up pages and thicken the book.
   No! it was a pack full of wonder in itself, and, let your imagination go wild!....I brought a copy to share with my brother as a retirement gift. So many people these days forget, that not long ago the world was a very different place.



4. Whether fiction or not, Leonard Clark's supposed exploits into western Amazonia is a wild and exciting venture which reads like an Edgar Rice Burroughs novel.
   
   His personal secret mission was to locate the fabled El Dorado with incomprehensible riches but due to heavy governmental scrutiny of gold seekers coupled with the political unrest of country boundaries, he went under the guise of seeking ethnobotanicals.
   
   Clark's dangerous undertakings took him into the heart of dense jungle and tangled vegetation, thwarting every imaginable task at hand. From jaguars, venomous snakes and crocodiles down to the relentless flies and chiggers that inhabit these inhospitable environs there is never a dull moment. His escapades with the head-hunting tribes of the rainforest are charged with excitement.
   
   Again, how much of this is actually credible is not my place to say. However, the book will keep you on the edge of your seat.



5. It's one of the best books I have ever read! The author is very eloquent, and you get the feel of traveling along on this incredible adventure. Just sit back and watch the pages fly by.

No comments about Compass American Guides: North Carolina, 4th Edition (Compass American Guides).