No comments about Drive Around Andalucia and the Costa del Sol, 2nd: Your guide to great drives. Top 25 Tours. (Drive Around - Thomas Cook).

1 comments about The Diario of Christopher Columbus's First Voyage to America, 1492-1493 (American Exploration & Travel Series, Vol 70).

1. This is the largest fragment of Columbus's first voyage log, as abstracted by Bartolome de Las Casas. Of the many editions in print, Dunn & Kelley stands head and shoulders above the rest. The format has a new Spanish transcription on the left-hand pages, exactly as hand-written in the original manuscript by Las Casas: same abbreviations, strike-outs, diacriticals, and marginal notes. The right-hand pages contain an English translation.

   But perhaps the most valuable addition for the scholar is the Spanish concordance of the entire text, giving folio and line numbers for every appearance of almost every word. (Common words such as prepositions are given only with word counts, not references.) All in all, a must-have for any serious scholar or afficianado of the Admiral of the Ocean Sea.

No comments about Frommer's Mediterranean Spain with Your Family: From Tranquil Villages to the Bustling Costas (Frommers With Your Family Series).

No comments about Out Around Barcelona & Sitges, 2nd (Out Around - Thomas Cook).

No comments about Costa Blanca Lifeline.

4 comments about European Menu Translator.

1. This is a terrific little book! EUROPEAN MENU TRANSLATOR has four languages in one small volume: French, German, Italian and Spanish. Menu items are easy to look up--it's in a dictionary style. The size is just right--I keep it in my moneybelt for quick access and full-time availability. I have food allergies and just plain avoid certain foods (eggplant--ick!). I also discovered some pleasant surprises that got me to try new things (did you know that Spanish moles are all based on chocolate?). This book allows me to enjoy the foods of the country without any unpleasant surprises! I highly recommend EUROPEAN MENU TRANSLATOR for any traveler.



2. This is an excellent travel book. Because it is small, it's easy to tuck in your purse, back pack or whatever. It's so thorough it makes the most of each meal on the road. It can bring a great new dimension to eating in countries with French, German, Spanish or Italian menus!

   It's so inexpensive, it's a great bon voyage gift for a friend or for yourself.
   We love ours!
   Julie & Peter Dawson.




3. Collaboratively written by Whitney and Anne Galbraith, European Menu Translator is a "user friendly" pocket-sized dictionary specifically designed for tourists and travelers seeking to understand the specialized cuisine terminology of France, Germany, Spain, and Italy. A brief introduction to the fine dining basics of each nation supplements the lists of alphabetically arranged terms, subdivided by language. European Menu Translator is an excellent and very highly recommended reference whether when dining abroad or simply eating at a European-style restaurant here at home.



4. I often travel to Europe. Hop the trains with my Eurail Pass and hit as many countries as I can in less than 10 days.

   On one trip I took about 6 different phrase books with me and wrapped them all up with a rubber band. Too bulky!

   What's better for European travelers are phrase books with multiple languages. The European Menu Translator fits perfectly in a backpack and even in your back pocket.

   Great reference for eating out all over Western Europe.

   If I had one criticism, it would be that they might want to include a couple more languages. Maybe expand it a bit and include some other important Euro languages, like Dutch, Czech, or even Russian. Certainly Greek should be added.

   But otherwise great job Galbraiths!

No comments about Insight Guide Spain (Insight Guides Spain).

No comments about BACK ROADS OF SOUTHERN SPAIN: 25 GREAT CAR TRIPS AROUND ANDALUSIA (Santana Guide) (Santana Guide).

No comments about Insight Guides Spain.

5 comments about It's Not About the Tapas: A Spanish Adventure on Two Wheels.

1. I have traveled to Spain and will return for a second go round shortly. When I saw this book in the new paperbacks section, I couldn't resist myself. I loved this book. It's smart, funny, and Polly Evans seamlessly ties in history lessons so you don't even know you're getting them.
   Having a good Brittish friend, I understand her humor a little better than some other readers, but I laughed out loud at least once every ten pages and I am sure most others will as well.
   Having been to Spain, also makes her descriptions and stories more interesting and real to me, but it would make a great read even if you just have an interest in Spain.
   I love the little history lessons that she has sprinkled through out the book. Spain has an extremely fascinating history that she just skims the surface of. None the less, it greatens your appriciation of the places that she has traveled(and now I finally know why Spainiard love ham so much).



2. "It's Not About the Tapas: A Spanish Adventure on Two Wheels" by Polly Evans centered around the author's cycling adventure in different parts of Spain. Having left her editorial position in Hong Kong, Polly, yearned for a holiday and decided to journey across Spain by bicycle. In her journey, she met fascinating people, sample interesting cuisines and mostly trying to endure biking through the mountains.
   
   This was a below average travelogue for me. I was struggling to finish the book as I found the author's description of her journey uninspiring. The author spent more than half of the book writing about the histories of famous people or buildings, which was not unusual in travelogues, but I felt that the author presented those facts just for the sake of it. For instance, she would arrive in a particular village, and she would go on about the history of the place and then she would move on to her next destination. There were not enough of personal observations of the various places she visited or even appreciation of another culture. I also felt that most of the time, she was not happy with her lodging or the people she met and I began to wonder what was the purpose of her trip. Lastly, the author hardly shared any personal information about herself and this was also why the book was not particularly engaging.



3. At first, I really enjoyed this book and I read it for two hours straight when I should have been sleeping but I think my enjoyment was mainly due to my love of the Spanish country, people and culture.
   
   But after a while, I grew annoyed with the lengthy, boring bits of history that seemed to occur more throughout the book than the author's actual happenings. And when Polly actually did write about her trip and not about the history, I felt that she was constantly slamming someone or something--whether it be the food, the people, the hotels or the town itself. Finally, when I was halfway through the book, I couldn't take it anymore and could bear to read another paragraph and I put the book down.
   
   I do like Polly's writing style and there were humorous bits, but I am more after a memoir than a history book and I was really looking forward to a book where I could delight in hearing about Spain while away from the wonderful country itself, but instead I found a pessimistic, constantly-chastizing waste of my thirteen dollars.



4. I liked this book and don't understand why others were not engaged with this story. It's funny, well-written and full of historical trivia. Maybe TOO much history, as according to other reviewers she gets too engrossed in that part of her travel. I find travelogues with no historical references quite boring.
   
   It's apparent that Polly did her research and made us want to read more. She had lived in Spain for a year in central-western Spain studying the language and culture, so she knew her subject matter. Good travel books talk about the history of the villages so that the readers have reasons to want to read the book. I think she succeeds. She doesn't overdo herself but lets the readers know she's not the best cyclist nor the best travel planner. She can enjoy a trip on her own by taking time to cycle around Spain. She covered the major towns and travelled throughout the country. She could have done the boring and predictable thing and taken a car instead. But then those rainy nights on village roads wouldn't have been so inspirational.
   
   I will read her other books soon. I like her self-deprecating style.



5. Polly Evans' attempt at travel writing in this book is flippant, shallow and trivial. The book reads like a crappy newspaper article with terribly over-simplified historical facts, and general disdain for the Spaniards she encounters. Better luck next time Polly!