5 comments about The Rough Guide to New Zealand 5 (Rough Guide Travel Guides).

1. We are yet to take our trip to New Zealand, however, I'm sure we'll feel more comfortable with our decisions on where to go, what to see, where to stay, and what to do from using this Book. The book gives general price ranges for hotels, activites, and in some cases restaurants. I think the greatest resource has been the website listings within each section. The websites cover everything from airlines, to tour groups, to just general information about the country. Needless to say, We're very excited to take our trip and I know this book will be coming along with us!



2. After trying another guidebook, we purchased The Rough Guide shortly before we left for New Zealand. It was an invaluable companion during our travels. The reviews were spot-on, leading us to a number of excellent restaurants and good campgrounds. We even appreciated knowing that a restaurant was "somewhat overpriced but adequate" before we went in--and that description was completely accurate.
   
   The Rough Guide covers a range of restaurants and accommodations, which is useful. Even budget travelers sometimes like to splurge (and know that the splurge is worth the money). Their evaluation of activities was also accurate.
   
   This guide is well worth the price--and worth it's weight when traveling.



3. I planned our entire trip using a good road map and the 4th addition of the Rough Guide. Everything regarding the locations we visited was amazingly accurate. There are good maps of all the cities as well as the areas of interest. I did not find particularly useful the recommendations for accommodations, which featured either places for backpackers or those at the higher end, with not much in between. I also did not agree with some of the restaurant recommendations. Nevertheless if you are looking for a great guide book for everything else, this one is a winner.



4. 
   
   I had Rough Guides recommended to me but I am disappointed in the size of the print, I would have rather the book been larger that having to strain my eyesight to read. I'm sure the book is very informative & we will ready ourselves hopefully for a trip to NZ in late 2008.



5. This book was awesome. I am going to NZ on my own, and this book provided all the information I would ever need to know about locations to visit, the people, and lodging. Great value.

5 comments about Bangkok (City Guide).

1. Compared to LP London and LP Paris I read and have been early this year, I'm a bit disppointed with LP Bangkok. Although it has an amazing section on food/noodles, I'm rather disappointed that the book does not clearly direct and describe to readers how to get to the places/famous spots it suggested!!!! Also the book does not include a map on the Bangkok transit system - making public transit commuting difficult!!!



2. Amazon.com says this book will be published on March 2005. But try to go to Lonely Planet's online shop, then you can see that it has been published on Sep. 2004. Next, bn.com says it's been publised on March 2004. I don't know which is right. But I'm sure that this book came out already.
   
   I gave 5 stars, however, because I knows LP is a great series at least.



3. I was fortunate enough to spend a month in Bangkok and bought both the Lonely Planet and the Moon Guides. I generally read both books before I went anywhere, so I can fairly compare them.
   
   The Lonely Planet guide was always worth reading -- it often added something I didn't find in the Moon guide. The highly detailed map in the back of the book was also quite worthwhile. However, if I had to have just one book, it would have been the Moon guide by Carl Parkes.
   
   Carl's explanations always seemed a little bit richer, and a little bit more in touch. His introduction to the Thai language left me much better equipped to try my hand, and his culture and language sections also stood out. The overall impression, true or not, is that Carl has a deeper understanding and familiarlity with the Thais and Bangkok than Joe. But to be fair, I was happy with both books, and happier still that I had brought both with me.
   
   Its too bad that the Moon guide is harder to find than Lonely Planet's .... but I definitely recommend it.



4. As a frequent visitor to Thailand I recently used this latest guide for Bangkok from Joe Cummings (plus his assistants) and found it to be more than adequate. If anything, I would personally like more hotel recommendations for each area of this city, those one could call "a find". I found some on my own by walking the area I stayed in and moved to one of them as Joe was too kind in the description of hotel I first stayed in.
   
   Be sure to call about open times for restaurants as two I went to were closed earlier than was given in the guide (no fault of Joe's I'm sure).



5. I took this book everywhere I went. It gives you a great perspective on the things you will find, things to look out for, and a great guide on how to get to the places you want to go.
   
   I went on business to Bangkok, and during the 3 days that I had to go around, this book helped me find those things that mattered most.
   
   I think it is a great read for anyone who is planning to go to amazing Bangkok and it is a must when travelling around in the city. Lonely Planet books are seriously great!

5 comments about M Series Us Deluxe.

1. I think the map itself is great - however: the first map we ordered never got to us. On UPS tracking it was found to be "lost with a damaged box", and although that was reported to Amazon, they wanted it to be returned. The second map we ordered was actually a guitar chord chart. Finally they got the map to us, and it arrived in a long box (ever hear of a poster tube?) that was bent in half, leaving a huge crease in the middle of the map. We decided to just keep that map because it was such a pain to get it to us! (And, I guess the crease almost fits over the Great Divide). We do like the map itself, though.



2. I was totally dissapointed with this map. I ordered this to put it up in my daughter's room. But when I receive this, it was all wringkled and the laminating was so thin to tell whether it is acutally laminated at all. I am keeping them just because my daughter wants it in her room so bad yet I don't recommand this to anyone.....



3. After reading the reviews about arriving creased and damaged I figured Amazon would have it figured out by now. WRONG!!! Arrived in a rectangular box that was crushed... map is toast. Come on guys... how hard can it be to ship a poster?? Do not buy this map unless you want a creased map.



4. Do not order this map from Amazon. They send it in a flimsy cardboard box, not a shipping tube designed for maps. It WILL get crushed in shipment. This is the THIRD map I have ordered from Amazon that arrived crushed. I'm going to order it somewhere else, where they ship it in a tube. BUYER BEWARE OF ORDERING FROM AMAZON!



5. This map is great. I love it. When my wife or I travel to different state we can show our kids where we will be traveling to. The map is nice and big. Paper is laminated nice and sturdy. This is a great buy.

5 comments about Rand McNally 2008 United States, Canada, Mexico Road Atlas: Vinyl Covered (Rand Mcnally Road Atlas: United States/Canada/Mexico (Vinyl Covered Edition)).

1. Good atlas, no frills, concise and useful. It was flimsier than expected; within a week, one of the first pages already acquired a tear in it near the binding after only minimal use due to the thin paper and awkward staple. However, it was worth the price.



2. The content of the product is of course very good but the extra weight of the plastic cover on the Atlas immediately pulls the inside cover away from the staples they have used to bind this Atlas. You will lose the cover very quickly unless you rebind it.



3. After viewing a colleagues copy of this road atlas, it made sense to acquire one of my own seeing we were holidaying in the States and in particular the West Coast- California and Arizona. We found the map and information of significant help in planning our route and would definitely recommend this to anyone who is thinking of travelling to the States. You will not be disappointed.



4. I was loaned a previous copy of this atlas by my travel agent to help plan my upcoming US trip. Found it so easy to use that I decided to purchase my own. Would recommend to any visitor coming to the US.



5. This is a very nice and useful road atlas. The plastic cover is nice to have since the atlas gets a lot of wear both in the car and in the house. The reason I did not rate it higher is that the staples used to hold the pages are beginning to tear and will soon need some reinforcement. Rand McNally should consider improving this aspect of the atlas.

5 comments about Maiden Voyage.

1. This book is an incredible journey!!! I can only say that Tania really had courage...even though at the time she probably would have said..."what do you mean?" It just proves what one can do by "just doing" and "thinking less"... Maiden Voyage is very well written, a good read, and really makes you wonder and understand the epitamy of how a parent's dreams and desires for their children can be criticized, yet have dramatic results. I loved the book and tell anyone involved in boating to read it. It's just an AMAZING story!!!



2. Being a sailor, diver, and adventurer with my own share of adrenaline experiences under my belt, I was just slightly awed at the sheer nerve and guts of Tania Aebi in taking on the planet in a small sailboat, all alone. After reading her riveting account, I seriously wondered if I could ever do that. More than pure adventure, this is a tale of inspiration that, hopefully, will encourage others of all ages to step out of their mundane world and into one of some risk, to heighten their life experience. Who wants to reach their twilight years and, looking back, say, "I could have done that, or at least tried," but didn't. Too late then.
   
   The Amazon reviews were helpful and insightful, but one in particular was unjustifiably unkind. I'm referring to "Shiver Me Timbers!" by Jeff H. Minde (aka Indomitable Spirit) on August 1, 2006, on this site. To understand my letter below to him, first read his review under See All Customer Reviews. Then read Maiden Voyage, and decide for yourself.
   
   OK, here goes:
   
   Ahoy Indomitable Spirit!
   
   I just finished Tania Aebi's gripping tale, Maiden Voyage, and then re-read your scathing review. Clearly, for a pipe smoking-therapist-lawyer, you're a bitter melange of would-be man and full-time misogynist. Can you get a "friends and family" discount from a shrinkologist colleague to do a proper diagnosis?
   
   Your "Maybe I'm being unfair" has to be the understatement of the New Millennium. For a Zen dude who putters around daysailing in protected Long Island Sound, your claim that you learned as much as Tania did subjected to open-ocean storms and perils far from help is patently absurd. Granted she had problems from the get-go, and that she lacked the seasoned experience desirable for such a bold undertaking, but the bottom-line is she did it. Tania was an 18-year-old girl when she set sail to face the world and all its uncertainties. Out on the vast expanses and crowded shipping lanes she was forced to make quick decisions, get mechanically savvy fast, and take huge risks to keep going when things fell apart. All you have to do out on the Sound is hail a BoatUS tug, then suck on your pipe until they tow you in. Remember that old adage, "Those who can do, those who can't teach?" Guess where you fall.
   
   Your unjust review is riddled with the biases of a prejudiced and life-challenged pseudo-therapist -- "really didn't like the Tania Aebi..." "I was truly infuriated at her father," "could have used less information about her various (yawn!) lovers..." "she barely shows any insight or reflection..." "her navigating skills were suicidally poor..." and on and on. My, my. And what, may I ask, do you have against lovers, which was handled in a tasteful way. Does the idea of having one make you uncomfortable? Paging Dr. Phil!
   
   But perhaps the most asinine comment was that, after all Tania's travails, "Miraculously, she lived to tell about it." Jeff, it was no miracle. She prevailed, pure and simple, because of her own rational thinking, resourcefulness, and tenacity. If I had to be out on a sailboat in a Force 10 gale, I'd much prefer having Tania at the helm than you, which really would be suicidal.
   
   Tania had a choice to make, and she chose the most risky and daring. She didn't have to set sail, despite her father's pressures. She could have quit anywhere along the way, and found a valid reason for doing so. To say that in the end "she's just a girl and it's just a boat" is demeaningly dismissive, and minimizes an accomplishment you could never hope to achieve.
   
   Instead of putting down the achievements of others braver and more skilled, perhaps you should concern yourself with the cancerous perils of pipe-smoking, which will claim you faster than a rogue wave out on the Sound. And find a lover.
   
   The defense rests.
   
   Walt Clayton



3. It is unbelievable that a young girl could sail around the world by herself, dealing with all the conditions. It was an amazing book and fun to read.



4. this is a re-read for me. I bought this book to share with a friend. Loved it!



5. This book has never ceased to amaze me. Everytime I pick it up to read, I feel like I have put it down too soon. I only wish I could keep reading and finish this beautiful tale that includes a hint of romance, plenty of insight into dysfunctional relationships, pure miracles, and of course a healthy dose of adventure. This book is non-ficton but sure reads like an adventure novel. Tania's story is truly amazing and this book is now on my list of favorite books of all time.

5 comments about Nine Hills to Nambonkaha: Two Years in the Heart of an African Village.

1. As someone who is undergoing the long and sometimes tedious application process for the Peace Corps, this book helped me put into perspective what life in the PC is going to be like. It was a pleasure to read, and I couldn't help but reading on to find out more about her experience. It left me feeling very satisfied as to what life in the PC will be like, and I highly recommend this book for anyone interesting in joining the PC!



2. Erdman's work in Nine Hills to Nambonkaha presents a romantic view of village life in Africa. Her experience from the Peace Corp allows Erdman to paint a rich and lively culture of life in an economically and medicinally depressed area. Coping with challenges of communicating prevention and awareness of AIDS, infant care and personal hygiene, Erdman fully imparts to the reader her dedication in submersing herself into the social rituals and cultural norms in Nambonkaha. Her story telling has a romantic undertone in the spirit of human compassion and tolerance. I highly recommend this narrative.



3. Honest, earnest, compelling, extremely well-written narrative of two years serving the Peace Corps in a remote village of Ivory Coast-- I emerged from this reading with a knowledge and respect for the people of the village, as well as for the sincerity and objectivity of the author. Sarah Erdman's account of how she works out her unique role as an outsider with a mission to improve family health in a tradition-bound, closely-knit rural village is one of the best of its kind.
   
   Also recommended: Peter Hessler's RIVER TOWN and Mike Tidwell's THE PONDS OF KALAMBAYI.



4. I spent two years in Africa with the Peace Corps and really looked forward to reading this book. I thought it was a good read, but was a little slow. I suspect that readers who have not lived in Africa may find it more entertaining that I did as much of the joy of reading this book is in the discovery of village culture.



5. "Nine Hills of Nambonkaha" is a wonderful first-person account of a young Peace Corps worker's experiences in Ivory Coast in 2000 and 2001. She served as a health care worker, primarily trying to teach the village women about prenatal health and infant care. AIDS became an issue while she was there. Erdman shows maturity beyond her years in her efforts to relate with people of all ages and stations in a little village as remote from her private school upbringing as could be imagined. With patience and respect she teaches invaluable lessons about prenatal and infant care, family planning and disease prevention.
   
   Both her efforts to work with the local people within their culture and her writing skills are inspiring, hopefully enough so to cause other young people to serve the world and themselves in similar fashion.

5 comments about Almost French: Love and a New Life in Paris.

1. Being French, but having moved to The US when I was young I wanted to see if I could relate to this book. And yes I could. Sarah Turnbull really hits it right on. It is so refreshing to read a book that is fun, easy and accurate in it's description of a different culture. I really enjoyed reading this book.



2. I really enjoyed reading this book! It is true that it might not have been very deep, but Sarah's comments on Paris made me feel like I was there again. Very therapeutical. Also, I recommend reading this book slowly, a couple of pages at a time, so you can really absorb every comment. If you read it all at once, it is easy to overlook small details. Read a page, laugh at her comments, think about how they are very true. Put the book down. Pick it up an hour later. I think you will get the most out of it if you pace yourself. In all, I recommend this book to anyone who longs for Paris.



3. Very well written. Entertainingly true story of an Austrailian journalist who moved to Paris and eventually adapted to her new life with the help of her French boyfriend. Of course, there are many missteps and misunderstandings along the way. Turnbull presents these in a way that shares both the frustration of the moment and the amusement of looking back from a more enlightened future. Provides an interesting outsider turned near-insider's perspective of French culture.



4. The French are a fascinating people, their culture sometimes mysterious, sometimes frustrating. Having lived in France for a while myself, I was very drawn to this story of a young woman living and loving in Paris and other parts of the country. Having first gone to Paris on a whim (since she was in Europe anyway, and the young man who invited her was so attractive, why not?), she then decides to stay. It does seem remarkable that someone would do that in these days of madmen and terrorists.
   
   Her story starts out somewhat disjointed and jerky and parts of it continue that way. There are gaps in time that aren't quite transitioned. And some events are incomplete. For instance, when her friend Sue comes to visit from London, the reader expects a life changing or confirming event. The build up to it certainly leads one to think that this is a big part of the entire experience. However, Sue comes, leaves, and that's that. We're given no reaction on her part to Frederic, the French lover, no discussion between the two on Sarah's decision to stay in Paris, nothing.
   
   Sarah's visits with Frederic and some of his friends are, of course, awkward. Unless one has experienced the same thing, it is difficult to believe how important things are in social intercourse, but how no one ever thinks to explain them ahead of time. Being Australian, Sarah had certain expectations when it came to dinner and parties, but the French people she met had different expectations. It always seemed that she was expected to conform to their expectations, but whether that was only her perception is not clear. Perhaps she should have learned from the first and following experiences to ask more questions each succeeding time.
   
   The edition of the book that I read is the 2002 edition, published either in Australia or Great Britain and I do not know if the 2004 edition was edited differently. I'd hoped to enjoy this book and to learn how to enjoy living in another country. The most important lesson seems to be to try to not have expectations.



5. This is not a book I would have picked up on my own; and I only grudgingly ordered it from amazon.com because it was the selection for out next Book Club meeting. I'm loving it! I'm only a tiny way into it and am enjoying the chuckles that are ellicted throughout; well, so far, anyway. Turnbull writes very well, she has a marvelous sense of humor, and she is able to laugh at her own foibles. Can't wait to finish the book, can't wait for our meeting.

5 comments about USA (Eyewitness Travel Guides).

1. Has the general information that a traveller needs when travelling around the US. It has some nice pictures and the maps are somewhat handy too.



2. At last count, I have travelled to 48 countries, and I have bought guides for most of them from either Rough Guide, Lonely Planet or Footprint. I thought I'd try a new brand of travel guide for the USA as from reading the other reviews here, most people are not particularly happy with either the coverage or accuracy for the USA. However, this has to be the worst guide I have ever bought for content. Yes, it has lots of nice pictures and yes, it has some cross-section cut-throughs of major buildings, but to be honest most of these places have more thorough guides when you actually get to the building if you want more information of, say, the different rooms in a Church. The number of hotels, bars and restuarants recommended is truly worthless for the weight of the book. For example, I just returned from 5 days in San Francisco. I took this guide. I read all of the 6 pages it has to offer on the city center on the flight over, and from that point onwards it was just a dead weight to have to carry. In the end I left it in my hotel room. For one of the cities in the USA that prides itself in the number and diversity of eateries, the coverage of San Francisco gave me no insight whatsoever. Similarly, I looked at the coverage of New York (where I live) and this is nothng special either. The only use for these books is looking at the nice pictures of the places you could go if you choose to travel somewhere, but don't bother taking it with you. This is absolutely NOT a backpackers or true travellers guide.



3. This is an excellent guide for those who want to sample what the United States has to offer. It is an excellent place to start especially if you are only going to be traveling through a lot of places. If you are going to someplace for a week this book will not be helpful and you should get the regional guides. Overall planning a cross country trip it gives lots of advice on cities as well as small out of the way places that would be fun to see. Great addition to a travel book collection.



4. This is a great book. My friend has one. Once I saw his book and read it, I decided to have my own one. I just arrived in US for 6-months training. Everything in US is new and attractive for me. This book helped me know US more quickly.



5. Have used this book before when travelling around the USA and found this book to be very helpful-details of places to visit are superb reason for the purchase of a new book is we have given the old one to family who are travelling the USA this year.

1 comments about Frommer's Thailand (Frommer's Complete).

1. This is the second edition of Frommer's Thailand I've bought. I travel to Thailand a lot and this guide book has helped make my travel more enjoyable. Not all the details are in the book, but it gives you the highlights of things and where to go, dine, and stay. I would recommend this book to any first time travelers or even your second or third trip to Thailand. Enjoy!

5 comments about The Songlines.

1. As i never wanted to go to Australia, i have to say that after reading this book i have not changed my mind, but it is not a point. It is not a book about traveling in Australia. It is more a book about walking, for example. As i like walking, i have found in this book so many great examples of what the walking is about, it is not just moving from one point on the Earth to another, it is also philosophy. And so on...this book is highly recommended for those who knows what the word "travel" means. In present time many people travel, but just a few ones deserve to be called "traveller". Bruce Chatwin is among them.



2. This is the kind of writing/reflecting many people do while travelling and is not a "how to" type of travel guide. I've recommended this book to several thoughtful people, given it to many thoughtful teens as they begin to self-discover, and re-read the book twice. VERY nice writing, good thoughts, great ideas about humans.



3. In Alice Springs the narrator called Bruce meets Arkady Volchok, an Australian citizen who is mapping the sacred sites of the Aboriginals. Arkady is fascinated by them, by their grit and tenacity and their ways of dealing with white people. Arkady speaks a couple of their languages and he is often astounded by their intellectual vigour, their memory and their capacity to survive.
   It was during his time as a schoolteacher in Walbiri that Arkadi learned of the labyrinth of invisible pathways which meander all over Australia and are known to Europeans as Songlines - a way for Aboriginals to sing out the name of everything that crosses their path during their wanderings: birds, animals, plants, rocks, waterholes and so sing the world in existence.
   When a route is suggested for a new Alice to Darwin railway line, Arkady's job is to identify the traditional landowners, to drive them over their old hunting grounds and to get them to reveal which rock or soak or ghost-gum is the work of a Dreamtime hero. Bruce is happy to join Arkady and to spend some time "out bush".
   The reader of this novel learns a lot about Australia and the Aboriginals. The plot and the characters however are a bit thin. One finds it hard to sympathise with the Aboriginal figures appearing in the story. What they have to say and the way they express themselves amounts to practically nothing. It seems as though they need the white people to tell their stories and traditions.



4. The Songlines really captured my attention. Human ecology, cultural anthropology, human evolution, cultural imperialism, Songlines, Native Australians ("aborigines"), travels... this is a book with information about a people and a place. I enjoyed the flow and pace of the story, and I hope I learned the reality of Native Australian culture.
   
   However, Bruce Chatwin chose to use this book to publish assorted observations, quotes, and reflections from other travels. For me (me), they affected the flow of his storytelling, my ability to focus on the theme - Australia, not nomads - and the ending. Perhaps this is a style thing, and I don't know if Chatwin applies this style in his other books.
   
   Didn't work for me. I wanted a conclusion to his original story.



5. The first sentence sounded promising:"In Alice Springs - a grid of scorching streets where men in long white socks were forever getting in and out of Land Cruisers - I met a Russian who was mapping the sacred sites of the Aboriginals." And indeed what follows in the next thirty or so chapters is a very readable and insightful travelogue of a British (author? archaelogist? historian?) "going bush" with Arkady Volchok, trying to learn about the mythical Aboriginal songlines. Not understandably, then, the author throws in bits and pieces of the protagonist's notebooks, which all more or less anthropological citations and thoughts from very different sources. The concept reminded me a bit of the motif in "The English Patient", where Almasy carries a copy of Herodotus' The Histories with him, adding his own notes and observations. Fortunately, in Ondaatje's novel, this remains a motif which does not disrupt the plot itself. With "The Songlines", however, I found myself flicking impatiently through the interjection-pages in order to get back to the story.