You have some time to kill over the Christmas holidays? You feel you should go out for a walk – but cannot bring yourself to step into the cold rain, sleet or snow?
Then here is a suggestion: just wander with your eyes over this page, stop here or there for a while if you find something interesting and let your mind do all the hard work.
Walking is great, but if it is unreasonable to go out…
… then reading about hiking is surely the next best thing to do.
I am glad you all agree.
Christmas is also a time to meet old friends – if not in person, then in spirit: by writing to or by reading from and about them.
So to start off, we would like to share a piece with you that has been written about an “old friend” of ours: something about a place that we have visited twice over the last few years, most recently this September.
The article starts badly, like the worst kind of gush from a tourism brochure, but grind your teeth and wait for it to improve – as it will.
A 1000 Year Old Road Lost to Time
West Germany Road Trip
Here is something about another old friend: Germany. Many of the places you will encounter in this article were unfamiliar to us, although we have travelled widely in Germany, but this only goes to show how rich this country is in cultural attractions and beautiful landscapes – and how underrated.
Nazi Germany as a Tourist Destination
While we are on the subject of “underrated” Germany, you may be surprised to hear that this has not always been so.
In the interwar years, apparently, Germany was one of the favourite European destinations for travellers from the US. The little known “love affair” between American tourists and Germany is described by a fascinating book that is reviewed here in the Washington Post.
Walking Myths and Legends
Now for something more practical. If you are planning a trip to the UK for the new year, you may be interested in the following article: a selection of countryside walks, all inspired by the common theme of Myths and Legends.
Best Walking Tour in Liverpool
And here is a UK city walk – during which you will also meet four legendary characters of a different type.
Walking Tours
2018 was, overall, not a year of good news, but here is a rare exception: walking appears to become more popular, even in the US.
Surviving a Rattlesnake Bite
If you find city walking insufficiently exciting to satisfy your lust for adventure, here is a story from the more extreme end of the hiking experience range: a useful reminder that, when adventures go wrong, the consequences can be severe. Fatal even. Bad stuff happens, and not only to other people.
What lesson does this article teach us? That, while you cannot prevent it from happening to you, you can – and should – get a good health insurance. One never knows.
The Whispering Trees
The Hidden Life of Trees was first published (in English) in 2016, but many readers will (such as myself) only have become aware of its exciting new insights in 2018 when its (German) author Peter Wohlleben went on an extensive PR tour through the Anglo-Saxon world. There is a lot of utterly fascinating stuff in this book, and the following article serves as an excellent introduction.
Which Books to Read Before Travelling
Still got time to kill – and still looking for more reading suggestions on the topic of hiking or travelling? Then have a look at this piece that features tips not for walking but for reading about walking. (Leaf through the “Comments” section underneath.)
Instacrammed – Big Fib of Social Media on New Zealand Perfect Peaks
Finally, confirmation for something that I have always suspected: nothing, I am afraid, is quite what it seems. Specifically in the world of travel writing. Or travel photography. Not convinced? Then have a look at this.
