When Wanderers Cease to Roam: A Traveler's Journal of Staying Put
2 journalers for this copy...
I enjoyed Swift's Gardens of Awe and Folly, and was glad to find this ex-library hardcover at Better World Books. It's a beautifully-illustrated "travel" journal about the pleasures of staying home, whether exploring local sights, appreciating the view from one's window, or curling up with book, cat, and tea... (The February chapter includes recipes for "Cinnamon Toast Deluxe" and "Honey Almond Tea Toast," among other things - tasty!)
It includes tidbits from the author's well-traveled past as well, in the form of sketches and of excerpts from journals, contrasting time as a Peace Corps volunteer in Africa with days observing the different colors and textures of mud in a New England spring {wry grin}. There's a "Tea Time Memoir" comparing tea in five different cities on three continents; and the author's decision to walk each and every street in her new home town as part of her "staying put" plan (it took seven years!); and a "Memoir of Close Calls," featuring thefts and other threats from Africa, South America, and the Middle East - accompanied by sketches of how she's re-purposed her luggage now that she's staying put. (The "Suitcase Cat Bed" needs no further description!)
Other fun bits include her description of making orange marmalade while her curious new kitten kept trying to climb onto the stove. To keep it safe she tucked it into her apron pocket, and then mused "of all the things that Earth's six billion people are doing tonight to keep busy, I am probably the ONLY PERSON ON THE PLANET making orange marmalade with a kitten in her pocket."
A lovely, lovely book!
It includes tidbits from the author's well-traveled past as well, in the form of sketches and of excerpts from journals, contrasting time as a Peace Corps volunteer in Africa with days observing the different colors and textures of mud in a New England spring {wry grin}. There's a "Tea Time Memoir" comparing tea in five different cities on three continents; and the author's decision to walk each and every street in her new home town as part of her "staying put" plan (it took seven years!); and a "Memoir of Close Calls," featuring thefts and other threats from Africa, South America, and the Middle East - accompanied by sketches of how she's re-purposed her luggage now that she's staying put. (The "Suitcase Cat Bed" needs no further description!)
Other fun bits include her description of making orange marmalade while her curious new kitten kept trying to climb onto the stove. To keep it safe she tucked it into her apron pocket, and then mused "of all the things that Earth's six billion people are doing tonight to keep busy, I am probably the ONLY PERSON ON THE PLANET making orange marmalade with a kitten in her pocket."
A lovely, lovely book!
I'm adding this to the Travel Narrative bookbox, which will be on its way to its next stop soon. Enjoy!
I am so glad, and feel very lucky, to find this beautiful book in the box. Thanks for sharing.