Escape by Bike: Adventure Cycling, Bikepacking and Touring Off-Road by Joshua Cunningham - Published: Thames and Hudson Ltd - 22-03-2018 - 264 pages.
Lifestyle - Sports & Leisure - From wilderness treks to weekends following local coastal paths, adventure cycling combines cycle touring, mountain biking and camping to open up new and exciting possibilities for the two-wheeled explorer. Thanks to advances in bike technology and the ease of international travel, cycling adventures on any scale are more accessible than ever before.
Cycling writer and photographer Joshua Cunningham spent eleven months cycling from London to Hong Kong, a journey that spanned twenty-six countries and 22,000 kilometres (13,670 miles). During his journey, he captured thousands of photographs of the landscapes, many barely touched by humans, and acquired a wealth of invaluable experience, from arranging travel and selecting the best bike to what to pack for each climate and terrain, and how to choose and navigate your route. Equal parts travelogue and practical guide, this exhilarating account divides the stages of his tour into five chapters, each focusing on a geographical environment: forest, desert, mountain, tropical and urban. Each chapter presents a text section on uncoated paper, featuring specially commissioned illustrations by Chris McNally, followed by a photographic album printed on art stock.
New Map Italy: Unforgettable Experiences for the Discerning Traveller by Herbert Ypma - Published: Thames and Hudson Ltd - 11-04-2019 - 352 pages.
Lifestyle - Travel - Today’s discerning traveller is looking not merely for luxury but for a unique experience. But in this age of low-cost flights and easy travel, how do you avoid the crowds and find the hidden gems? Not via sponsored search results or thousands of indistinguishable reviews, that’s for sure. What you need is on-the-ground, in-person, tried-and-trusted knowledge.
In this new guide to Italy, Herbert Ypma surprises and delights with his unequalled eye for detail and his unerring ability to judge what makes the difference between a good experience and a truly memorable one. The eighty-five experiences and tips that he maps out across the length and breadth of Italy fall into four key categories. ‘Staying in Character’ features thirty-five places to stay, from the grand to the eccentric, all embodying the soul and character of their setting – whether it’s sleeping next to a sloshing canal in Venice, dozing under the plume of Etna’s active volcano or experiencing monastic silence over dinner in Umbria. ‘Eclectic Experiences’ surveys twenty stand-out experiences, from jumping off the cliffs near Otranto to swimming the walls of Dionysius in Ortigia, and from exploring the forgotten farmland of Sicily’s interior to finding the best gelati in Rome. ‘Legend for Lunch’ points you in the direction of the most authentic places to eat, and ‘Convincing Context’ surveys twenty experiences enhanced by nuggets of history. Together they amount to a new map of authentic Italian experiences, making this the must-have 21st-century guide for the world’s most exacting traveller.
The Monocle Book of the Nordics: An exploration of design, business, food & fashion by Tyler Brûlé and Andrew Tuck - Published: Thames and Hudson Ltd - 20-01-2022 - 240 pages.
Lifestyle - Travel - Monocle’s latest book is a celebration of the Nordic region, with some surprises, quirks and – maybe – a sauna or two along the way. Monocle’s journalists, editors and photographers have returned time and again to all corners of northern Europe for insights, inspiration and ideas for living better.
This book isn’t about hammering the overhyped hygge trend or fussing over foamy food. Much the opposite – it’s about a shared but distinct set of values that have helped varied nations excel in quiet diplomacy, thoughtful design and reasoned debate. Monocle looks beyond the clichés and uncovers the folks, firms and stories that help the region rank highly for everything in everything from art and architecture to eating well.
Far from lumping these different nations together, the Monocle team will highlight the people, places and products that show the Nordics in all their nuances: lessons we can all learn from makers in Norway’s high north or retailers reaching higher in Reykjavík; the firms building bridges in Denmark or selling Swedish soft power abroad.
The world can learn a lot from our knowing northern neighbours – and The Monocle Book of the Nordics is the ideal place to start.
