Travelers Tales Greece: True Stories (Travelers' Tales Guides) (Paperback)

by Larry Habegger (Editor), Sean O'Reilly (Editor), Brian Alexander (Editor) "THE TRAVELER AWAKES ABOARD SHIP AT DAWN, WITH LAND AHEAD of him and one shoulder of an island hunched up to the right of the..." (more)
Key Phrases: very rich hours, marble island, upper village, Mount Athos, Pink Palace, Father Symeon (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
Travelers' Tales is a valuable addition to any pre-departure reading list --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Description
The land of gods and goddesses, myth and history, the cradle of western civilization, the birthplace of drama and democracy - no country resonates with history like Greece. This book plumbs that rich past and the equally rich present in a dazzling literary journey for travelers and armchair travelers alike. These true tales cover everything from cuisine ("God as Patissier") to culture ("Sappho's Island") and show the breadth of experience of a place, from the rogue, off-the-track traveler's take to the first-class passenger's impressions. Contributors include Paul Theroux, Patricia Storace, Henry Miller, Lawrence Durrell, Caroline Alexander, Emily Hiestand, Donald W. George, and Robert D. Kaplan.

Product Details

• Paperback: 376 pages
• Publisher: Travelers' Tales Guides; 1st edition (December 30, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 188521152X
• ISBN-13: 978-1885211521
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,476,987 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Experiencing the Greek Experience, March 23, 2001

By	FRISCH (USA) - See all my reviews

I gave this book a 5 star rating based on the fact that the writers really understood and felt what they were writing. This book could not have been written unless you had been to Greece and felt the endless arrays of different emotion. I loved the adjectives used and the pictures that the words evoked. It is a wonderful and easy read for those greekophiles who have all experienced in essense the book. For those who have never been to Greece, it might be cause to go immediately or rethink your trip. This was a fun, easy, and well written armchair travel book. Again, I must stress, it really hits home for those that have been to Greece or love her, it hits the mark more than just an informative factual type of tour book.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars As if you had taken dozens of trips to Greece over many year, July 22, 2004

By	Catherine Decker (Riverside, CA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I read the 2003 edition of this collection, but given the editors have not changed from other editions, I suspect all of the versions are equally excellent. What I love about this series is the range of true experience you get?the vast majority of them embracing Greece as it is rather than lamenting its corruption by tourists. Having read the DK guide to the Greek Islands and the National Geographic guide to Greece, I wasn?t surprised to find a few stories were of the ?before it was spoiled? variety. However, most of the tales embrace the unique challenges and contrasts of touring Greece?except, perhaps, for the famous Paul Theroux who is, as usual, a cranky, pissed-off traveler (ok?maybe I?m unfair, but I was shocked at the comic novelist becoming a sort of wandering misanthrope in several of his travel books). Even the critical Theroux, however, reports on the sheer visual beauty of Greece. The book shows real people who are still confronting the horrors of war (a close encounter with death, a dead daughter, a murdered mother, a destroyed 500-year religious heritage). We also see the spiritual side of the Greeks, the difficulties caused by a poor economy, the problems of impoverished backpackers, and importance of being flexible in a country of strikes, bizarre official rules, and uncertain transportation. We meet Greeks of all types?the welcoming, the friendly, the hostile, the pious, the predatory, the scammers, the sexist, the insane, and the bossy employer. I was surprised at how many stories featured people working illegally in Greece, sometimes more for the experience of Greek life than for any money. This fact alone shows you the lure of Greece and the lengths people will go to experience life under the Grecian sun.