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A Tourist With a Shovel and a HoeWhen she arrived in Kenya to volunteer with the Maasai, Daniela Petrova looked down her nose at tourists there to have a good time. But was her own motivation much different? ASK ROLF
How Should I Spend My Time in Spain?Vagabonding traveler Rolf Potts answers your questions about travel Q&A
Paul Theroux: Invisible Man on a Ghost TrainJim Benning asks the author of “Ghost Train to the Eastern Star” about his new book, aging and the challenge of disappearing in the age of the BlackBerry HOW TO
Eat Ceviche in LimaGrab a Cusqueña and get comfortable. As Nicholas Gill explains, a trip to a Peruvian cevichería can be an all-day immersion in good conversation and raw seafood. BOOKS
Unsentimental Journeys: Wrestling With Paul TherouxBronwen Dickey considers “Ghost Train to the Eastern Star: 28,000 Miles in Search of the Great Railway Bazaar” AUDIO SLIDESHOW My Travels, My FeetAfter taking one too many headless torso shots of herself, solo traveler Sophia Dembling started snapping photos of her feet around the world, from the Grand Canyon to Red Square THE LIST
Seven Reasons to Have a Foreign FlingSure, having an overseas romance is fun. But Terry Ward points out seven other benefits to cross-border love, mon petit chou. |
TRAVEL BLOG1.17.06
On Writing About AfricaThe flaws in Western writing on Africa are not hard to find, and are often bizarrely consistent. For example, Wendy Belcher wrote in Salon how nearly every travelogue on Africa begins on an airplane. Others have noticed how there are usually more animals than people, how Africans can never seem to help themselves, how they just can’t see things the right way. But now Kenyan writer Binyavanga Wainaina, editor of the literary magazine Kwani?, has offered a biting summary of shallow Western “impressions” that pass for insights. In a new Granta story How to Write About Africa, the Caine Prize winner advises writers to “Always use the word ‘Africa,’ ‘Darkness’ or ‘Safari’ in your title. Subtitles may include the words ‘Zanzibar’, ‘Masai’, ‘Zulu’, ‘Zambezi’, ‘Congo’, ‘Nile’, ‘Big’, ‘Sky’, ‘Shadow’, ‘Drum’, ‘Sun’ or ‘Bygone’.” When profiling Western conservationists, Wainaina cautions, “Never ask how much they pay their employees,” and notes that “African characters should be colorful, exotic, larger than life—but empty inside,” while “Animals, on the other hand, must be treated as well rounded, complex characters.” More complex, at any rate, than some travel writers. Categories: Weblog • Africa • Media Addict 
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COMMENTSThanks for the tips! I just ordered the Granta book you linked to since I sometimes fall unwittingly into the category you mention in your blog. I try and tell myself I writeto encourage people to come to Africa, but sunsets and safaris do tend to feature too much. I am pleased to say that in my introduction to travel in Africa I chose a picture of a happy, well-fed, elder Malawian man who called himself “News”. By Anouk Zijlma on 2.9.06 at 03:51 PM
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