Table of Contents

Foreword by Pico Iyer

Introduction by Don George

Short prologues precede each story

Pilgrimages
1. Climbing Kilimanjaro
2. Sunrise at Uluru
3. Delos Diary
4. Notre-Dame
5. Conquering Half Dome
6. Japan’s Past Perfect–Shikoku
7. Machu Picchu Magic
8. Ryoanji reflections
9. Family Adventure in the Galapagos
10. A Pilgrim at Stinson Beach
11. Thanksgiving in Connecticut

Encounters
1. In Love, in Greece, in the Springtime
2. Pakistan Karakoram Postcard
3. Dubrovnik
4. A Day in the Life of Dubbo
5. Baja: Touched by a Whale
6. Insights into Nice at the Musee Matisse
7. Making Roof Tiles in Peru
8. Building Bridges in Mostar
9. Spin the Globe—El Salvador
10. Jordan–Exhilarating Encounters, Enduring Lessons
11. Living-history Lessons in Berlin

Illuminations
1. Pythion
2. Japanese Wedding
3. At the Musee d’Orsay
4. Prambanan in the Moonlight
5. Aitutaki–Finding salvation in the South Seas
6. Africa–Wildlife Illuminations
7. Unexpected Offerings on a Return to Bali
8. French Connections–Saint Paul
9. Lynn Ferrin
10. The Intricate Weave–Italy
11. Finding a Sense of Home Abroad

Epilogue: Every journey Is a Pilgrimage

About the Author

Don George wrote the book on travel writing, literally. His book, Lonely Planet's Guide to Travel Writing, is the best-selling travel writing guide in the world. Don has been a pioneering travel writer and editor for 40 years. He has been the travel editor at the San Francisco Examiner and the San Francisco Chronicle, founder and editor of Salon's "Wanderlust" travel site, and global travel editor for Lonely Planet. He is currently an editor at large and columnist for National Geographic Traveler and the editor of BBC Travel's "Words and Wanderlust" section. Don is the cofounder and chairman of the renowned Book Passage Travel Writers and Photographers Conference. He has visited 90 countries and has published hundreds of articles in dozens of magazines, newspapers, and websites worldwide. He has also edited ten award-winning literary travel anthologies. He speaks and teaches regularly at conferences and on campuses around the world, and he is frequently interviewed on TV, radio, and online as a travel expert. He lives in Piedmont, CA.

Pico Iyer was born in Oxford, England to parents from India, and he was educated at Eton, Oxford, and Harvard. He is the author of many best-selling books, including Video Night in Kathmandu, The Global Soul, The Lady and the Monk, and The Art of Stillness. Since 1992 he has been based in rural Japan with his longtime sweetheart, while spending part of each year in a Benedictine hermitage in California.

Reviews

“These stories made me fall in love with the world again.” — Isabel Allende

“Don George is a legendary travel writer and editor.” — National Geographic

“What shines with crystal clarity through all of these wise and wonderful essays is Don George’s irrepressible generosity of spirit. He loves the world he finds, and the world loves him back in equal measure. Those of us lucky enough to know him have long recognized Don as a seriously life-enhancing kind of fellow: this marvelous collection serves amply to reinforce the notion. And no: no favors were sought or offered for this message. Not a one.”
— Simon Winchester

“Don George is an inveterate adventurer and master storyteller, with the biggest, most generous heart on the open road.” — Andrew McCarthy

“Don George describes himself as a ‘travel evangelist’ but he is much more than that. Yes, he loves to talk about the life-changing possibilities of travel, which started for him when he visited Paris in college. But he is also a best-selling author and writer, regarded by many as the preeminent travel writer of his generation.” — Christopher Elliott