Oman
Waiting for the camel race to start. Photo: John Hatt/Eye Ubiquitous. Oman This article was first published by Harpers & Queen, October 1995. In the late 1960s there was student…
Respect
Photo: Bill Clinton and George HW Bush became close friends RESPECT by Decca Aitkenhead This is such a wonderful article that I wanted to include it on this website. Despite…
Kerala
Travel in India has entered a golden age. It has always been exceptionally interesting, but when travellers left the main destinations they often faced difficulties and discomfort.
From Market Driven To Market Driving
When I was in Tamil Nadu in 2003 this article was given to me by Dr Venkatasawamy, who is mentioned in the article that he handed me. Dr V, as…
A Long Walk in Tanzania
Although there were only two clients and myself on our Tanzanian safari, we were accompanied by a staff of forty, thirty of whom were porters.
Elephants in India
Behind the world’s back, elephants are still being bought and sold in the small town of Sonepur near the Ganges.
Gorillas
Gorillas are mostly gentle, but one of them kept me in my place. Until the pioneering studies of George Schaller in the 1950s, the gorilla was considered a terrifying and savage beast, rumoured to have a propensity for raping women.
Syria
During my background reading on Syria, I discovered that all the millions of hamsters that have been kept as pets are descended from one single pregnant animal, which was trapped near Aleppo in 1930.
Namibia
A quarter of the world’s remaining cheetahs live in Namibia. It is a crucial population, for throughout the rest of the world their numbers have been fast diminishing.
Fishing with cormorants in China
A cormorant fisherman in China earns more than five times as much as a university professor. The professor’s pay is £7 a week, whereas just one of a fisherman’s birds can produce an income of…