A Brave New World: Travel Writing for on the Road
As a traveller, you have all kinds of informative, interesting and entertaining resources at your disposal. It doesn’t matter whether you’re planning an annual holiday, making a quick weekend getaway or heading out on an epic globetrotting adventure, the resources are out there.
City guides and tourist handbooks can provide you with all the practical info, while online review sites and travel blogs will give you the scoop on destinations from people who have experienced them first hand.
But if you’re looking for some additional travel stimulation or want to get lost in a mind-blowing fictional world, here are some great suggestions that will inspire you:
Into the Wild, by Jon Krakauer (1996)
Even though you’ve probably seen the film featuring Emile Hirsch, the original book is equally as enthralling and harrowing. Into the Wild follows the story of Christopher McCandless, who shunned conventional society in search of a more humble existence in the Alaskan wilderness, which would ultimately decide his fate.
The Great Railway Bazaar, by Paul Theroux (1975)
Featuring some of the most famous and renowned train lines in the world, The Great Railway Bazaar describes a four-month expedition across Europe, Asia and the Middle East. After taking trips on the Direct Orient, Khyber Pass Local and Trans-Siberian Express among others, the prolific travel writer Paul Theroux believes that travelling via railroad is the best way to discover a country’s lifestyle and culture. Maybe you can try it and see if he was right
On the Road, by Jack Kerouac (1957)
Despite the fact this book came out over 50 years ago, it has the potential to inspire and encourage anybody to make friends with the open road. Follow the music and poetry fuelled exploits of narrator Sal Paradise and his fellow adventurers as they journey across America, taking in New York, Denver, San Francisco and Los Angeles along the way.
The Beach, by Alex Garland (1996)
Yet another title adapted for the big screen, this particular tale inspired a generation to escape the trappings of modernity in exchange for a piece of paradise in South East Asia. Perhaps it’s not possible to discover an unspoilt utopia anymore, The Beach is still a hedonistic stimulus for any intrepid backpacker.
The Sun Also Rises, by Ernest Hemingway (1926)
Arguably Hemingway’s greatest novel, this compelling, captivating account of expatriate Americans in the years after World War I provides an insight into what France and Spain was like in the 1920s. While tales of drinking in Paris cafes and fishing in the Pyrenees sound idyllic, narrator Jake Barnes’s experience of Pamplona’s bull fighting is quite eye opening.
As you explore destinations you can bury yourself in the thoughts, experiences and stories of the thinkers and authors who have journeyed to them before you. You can draw inspiration from them and add to your adventure.
Travel is an enriching experience, after all.
Image by Thomas Leuthard, used under Creative Commons licence.
