The Travel Book: a journey through every country
 

Lonely Planet has just released the 4th edition of their coffee table title. The price is $50 US. Again, the photography is outstanding. Fave shot: a massive camel train stops below desert mountains to wallow and drink from a rare pond in Chad. The LA Times originally published that incredible image. This book's format has always been to allot 2 pages per nation: one for fotos plus the other for text. The latter is listings of suggested literature, music, movies, sights/attractions and food-drink.
A great gift idea.
PS do not drop this heavy book on your foot--you'll never walk again.

I am done. the cast and cane

zebec, This is from the NY Times, but is it the picture in question? Pretty impressive in any case!

Camels at Wadi Archei in Chad.

Yes Nelson, that's the one. The LA Times version seems to distort the image a bit. This NY Times one that you've shown above here is better.
Quasi-related: a minute ago, our neighbour sent us a video clip of his own current travel in a lesser-known African country. That clip showed him riding a coal train through the desert in Mauritania.
You could feel the heat, the grit and the whiskers (he hadn't shaved in weeks).

I am done. the desert sands

Just Wow! What a photo! Thank you for posting it.

Thanks for steering us to that photo zebec.

For some reason, for many years my wife has wanted to go on a desert camel trek. (Don't ask me why, memories of a past life perhaps?) Three times we have tried to book a trip and three times something went awry. The first, back in the '80's, would have been a long trek with Touaregs into the Hoggar Mountains, Algeria. At the last moment the outfitter had to cancel the trip. I'm sorry we missed that one, and another in Egypt that fell through.

We haven't given up yet, but now aiming for something less committing.

You are welcome, Sassafras!
Nelson, I hope that the two of you find something satisfactory, tour-wise. FWIW, camel-riding for the uninitiated has been described again and again as near-torturous. I personally do not like riding them, after experiences in Turkey and elsewhere.
I recently read a great book by a young, Arabic-speaking, Brit writer named Nicholas Jubber. His book was: The Timbuktu School for Nomads: across the Sahara... We exchanged emails after I told him how much we enjoyed his descriptions there of being a volunteer camel-rider trainee with a family of unilingual Tuareg camel herders.

Jubber's experiences with that family were lengthy and would be an invaluable read for those considering desert camel treks.

I am done. The waters

Thanks for the book rec zebec. Looks good, as do a couple of his other books. It's added to my reading list.

We are planning something for her now, three short days on the camel, not too far from home, but it's not firmed up yet. It would be enough for a taste, then we can decide on the water hole in Chad. :sun:

Right on cue: in that OP book's Chad section, a near full-page foto of that train that our neighbour is currently riding atop. Official name: 'Train du Desert' and it carries iron-ore, not coal. Dirty stuff nonetheless--in his clip he looked like a death-row inmate whom they couldn't electrocute!
Bon Chance avec le voyage du camel vos deux.
That above author, Jubber, lives near Borough Market in London so I've offered a potential meet-up for coffee next month. He sent me back a cease-and-desist order.
I am done. the travelz

Corekshun: that train is in Mauritania and it was that nation's pages in the book, where one finds that abovementioned foto of the train.
I am done. i so idiot

Wow that photo looks like a painting. I ordered the book thanks to this thread, so looking forward to it.

zebec, your photos are outstanding! The latest Aix collection is one of my favorites ever... almost holistic, such a pleasure to look at them.

Some of the comments made me giggle too :lol:

Yo DG, I thank you for your kind words and am glad that you ordered the book. I forget which guide it was, but another similar 'the-entire-world-of-travel-in-one-book' was published a few years back---was it not Rough Guide of DK or ?
I am done. the real paper book

Not sure which one but that sounds good too! Please link if you find out. Love these entire world in one book kinda thang.