Tajikistan – a guide to Asia’s smallest country

Small and often misunderstood, Tajikistan is Central Asia’s most enigmatic country. Buddhist sites, Silk Road trading posts and planned Soviet towns all reveal the complex and diverse cultural heritage of the country and its population. Providing detailed practical information and suggested itineraries, Bradt’s Tajikistan is the indispensable choice for the intrepid traveller.

With the spectacular mountain scenery of the Pamir Mountains, Tajikistan, often loftily called the ‘Roof of the World’, offers treks for those with varying levels of experience, astonishing cycle routes and opportunities for avid birdwatchers. The country is as culturally diverse as it is beautiful due largely  to its historical location on the Silk Road, the meeting point for mighty empires. Ancient ruins at Sarazm, Buddhist temples of Ajina Tepa and the curious sport of buz kashi (dead goat polo) ensure that visitors experience the very best of Tajikistan’s past.

This first edition offers an unprecedented level of detail on the country’s sites, culture, history and wildlife alongside entertaining literary quotes and historical anecdotes. Bradt’s Tajikistan is the perfect companion both before and during a trip to the country; featuring 22 maps and exceptional colour photography, it helps bring this fascinating country alive.

Sophie Ibbotson and Max Lovell-Hoare have lived and worked in Central Asia since becoming heavily involved in the region’s tourism industry in 2008. They have previously written the Bradt Guide to Sudan and are authoring the upcoming guides to South Sudan and Uzbekistan.

Release:  12th April 2013
Liguria: an insider’s guide to the wonders of the Italian Riveria.

Almost a country within a country, Liguria retains a strong regional identity despite containing the famous Italian Riveria and its glitzy resort of Portofino. It is a  land of dizzying passes and breathtaking views, where the mountains sweep down to the sparkling Mediterranean. The quaint fishing ports and beautiful mountain villages have attracted some the world’s most famous writers including Byron, Shelley and Virginia Woolf.

Liguria boasts an enviable and varied cuisine and is a food-lover’s paradise.  Featuring a unique food trail, the book highlights the local specialties on offer in each Ligurian village. Famous for olive oil, lemons and basil, the region reveals a diet that is refreshingly Mediterranean. This coastal strip is also enticing to the outdoor enthusiast, offering walking and cycle routes through beautiful wilderness. Spectacular walks of varying difficulties provide views all the way to the Alps, and cycle routes vary from arduous mountain roads to easy coastal paths.

This guidebook, the only in-depth guide to Liguria available, gives a detailed depiction of this enchanting region, including descriptions of the area’s mountains and their hilltop villages. Colourful extras,  simple pesto recipes, Italian proverbs and quotes from local folklore, are dotted throughout the text, giving a relaxed and personal expression of Liguria.

Rosie Whitehouse’s love of travel and Liguria developed after a family trip there in the summer of 1966. After a successful career at the BBC World Service and with a young family, she made a second trip back to Liguria rekindling the love affair. Twenty-five years on and she knows the region like the back of her hand, even if her Italian is frequently corrected by her daughter.

To request a review copy or for more details contact Hugh Collins press@bradtguides.com
Tel +44 (0)1753 893444

Title: Liguria Author: Rosie Whitehouse
Publisher: Bradt Travel Guides     Publication:  12 April 2013
Price: £15.99      ISBN: 9781841624730

A chance meeting with a band of travelling Mexican street performers, malabaristas, leads Catriona Rainsford on a two-year, hand-to-mouth journey across Mexico. She writes, ‘They saw themselves as a modern take on the ancient tradition of the wandering entertainer, taking their art to the people, and taking whatever the people were prepared to give them to help them on their way.’

Learning to live off nothing more than a few circus skills and the kindness of strangers she finds there is more to her companions than meets the eye. They are not just entertainers. Their impromptu, freewheeling shows are a rejection of the corruptions and violence consuming the country.

Shocking and humorous, Catriona’s tale is full of the exhilaration of life on the road. She travels through dramatic landscapes and ravaged but resilient cities. Along the way she meets the extraordinary ordinary people – from mystics and madmen in the desert to urban intellectuals in Mexico City.

Packed with stories of the characters she meets, the book offers an insight into the day-to-day experiences of Mexico’s urban poor and those who tread a fine line between the two sides of Mexico: one a vibrant mix of Hispanic and indigenous cultures, the other a society traumatised by drugs cartels.

About Catriona Rainsford

Catriona is currently living in London where she continues to practice circus, talk to strange people on the street and speak Spanish in a strong Mexican accent. She has won prizes for her travel writing in the Bradt/Independent on Sunday competition in 2010 and a Guardian competition in 2009.

Extract from the book..

From Chapter 1: Millionaires

I craned around to watch as the cameras followed the men’s progress through Creel. The footage had been taken at dawn, the men’s long black shadows etched across the gold of the streets. They snorted handfuls of cocaine from clear plastic bags before approaching a house, firing several rounds through the front windows and then crashing through the front door with AK-47s tucked under their arms. We sat and looked until our driver heaved himself to his feet, brushed off his moustache, and lumbered out towards the truck with a sigh of ‘De verdad, Mexico está perdido.’ Truly, Mexico is lost.

We drained the last of our coffees and followed him outside. And I thought of Creel the way I had seen it, seven months before, the day I met Trico.

The first time I saw him, he was riding a unicycle along a wall. This was not unusual for Trico; he saw the entire world as a complicated arrangement of surfaces to ride unicycles on. But at the time I didn’t know that, and stopped walking for a few seconds to watch him.

For the full extract click here.
To request a review copy or for more details contact press@bradtguides.com
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Title: The Urban Circus - Travels with Mexico’s Malabaristas    Author: Catriona Rainsford
Publisher: Bradt Travel Guides     Publication:  27 February 2013
Price: £9.99      ISBN: 9781841624440

Madagascar is a land where lizards scream and monkey-like lemurs sing songs of inexpressible beauty. Known as the Great Red Island, it is a place where fosse and tenures, van gas and aye ayes thrive in a true ‘Lost World’ alongside bizarre plants like the octopus tree and the three-cornered palm. And where the ancestors of the Malagasy come alive in rollicking ceremonies known as “turning the bones.”

This is the only book that combines cutting-edge science and conservation with adventure travel and historical narrative.

Peter Tyson is a science and travel writer with over 25 years’ experience writing about science, natural history, and conservation.

Extracts from the book..

From the Preface
This book is based on four trips I took to Madagascar between 1993 and 1997. These journeys took me right around the country, from the rainforest of Nosy Be in the northwest, to the mountainous peninsula at Fort Dauphin in the southeast; from the heart of vanilla country on the northeast coast, to the scorching spiny desert of the southwest. Along the way I joined four scientists—a herpetologist, a paleoecologist, an archeologist, and a primatologist—as they sought to solve some of the foremost mysteries on an island rife with them.

From Chapter 1: Deep into a Lost World: The Perfumed Isle
One of Madagascar’s most bizarre and wonderful experiments in evolution has landed at my feet…Before I can even open my mouth, one of the Earthwatch volunteers, a Briton named Garfield Dean, reaches over and carefully pries the gecko from Raxworthy’s arm. As if affronted, the animal cranes its alien-looking head towards him, opens its mouth, sticks out a crimson, grub-like tongue, and screeches in his face. Aaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhh! Aaaaaaaaahhhhhhhh!
The sound sends chills down my spine, but Raxworthy reacts without missing a beat. He starts screaming back at the lizard, trying to imitate its cat-loses-battle-with-a-screen-door screech. The volunteers look at Raxworthy with a mixture of amusement and apprehension.

For fuller extracts click here.

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Tel +44 (0)1753 893444

Title: Madagascar – The Eighth Continent: Life, Death & Discovery in a Lost World    Author: Peter Tyson
Publisher: Bradt Travel Guides     Publication:  10 January 2013
Price: £11.99      ISBN: 9781841624419

Tim Burford spent five years in publishing before starting to write hiking and ecotourism guides, specialising in Latin America and eastern Europe.

To request a review copy or for more details contact press@bradtguides.com
Tel +44 (0)1753 893444

Title:  Chile Highlights      Author: Tim Burford
Publisher: Bradt Travel Guides     Publication: 18 December 2012
Price: £15.99      ISBN: 9781841624082

New editions of top travel guides

Rwanda 5^th edition
Philip Briggs

Rwanda is the world’s premier destination for gorilla-tracking, made famous as the setting for the film Gorillas in the Mist. Yet the ‘Land of a Thousand Hills’ offers more than just magical gorilla encounters. Its highlights include Akagera National Park and its unique savannah wildlife; the stunning views of Lake Kivu, a mountain-ringed inland sea to which the locals retreat; and the picturesque crater lake at the summit of Mount Bisoke.
Bradt’s fifth edition of Rwanda focuses on eco-tourism, with separate chapters dedicated to each of its four diverse national parks, outlining all the practicalities: how to get there, how to get a permit, where to spot wildlife, how to identify flora and how to choose the best tour operators. Written by leading Africa expert Philip Briggs, who has 20 years of travel experience in Africa, this colourful and insightful guide is packed with personal anecdotes of people and places encountered across the country. It has been completely updated to include the newest hotels and tours. It remains the only English-language guide to the country and the most essential source of information.
 

Title:  Rwanda 5th edition
Author: Philip Briggs
Publisher: Bradt Travel Guides     Publication:  29th November 2012
Price: £16.99    ISBN: 9781841624181 
 
 
Transylvania 2^nd edition
Lucy Mallows
 
Transylvania, literally ‘the land beyond the forest’, is a wild, wooded and intensely-romantic region, surrounded by the rugged Carpathian Mountains and filled with wolves, bears and possibly even vampires. Considered by many as the most beautiful country in Eastern Europe, its Saxon fortresses, untouched citadels and sinister lakes truly bring the mysterious legend of Dracula to life. Look beyond its dark and enthralling history though, and you will find colourful folk villages and Roma musicians, mouth-watering delicacies like păstrăv afumat and top-notch spa resorts.
Bradt’s hugely popular Transylvania has been fully-revised, with updated information on Prince Charles’ remote guesthouses, detailed coverage of the main Transylvanian towns and a section on the region’s art and architectural heritage. It also includes the full story of Vlad the Impaler, the inspiration behind the Dracula myth. Written by European-culture expert Lucy Mallows, and updated by award-winning travel writer Rudolf Abraham, this personal guide takes visitors to the region’s cosiest homestays, lost-in-time villages and the breathtaking Retezat national park.
 
Title:  Transylvania 2^nd edition
Author:  Lucy Mallows
Publisher: Bradt Travel Guides     Publication:  29th November 2012
Price: £15.99    ISBN: 9781841624198
  
 
Sudan 3^rd edition
Sophie Ibbotson & Max Lovell-Hoare
 
With more pyramids than Egypt, and rock gongs and engravings (petroglyphs) that are 7000 years old, Sudan has one of the richest and least-explored histories of the continent. Bradt’s fully-revised edition of Sudan provides the most practical advice on getting around, with additional maps, new photographs and the most up-to-date security information on all areas, including Darfur and Blue Nile states. As the largest country in Africa, it is often described by its people as being the whole of Africa in one. The Red Sea remains one of the world’s greatest diving sites, while the south continues to entice visitors with its exciting wildlife. Still the only guidebook dedicated to Sudan, it delves deeper into Sudanese culture with an expanded section on its people and languages, and with detailed coverage of Sudan’s archaeological sites. This guide focuses solely on North Sudan, as South Sudan will feature as a new Bradt guidebook in 2013. Sudan’s vivid cultural history had led to it being voted top emerging tourism destination for 2012 by Wanderlust magazine. 

Title:  Sudan 3^rd edition
Author:  Sophie Ibbotson & Max Lovell-Hoare
Publisher: Bradt Travel Guides     Publication: 29th November 2012
Price: £16.99    ISBN: 9781841624136
  
 
To request a review copy or for more details please contact press@bradtguides.com
Tel +44 (0)1753 893444

Adrian won the award for a portfolio of work but specifically his piece A Guided Tour with the Natural Navigator published in the Independent. The judges said that: “This portfolio of work stood out for the sheer quality of prose. The fresh angles and evocative descriptions of people and places show the writer has a true spirit of wanderlust and joy in discovery of people and cultures. From succinct descriptions and laugh-out-loud observations to mixing portrayals of the aftermath of conflict, he has captured and conveyed a wide range of emotions and makes the reader want to follow in his footsteps.”

At the same event the Adele Evans Award for Best Guidebook sponsored by the Sultanate of Oman was awarded to Emma Thomson for Flanders: Northern Belgium published by Bradt Travel Guides.  Emma was at one time commissioning editor for Bradt.

The same week in November, Emma Thomson also won the Best in Responsible Tourism Writing Award for her article in the February 2012 issue of Wanderlust: At home with the Himba, Namibia.

On winning the award Emma Thomson said: “My former boss, Hilary Bradt, used to cite a wonderful quote from Tom Stoppard’s play, The Real Thing, in which one of the characters Henry says ‘Words deserve respect. If you get the right ones in the right order, you can nudge the world a little’. Using travel writing to promote and support the work of responsible tour operators, or community-led projects like the Himba homestay, is incredibly rewarding and inspiring.”

The judges said they particularly liked Emma’s account of her homestay with the Himba and the makeover she had while dressed as a Himba woman. On their website it states: “On the day before she leaves she is ogled by some tourists, and to quote from her article “for a brief moment, I catch a glimpse of life on the other side of the fence.”

Emma Thomson has also been shortlisted for the British Travel Press Awards in the category of Young Travel Writer of the Year, to be announced on 21 November at RIBA, London.  Two Bradt guides have also been shortlisted for Travel Guide Book of the Year in these Awards: Slow Cornwall & The Isles of Scilly by Kirsty Fergusson and Bus-Pass Britain.

Notes for editors

• Adrian Phillips is Publishing Director for Bradt Travel Guides and author of Bradt guides to Budapest and Hungary. The latter won the ‘Best Guidebook of the Year’ award from the British Guild of Travel Writers. In addition to guidebooks, he writes regularly for national newspapers and magazines (including The Express, The Independent and Wanderlust). For more information visit the About Us page on the Bradt website.
• Emma Thomson is author of Bradt’s guide to Flanders
• British Guild of Travel Writers - Further information and photos available from the Secretariat: secretariat@bgtw.org, 020 8144 8713.
• The Responsible Tourism Awards celebrate and inspire responsible projects in the travel industry. The Awards rest on a simple principle – that all types of tourism, from niche to mainstream, can and should be organised in a way that preserves, respects and benefits destinations and local people.

For more details contact Debbie Hunter press@bradtguides.com 
Tel +44 (0)1753 893444  www.bradtguides.com

Author Mike Unwin says, “it opens up like a Tardis once you enter, revealing massive, muscular landscapes that belie its bijou dimensions. I was constantly amazed by just how far off the beaten track you could wander in a populous place barely one-third bigger than Yorkshire.”

In the guidebook he explores the wildlife reserves and wild hiking trails offering waterfalls, rock art and prolific flora and birdlife, and introduces travellers to the country’s rich and varied landscapes. “Most African travel staples are well represented: big game, traditional culture, picture-book panoramas, wild hiking, adventure sports and exquisite handicrafts.” And, as he points out, they come conveniently packaged in a space so small that none is more than a couple of hours’ drive from the capital.

The book divides Swaziland into four distinct regions, with detailed maps and itineraries for timescales from one weekend to one month, and includes a practical guide to neighbouring attractions easily accessed from Swaziland, including Maputo (Mozambique) and the Kruger Park (South Africa), both less than one hour’s drive away. The natural history section offers greater detail and more accurate information than found elsewhere, drawing on the author’s extensive insider knowledge and experience.

Mike Unwin is a freelance travel writer, specialising in ecotourism and Africa, and has lived and worked in Swaziland.

To request a review copy or for more details contact Debbie Hunter press@bradtguides.com
Tel +44 (0)1753 893444

Title: Swaziland      Author: Mike Unwin
Publisher: Bradt Travel Guides     Publication:  15 November 2012
Price: £15.99      ISBN: 9781841624006