A Traveller's Tales - Crossroads From The Past - Ross Howard - Bog

Egypt and Turkey each have a surfeit of grand archaeological sites that have excited travellers over the millenia. Being as they are at the crossroads of Europe, Asia and Africa the sites reflect a myriad of influences and the consequences of competing invaders and civilisations that have put their stamp on what remains. But there is a constant across the ages and that is the people and the need for them to survive and make their way in the social and economic environment that prevailed at the time. True travellers have a curiosity about the local perspective of common issues, how people satisfy their basic needs and meet the daily challenges. If you dont experience these social atmospherics you miss the learning opportunity that travel provides. This journey visits all of the popular sites and marvels at their wonder, but the book seeks to avoid becoming a travelogue of sites, that is better left to the notable guidebooks available today. A more abiding interest is how the people see themselves and how they view those with whom they need to co-exist both nationally and internationally, especially those from different religious and social structures. What is the nature of the ruling structure - democracy, dictatorship or theocracy? How does the ruling structure maintain order? How open is society? These are the questions the true traveller seeks to have answered during the course of their journey.