The Smell of the Continent
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Review
' A splendid account, much of it rather shameful to us in these more enlightened days of the 18th- and 19th-century Englishman's attitude to Abroad.' --Sunday Telegraph Seven
'well conceived and engaging survey...' --The Guardian
'Much of the humour in this wonderful book comes from the eccentricity of the Brits and their terror of such things as garlic.' --Catholic Herald Ed West
'At every turn the book brims with instructive and humorous anecdotes lifted from the diaries and recollections of travellers enticed to set forth for the continent...'
--Tom Bamford, Eastern Daily Press
'well conceived and engaging survey...' --The Guardian
'Much of the humour in this wonderful book comes from the eccentricity of the Brits and their terror of such things as garlic.' --Catholic Herald Ed West
'At every turn the book brims with instructive and humorous anecdotes lifted from the diaries and recollections of travellers enticed to set forth for the continent...'
--Tom Bamford, Eastern Daily Press
Review
'I shall certainly be giving this book as a Christmas present to many friends.'
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
A fascinating study into travel before the First World War - a time in which our grandparents and great grandparents would have discovered the continent. Informative and instructive with a light touch.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
At the time of the Battle of Waterloo travel to the Continent was for the few - not least wealthy young men doing the Grand Tour. By the outbreak of World War I it was for you and me and everyone else. This readable book records what happened and how, introducing along the way a rich cast of characters, some well known (among them Byron and Gladstone), others not, some deeply eccentric, others not, but none of them boring. The detail throughout is fascinating, but it is well chosen and never overwhelms. I thoroughly recommend this book
Format:Paperback
The more things change, the more they stay the same. The one thing that struck me on reading this book is how little British tourists have changed over the years, whether it's Victorians interrupting Latin Mass in Italian cathedrals to look at frescos, drunken youths cavorting in fountains and public squares, or the expectation that everyone ought to speak English. As the authors themselves state, it's the numbers that have changed, not the behaviour.
This is a really enjoyable read, a look at how the British arguably invented the concept of modern tourism. Prior to 1814, when this book begins, after the end of the Napoleonic Wars when the continent was 'opened' again, only the upper classes travelled, usually on some kind of 'improving' Grand Tour. By 1914 almost everyone could afford to travel, barring of course the very poorest, and almost everyone had an expectation of an annual holiday, a concept which still lasts to this day.
This book is a sort of combination of thematic and chronological approach, looking at concepts such as transport, food, hotels, bureaucracy, money, language, arts. It looks at the role tourism had on improving sanitation in cities, on travel services; on the spread of Anglicanism on the continent; and some towns and cities, notably Cannes in the south of France, even owe their very existence to tourism. Some familiar names crop up, Lunn Poly, Thomas Cook, Baedekers, the Ritz chain.
What I found interesting throughout the book was the confidence of the travellers, the sense of superiority merely from being British, and yes, the arrogance. 1814 to 1914 was perhaps the era when British confidence was at its height, Britain 'ruled the waves', and in terms of the Continent British gold certainly ruled. But these days, such confidence and arrogance is entirely unjustified, and yet it lingers on sadly in the attitudes to so many tourists now.
This is a really enjoyable read, a look at how the British arguably invented the concept of modern tourism. Prior to 1814, when this book begins, after the end of the Napoleonic Wars when the continent was 'opened' again, only the upper classes travelled, usually on some kind of 'improving' Grand Tour. By 1914 almost everyone could afford to travel, barring of course the very poorest, and almost everyone had an expectation of an annual holiday, a concept which still lasts to this day.
This book is a sort of combination of thematic and chronological approach, looking at concepts such as transport, food, hotels, bureaucracy, money, language, arts. It looks at the role tourism had on improving sanitation in cities, on travel services; on the spread of Anglicanism on the continent; and some towns and cities, notably Cannes in the south of France, even owe their very existence to tourism. Some familiar names crop up, Lunn Poly, Thomas Cook, Baedekers, the Ritz chain.
What I found interesting throughout the book was the confidence of the travellers, the sense of superiority merely from being British, and yes, the arrogance. 1814 to 1914 was perhaps the era when British confidence was at its height, Britain 'ruled the waves', and in terms of the Continent British gold certainly ruled. But these days, such confidence and arrogance is entirely unjustified, and yet it lingers on sadly in the attitudes to so many tourists now.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
A cracker of a read
An absolute delightful read. Three hundred and twenty three pages of well-chosen anecdotes so it incidentally covers history, geography, the social landscape, and the living... Read more
Published 10 months ago by Patrick JD Taylor
plus ca change...
Read excellent review two years ago - finally got around to ordering the book, intended for a present but kept it for myself... Read more
Published 11 months ago by simiane-la-rotonde
What a spiffing book for a holiday
As a traveller, OBVIOUSLY, I loved to hear how other people take their tourist pleasures.
A great read, with a lot of humour and I anticpate my copy being returned to me... Read more
A great read, with a lot of humour and I anticpate my copy being returned to me... Read more
Published on 25 Aug 2009 by Outlaw-in-Exile
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