Book Description
"Young man, go to Europe! It is not without due reflection
that I venture thus to reverse the geographical direction of a famous
saying. As Ameruica now stands, I believe by far the most valuable
education a young man can obtain is a European trip, undertaken during the
years most often devoted to a college course. It costs no more; it may even
cost less; and I make bold to say it is immesaurably more educative.
Allowing that America is still the best country in which to be born, I
still maintain that Europe is the best country in which to get a year's
education. I mean a year of travel, enjoyment, observation. The best
learning of all is the learning we acquire without ever knowing it. Nothing
makes impressions so vivid as pleasure. Now, travel holds the same position
with regard to mankind, its history, its industry, its arts, its
organisation, as laboratory work holds to chemistry, field work to geology,
and dissection to biology. If you want to understand the world of men, you
must go and see it."
Grant Allen, 1848-99
Synopsis
'Let's hope this book is only Part One. It has everything: adventure, food and wine, exotic locations, sex, wit, scholarship, unforgettable trivia, high-end dialogue, royalty, art and architecture, pathos, and above all the sheer joie de vivre of the author as he careers his picaresque way to adulthood. More! More!' James Burke In 1970, there was no better way to waste time, with a little style of course, than to take a Cambridge education for a stroll in Europe. A mere thirty years ago this seemed a very cunning plan. England in the early seventies is a dreary place, in bottomless recession; Europe is anything but. Macdonogh's passion for the arts develops in the cradles of European civilisation, as does his appreciation of beautiful women. In his travels, he charms as he is charmed by the monuments in stone and flesh that he finds along the way. In Europe, the author discovers that a little light learning can be useful, and a little light sinning sublime. This is a beautifully written book, full of esoteric information and it is a pleasure to read.
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