Be More Adventuress this International Women’s Day

Whether it’s exploring new territories, sailing around the world, cycling across continents, or immersing themselves in a different culture, we’ve been seriously inspired by the women writers whose books have graced our shelves.

And it’s not just the writers. Since opening in 1853 we have heard some amazing stories of the adventures our female customers have been on. We even have a letter from Florence Nightingale thanking Stanfords for a mounted map. Continue reading Be More Adventuress this International Women’s Day

5 Reasons Wild Camping is better than staying in a campsite By Phoebe Smith

At the Stanfords Travel Writers Festival, Phoebe Smith featured on an expert panel sharing travellers’ wisdom and offering advise on safe travel (listen to the podcast here).  Phoebe’s writing and personal experiences have her firmly established as the oracle of wild camping so you’ve probably heard her on the radio recently defending it as two national parks have introduced by-laws restricting camping .

We are so happy that she has written this blog post for us. Phoebe, over to you: Continue reading 5 Reasons Wild Camping is better than staying in a campsite By Phoebe Smith

Our March Books of the Month

A pinch and a punch….

Not only is it the 1st day of the month, it is also St David’s Day, the start of Lent, Pancake Day Recovery Day and the day we announce our new books of the month. Here goes: Continue reading Our March Books of the Month

5 Things Iranians and Brits Have in Common by Lois Pryce   

Back in January we hosted the launch of Lois Pryce’s Revolutionary Ride, her book about her motorcycle travels through Iran.  There were Persian snacks, Persian music and so many people wanting to hear more about her travels. Not only did we have her come to speak at the Stanfords Travel Writers Festival (listen to the podcast here), but she was also the subject of The Yes Tribe’s Adventure Book Club held in our basement last night. We are also planning an event in our Long Acre store with Lois, so keep an eye on our events page.

We love having her around so much that we are one step away from getting her to join our Fantasy Football League, giving her a locker and getting her to bring back magnets from her holidays for our staff room fridge. We like to think she loves us back, well she did kindly write this blog post for us (* writes ‘Stanfords 4 Lois 4eva’ all over our notebooks). Lois, over to you: Continue reading 5 Things Iranians and Brits Have in Common by Lois Pryce   

We’ve been there // Yucatan

The Yucatan peninsular is an amazingly flat spur of land from the south east coast of Mexico. It comprises the entire country of Belize  together with three Mexican States; Quintana Roo, Yucatan and Campeche. That meteor fell 65 million years ago off its coast, in the Gulf of Mexico, which wiped out the dinosaurs. I will come back to that later. Continue reading We’ve been there // Yucatan

Happy Put Hearts Everywhere Day

It would be a crime if we let this day pass without showing some love for this 1536 cordiform (cor= heart in Latin) map of the world by the French mathematician and cartographer Oronce Fine. This particular projection is from the Pseudoconic family and is often know as Werner projection after the German mathematician Johannes Warner (1466-1528). Distances are correct from one pole and also along all parallels and the central meridian.

Oronce Fine 1494-1555

 

If you are interested in a more modern cordiform map, check out this map of the New York City Railway System:

Reworking the subway system into a heart shape, this Zero Per Zero map is inspired by the iconic ‘I heart NY’ logo by Milton Glaser.

Oh, and we sell it as a mouse mat.

Mappy Valentine’s Day.

 

The Amazing Story of the Man who Cycled from India to Europe for Love

Flowers? Chocolates? A card? A 7,000 mile bike ride?

PK cycled from New Deli, India to Boras, Sweden to be with the woman he loved. On the way he had many adventures and rode in eight different countries until he was reunited with Lotta.  The Amazing Story of the Man who Cycled from India to Europe for Love is by Per J Andersson and it’s a wonderful story about different cultures and classes and how love conquers all. The couple have been married since 1979. Continue reading The Amazing Story of the Man who Cycled from India to Europe for Love

The Blowfish, Fishing Impossible // Stanfords Travel Writers Festival

Andrew Wilson interviews the world’s only heavy metal marine biologist, The Blowfish. The pair talk about Fishing Impossible the hit new ITV and BBC Worldwide series that takes fishing and conservation to extremes. From shark tagging off the coast of South Africa to diving under Arctic ice, The Blowfish shares his passion for the sea and tales of his boys’ own adventures from the series. Continue reading The Blowfish, Fishing Impossible // Stanfords Travel Writers Festival