Travel Adventures 1950 - 2018

Book excerpt: You do not have to traverse Africa by bicycle, solo extreme climbing routes or snowboard down glaciers in order to have an adventure. Between the extreme adventurer who craves for the adrenaline rush and the tourist who avoids any danger is the traveller. He or she also seeks adventure but without risking life and limb. The memories of seven decades published here show that the average person can also travel adventurously. They contain early travel experiences that made a lasting impression, episodes of youthful wanderlust, hitchhiking trips, long cycling tours, epic road trips through the Balkans and the United States and extensive journeys in South America. Hikes and climbs in the Andes, in Africa and in the Alps round off the picture. Travelling not only makes us experience the present, it also brings us back to the past. How can we walk the border between Austria and Italy in the Dolomites without remembering the First World War? How can we ignore history when we visit Sarajevo or Mostar? And how can we stand in front of La Moneda, the presidential palace in Santiago de Chile and not think about the original Nine Eleven that took place there in 1973? Exploring new regions and foreign countries without relying on tour operators is not entirely risk-free but the independent traveller is rewarded with intensive experiences and unforgettable memories.