{"product_id":"out-of-istanbul-a-journey-of-discovery-along-the-silk-road-9781510743755","title":"Out of Istanbul: A Journey of Discovery along the Silk Road","description":"\u003cp\u003eA journey with heart.New York Times. Acclaimed journalist Bernard Ollivier begins his epic journey on foot across the Silk Road.  Upon retirement at the age of sixty-two  and grieving his deceased wife  renowned journalist Bernard Ollivier felt a sense of profound emptiness: What do I do now? While some see retirement as a chance to cash in their chips and settle into a comfy armchair  Ollivier still longed for more. Searching for inspiration  he strapped on his gear  donned his hat  and headed out the front door to hike the Way of St. James  a 1400-mile journey from Paris to Compostela  Spain. At the end of that road  with more questions than answers  he decided to spend the next few years hiking another of historys great routes: the Silk Road.  Out of Istanbul is Olliviers stunning account of the first part of that 7 200-mile journey. The longest and perhaps most mythical trade route of all time  the Silk Road is in fact a network of routes across Europe and Asia  some going back to prehistoric times. During the Middle Ages  the transcribed travelogue of one Silk Road explorer  Marco Polo  helped spread the fame of the Orient throughout Europe.  Heading east out of Istanbul  Ollivier takes readers step by step across Anatolia and Kurdistan  bound for Tehran. Along the way  we meet a colorful array of real-life characters: Selim  the philosophical woodsman; old Behet  elated to practice English after years of self-study; Krishna  manager of the Lora Pansiyon in Polonez  a village of Polish immigrants; the hospitable Kurdish women of Dogutepe  and many more. We accompany Ollivier as he explores bazaars  mosques  and caravansariestrue vestiges of the Silk Road itselfand through these encounters and experiences  gains insight into the complex political and social issues facing modern-day Turkey.  Olliviers journey  far from bragging about some tremendous achievement  humbly takes the reader on a colossal adventure of human proportions  one in which walking itself  through a kind of alchemy  fosters friendships and fellowship.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"My Store","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45651945881653,"sku":"ByrdShop_1510743758","price":53.82,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0627\/8139\/0901\/files\/9781510743755_f6fc825b-e124-48ed-b9bc-90fb0bbea03b.jpg?v=1781846820","url":"https:\/\/atxbooks.com\/products\/out-of-istanbul-a-journey-of-discovery-along-the-silk-road-9781510743755","provider":"ATX Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}