Inspiring Travel Writing from Philip Marsden
Philip Marsden's books include The Crossing Place; A Journey among the Armenians (winner of the Somerset Maugham Award), The Bronski House and The Spirit-Wrestlers and Other Survivors of the Russian Century (winner of the Thomas Cook / Daily Telegraph Travel Book Award). His work has been translated into nine languages. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and lives in Cornwall.
Articles by Philip Marsden
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Before You Die: Ibn Tulun Mosque
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Philip Marsden
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Egypt
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Cairo & Giza
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Cairo
Egypt: Visit Ibn Tulun mosque, Cairo. If you go to Cairo only for the Pyramids you will miss what is probably the greatest range of Islamic sacred architecture anywhere on earth. Whereas the pyramids are dead monuments, the city's mosques are still...
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Before You Die: Walk the Cornish Coast Path
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Philip Marsden
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United Kingdom
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Devon and Cornwall
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Cornwall
United Kingdom: Walk the Cornish coast path. Every spring - and after big journeys - I make quite sure that I walk at least a three-day chunk of this path. I have yet to find a coastline that rivals it. Even in the rain it looks spectacular but on...
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The Nubian Desert
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Philip Marsden
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Egypt
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Nile
The ferryman steered his craft across the moonlit Nile. Above was the starry canopy of sky, ahead a black frieze of date palms. It was late. Khartoum was only 14 hours behind us, but we had already lost one vehicle in the Bayuda desert with a...
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Christmas in Rome
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Philip Marsden
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Italy
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Lazio
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Rome
Last year, to avoid the slightly sad scene of four adults sitting around a Christmas tree, my father-in-law suggested we abandon the traditions of his Hampshire home and go somewhere else entirely. "How about Rome?" he ventured. So, come the dark...
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Five Things to Do in Lisbon
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Philip Marsden
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Portugal
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Lisbon Region
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Lisbon
Lisbon is a city to wander in. With its compact centre, its fresh Atlantic air, its tumbling cobbled streets and metre-wide alleys, its unhurried pace and its cafes and bars, it offers a host of incidental pleasures to anyone able to spend a few...
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Hotel Tresanton
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Philip Marsden
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Switzerland
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Valais
Hotel Tresanton opened in the summer of 1998 and within a short time has established itself not only as Cornwall's best hotel but one of the most popular in Britain. How come? You can fly to virtually anywhere in the Mediterranean in the time it...
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Hotel Misc (formerly Zosa)
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Philip Marsden
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The Netherlands
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Amsterdam Region
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Amsterdam
The Hotel Misc is typical of many of central Amsterdam's buildings - tall, thin and full of charm. It's in what was once the spice area, known for its pungent and exotic smells. Now it is a quiet, canal-side location, within walking distance of most...
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Walking in Andalusia
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Philip Marsden
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Spain
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Andalucia (White Villages)
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Ronda
To the south-west of the town of Ronda are a number of flat-bottomed valleys which run unseen between pale limestone ridges. The valleys are high, suspended above the plains by steep-sided slopes which give no idea of what lies above them. Few...
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Under the Volcano
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Philip Marsden
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Italy
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Campania
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Naples
Daniella reached for the second bottle of champagne. "Don't worry," she said, "this party is not for you. It's just something we like to do at New Year." We'd been in Naples half an hour. We'd got no further than the travel agent and already a semi-...
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The Scilly Isles
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Philip Marsden
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United Kingdom
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Scilly Isles
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Tresco
After a few days on the off-islands of the Scillies, each with its mile or so of Land Rover track, its mossy furze-lined paths, its cast of recurring characters, you return to the main island, St Mary's, with something of a bump. Here are shops and...