Walking with Moses -- 14 Surreal Travel Expeditions: 14 Surreal Travel Expeditions

Author: Qiu Yixin
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2003-08-01
Features: 14 fantastical travel adventures! How can one awaken the adventurous gene deep within their soul? How much strength does one have to challenge strictly sealed borders? Qiu Yixin's Sindbad-like journeys continuously unveil the mysteries of various Middle Eastern countries, exploring the truth behind the Moses Route, and sneaking along the blue or white Nile. From Baghdad to India, within the realm of "One Thousand and One Nights," with a cold yet passionate eye—capturing the scenery of conflicts, telling the enigmatic truths. Allow me to be born with a love for fantasy, so travel often strikes me with sudden whims, especially when faced with those extraordinary sights still unexplained to this day. For example, why does a remote island in Chile have over a thousand giant statues? Why are there massive biological sketches in the Nazca Desert of Peru? And what is the familial connection between the Greek Sphinx (a winged man-faced monster) and the Egyptian Sphinx? These mysteries give the attractions more room for imagination and make my travels the "One Thousand and One Nights" in the eyes of my friends. Therefore, the 14 travel stories in this book are my own "One Thousand and One Nights." In fact, geographically, all 14 travel essays are set in places mentioned in "One Thousand and One Nights," such as Baghdad, Persia (Iran), India, Africa, and more. It is said that "One Thousand and One Nights" originated in ancient India over 1,400 years ago and later spread to Persia (Sassanid Empire), then disseminated throughout the Arab world. So, we can say: the realm of "One Thousand and One Nights" is almost the entire Islamic world, and the fantastical customs of "One Thousand and One Nights" are actually the local customs of the Islamic world. Thus, "One Thousand and One Nights" became my travel dream. However, life is full of dreams that must be realized. So, over the past decade and a half, despite encountering many difficulties, with the kind help of many people (who might just be incarnations of genies from Aladdin's lamp, lending me a helping hand?), I have been fortunate enough to travel through many countries in the modern Islamic world. Some of these are countries where obtaining visas is extremely difficult for ordinary people, such as Iraq and Iran. And me? Maybe...