BERNARD OLLIVIER

Bernard Ollivier pensait en avoir fini avec la route de la Soie. Douze mille kilomètres à pied, de la Turquie à la Chine, cela suffit pour un retraité ! C’était compter sans sa compagne Bénédicte Fla

Bernard Ollivier pensait en avoir fini avec la route de la Soie. Douze mille kilomètres à pied, de la Turquie à la Chine, cela suffit pour un retraité ! C'était compter sans sa compagne Bénédicte Fla

Doce mil kilómetros de caminos y senderos, a pie por la mítica y legendaria ruta de la seda, ésta es la marcha que Bernard Ollivier, a los 62 años, tiene la firme intención de realizar. Bernard viaja solo, a pie con su mochila y con un poco de dinero en el bolsillo, lo justo para no ser tentacion de los ladrones. A menudo avanza por senderos que no aparecen en ningun mapa, fiandose de las indicaciones de los lugareños y sin saber bajo que techo (si es que lo hay) dormira la proxima noche. En el primer volumen de esta ruta Bernard nos narra la dificil travesia de la meseta de Anatolia. Desde Estambul hasta pocos kilometros antes de Iran.

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 Behçet, 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.

Acclaimed journalist Bernard Ollivier continues his epic journey across Persia and Central Asia as he walks the length of the Great Silk Road. Walking to Samarkand is journalist Bernard Olliviers stunning account of the second leg of his 7,200-mile walk from Istanbul, Turkey, to Xian, China, along the Silk Road--the longest and perhaps most mythical trade route of all time. Picking up where Out of Istanbul left off, Ollivier heads out of the Middle East and into Central Asia, grappling not only with his own will to continue but with new, unforeseen dangers. After crossing the final mountain passes of Turkish Kurdistan, Ollivier sets foot in Iran, keen on locating vestiges of the silk trade as he passes through Persias modern cities and traditional villages, including Tabriz, Tehran, Nishapur, and the holy city of Mashhad. Beyond urban areas lie deserts: first Irans Great Salt Desert, then Turkmenistans forbidding Karakum, whose relentless sun, snakes, and scorpions pose continuous challenges to Olliviers goal of reaching Uzbekistan. Setting his own fears aside, he travels on, wonderstruck at every turn, borne by a childhood dream: to see for himself the golden domes and turquoise skies of Samarkand, one of Central Asias most ancient cities. But what Ollivier enjoys most are the people along the way: Askar, the hospitable gardener; the pilgrims of Mashhad; and his knights in shining armor, Mehdi and Monir. For, despite setting out alone, he comes to find that walking itselfthrough a kind of alchemysurrounds him with friends and fosters fellowship. From the authoritarian mullahs of revolutionary Iran to the warm welcome of everyday Iranianscustodians of age-old, cordial Persian culture; from the stark realities of former Soviet republics to the regions legendary bazaarsveritable feasts for the sensesreaders discover, through the eyes of a veteran journalist, the rich history and contemporary culture of these amazing lands.

Bernard Ollivier pushes onward in his attempt to become the first person to walk the entire length of the Great Silk Road. A gripping account. More than just a travel storythis is a quest for the Other.Alexis Liebaert, LEvenement Picking up where Walking to Samarkand left off, Winds of the Steppe continues the astonishing tale of journalist Bernard Olliviers 7,200-mile walk from Turkey to China along the Silk Road, the longest and most mythical trade route of all time. Taking readers from the snows of the Pamir Mountains to the backstreets of Kashgara Central Asian city that could be the setting for One Thousand and One Nightsto the Tian Shan Mountains to the endless Taklamakan and Gobi Deserts of Chinas Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, Bernard Ollivier continues his epic foot journey along the Great Silk Road hoping to make his way to Han China and reach, at long last, the legendary city of Xian. After traveling through a region dotted with former Buddhist shrines, Ollivier finds himself craving the warm welcome of Islamic lands, where, regardless of their culture or nationality, travelers are often treated as esteemed guests. Beyond the occasional vestige of the old Silk Road, Ollivier comes face to face with sites of religious significance, Chinas Great Wall, and of course thousands of everyday people along the way. As Ollivier tries to make sense of his journey and find connections between these peoples daily lives and the so-called modern world, he does so with a sense of humility that transforms his personal journey into a universal quest.

Doce mil kilómetros de caminos y denseros en solitario, a pie por la mística Ruta de la Seda: esta es la marcha que decide realizar Bernard Ollivier. Sus botas, un poco de dinero en el bolsillo, lo justo para no ser tentacion para los ladrones, y su mochila le acompañan. Come y duerme donde puede, confiando en la hospitalidad de los habitantes de los pueblos que encuentra a su paso.

Rebattre, entre 14 et 18 ans, les cartes de leurs vies un peu biseautées par des enfances brisées, c’est le contrat que Seuil, association atypique en France, propose à des adolescents égarés, embour

Tout va mal. Dans les fermes, les paysans tuent leurs sols et sont tués parfois eux-mêmes par le glyphosate. La plupart de ceux qui échappent au cancer travaillent pour rien. Entendez-vous dans nos c

Bernard Ollivier pensait en avoir fini avec la route de la Soie. Douze mille kilomètres à pied, de la Turquie à la Chine, cela suffit pour un retraité ! C’était compter sans sa compagne Bénédicte Fla

Rebattre, entre 14 et 18 ans, les cartes de leurs vies un peu biseautées par des enfances brisées, c’est le contrat que Seuil, association atypique en France, propose à des adolescents égarés, embour