Jul 18, 2009 11:13 AM
by Stefan Beck
When it comes to travel, we modern folk have it far too easy. Is it possible any longer to have an adventure when, according to this Der Spiegel piece, even “the highest point on Earth, the 8,848 meter peak of Everest” is in danger of become a tourist trap? Billi Bierling, a journalist and, as of May, the first German woman to summit Everest from Nepal, warns that “[m]any [climbers] don’t know how to put on crampons or even how to hold an ice pick. . . . Anyone looking for a mountain adventure shouldn’t go for Everest.” Blame it on “the Sherpas and infrastructure—such as fixed ropes leading right up to the summit,” not to mention the creature comforts available to climbers at surreal “base camps.”
In days of old, travel was hard. Eric Newby’s A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush, which I mentioned here, is an excellent picture of the terror and discomfort a real climb should involve. Miserable travels abound in this Five Best from last week’s Journal—apologies for the delay, but I myself was on the move. These titles are great non-beach reads for those wise enough to stay indoors where it’s safe.
Of course, just because superior technology and maps have rendered genuine exploration obsolete, doesn’t mean that the truly ghastly, National Lampoon-style vacation is a thing of the past. Which is a polite way of saying don’t ask about the Acropolis Museum.
( AHR-mah wih-ROOM-kweh)
In the Aeneid, the Roman poet Virgil sang of "arms and a man" (Arma virumque cano). Month in and month out, The New Criterion expounds with great clarity and wit on the art, culture, and political controversies of our times. With postings of reviews, essays, links, recs, and news, Armavirumque seeks to continue this mission in accordance with the timetable of the digital age.
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