This is a place of spectacle & ruin, Mumbai exemplifies the cosmopolitan metropolis. It is not just a big city but also a soaring vision of modern urban life. Millions from India & beyond, of different ethnicities, languages, & religions, have washed up on its shores, bringing with them their desires & ambitions. ” Mumbai Fables” explores the mythic inner life of this legendary city as seen by its inhabitants, journalists, planners, writers, artists, filmmakers, & political activists. In this remarkable cultural history of one of the world`s most important urban centers, Gyan Prakash unearths the stories behind its fabulous history, viewing Mumbai through its turning points & kaleidoscopic ideas, comic book heroes, & famous scandals
- the history behind Mumbai`s stories of opportunity & oppression, of fabulous wealth & grinding poverty, of cosmopolitan desires & nativist energies. Starting from the catastrophic floods & terrorist attacks of recent years, Prakash reaches back to the sixteenth-century Portuguese conquest to reveal the stories behind Mumbai`s historic journey. Examining Mumbai`s role as a symbol of opportunity & reinvention, he looks at its nineteenth-century development under British rule & its twentieth-century emergence as a fabled city on the sea. Different layers of urban experience come to light as he recounts the narratives of the Nanavati murder trial & the rise & fall of the tabloid Blitz, & Mumbai`s transformation from the red city of trade unions & communists into the saffron city of Hindu nationalist Shiv Sena. Starry-eyed planners & elite visionaries, cynical leaders & violent politicians of the street, land sharks & underworld dons jostle with ordinary citizens & poor immigrants as the city copes with the dashed dreams of postcolonial urban life & lurches into the seductions of globalization. Shedding light on the city`s past & present, ” Mumbai Fables” offers an unparalleled look at this extraordinary metropolis.
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“ Mumbai to Mecca” is an incredible travelogue, reminiscent of the journeys written by such travellers as Richard Burton, who saw Mecca, but through different eyes, & with a different faith.` From the first very first moment they realize that the Hajj
- the pilgrimage to Mecca
- is among the duties of each & every Muslim
- the faithful long to go.` This is how it was for Ilija Trojanow, when he donned the ihram, the two white wraps of light terry cloth, the traditional garb of the pilgrim, & boarded a plane in Mumbai to fly to Jeddah. He joined hundreds of thousands of Muslims, who each year go on the Hajj. In the three short weeks of his spiritual journey he witnessed a tradition dating back over one thousand years. This experience, though shared by many millions, is a very personal one & his account of it is moving & enlightening. It makes the Hajj accessible to non-Muslims, barred from the holy sites of Islam, & thereby is a valuable contribution to inter-cultural understanding & inter-faith dialogue.


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Ilija Trojanow`s journey from Mumbai to Mecca is told in the tradition of the rihla, one of the oldest genres of classical Arabic literature & describes the Hajj, the pilgrimage to the holy sites of Islam. ` From the very first moment they realise that the Hajj
- the pilgrimage to Mecca
- is among the duties of each & every Muslim, the faithful long to go.` Trojanov, with the help of his friends, donned the ihram, the traditional garb of the pilgrim. He joined hundreds of thousands of Muslims who each year go on the Hajj, the greatest demonstration of the Muslim faith. In three short weeks he experienced a tradition dating back over one thousand years This is his account, personal yet enlightening, for the interested non-Muslims who remain barred from the holy sites of Islam.

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Mumbai in the Wallpaper* City Guide series, published by Phaidon & encompassing a collection of pocket-size guides dedicated to the best design elements in major cities. Compiled by experts at the Wallpaper* magazine, the guides are widely recognized for appealing to design-conscious travellers & are aimed at those interested in art, design & architecture. Each guide identifies the best bars, restaurants, hotels, places to shop, leisure activities & excursions with a unique emphasis on the finest examples of unusual architecture & design. Each Wallpaper* City Guide has the same layout, with separate tabs allowing readers & travellers to access individual sections easily. The tabs consist of Landmarks, Hotels, 24 Hours, Urban Life, Architour, Shopping, Sports & Escapes. High quality colour photographs appear alongside brief descriptions of each hotel, bar or attraction, highlighting distinctive & unusual styles of architecture & design. Extra pages are provided at the back of each guide, allowing readers to record their own notes & sketches. ...

Ten Heritage Walks in Mumbai guide introduces the visitor to lesser known & often forgotten streets, sights & sounds of the city, including many buildings from the days of the Raj: schools, churches, municipal offices, etc. Each walk is presented on a street plan annotated with the sights described in the guide & is illustrated with numerous photos. Informative text & additional “ Did you know” panels provide interesting & informative background notes & descriptions. ...

In Whittlesey, Cambridgeshire, a man covered from head to toe in straw
- the `straw bear`
- is paraded through the streets,

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The mummy portraits of Roman Egypt are haunting images of ancient faces: anonymous people painted by anonymous artists. & yet, they are historical & cultural documents of outstanding interest & importance, & many are of superb artistic quality. This type of portrait appeared in Egypt in the first century AD, & remained popular for around 200 years. Though the subjects believed in the traditional Egyptian cults, which offered them a firm prospect of life after death, they also wished to be commemorated in the Roman manner. Portraits were commissioned that would serve as a realistic record of the deceased as he or she had appeared in life. These were painted on a wooden board at a roughly lifelike scale, which was then placed on the outside of the cartonnage coffin over the head of the individual or carefully placed into the mummy wrappings. The images also reveal the adoption of Roman fashions in dress & personal adornment by persons remote from the centre of the empire but likely to have been actively engaged in its local administration. By careful assessment of the hairstyles, clothes & jewelery, it is possible to date the portraits, often within a decade or so. Many of the finest & best-known examples come from the Fayum & are a dazzling testament to the Greek painting tradition, in particular the sophistication of the Alexandrian school, from which they are derived. It is not until some fifteen centuries later, in the faces painted by Titian or Rembrandts depiction of his own features as he saw them reflected in a mirror, that the same artistry that characterizes many of the anonymous painters of the Fayum is witnessed again. ...

Mummy time is magic time in this unexpected & enchanting new tale from the one & only Judith Kerr, creator of The Tiger Who Came to Tea & Mog the Forgetful Cat. From Judith Kerr OBE comes a future classic to touch the heart & tickle the funny bone. With whip-smart observation, illustration perfection & the unexpected twist on the everyday that personifies Judith`s classics, Mummy Time is sure to join the ranks of her very best, & bestselling, books. Full of warmth, whimsy & wit
- & the very special magic that can only happen when you`re with Mummy...
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Tiny Troll loves his mummy more than anything, even puddles & earwigs, but when Mrs Troll begins curling her bristles, ready to go out, Tiny Troll bursts into tears. He wants to go too! What will it take for Mrs Hag, the babysitter, to settle him down to sleep? Patience, cuddles & mud-milk. & a goodnight kiss from Mum when she gets home. ...

Munchberg in a series of GPS compatible recreational editions of the Bavarian topographic survey at 1:25, 000, with waymarked hiking trails & cycling routes, campsites & youth hostels, etc. Coverage

Includes:: Helmbrechts, Marktleugast, Stammbach, Weißenstadt, Gefrees, Zell im Fichtelgebirge. Contours used in this map vary between 5 to 20m according to the terrain, with 20m interval predominantly used for hilly areas. Varied colouring show different types of landscape: woods, vineyards, fields etc. Maps in this series feature extensive overprint highlighting local & long-distance footpaths & cycle routes, including King Ludwig Way or different variants of the Way of St James, indicating their waymarking. Symbols highlight different types of accommodation (campsites, youth hostels, refuges, etc), sport & recreational facilities, various places of interest, etc. The maps have a 1-km UTM grid. Map legend & all the text are in German only. To see other titles in this series please click on the series link.

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