Songs of the Baka and other discoveries
Subtitle: travels after age sixty-five
By: Dennis James; photography by Barbara Grossman
Contributors: Grossman, Barbara, photographer
Published: 2017
Language: eng
Number of pages: 214
ISBN-13: 9781510713505
Subjects: Social life and customs; Travel; Retirees; Description and travel
Description: "After their retirement, Dennis James and Barbara Grossman decide to travel where tour buses wont and where the US government says 'don't,' incorporating trekking into their travels as a way to see untouched areas of the world considered inhospitable by many.  Armed with a passport, an interest in non-Western and indigenous cultures, a spirit for adventure, and a sense of humor, they hike through the forests in the highlands of Papua New Guinea; visit the traditional hunter-gatherer Baka Pygmy community in Cameroon; stay with the cliff-dwelling Dogon people in Mali; explore Roman ruins in Algeria; meet a nervous mother rhino in Nepal; and witness bull-jumping, a coming-of-age ritual for young Hamer men in Ethiopia. In defiance of typical tourist travel, ignoring State Department warnings, and with a curiosity and hardiness that belies their ages, Dennis and Barbara choose to travel the roads not taken so frequently—to places like Cuba, Iran, Venezuela, and Gaza—seeking the truth behind the headlines and exploring the deeper questions about the local cultures they encounter. Why do these people cling to the art, sexual mores, economic and political hierarchies, and spiritualities that govern their lives? And how and why do they remain resistant to the pressures of globalization? A journey into the other sides of the world, Songs of the Baka and Other Discoveries puts aside preconceptions and combines the wisdom of age with the stamina of youth" --
Table of contents: title: Introduction; title: Papua New Guinea: expect the unexpected; title: Algeria: blood, sand, and natural gas; title: Nepal: Langtang Valley trek; title: Cameroon: songs of the Baka; title: Cuba: state of the arts; title: Mali: before the storm; title: Iran: the absence of evil; title: The Orinoco, Venezuala: in Humboldt's wake; title: State of Palestine: mission to Gaza; title: Ethiopia: the Omo River Valley; title: Afterword.