My exploring nearly done, I return to London where my first mad geography lesson began. I cross the English Channel by ferry, and then drive across the battle fields of France and Belgium to Amsterdam, where I enjoy red lights and some hashish, until I am run over by a Dutch girl on a bicycle. […]

I end my travels to the Americas by exploring the fabled cities of Yucatan. I drive through the jungle to Palenque and visit the Mayan pyramids made famous by Catherwood and Stephens; I wander through the mysterious ball courts, peer into the deep cenotes, and then navigate my way back to Mexico City for a

It’s time to explore the Americas again. Heading south to Peru, I fly over the Nazca Lines in a chariot of the gods, descend the Urubamba River Valley to Hiram Bingham’s lost city of Machu Picchu, and then jump onto a gunboat on Lake Titicaca; I finish my travels on Easter Island, exploring its enigmatic,

Excited by my visit to the spiritual home of the Dalai Lama, the Red Dragon lures me to the People’s Republic of China. Here I pay my respect to Mao Zedong (in his glass box), take a stroll through the Forbidden City, and then enjoy a bracing walk along the Great Wall, before flying to

I hunger to go farther east than ever before, and so on my next wild adventure I fly to New Delhi to begin a journey across India. After watching the sun rise at dawn over the Taj Mahal, I take a train ride along the Ganges River to the holy city of Varanasi, and then

After exploring the Middle East for over a decade, I fix my sextant on the star of Africa: I climb Mount Kilimanjaro at midnight to a symphony of snow, lightning and thunder; and then jump on a bus to Zanzibar for some snorkelling, before taking a dhow across the Indian Ocean to Mombasa, and travelling

I am lured back once more to Egypt, Jordan, Syria and Israel; this time I make a parabolic journey into the ancient river valleys of Mesopotamia, roaming the silent ruins of Palmyra, Mari, Dura Europa, and Tel Brak—where I bump into the ghost of Agatha Christie, who once spent time here excavating a giant tell

Iran is one of the world’s oldest civilizations; unfortunately, the Ayatollah won’t approve my visa, so I email President Ahmadinejad instead. Surprise! Before I can say Shah’s your uncle I am hurtling farther east than ever before into the Valley of the Assassins, the ruins of the great fire temple of Takht-e Soleyman, the Achaemid

It’s time for a new adventure. I decide to travel across Turkey: my route takes me from the Bosporus to the Hittite ruins of Bogazkale, then on to the hierothesion of Nemrut Dagi (where I am mistaken for a spy), before winding my way back along the Royal Road once used by Alexander the Great

The wind at my heels, I plunge deep into Yemen and explore Saana, Aden and the Hadhramaut; travelling along the Incense Road I photograph more ancient rock inscriptions, and then stumble across the ruins of a sun temple left over from the days of the Queen of Sheba, as tribesmen celebrate in the market place