Not all of Hamish Brown`s many travels about Scotland have taken up mountains or into wild & wind swept places, but he has found himself in some pretty odd locations. Now he has listed them, placing them in their regions, complete with references & directions to produce this beautiful & fascinating book that will take you around Scotland to places you never dreamed of. Beutifully designed by Heather Mac Pherson of Raspberryhmac, & with maps by David Langwell, The Oldest Post Office in the World is a book you will want not only for the car but for the coffee table & the book shelf. It`s one to use & one to treasure. ...

” All my life, I have dreamed of acquiring a crumbling, shabby-chic house overlooking the sea. In my mind`s eye, I have pictured a corner of paradise where friends can gather to swim, relax, debate, eat fresh fruits picked directly from the garden & great steaming plates of food served from an al fresco kitchen & dished up on to a candlelit table the length of a railway sleeper...” When Carol Drinkwater & her partner Michel have the opportunity to buy 10 acres of disused olive farm in Provence, the idea seems absurd. After all, they don`t have a lot of money, & they`ve only been together a little while. THE OLIVE FARM is the story of the highs & lows of purchasing the farm & life in Provence: the local customs & cuisine; the threats of fire & adoption of a menagerie of animals; the potential financial ruin & the thrill of harvesting their own olives
- especially when they are discovered to produce the finest extra-virgin olive oil...
...

The stars shimmer like spilled handfuls of glitter. The day is beginning to rise with a faint mist. As I turn my head, ghostly halos, auras of light, appear & disappear.. . The silence is truly awesome. Not a bird, not a whisper of wind, not a breath of life. Only the two of us, a most implausible pair, standing shoulder to shoulder gazing upon an awakening heaven Returning to their home after an extended absence Carol & her husband Michel are looking forward to summer together on the farm. A shocking blow leaves Carol alone & the future is uncertain. Feeling isolated & with no olives to harvest, Carol ventures beyond the farm to explore other aspects of Provencal life
- from hunting to bee-keeping, the ancient language to the ever-present demands of family & friends. & ultimately, Provence's generous diversity
- & Carol's own persistence in sharing it with those she loves
- paves a path to joy.


...

” The stars shimmer like spilled handfuls of glitter. The day is beginning to rise with a faint mist. As I turn my head, ghostly halos, auras of light, appear & disappear.. . The silence is truly awesome. Not a bird, not a whisper of wind, not a breath of life. Only the two of us, a most implausible pair, standing shoulder to shoulder gazing upon an awakening heaven” Returning to their home after an extended absence Carol & her husband Michel are looking forward to summer together on the farm. A shocking blow leaves Carol alone & the future is uncertain. Feeling isolated & with no olives to harvest, Carol ventures beyond the farm to explore other aspects of Provencal life
- from hunting to bee-keeping, the ancient language to the ever-present demands of family & friends. & ultimately, Provence`s generous diversity
- & Carol`s own persistence in sharing it with those she loves
- paves a path to joy.


...

The Olive Farm told how Carol Drinkwater & partner Michel fell in love with & bought an abandoned Provencal olive farm. Here, in The Olive Season, Carol is pregnant & their ever-loyal gardener is leaving to oversee the marriage of his son. Often unassisted, & with new challenges to face, Carol takes on the bulk of the farm work alone. Water is, as ever, a costly problem, & she goes in search of a diviner who promises almost magical results. But, as the harvest season approaches, dramatic events cast dark shadows of their olive farm. ...

The Olympic Games is the world`s biggest sporting extravaganza with athletes from more than 200 countries either attempting to qualify for, or actually compete in, more than two dozen sports over three weeks. There are hundreds of stories from the Games, stretching back to the end of the 19th century, tales of bravery, misery, joy & despair, together with thought-provoking lists & records. The Olympic Games Miscellany is not a history book, a biography, an encyclopedia or a records book, but it is a little bit of all of them. All true sports fans will enjoy dipping into these pages & learning about some of the greatest athletes ever to have taken the Olympic Oath. ...

The Olympic Peninsula in the Moon Spotlight guide series; covering a range of specific local cities, districts, areas & regions in North, Central & South America & targeted at those seeking to travel to a specific area within a country. Each of the guides has been extracted in full from the relevant country Moon Handbook & individual titles focus on a particular city, region or notable area of the destination. Many of the guides in the series are unique in their coverage, although are limited in putting the destination into its wider geographical context that a more comprehensive guide would provide. Stylistically, Moon ...

Amazing & Extraordinary Facts: The Olympics is a unique compendium of little-known facts about the most famous sporting event in history. After the ` Olympic fever` of the 2012 Olympic Games: London 2012, you can now all there is to know about the history of the Olympic Games. From their origins in ancient Greece to the most famous Olympic medalists, Amazing & Extraordinary Facts: The Olympics covers a range of trivia for every sport lover to enjoy. You can discover the athletes who have set the marks for modern sporting excellence, & wonder at the records set by competitors across the years. As the ` Greatest Show on Earth` graces the City of London it is the time to swot up on the hidden history & unusual facts behind the Olympic Games, past & present. Who reprimanded Hitler during the 1936 Olympic Games? When did the Olympic event `shin kicking` get banned? Which Shakespearean play refers to the Olympic Games? Who was the first official cheat in 388BC? Find the answers to these & many other intriguing aspects about the Olympic Games in this absorbing collection of stories & trivia ...

An intriguing miscellany of Olympic facts & figures to impress your friends & family with as they sit rapt in front of this summer’s London Games! Did you know that that the Olympic Hockey event at London 2012 will be, for the first time in history, contested on blue pitches? Or that there wasn’t room on the scoreboard for Nadia Comaneci’s unprecedented seven perfect scores of ten causing spectator fury as her marks came up as ‘1.00’? Well, even if you did, you brainbox you, you’re still guaranteed to find plenty more titbits to entertain you in this wonderfully more-ish collection. Perfect to dip into while the athletes are on their comfort breaks! ...

Geoff Tiballs’ wonderful collection The Olympics` Strangest Moments: Extraordinary But True Stories from the History of the Olympic Games (Portico, 2012) is a selection of the most unusual, jawdropping, & just plain bizarre moments in over a century of modern Olympics history. Be in turn amused & astonished by the array of Olympic feats & fortunes described here in very readable, bite size anecdotes… From the unlikely Olympic hero of Dorando Pieri, who missed out on a gold medal in the 1908 marathon when over anxious London officials dragged him over the finish line, to the spectacular achievement of the US gymnast George Eyser, who won three gold medal in 1904 with a wooden leg, Geoff Tibbals provides a weird & wonderful collection of some of the most astonishing moments in the history of the Games, all perfectly timed to enhance our appreciation of this summer’s fun. Delve into this highly enjoyable collection & get yourself some Olympic spirit! ...