1
I felt sure we could gain the upper hand by putting ourselves in the mindset of the Incas.Tahir Shah
2
Contemplation is a luxury, requiring time and alternatives.Tahir Shah
3
When I am about to embark on a difficult journey, I comfort myself by reading the accounts of the great nineteenth-century travellers, men like Stanley, Burton, Speke, Burckhardt and Barth.Tahir Shah
4
[T]hrough bitter experience I have learned that it is best to promise little and then to reward hard work with generosity.Tahir Shah
5
Money spent on good-quality gear is always money well spent.Tahir Shah
6
Usually, there is nothing more pleasing that returning to a place where you have endured hardship.Tahir Shah
7
It was an awkward moment. We were burning down our host's house, a situation which any guest seeks to avoid.Tahir Shah
8
In moments of great uncertainty on my travels, I have always felt that something is protecting me, that I will come to no harm.Tahir Shah
9
There's nothing like a pack of mules to give one a sense of entourage.Tahir Shah
10
As anyone who's ever taken an Ethiopian bus knows, there is an unwritten rule that the windows must remain firmly closed.Tahir Shah
11
I had learned years ago never to give original documents to anyone if I could help it.Tahir Shah
12
A journey, I reflected, is of no merit unless it has tested you.Tahir Shah
13
Most journeys have a clear beginning, but on some the ending is less well-defined. The question is, at what point do you bite your lip and head for home?Tahir Shah
14
The first rule of an expedition is that everyone should stick together.Tahir Shah
15
There's nothing quite like a good quest for getting your blood pumping.Tahir Shah
16
As far as Samson was concerned I was just another foreigner in pursuit of a lunatic quest.Tahir Shah
17
But in Africa bureaucrats are usually too proud to accept a bribe, something I admire when I'm not the one being arrested.Tahir Shah
18
In any case, a little danger is a small price to pay for ridding a place of tourists.Tahir Shah
19
The first few hours in the cell were quite stimulating. I'd never been in a prison cell before and was quite enjoying the experience.Tahir Shah