Brilliant Things for Akhenaten

Dr Paul Nicholson one of our Guide Lecturers has realsed a new book read below to find out more:

Brilliant Things for Akhenaten: The Production of Glass, Vitreous Materials and Pottery at Amarna Site 0.45.1

This book examines the coming of glass to Egypt and its relationship to the production of faience and pottery, particularly at Amarna site O45.1. The text combines excavated evidence with experimental archaeology and laboratory analyses to give a reconstruction of the production of glass and other materials at Amarna, both in terms of technology and social context. The excavations carried out by Flinders Petrie at Amarna (18912) are reassessed in the light of the new work and finds from that time put into a broader perspective. 394p, b/w illus, tabs, CD with images (Excavation Memoirs 80, Egypt Exploration Society 2007)

Click here for more information

Two rooms available on our Egypt tour

There are two double or twin rooms unexpectedly available on our very popular Egypt Tour, running 23 March to 7 April 2008. Led by Dr Paul Nicholson, senior lecturer at Cardiff University, this tour is in its second successful year – highlights include an exploration of a ‘real’, virtually tourist-free middle Egypt, and the vast and atmospheric site of Tel-el Amarna, the capital of Egypt under the pharaoh Akhenaten, where Paul excavated for several years. As well as all the must-see sites from Cairo to Aswan, we include 4 nights on a wonderful 5 star deluxe Nile boat, and a flight to Abu Simbel to see the magnificent temples built by Ramses II. Other departures in April, October and November are also available.

Heading off on Bare Bones Leptis this February?

If so have a look at our new Google map of the tour by clicking here. If you like what you see and are not booked on the tour this February, don't worry because you can still book on our November tour. Visit the tour page or ring on 01722 713800.

If there is a tour you would really like to see a new Google map of email daniel@andantetravels.co.uk

Peru. Once experienced, never forgotten…

Starting with the Pacific coast, one of the driest places on earth where rain is almost unknown except for the devastating storms which happen once in a lifetime, and which may well be responsible for wiping out successive civilisations….

Continuing to the thin, pure air of the Highlands which brightens every colour, and the local people revel in this, wearing the brightest of patterns in joyous colours.

Where guinea pig is a delicacy, tamales (thick rissoles of maize meal) are a staple dish and the drink everyone wants to learn how to make is a pisco sour.

For the uninitiated, as David Drew writes, Peru normally means the Incas, an extraordinarily well organised society that tamed their harsh environment and produced a uniquely formidable architecture in meticulously fitted stone. But in reality their grip on the area was short – some 100 years at most, and brutally cut short by the invading conquistadors.

For thousands of years before that, a variety of civilisations, each reaching heights more astounding than the last, had developed in Peru, and not just in the Highlands, but more significantly, along the long stretch of Pacific coastline. This is a strip of desert which runs for 1,000 miles through Peru and down into Chile where rain almost never falls.

By the first millennium BC, the peoples of the coastal valleys had learnt to irrigate the desert, transforming the river mouths into verdant oases that supported huge populations who built enormous constructions: temples, cities, vast palace compounds.
One of the great secrets that Andante’s travellers come to share is how untouched and little visited are most of the stupendous archaeological sites of Peru. Standing on the sandy plain near Trujillo on Peru’s north coast, for example, where once stood a great city of the Moche people between the enormous pyramids of the Sun and the Moon, we hear how both structures are built like Russian dolls, one construction laid over another. You could be on the west bank of the Nile at Thebes in the late 19th century – such is the quiet, the air of mystery and the knowledge that so much remains to be discovered.

The exciting excavations at the temple of the Moon, Trujillo, revealing vast new stucco panels from former temples, since each was built over the other, like Russian dolls

The same is true of Chan Chan with its great mud brick compounds (the biggest in the world) for the rulers of the Chimu. Each king building a fresh compound of his own next to his predecessor’s.

In Chan Chan, the greatest adobe city on earth, each new ruler created his royal compound afresh, a neighbour to his predecessor’s.

The arid conditions of the desert preserve past generations and their artefacts in sometimes shockingly fresh condition. Walking through the cemeteries of El Brujo, for instance, human bones and woven fabrics emerge eerily from the blowing sand. Hundreds of years have passed since their burial, but their mummified remains and brilliant weaving is just dessicated. Great private and public collections of pots, mummies and vast quantities of textiles hve sat in display cases and museum stores for many years.

One of the greatest fascinations here, despite the arrival of the conquistadors, is the strong and detectable continuity from the pre-Columbian past to the present. In the more remote areas of the country (some of which we visit), traditional farming communities maintain a way of life and many basic beliefs which appear to have changed little since ancient times. And it is this very basic “human” connection with the past which makes a trip to Peru so intense and exciting.


Andante guests (bottom left) concentrate on balancing as they walk alongside the salt pans. The pans are all individually owned and tended by local people.

From the arid desert landscapes of the coast, with the majestic but eerie adobe ruins, the contrast could not be greater when you then arrive in the brilliant colours of the verdant Highlands of Peru. Landing at Cusco, a sign welcomes you which tells you that it is not Altitude Sickness which makes you feel giddy, it is being so close to heaven. And it might seem that there is much truth in this.

Much has been written about Cusco, The Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu, and I very much doubt that I could improve upon it here. Suffice it to say that it is all true. The air is clearer, the colours are brighter, the people more colourful. David’s local connections through working with the Cusichaca Trust mean that we are greeted by local villagers and invited to a potato tasting (there are hundreds of different varieties) in one of the villages famed for its weaving.

As well as the hundreds of different types of potato (of which we sample many), Peru produces a magnificent variety of maize cobs…

These connections mean David also knows exactly how best to visit Machu Picchu – a first visit at the end of the afternoon when all the day trippers are returning and the site is quietly waiting nightfall, and then up before daybreak to ensure we are sitting waiting in the greyness of dawn to catch the first dramatic shafts of light as they strafe the iconic hillside opposite and illuminate the Inca village below. These are the things that memories are made of…

The mists rise as the day dawns over Machu Picchu. It is a magical moment – humming birds and butterflies suddenly appear from nowhere as one of the most dramatic sites in the world is lit up for another day.

Click here for the webpage for this tour

Travels in Archaeology - extra tour dates for 2008

Every year we find that certain tours fill unexpectedly quickly after the brochure is published and, as we hate to dissappoint people, we do our best to arrange extra departures.

Andante’s Guide Lecturers enjoy leading the tours so they can usually be persuaded to help us out, but sometimes their other work commitments mean that they have no more time to spare. This year the most popular tours which filled immediately were: Egypt, Ravenna and Aquileia, Albania, Syria and Provence.

We feel very lucky to be working with a new Guide Lecturer who has offered to lead two tours to Egypt for us in 2008 – Lucia Gahlin. Lucia is an experienced excavator and lecturer, and has published a number of books on Egyptian religion and artefacts. One of her fans has described her as: “a fresh-faced whirlwind of enthusiasm who instantly captured wide attention and affection for her ability to communicate her extensive knowledge in a lively and entertaining way” – an impression which was confirmed by a meeting with Andante staff.

A new Spring Egypt tour has now been set up and is ready to go – the dates are 2nd – 17th April 2008, and the programme is the same as that advertised in the brochure, except that we are using another boat for the Nile Cruise – of 5* standard, but larger than that on the original tour. We are also in the process of finalising arrangements for a tour during the first half of November, since the original autumn tour is also full – please contact the office for details.

The popularity of our tour to see the wonderful mosaics of Ravenna and Aquileia has continued into 2008, and the April departure filled very quickly. We therefore asked Professor Tony King, who has previously led this tour for us, if he would lead an extra tour in early May. Very fortunately he said yes, and the dates are 6th – 13th May 2008. Because of hotel availability, we are running the tour the other way round on this occasion – beginning with Aquileia, and ending with Ravenna. This will work well chronologically – as the mosaics in Aquileia are mainly late Roman, whereas those in Ravenna are Byzantine – and Tony is pleased to have the opportunity to explain the history this way round. It does mean that the tour will no longer be able to end with a morning in Venice, but there are likely to be other advantages to make up for this.

Bookings for Syria have been excellent for Autumn 2008, and this has given us a long awaited opportunity to offer an extra departure to Dr Mike Bishop. He has been a very popular leader of tours around Roman Britain, and is already leading the Saxon Shore Forts tour for us in 2008. However, he also knows Syria well, and will be leading an extra departure which will follow on from the existing tour – probably 22nd October – 1st November. We are awaiting final confirmation of one or two details, but this looks almost set to go.

Another stroke of luck was to have persuaded Oliver Gilkes, our very popular Guide Lecturer for Albania and other destinations, to lead a third Albania tour for us in Autumn 2008. This is an unusual tour to an amazing destination, and Oliver is the best person to lead it, having excavated at Butrint for many years, through difficult periods of the country’s chequered recent history which he has experienced at first hand. The new departure will be either just before or just after our original autumn tour dates (29th September – 8th October) – we are still confirming availability – phone us for details and confirmation.

We have also been delighted at the popularity of our Provence tour this year – we had rested it for a while, and are now offering access by train, rather than by plane. The sites and the countryside are truly wonderful – not to mention the food and drink, of course. We are planning a second departure in the autumn, and will have the details available very soon.

Extra tours dates

Ravenna, Aquileia, Rome and her heirs 6th – 13th May 2008
Syria – From the Hauran to the Euphrates 27th Oct – 1st Nov 2008
Egypt – Land of the Pharaohs 2nd - 17th April 2008
Albania – Land of the Eagles 29th Sept – 8th Oct 2008
Provence – Barbarians, Greeks and Romans (by train) Autumn 2008

(Dates in italics are provisional please ring for confirmation.)

Experience Libya this Spring

No-one with an interest in the ancient world will want to miss the Classical sites of Libya.

There is still a sense of adventure in visiting a country which is still only just opening up to tourism – the visa process is more complicated than for most Mediterranean destinations – but our guests always come back full of enthusiasm for the unspoilt and unexploited sites, and also for the friendliness of the Libyan people.

Dr Denise Allen, Deputy Director of Andante says, “The preservation of the ruins here is unfailingly impressive, and they are set against what must be one of the longest undeveloped beaches on the Mediterranean.

We offer two nine–day tours for Spring 2008.
The first, from 18th – 26th March is led by Dr Josephine Quinn of the University of Oxford, who is particularly interested in the differences between Punic Tripolitania and Greek Cyrenaica.

A second tour, from 22nd - 30th April benefits from the expertise of Professor Bill Manning, who has led many tours for us to various parts of the Classical world, including a number to Libya.”

Click here to go to our webpage for this tour

The Maya in Guatemala and Belize – a different world.

Trips to discover the ancient world don’t come much more exotic than this. As Director of Andante Travels, I have been on many tours, but this one remains fresh in my memory – every day a new adventure in extraordinary surroundings, and the nights in interesting (in some cases superb) hotels.

We start with a flourish - staying in one of the most famous hotels in the world – the converted monastery of Santo Domingo in Antigua. We enjoy the luxuries and eccentricities of this extraordinary hotel and take time to explore, acclimatize and delight in the pure air of the Guatemalan highlands.

Thousands of candles light the walkways every evening and home-made cakes and coffee are set up on little tables in the courtyards to greet you after a day unravelling the early colonial monuments built post-Conquistadors. Fresh flower petals float on the stone basins and tiny streams around the patios. We have never stayed in a more enchanting place. http://www.casasantodomingo.com.gt/english/index.html

From Antigua, we drive east to the capital, Guatemala City, to visit the National Museum of Archaeology and Ethnography and get our first glimpse into the world of the Ancient Maya. David Drew, your guide and author of The Lost Chronicles of the Maya Kings, is likely to take this opportunity to introduce you to the nature of glyphs (picture writing, below), which recount in great detail the exploits of great lords and mighty warriors. Learning and attempting to decipher glyphs as the holiday progressed was an unexpected pleasure.

Two Maya Royals confront each other on the back of this unique "throne" in the National Museum. Note the elegance of their manicured fingers and their skulls, deliberately deformed in their youth to mimic the pointed skull of the corn god.

Crossing briefly into Honduras, we then spend a full day on foot around the site of Copan - one of the most famous of all the Mayan cities which flourished around AD 450.

Once you are introduced to the complex religious and political iconography revealed in the temples and monuments, exploration takes on its own addictive quality. And surrounding you are brightly coloured parrots in the trees, slow iguanas winding themselves around branches above your head and toucans in the shafts of sunshine. Andante’s tour manager will try to convince the site guardians that our guests should have their traditional picnic in these surroundings – and whilst there’s not a great deal of choice for your lunch in this little place, even a simple lunch in such a place is likely to be memorable.

The following day, standing by the wonderfully carved stele at Quirgua, once a vassal state of Mayan Copan, David will recount the tale of Lord “Cauac Sky” of Quirgua who captured his overlord “18 Rabbit” of Copan and bore him home triumphantly to be sacrificed.

Happily, no such fate awaits us, as we are borne by boat across the bay to our next hotel to disembark in its gardens amongst many surprised pelicans.

Don’t worry, the porters take care of our luggage once we arrive at the hotel's garden by motor launch

We are now in the unique Afro-Caribbean town of Livingston, quite different in every way from the societies of Guatemala and Belize. The next morning we board an open launch to spend much of the day motoring gently up the wide Rio Dulce, heavy jungle and mangrove swamps on either side, binoculars at the ready, passing tiny villages and fabulous wildlife.

It is a long drive to Tikal, but then Tikal, surely the greatest of the Maya metropolis, is the sort of place which no one should just happen upon. It requires anticipation; a bit of a build-up. The architecture here is some of the finest we see, and the site has been extensively excavated, although there is much, much more still in the clasp of the jungle.

More nights in a fine hotel, this time in thatched bungalows along the side of the lake. Those who wish (and you’ll kick yourself if you don’t) are then up before dawn, ready to climb one of the massive temples which rear up above the canopy and sit looking out over the jungle as day breaks and howler monkeys start their noisy search for breakfast. This is one of my best ever memories – and me an acrophobe and all!

The Mayan cities of Caracol, Altun Ha, Yaxha, and the lives of the people who built them will remain in your memory for a very long time.

We chug slowly through idyllic lagoons covered in lilies and pass stately wading birds in the shallows to reach the Maya city of Lamanai, today in deep jungle.

For me, one of the most enduring memories of this tour was the river journey to the eco-lodge at Lamanai (place of the crocodiles). Our river journey takes us past Amish settlements in meticulously swept and ordered clearings, each ranch fenced, and each with its own horse and carriage. We pass Mayan villages where the children played by the river and the women beat their washing on the rocks.

I may be biased, but for me this was the best of everything, a real insight into worlds very different from our own, not only at the time of the Maya, but today as well.

Annabel K. Lawson Ph.D.
Director, Andante Travels Ltd.,

click here for the webpage for this tour

Dordogne cave paintings in crisis!

The Dordogne cave paintings are coming under attack from a fungal infection, as a result of the air filter system that was put in place to protect it. To find out more information, and read quotes from Dr Paul Bahn, our guide lecture in the region, click here.