Insight Books

This handy guide is small enough to fit in your pocket, but is packed with great information. It's got several day trips outlined, and I found the information in here much more usable than the Lonely Planet Condensed Guide. It also comes with a subway map that is pretty good, although I generally used the free ones they gave out in the subway so I wouldn't lose my good one. This, along with the larger Insight Tokyo Guide, were the two best books for Tokyo.

I think this guide gives complet information and is not too big to handle.
It includes an extra map. It will lead us perfectly through our 2-days-stay.
Gisela, Germany

This guide is detailed but still manages to fit into a small size. The maps are very useful.

A knowledgeable naturalist, experienced guide, and birding expert, British expatriate Victor Mason takes you on a congenial, witty, horticultural walkabout off the beaten track on Bali. Starting out at the Beggar's Bush Restaurant above Campuhan Bridge (home of Mason's Bali Bird Club), he hikes with you through the cultivated rice fields to see otters, civets, macaques, egrets, kingfishers, lychee and tamarind trees, white Brahmin cattle in Taro, giant banyan trees, butterflies, and clove and vanilla plantations. Mason gives you a friendly, conversational, step-by-step tour-from ravine to ridge to individual hibiscus blossom-complete with historical and cultural commentary on the terrain, temples, monuments, and countryside that he knows so well and loves so much.
Having spent the last twenty-six years on Bali, Victor Mason meticulously covers every cart and goat track within an eight-kilometer radius of foliage-rich Ubud. He will lead you down rocky steps to spring-fed watering places, secret gardens, Gunung Agung ("soaring to the ether and wreathed in vaporous wisps"), groves of sago palms, swimming in the Ayung River, and into the sacred simian stronghold of the Sangeh monkey forest. He lays out a variety of itineraries, graded according to difficulty, and offers timely tips (travel light, bring a sarong and a sash for entering temples--plus bathers for your swim-and beware the armies of stinging red tree ants!). Bali Bird Walks is designed as a practical, how-to, destination companion: long, thin, and light (8 ½" by 5"), the book is shaped for easy insertion into purse or backpack. Lavishly and colorfully illustrated-and buttressed throughout with detailed maps-you cannot lose your way. Most of the self-guided walking tours are circular and will return you to Campuhan Bridge-happy, inspired, and full of Mason's entertaining, old-school British, anecdotal bird stories.
For those of you lucky enough to find Victor Mason in residence on the island and available to lead you on one of his tours in person, you can book his "Bali Bird Walk" through Sobek Tours at 975009 or 287059 (or directly through the staff at the Beggar's Bush Restaurant). The four-hour tours begin at 8:45 A.M. and cost $47 per person including a fresh coconut break and a delicious lunch: intrepid trail guests/budding ornithologists will also be provided with a bird-spotting list and binoculars. For armchair nature enthusiasts who would prefer not to brave bamboo bridges, rushing white waters, and scrambling monkeys face to face, Bali Bird Walks takes your imagination where your feet are not yet willing to tread. The book is a total delight-it puts you right outside in the warm sunshine and brilliant, lime-green young "sawah" with invaluable Victor Mason right by your side!

I just returned from Amsterdam and found this map to be extremely helpful. I particularly liked that it was sturdy enough to bump around in my bag unscathed, small enough that it didn't require a lot of room, and concise enough to help me find my way. I highly recommend.

I initially purchased this map a few years ago on my first visit to D.C. Travelling alone,I didn't want to call attention to myself by looking like an obvious tourist w/ books & maps. This map allows you to easily maneuver through the city, on foot & using the metro. The view of the city & the metro guide is indispensible. The small investment for this map will provide you with the greatest returns of exploring & enjoying our nation's capitol as if it was your hometown. I wore out the first map after a few visits & loaning it to friends. I purchased this replacement because I wouldn't dream of visiting D.C. without my favorite 'travel guide & companion'.

Wow, too bad if this little number is out of print, because this is absolutely my favorite Chinese dictionary, with its small size, clear fonts in both Chinese and English, and lots of useful definitions packed in. The radical index can be used easily to locate unknown characters. The Chinese opera guys on the cover creeped me out at first, and may have hindered some people from buying this. If so, that's a pity, because it's a great little book.

This pocket dictionary was very helpful in my study of Korean. I bought it when I started learning the language. I'm now able to speak at an intermediate level and this dictionary is still helpful.
The size, being quite small, is also practical as it can be put in a jacket side pocket. I basically take it with me everywhere !

A great feature is also the many sentence and usage examples for many of the words and verbs. It helped develop my grammar skills as well.

I recommend it to people learning Korean and also perhaps Korean learning English, though the Korean->English section uses romanized characters and not Hangeul directly which might be a drawback for a Korean native ?

A last point: it is the exact same book (written by same authors and same editor: Langenscheidt ) as the LANGENSCHEIDT KOREAN-ENGLISH Dictionary... Except the cover looks different and also the paper quality & print fonts are slightly different.
I picked the INSIGHT TRAVEL... because it seemed easier to read than the 'more serious' looking LANGENSCHEIDT dictionary.

Have fun in your study !

Received the item I ordered very quickly. The book was in good condition. Now I can start the semester well prepared.

I have so enjoyed Messages to Your Heart as my daily insightful guide.
I have given Messages to Your Heart as gifts to 2 friends and both after a few days call me and thanked me, again. The messages that they were `drawn' to were just what they needed to read/ hear that very day. There are so many wonderful messages that you feel they are written just for you. Your heart will be filled and the insights will astounded you they are so personal. Ronda Christiansen