Karavansara

East of Constantinople, West of Shanghai

Category Archives: Armchair adventuring


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The Diamond, finally!

OK, let’s start by saying that what hooked me was the cover art for the audio-drama version of Louis L’Amour’s The Diamond of Jeru.
Apart from the power of the author’s name – I don’t need to tell you that L’Amour is a legend in popular fiction – the artwork suggested this was just my kind of story.

9781101914083

So I came to the web page of the audio project, where I was able to learn more about L’Amour’s lost story, its audio adaptation and the movie.

What?
A movie?!
I had to see it.

And as I explained a few days back, it was not an easy hunt.
But finally, thanks to the good people of Das Filmsyndikat, a fabulous specialty shop in Germany, I got me a copy of the DVD for 1.95 euro.
Bingo. Continue reading →


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Tits & Sand Movies: Bagdad (1949)

bagdadpstrAnd so I went and watched again Bagdad, the 1949 Maureen O’Hara movie that was at the origin of the Tits & Sand movie genre1, at least according to the fiery-headed star.

But despite the risque definition, this is a romantic adventure, featuring exotic locales, a meringue-light plot and the required amount of chases, swordplay and Arabian Nights clichés – despite pretending (without any conviction) to be a historical film.

Anyway – reader, I watched it.
Was it any good?

Continue reading →


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Quest for the Diamond

519d7vy2qgl-_sy445_You know I’m a sucker for old style adventure movies.
And when I learned there’s an adventure flick I missed, and it’s based on a “lost” story by Louis L’Amour, I started searching.

The Diamond of Jeru, a classic tale of greed and divided loyalties set in Burma in 1955, was shot – under incredibly avverse conditions – in 2001.
It features Billy Zane, Paris Jefferson and Keith Carradine – a solid enough cast, for my tastes1.

So, as I said, I started looking for the movie.
Continue reading →


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Looking for Bill Barnes

Something funny happened – my character, Felice Sabatini, from The Ministry of Thunder and Cynical Little Angels, was compared to Bill Barnes.

Bill Barnes?
Now who the heck is this Bill Barnes chap?

I could say the name rang a bell – but I could not place the character.
Some research was needed.

Here’s what I found. Continue reading →


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Great (Free) Read about the Silk Road (and more)

Cover Archäologie Weltweit 1-2015 enI’m having lots of fun with the latest issue of Archaeology Worldwide, the Magazine of the German Archaeological Institute.
The mag is available for free, in both German and English, in pdf format.

The current issue covers a topic that’s close to my studies as a paleontologist – the applications of Natural Sciences to Archaeology.
But the title story, “Metropolises and Empires”, is a great selection of articles to subjects of interest to Karavansara readers: from Alexander the Great to the Mongol Empire, starting with a highly interesting piece on the Sogdians and their commerces as a way station along the Silk Road.
Plus, a wonderful feature on lost or forgotten pieces of Roman art in old archive photographs.
Food for thought and germs of ideas for stories and gaming scenarios – but also a good way ti spend a few hours exploring the world from my chair.

The whole, with some gorgeous photographs included.

Große innere Mauer der Ming-Zeit nahe der chinesischen Hauptstadt Peking

Well worth a look!

Related articles


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Days Off

cover72774-mediumI’ve been writing a lot these last few weeks, and so I’m taking a short vacation.
A busman’s holiday, you might say – I took the weekend off to write without plan… no outlines, no pitches, no planned cover, no contract.
Just writing – because I still find it fun, after all, and it must stay fun.
A little like somebody going to work every day on a bicycle can find solace in a bicycle trip in the hills on a Sunday.
And today, I’m taking the afternoon off to read an intriguing little book – the cover of which you see here on the right. A pretty pulpy number – shades of Holmes, Dracula and Doc Savage…
More news tomorrow.
Have fun!