Broadened Minds Anyone

Travel writing (and by extension travel writers) should be firmly lumped together with estate agents - with the exception of Bill Bryson who has a more realistic approach to the genre. They all have the habit of enthusing far too much about places and ignoring the flies in the ointment. Take for example the sun-kissed jewel of the Mediterranean, Malta, nowhere have I seen anything written about the curious and truly penetrative smell as you travel around the coast from Mellieha in the direction of Valletta nor any reference to the Dutch entry in the guest book for the Popeye Village - "Take acid it will help you to cope with the experience" - instead of which you get a whole load of stuff about folk ways and how you should try some of the local food, when what you actually want is practical advice on dealing with unwelcome tea towel sellers.