Old Calabria

Old Calabria is a travelogue written by the British writer and journalist Norman Douglas. First published in 1915, the book chronicles Douglas's journey through the southern Italian region of Calabria. The book is known for its vivid descriptions of the people, customs, and landscapes of Calabria, as well as its humorous and irreverent tone. Douglas writes about his encounters with local peasants, priests, and bandits, and explores the region's history, architecture, and cuisine. The book also includes photographs and illustrations by the author. Old Calabria is considered a classic of travel literature and a valuable historical document of early 20th-century Italy.It was here, yesterday, that I came upon an unexpected sight--an army of workmen engaged in burrowing furiously into the bowels of Mother Earth. They told me that this tunnel would presently become one of the arteries of that vast system, the Apulian Aqueduct. The discovery accorded with my Roman mood, for the conception and execution alike of this grandiose project are worthy of the Romans. Three provinces where, in years of drought, wine is cheaper than water, are being irrigated--in the teeth of great difficulties of engineering and finance. Among other things, there are 213 kilometres of subterranean tunnellings to be built; eleven thousand workmen are employed; the cost is estimated at 125 million francs.This scarce antiquarian book is a facsimile reprint of the old original and may contain some imperfections such as library marks and notations. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment for protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature in affordable, high quality, modern editions, that are true to their original work.