Mondays 10-12 Noon
September 29 through November 17, 2003
D.O.C. House
The first Maiden Voyages course was a survey of women travel writers and adventurers from the 18th to the 20th centuries, designed to introduce participants to the extraordinary stories of these daring ladies.
Maiden Voyages II will concentrate on the lives of two English women: Gertrude Bell (1868-1926) and Freya Stark (1896-1996). Both of these explorers traveled to places where single women had never dared to go. How did they become fascinated with the Arabian desert and other places in the Middle East? What caused them to give up the security of their homes and families to risk their lives investigating ancient sites? How did these women become friends of kings and Arabian sheiks, British Foreign Service officers and titled gentry, famous writers, politicians, and heads of state?
Both adventurers were well educated in many fields from classics to archeology and spoke fluent Arabic and other languages. They ventured into the tents of Bedouin and local chieftains, accepting and giving in return typical Arab hospitality usually practiced only by men. Each kept daily diaries and wrote letters with vivid descriptions of everyone and everything they saw. They suffered through heartbreaking romances and enjoyed active social lives when not venturing forth on one of their expeditions.
The explorations of each of these women in this volatile region, their friendships with Arab tribes, their maps and observations, ultimately led them to have a major influence on British (and world) politics. Of special interest are descriptions of their experiences in Baghdad and Iraq during the period prior to and during the First World War and (in the case of Freya Stark) at the time of Second World War.
We will read two biographies: Desert Queen (the life of Gertrude Bell) by Janet Wallach, and Passionate Nomad, the Life of Freya Stark by Jane Fletcher Geniesse, as well as original works by these prolific travel writers and related material. Guest speakers will include author Janet Wallach, founder with her late husband of "Seeds of Peace," and Richard Nolte, former Ambassador to Egypt, whose most recent course at ILEAD was entitled, "Encounter with the Middle East."
Class is limited to 20 participants.
Gail Sanderson is a longtime local resident and retired attorney. She has been traveling internationally since college days, most recently to South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Botswana. Her journeys have taken her from the Brazilian rain forest to the mountains of Nepal; she has survived rafting the Grand Canyon rapids, camping out in the Serengeti and tiger hunting in India.
