James Holman
James Holman FRS, known as the "Blind Traveller," was a British adventurer, author and social observer, best known for his writings on his extensive travels. Completely blind and experiencing pain and limited mobility, he undertook a series of solo journeys that were unprecedented both in their extent of geography and method of "human echolocation". In 1866, the journalist William Jerdan wrote that "From Marco Polo to Mungo Park, no three of the most famous travellers, grouped together, would exceed the extent and variety of countries traversed by our blind countryman." In 1832, Holman became the first blind person to circumnavigate the globe. He continued travelling, and by October 1846 had visited every inhabited continent.
The narrative of a journey undertaken in the years 1819, 1820 and 1821 through France, Italy, Savoy, Switzerland, parts of Germany bordering on the Rhine, Holland and the Netherlands : $b comprising incidents that occurred to the author, who has long suffered under a total deprivation of sight; with various points of information collected on his tour
Despite losing his sight, a resilient man sets out across Europe, relying on his other senses and the generosity of strangers to navigate unfamiliar lands and cultures.
By James Holman
A Voyage Round the World, Volume I Including Travels in Africa, Asia, Australasia, America, etc., etc., from 1827 to 1832
Blinded but undeterred, one man's thirst for adventure propels him across continents, revealing a world of cultures, landscapes, and personal discovery.
By James Holman