"In the years after Edward Said's Orientalism , the exploration of the East -- its peoples, habits, customs and past -- by travelers from the West has become a target for scholarly bombardment. Travel writers have often come to be seen as outriders of colonialism, attempting to demonstrate the superiority of Western ways by 'imagining'...

"I saw a crocodile in this part of the Niger, close to the bank; it looked just like a small boat. One day I went down to the river to satisfy a need, and lo, one of the blacks came and stood between me and the river. I was amazed at such a lack of...