Intercities

In this title, the author thinks about what constitutes identity in present-day Europe. Looking at people and cities from the periphery, he tries to discover an "archaeology of streets and faces" which could bring him closer to himself. Set in peripheral cities such as Trieste, Marseilles, Drseden and Bratislava, and in major ones like Vienna and Amsterdam, this work is about the feeling of being abroad, of losing part of one's self in order to gain a richer life. Mingling travel stories with philosophical reflections, Hertmans's poetic text proves the 16th-century observation that every journey is a "voyage around your own chamber". His book is a personal statement about living in Europe today which looks beyond the surface to the heart of contemporary urban existence.