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1939: Adventurer and writer Ella Maillart set off on an epic drive from Geneva to Kabul,
The Cruel Way
What you need to know before your trail
In 1939, adventurer and writer Ella Maillart set off on an epic drive from Geneva to Kabul, accompanied by journalist and photographer Annemarie Schwarzenbach, who later became an antifascist and lesbian icon.
The two women travelled partly to escape the coming war in Europe, embarking on a daring, and often dangerous, journey through regions where European women were a rarity. But Schwarzenbach was also fighting a losing battle with morphine addiction, and the women’s close but often troubled relationship takes centre stage in the narrative as the journey progresses through Turkey, Iran and Afghanistan.
Encountering breathtaking landscapes, ancient ruins and nomadic peoples, The Cruel Way is a gripping, lyrical and deeply empathetic portrait of places, people and friendship.
Travel Guide
From Geneva to Kabul with Ella K Maillart
In 1939 Swiss travel writer and journalist Ella K. Maillart set off on an epic journey from Geneva to Kabul with fellow writer Annemarie Schwarzenbach in a brand new Ford. As the first European women to travel alone on Afghanistan’s Northern Road, Maillart and Schwarzenbach had a rare glimpse of life in Iran and Afghanistan at a time when their borders were rarely crossed by Westerners.
As the two flash across Europe and the Near East in a streak of élan and daring, Maillart writes of comical mishaps, breathtaking landscapes, vitriolic religious clashes, and the ingenuity with which the women navigated what was often a dangerous journey.
They see many sites such as the Gonbad-e Qabus and thenow-destroyed Buddhas of Bamiyan.
BookTrail Boarding Pass: The Cruel Way
Destination: Switzerland, Afghanistan Author/guide: Ella K Maillart Departure Time: 1934
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