Tall And True Short Reads
The White and Blue Niles
Episode 95 (9 July 2024)
In 1987, my wife and I shouldered our backpacks and set off from Australia. The plan was to live and work overseas in England for two years, using it as a base for UK and wider world travels. And the widest of these were inspired by reading books like Alan Moorehead’s The White Nile and The Blue Nile.
The White and Blue Niles
Show Notes
Season Four: Episode 95 (9 July 2024)
The White and Blue Niles is a travel blog post from the Tall And True writers’ website, written and narrated by Robert Fairhead.
Read the post on Tall And True: https://www.tallandtrue.com.au/blog/the-white-and-blue-niles
Read a post about the nine-month overland journey inspired by travel writers and Michael Palin’s Pole to Pole: https://www.tallandtrue.com.au/blog/inspired-by-michael-palins-pole-to-pole
Support the podcast: https://supporter.acast.com/tall-and-true-short-reads
Buy Robert’s short story collections online:
- Amazon Kindle: https://www.amazon.com/Robert-Fairhead/e/B086HZ36NM
- Apple Books: https://books.apple.com/us/author/robert-fairhead/id1436773436
- Rakuten Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/au/en/author/robert-fairhead
Story Insight
I wrote this travel post in February 2021. Earlier that month, a friend mentioned Alan Moorehead’s White and Blue Nile books on social media, and we exchanged photos of our yellowed paperback copies. Dusting off the books from my bookcase, I recalled how much they had meant to me in my early backpacking days and decided to pay homage to The White and Blue Niles on Tall And True.
Moorehead’s books are of their time—the quoted cover blurbs are proof of that. But they’re also detailed historical accounts of life along the rivers, the clashes with the European colonisers, and ultimately, the search for the source of the White and Blue Niles. As a young wannabe traveller and travel writer, I found them inspirational. And as our modern times prove, we must learn from history to stop repeating its mistakes.
I hope you enjoy this reflective travel post. You can read all my posts, selected short stories and other writing on TallAndTrue.com. You can also buy my short story collections, including the latest Tall And True Microfiction anthology from the Amazon Kindle, Apple Books, and Kobo online bookstores — links are available in the show notes.
The next episode of Tall And True Short Reads will be released shortly. In the meantime, please check your feed or the podcast website for earlier episodes from all four seasons. And follow or subscribe to the podcast and rate and review it via your favourite podcasting app — doing so helps share my storytelling.
You can support the podcast financially by making a small one-off or regular donation via the Acast Supporter Page.
Finally, please share this episode with family and friends and tell them about the stories and posts on Tall And True Short Reads and the Tall And True writers’ website.
Podcast Theme and Sound Effects
Royalty-free music from Pixabay.com: Beethoven Piano Sonata No. 15 in D major, Op. 28 ‘Pastorale’ – IV. Rondo. Allegro ma non-Troppo, performed by Karine Gilanyan.
Sound effects licensed under Creative Commons 0 from FreeSound.org:
- Plane: https://freesound.org/people/bigpickle51/sounds/262753/
- Typewriter: https://freesound.org/people/supersupernator/sounds/519622/
- Jungle Sounds: https://freesound.org/people/craigsmith/sounds/438261/
- Steam Whistle: https://freesound.org/people/mike_stranks/sounds/407394/
- Air Raid Siren/Bombing: https://freesound.org/people/hello_flowers/sounds/31887/
Production Notes
Tall And True Short Reads is produced using Audacity. Podcast episodes are recorded in Sydney, Australia, on the traditional lands of the Gadigal People of the Eora Nation.
Acast Podcast Supporter Page
Support this show: https://supporter.acast.com/tall-and-true-short-reads.