Adventure!

People get restless. They want to shake the dust off their shoes, go to exotic places, talk to different people and do different things. They also like to hurt themselves trying to climb stuff. Personally, I'm fine just reading about it, but if you're the adventurous type, maybe these books will inspire you.

Hidden Cities chronicles the travels of Moses Gates, who travels to cities all over the world to explore their underground secrets and abandoned corners. He sneaks into sewer systems, gets himself arrested on top of Notre Dame Cathedral, explores catacombs and comes back with all manner of exciting stories. The book appeals to my inner snoop, the guy who likes exploring all the quiet corners of a building or neighborhood.

Touching the Void tells a much more harrowing story of two mountaineers who set out to conquer a 21,000 foot mountain in the Andes. Disaster strikes on the way down, forcing one of the mountaineers to cut the rope connecting him to his partner. The fall clearly should have killed him, but it didn't. The rest of the book is a gripping account of each man's journey off the mountain.

If stories like these make you want to take off for the great unknown, you can get plenty of other terrifying ideas from Off Track Planet's Travel Guide for the Young, Sexy and Broke. The book spans the globe, offering helpful suggestions on where you can go for adventure, art, fashion, music and all the partying you can handle.

Are you ready for adventure? I'm not, but maybe you are!