The Globetrotter Victorian Excursions in India, China and Japan

In the mid-19th century, as new routes opened up, a new generation of travelers embarked on excursions to India, China and Japan. Globetrotters—leisure tourists with a keen interest in experiencing authentic culture—flocked to the East, casting aside preconceptions and gravitating towards what they hoped to be the unchanged landscapes and traditions of Eastern cultures. The relics of their travels—the food they consumed and the souvenirs they brought back—allowed globetrotters to distinguish themselves from common tourists. They proudly returned with accounts that presented a global East, challenging public assumptions about the cultures they had visited and charting a journey of self-transformation. Voted one of the Best Travel Books 2019 by National Geographic Magazine.

Amy Miller is currently completing a PhD on the history and material culture of the global tourist in the 19th century at University College London. She has an MA from the Bard Graduate Center, New York, in Decorative Arts and Material Culture Studies. She is the author of Dressed to Kill: Naval Uniform, Masculinity and Fashion 1748-1857.