07.05.09 -- Baghdad Sketches -- the Acrostic

Sunday, July 5, 2009

ACROSTIC, Puzzle by Emily Cox and Henry Rathvon, edited by Will Shortz

Good news for aficionados of the acrostic -- the New York Times Magazine has reinstated the puzzle this Sunday.

Today’s fine acrostic draws a quotation from Freya Stark’s “Baghdad Sketches”, an account of a four-year sojourn in Iraq and Iran in the 1930s, the first of Dame Freya Stark's many travel books. A fine quotation for the vacationer of this summer, supported by defined words relating to the subject of aestivation.

The quotation: THE TOURIST TRAVELS LIKE A SNAIL IN HIS SHELL AND STANDS ON HIS OWN PERAMBULATING DOORSTEP TO LOOK AT THE CONTINENTS BUT IF YOU SALLY FORTH WITH A LEISURELY AND BLANK MIND THERE IS NO KNOWING WHAT MAY HAPPEN TO YOU

The author’s name and the title of the work: FREYA STARK BAGHDAD SKETCHES

The defined words: A. Flight to another world?, FANTASY; B. Flow below Avignon’s bridge, RHONE; C. Picture without a camera, ENVISION; D. Two-masted fore-and-aft-rigged vessel, YAWL; E. On the opposite side of the globe, ANTIPODAL; F. Deviation from the itinerary (2 wds.), SIDE TRIP; G. Modern capital near ancient Carthage, TUNIS; H. Konrad Adenauer presided over its opening ceremonies in 1932, AUTOBAHN; I. Home away from home, perhaps, RENTAL; J. Account of a 101-day journey (hyph.), KON-TIKI; K. Gift acquired at an Irish castle?, BLARNEY; L. Museum of art and archaeology at Oxford University, ASHMOLEAN; M. Move about cumbersomely, GALUMPH; N. Car used in Kerouac’s “On the Road”, HUDSON; O. Where “folks are crooning songs soft and low,” per Satchmo (2 wds.), DOWN SOUTH; P. At the masthead or higher rigging, ALOFT; Q. Wildly enthusiastic piece of writing, DITHYRAMB; R. Wander on foot, promenade, STROLL; S. Apollo 14 command module (2 wds.), KITTY HAWK; T Affliction of the world-weary, ENNUI; U. Microblogging service, TWITTER; V. Instrument panel, CONSOLE; W Booking for a frugal wayfarer, HOSTEL; X. In ancient Greece, what gave Eros a start?, EPSILON; Y. Make use of a guidebook, SIGHTSEE.

The full paragraph of the quotation (from the chapter In the Moslem Quarter): To awaken quite alone in a strange town is one of the pleasantest sensations in the world. You are surrounded by adventure. You have no idea of what is in store for you, but you will, if you are wise and know the art of travel, let yourself go on the stream of the unknown and accept whatever comes in the spirit in which the gods may offer it. For this reason your customary thoughts, all except the rarest of your friends, even most of your luggage--everything, in fact, which belongs to your everyday life, is merely a hindrance. The tourist travels in his own atmosphere like a snail in his shell and stands, as it were, on his own perambulating doorstep to look at the continents of the world. But if you discard all this, and sally forth with a leisurely and a blank mind, there is no knowing what may not happen to you.

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Puzzle available on the internet at

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