Old World Wandering: London to Shanghai overland

Inspired by a world map on their bedroom wall, a young South African couple living in London decide to travel to the opposite end of Eurasia, overland.

Setting off with overstuffed backpacks and sketchy plans, Iain and Claire are soon drinking at village pubs in Ireland and sleeping at seedy hotels in Paris. They watch bull fights in Seville and the rising sun in Barcelona, live on a houseboat in Amsterdam and beside a Venetian canal. In Syria, they discover the… (more)

Inspired by a world map on their bedroom wall, a young South African couple living in London decide to travel to the opposite end of Eurasia, overland.

Setting off with overstuffed backpacks and sketchy plans, Iain and Claire are soon drinking at village pubs in Ireland and sleeping at seedy hotels in Paris. They watch bull fights in Seville and the rising sun in Barcelona, live on a houseboat in Amsterdam and beside a Venetian canal. In Syria, they discover the universal language of tea and on a battered felucca down the Nile, learn to dodge Egypt's pesky touts. Lost in India's other worldliness, they forget and rediscover their destination, Shanghai, where they emerge, dazed but happy, after 18 months on the road.

“Beautifully written...evocative, thoughtful and entertaining, peppered with quotations, anecdotes and an incredible level of detail.”

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