Synopsis: “This is a must-read book for anyone interested in knowing what it was like to travel overland through Europe, the Middle East, Central Asia, and East Asia during the 1960s. What were the roads like? What dangers existed? What opportunities were available that are now gone? The author and her husband left the US in 1965 and bought a used VW van in Europe. They travelled through countries that no longer exist, and through regions that are now new countries. In that earlier era before cell phones or the Internet, communication was so limited that at times several months passed before they could pick up mail. The author’s detailed journal entries allowed her to revisit their two-year trip, including escaping from a cholera epidemic in Iraq, sleeping in a maharaja’s palace in Pakistan, floating down the Mekong River in Laos, and relaxing in a furo in Japan. With this book, you will find yourself on an incredible journey that could not be taken today.”

My Review

I loved this travel memoir of a newly married American couple travelling in their VW Camper-van through Europe, the Middle East, Central Asia, and East Asia in the late 1960s. It includes photos, diary entries, and excerpts from letters home to their parents.

I enjoyed following Patti and her husband Mick on this huge adventure, long before satnavs and mobile phones, and sometimes even before maps in some places.

There were lots of memorable anecdotes and these are some of my favourites. Waiting at the Iranian/Afghan border for the guard to wake from his nap and eat his lunch. Experiencing a tribal wedding in Pakistan. Meeting up with the same fellow travellers at different points along the way, and comparing their trips. Hitchhiking across Malaysia and finding out about the political situation from the various drivers. Taking trips down memory lane in Manila, Hong Kong and South Korea, staying in the honeymoon suite on a Russian ship to Japan. Spending a night in a traditional Japanese house, including going to a public bath house. Visiting an old Mandarin teacher in Taiwan, and old family friend in South Korea.

The end of the book was really interesting as well, as the author and her husband didn’t stop travelling when they returned to the US, but continued when they worked overseas, particularly Patti.

Highly recommended if you enjoy travel writing, or just want to do some armchair travel. 

Thanks so much to NetGalley and Noble Press for my digital copy