Yet another
wonderful travel journal by the
talented Michael Palin. In the book he
chronicles his 245-day
sojourn through
eighteen countries that border the
Pacific ocean. Unlike
Around the World in 80 Days, a previous book of his, this travel is at a bit more of a
leisurely pace — no
do-or-die timeline — the only incentive to
hurry home to is be with his
family (which is, in itself, quite
strong).
Mr. Palin writes in such a way that you feel that you're travelling along with him. You're "in" on the jokes; you can shake your head and laugh when things go awry (as they do more often than not) or worry when something really bad happens. He writes of his daily happenings, poking fun at himself, wondering at the surroundings. Several pages of color photos bring the journey to life even more — my favorite being the author goofing around with two children in Vietnam.
I would recommend this book for anyone — in fact if you were here in Chiang Mai today, I'd give you my copy.
Countries visited in the book:
USA (Alaska), Russia, Japan, South Korea, (a few steps into) North Korea, China, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, Australia, New Zealand, Chile, Bolivia, Peru, Columbia, Mexico, the USA (again), and Canada.
Full Circle
by Michael Palin
ISBN 0 563 55107 0
Personal note:
I bought my used copy in Bangkok after reading his Around the World in 80 Days which was also quite good. One small correction, the capital of Washington state is Olympia, not Seattle as written in the book.