A book written
by Simon McCarthy and Georgie Simmonds (now Georgie McCarthy).
Part ‘Che Guevara’s
Motorcycle Diaries’ and ‘Ted Simon’s Jupiter’s
Travels’, with a good splash of the BBC’s ‘From Our
Own Correspondent’, this book wrote itself as Simon and Georgie
rode a BMW motorbike from England to Japan, and back again.
The story mixes humour and
high jinx, with finely observed commentary on the striking cultures
that the two rode slowly through. Taking in parts of Central Asia that
are definitely ‘the road less travelled’, the hyper-culture
of Japan, contrasting areas of Southeast Asia and the hippy route from
the Indian subcontinent, the trip kept the authors on their toes and
constantly challenged by new sights, smells and cultures. The authors
suffered many twists of fate and then Georgie upped the stakes by buying
an Enfield motorbike in Nepal to experience the long ride home for herself.
Simon’s love of mockery balances Georgie’s more refined
approach to life. Her passion for languages and naivety about many parts
of Asia temper his love of technology and knowledge of the Former Soviet
Union. Together they discover contrasts locked into neighbouring countries,
food to die for and drink to kill you, how not to catch your supper
and how to cook food bought by the roadside.
RIDE
Magazine “More than your average bike ride”
Charley
Boorman: Co-author of Long Way Round “You guys
had a REALLY BIG adventure”
Primorsky
Mid-day News: “A heart-warming tale of a young
woman’s blind infatuation with
a much older man”
