Wow! That’s the word South Korean journalist, Chaewon Woo, uses 124 times in her book, “Cycling the Silk Road; From Shanghai to London in 36 Weeks”. And not without good reason.
An eye-opening and surprising read, Cycling the Silk Road can be easily consumed in an evening on the sofa. It’s perfect for such, and lots more.
This is an incredible book, but not in the way you would expect. When Eva contacted me regarding the book’s release, I’ll admit I was sceptical. These kinds of affairs tend to drone on ad nauseam.
But that would be to forget one thing. Eva is a journalist by trade and as her book reveals, a canny one at that.
Opening simply, “Goodbye Pearl Tower! You attracted me to Shanghai, now you see me off”, this sets well the tone for the rest of what is essentially a diary come picture pull out.
Over only 80 fun-and-fact-filled pages, Eva gives a brief insight to each of the 14 countries she visited along her 8,567 kilometre route, along with personal takeaways, the challenges faced and the obligatory, “Wow!”.
And and endless supply of quotes; “My farmer host drives me to his hypnosis meeting in Dijon”, “I want to escape the fast and threatening vehicles, and the squashed roadkill strewn along the way”, “Exclude money, and people give each other love, care and support, and become friends”.
In Nanjing, Eva visits Yuejiang Tower. The fake pagoda might not be the best choice but we won’t hold that against her. During her tech meet up in our fair city, however, Eva had the grace to pose for a photograph holding a copy of The Nanjinger, more than making up for any touristy misdemeanour.
Closing, as Eva cycles the last 55 km home from Incheon Airport in Seoul, what’s the last word in her book? Quite rightfully, it’s “Wow!”.
I absolutely love this book, and it’s hardly even such. Best of all, this tremendous educational resource could, over the course of a few lessons, transform youngsters into global citizens. And that’s another compelling reason Eva has to be proud of her achievement.
“Cycling the Silk Road; From Shanghai to London in 36 Weeks” is available on Amazon
