Tony Wheeler

I recently lived and travelled in New Zealand for 15 months and it was rare to come across another traveller who didn't have a copy of this book - seeing a competitor's book was even more rare. It is the backpacker's bible in New Zealand - and for a good reason. It IS extensive and helpful and easy to use (and yes, I did compare before purchasing). Sometimes the masses have got it right. ;) That isn't to say that it's perfect - yes there are things missing (gladly the company seems to be show more good at updating their products often) and I thought the writing was a bit uneven, especially for the South Island (the focus is very much on commercial activities there: pages and pages for Queenstown and the quickest drive-thru of the Catlins for example). But no one suggests your travels should be a paint-by-numbers exercise anyway.

Definitely recommended for anyone planning/on a NZ trip. And do yourself a favour - even if you only have the standard three weeks, step outside the Auckland - Rotorua - Wellington - Christchurch - Queenstown fast track for a bit! show less

This book gives a good description on most of the countries we call "The axis of evil" and why we call them evil. It's a mix of the travel stories of Tony wheeler in these countries and the the background on how these countries became the way they were. This balancing act requires some focus and determination of the reader. Because it has a lot of ground to cover and a lot of ground to cover.
A lot of the time, the countries are not really evil but only refuse to comply with the wishes of show more the western countries. Iran is an example of a really loud and obnoxious goverment, but still giving it's citizens some room without letting the country fall apart.
In other countries, their goverments truly do bad things to their citizens. (North Korea) He even visits an ally of the USA, namely Saoudi Arabia, which treats their women even worse than Afghanistan.
The conclusion of the book says that not all countries are really evil. Especially when you compare them what the Western countries have done onto some of them, like Iraq and Afghanistan. show less

Travel disaster stories were promised but the only disaster were the stories…

Since I stumbled upon “Kamikaze Kangaroos!” by Tony James Slater several years ago, I sometimes like to read travel memoirs - especially when there’s disaster involved!

By now, I’ve read all of Tony’s books (and those of many other travellers!) and it seemed a logical next step to take a famous travel guide’s collection of supposedly funny travel stories…

Sadly, the promised “disaster stories” show more here are mostly of the following variety...

“Look, I did this and this is why: (long-winded explanations)”
“I could have died from that long walk, the road traffic, my inability to overcome inertia, (blah blah)!”
“And, lo and behold, I dangerously sprained my ankle!”

This is neither very entertaining nor does it make for a good read which is why I’m abandoning this for good.

One star out of five.

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Ceterum censeo Putin esse delendam show less

May or may not have a story on or about Indonesia in this volume. Have soldiers ever mistaken you fro an enemy agent? Have police ever thought you were a murderer on the run? From kidnappings in Morocco to riots in London, from close encounters with Brazilian voodoo to close shaves with Russian bureaucracy, it's all in a day's work for Lonely Planet writers and staff. Revealing the challenges that lie in wait for budding travel writers, Lonely Planet Unpacked Again will make armchair show more travelers glad that they're safe and sound at home. show less