Central Asia is the hot new travel destination. Curious to see what all the fuss is about?
Join intrepid traveler, Ged Gillmore, as he journeys with an unlikely group of characters on a whirlwind tour through the five 'Stans – Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.
- Prepare yourself to come face to face with mesmerising landscapes and striking citadels that look like sets from Star Wars and Game of Thrones.
- Learn about ancient rituals such as goat-pulling and bride-stealing that are still practised today.
- Visit floating mountains, singing dunes, sunken forests and bejewelled cities so beautiful they are almost impossible to describe.
Along the way you'll encounter yurt erections, bullet trains and enemy travel agents. You'll learn how a baby's first steps are celebrated in Kyrgyzstan. You'll become acquainted with the life-and-death importance of etiquette in a Khan's palace. And you'll be gently reminded that people – even those on a seemingly boring bus tour – are rarely what they seem.
'Stans By Me' is a hilarious travel memoir full of fascinating characters, magnificent monuments and curious customs – all told with Gillmore's deadpan British wit. If you enjoy the travel tales of Bill Bryson, David Sedaris, J. Maarten Troost or Will Ferguson, you'll get a kick out of Stans By Me.
** PRAISE FOR STANS BY ME **
'What a journey, told with humor and great descriptive writing.'
'Entertaining, informative and really well written - just the right balance.'
'If you like Bill Bryson's style of writing you will enjoy this. It has humour and loads of information.'
'A wonderful alternative to a dry Lonely Planet travel guide – Stans By Me is enlightening, inspiring, evocative and downright witty.'
'I'll soon be traveling the Silk Road and doing some trekking in Tajikistan and this travel guide has left me so excited about my trip of a lifetime.'
'A superb and entertaining travel guide covering the wonders of Central Asia and the Silk Road. Inspiring writing.'
