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The Tightwad Economist has a lust for discovery and adventure. Incited by the preaching of the Messiah of Travel, the call of Africa is ineluctable. Not the clichéd chic safaris and animal spotting tours of travel brochures. Tightwad sets off hitching through the Maghreb in North Africa alone before following in the footsteps of Mungo Park, the celebrated Scottish explorer, the first European to delve into the heart of West Africa and come out alive, barely. But it is 1993, not 1796, and Tightwad is joined by the Messiah of Travel and his disciples as they set out on their own exploration of modern West Africa. Where European borders cross traditional tribal lines, where corrupt and inept leaders struggle to improve living standards, where transport and infrastructure is rough, where food is sometimes scarce, but where the people have a longing for life and laughter.
About the author
Other books by the Tightwad Economist
IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF MUNGO PARK (Africa 1993)
The Tightwad Economist has a lust for discovery and adventure. Incited by the preaching of the Messiah of Travel, the call of Africa is ineluctable. Not the clichéd chic safaris and animal spotting tours of travel brochures. Tightwad sets off hitching through the Maghreb in North Africa alone before following in the footsteps of Mungo Park, the celebrated Scottish explorer, the first European to delve into the heart of West Africa and come out alive, barely. But it is 1993, not 1796, and Tightwad is joined by the Messiah of Travel and his disciples as they set out on their own exploration of modern West Africa. Where European borders cross traditional tribal lines, where corrupt and inept leaders struggle to improve living standards, where transport and infrastructure is rough, where food is sometimes scarce, but where the people have a longing for life and laughter.
THE GRASS IS SOMETIMES GREENER - A South American Journey (1994-95)
South America is a continent of contrasts. Snow-capped peaks and tropical wildernesses. Vast pampa and arid deserts. Widespread poverty and concentrated wealth. Pre-Colombian temples and colonial churches. The Pachamama and Christianity. Abundant fruits and psychedelic plants. European modernity and Indigenous pride. Honourable people and violent criminals. Fiesta and sorrow.
This great landmass holds a magnetism that the Tightwad Economist cannot ignore. The internet does not exist. Independent travel remains a true adventure. Tightwad is back in South America and is searching for greener pastures and to graze again on its greatest delights.
Tightwad is joined by his long-time philosophizing errant amigo Bold Punter and his enthusiastic brother Red Pibe from small-town regional Australia as they seek spirituality and scenery, language and learning, hikes and hallucinations, solidarity and sustenance, alcohol and affection.
But what is the meaning of the quest? Why just keep travelling? One thing remains true; the less you spend the longer you travel. If the answer has not been found, then there is no option but to keep discovering.
