xviii In 2010, there were nearly 80 000 hikers to the Annapurna Conservation Area
xix The road is expected to be completed at the end of 2012
xx Okay, okay Bec! I admit it! Noooo!
xxi In October 2010, Major General Yaqub Ali Khan of the Pakistan Rangers decided that the aggressive aspect of the ceremonial theatrics should be toned down
xxii Julian Clary – a flamboyant British comedian famous for his outlandish clothes
xxiii In 2010, the very basement we were sitting in was blown up in a terrorist attack, killing 35 people
xxiv Yes, I had done something terribly wrong. Months later she would fall in love with someone else. I spent the next two years trying to win her back. Stupid brain!
xxv Incidentally, The Hood’s evil voice was that of the Australian actor Ray Barrett
xxvi For those not familiar with Flash Gordon – Ming the Merciless was the villain in the 1934 comic strip
xxvii The origins vary according to different minority groups
xxviii An Australian in China by David Bonavia
xxix http://www.travelchinaguide.com/cityguides/lijiang.htm
xxx In 2007, UNESCO threatened to take away the listing due to over development
xxxi Polyandry is not as widespread as it used to be and it was usually brothers that would share the same wife
xxxii It is believed that Hilton has incorrectly translated Shangri-La from the Tibetan word Shambala – “a spiritual land of peace and perfection”
xxxiii http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2006/jun
/01/china.travelnews?INTCMP=SRCH
xxxiv In Australia, to stack can mean to ‘crash’
xxxv In recent years, this figure has swelled to 4.7 million. Beijing has the world’s worst traffic on par with that of Mexico City. IBM ‘Global Commuter Pain’ (2010)
xxxvi Dinking – an Australian colloquialism for giving someone a lift on your bicycle
About Russell McGilton
Russell McGilton is a writer and actor, performing in theatre shows around Melbourne for over ten years. His last show, a live radio play he directed and wrote, Seditious Delicious: A Portrait of John Howard, brought down the Australian government.
As a writer Russell has contributed to The Age, The Big Issue, Get Lost magazine, Metro film magazine and short stories to The Sleepers Almanac. His book Yakety Yak: Bombay to Beijing by Bicycle was first published by Penguin Publishing.
A well-seasoned traveller, he has been to over 30 countries, crossing the vast plains of Africa, to the steamy jungles of Cambodia and Vietnam, and the deserts of China and India. His next adventure is to travel around Australia using dice for directions.
First published by Penguin Group Australia in 2004
This edition published in 2012 by Momentum
Pan Macmillan Australia Pty Ltd
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Copyright © Russell McGilton 2004, 2012
The moral right of the author has been asserted.
All rights reserved. This publication (or any part of it) may not be reproduced or transmitted, copied, stored, distributed or otherwise made available by any person or entity (including Google, Amazon or similar organisations), in any form (electronic, digital, optical, mechanical) or by any means (photocopying, recording, scanning or otherwise) without prior written permission from the publisher.
A CIP record for this book is available at the National Library of Australia
Bombay to Beijing by Bicycle
EPUB format: 9781743340561
Mobi format: 9781743340691
Cover design by Greg Nelson
Cover photo: Rebecca Gosling and Graeme Wiggins
Maps and profile images: Graeme Wiggins
Edited by Hayley Crandell
Proofread by Sarah Hazelton
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To report a typographical error, please email [email protected]
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