Driving cars through Europe and the Sahara Desert to sell them in Niger (1989 and 1990) and exploring China and Russia on the Trans-Siberia Express (1992) as a student, I quickly realised that what we think we know about the world is very superficial, cliché, and stereotype. This made me embark on a PhD supervised by Erasmus University Rotterdam professor Frank M. Go (may he rest in peace). To him I am forever grateful for suggesting the classic literature that I listed on my recommendation page...