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The Wrong Way Home: London to Sydney the Hard Way
A humorous travel book encompassing the hippy trail of the Sixties and written by the author of NO SHITTING IN THE TOILET.
386 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1999
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712 people want to read
About the author
Peter Moore
7 books51 followersPeter Moore (born 18 July 1962) is an Australian travel writer.
Moore, who was born in Sydney, claims to have visited 99 countries. He currently lives with his wife and daughter in London. He has published many books that re-tell tales of his travels.
He is a Vespa enthusiast and his 2005 book Vroom with a View and 2007 book Vroom by the Sea feature trips through Italy taken on vintage Italian motorscooters.
[Wikipedia]
Moore, who was born in Sydney, claims to have visited 99 countries. He currently lives with his wife and daughter in London. He has published many books that re-tell tales of his travels.
He is a Vespa enthusiast and his 2005 book Vroom with a View and 2007 book Vroom by the Sea feature trips through Italy taken on vintage Italian motorscooters.
[Wikipedia]
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 46 reviews
September 27, 2019
In 1994 Peter decides to travel from London to Sydney without flying, and on a shoestring budget. He was following the ol' hippie trail from the '60s. His experiences range from delightful to frustrating. His dry sense of humour is a definite plus. Eight months, and 25 countries later, he finally reaches home, Sydney.
3 Stars = I liked the book. I'm glad I read it.
3 Stars = I liked the book. I'm glad I read it.
April 22, 2016
An entertaining but now very dated book. In 1994, the author decided to see if it was still possible to do what so many Australians had dome in the 1960s and 1970s - return home "the long way", travelling through Europe, the Middle East, the subcontinent and Asia before crossing the great emptiness that is Australia to reach the more populated south east. And he's going to do it on a budget of $5,000.
Personally, I can think of very little less appealing than living out of a backpack for six straight months while travelling on a hell of a lot of buses, because frankly? The "short way" home still takes 24 hours, and that's more than enough for me. But to each their own.
There were moments when I wanted to applaud Moore for his choice to travel home overland, and there were times when he did monumentally stupid things (visiting Bosnia and Pakistan in 1994, for instance) and I wanted to slap some sense into him. There were moments that were totally mindblowing because 1994 doesn't seem like THAT long ago, and yet so much about the world has changed. And there were moments that made me go "Thank Christ we don't have to do that any more". Yes, buying international phone cards to be able to contact your family, I'm looking at you.
So yeah. I enjoyed it, and Moore certainly came home with some interesting stories to tell. But it really is terribly dated now...
Personally, I can think of very little less appealing than living out of a backpack for six straight months while travelling on a hell of a lot of buses, because frankly? The "short way" home still takes 24 hours, and that's more than enough for me. But to each their own.
There were moments when I wanted to applaud Moore for his choice to travel home overland, and there were times when he did monumentally stupid things (visiting Bosnia and Pakistan in 1994, for instance) and I wanted to slap some sense into him. There were moments that were totally mindblowing because 1994 doesn't seem like THAT long ago, and yet so much about the world has changed. And there were moments that made me go "Thank Christ we don't have to do that any more". Yes, buying international phone cards to be able to contact your family, I'm looking at you.
So yeah. I enjoyed it, and Moore certainly came home with some interesting stories to tell. But it really is terribly dated now...
January 20, 2015
If you are looking for a book that combines travel writing with dry humor, than look no further than the work of this Aussie backpacker. I came across his name while traveling myself - I asked one of my fellow travelers if she could recommend a funny travel writer, and she suggested Moore. In this book the author sets off from London at some point in the late 1990s, determined to get home to Sydney by an overland route and without getting on a plane. He has an interest in checking out the old hippie trail (now mostly defunct due to wars and conservative Islam) as well. Most travel writers inform us about the culture, history, cuisine, and people of distant lands as they move across a landscape, getting into adventures, meeting locals, and sharing their knowledge and perceptions. Moore takes a different route - he does some of the above, but his main intention is to make the reader laugh as he shares not only his travels but his comments on pop music, the absurdities and hassles of life on the road, and some of the odd characters he runs into.
For such a grand journey, the book often seems too short (a complaint I rarely make), i.e. there are sections in which I would have appreciated hearing some more about what he saw and did. This was Moore's first book, so maybe he gets more descriptive in later releases, but in this one he often just skims the surface and notes a couple of interesting features of the culture and place. The effect is often one of having a few beers with an interesting traveler (who rattles on using a lot of Australian slang) in some hostel or guesthouse somewhere. Unlike some writers, Moore shows little interest in self-revelation (although he does discuss his family a bit and opines frequently about Australian pop songs) - sharing his adventures and his grumbling humor are the main things.
And what a journey it was! London and Eastern Europe fly by in the first 50 pages (with a memorable stay at a hostel called More Than Ways (their motto is "More than ways: one way of life!"), and then he gets into some real adventures in the former Yugoslavia, which happened to be at war at the time. No one could accuse Moore of avoiding troubled regions, that is for sure. He finds himself in the war zone in Mostar, Bosnia, hanging out with a few young men who get by dealing drugs to the soldiers. From there it is on to one of his favorite places, Istanbul, followed by Iran and Pakistan, and then a very dangerous excursion to Kabul, Afghanistan which he leaves in a big hurry after one of his fellow travelers is almost blown away by a half-crazed militiaman. After that it is northern India and the hippie haven of Kathmandu, (whetting my appetite for a visit to those places) where he checks out the shrine of a crazy old holy man who took drugs and lifted heavy stones tied to his penis. Then it is an underwhelming visit to Tibet, followed by a tour of western China, where he does not develop a great love for the Chinese and their practice of overcharging foreigners for everything. A memorable visit to the lovely Lao cities of Luang Prabang and Vientiane comes next, which required some maneuvering to enter from China (actually a big part of the book concerns Moore's efforts to get visas or surreptitiously enter or leave some place or other). From there he checks out Thailand (too overbuilt and touristy), Singapore (hates it), eastern Bali (very interesting), and then even does a little group tour of parts of his homeland. I look forward to joining Mr. Moore on some of his other journeys.
For such a grand journey, the book often seems too short (a complaint I rarely make), i.e. there are sections in which I would have appreciated hearing some more about what he saw and did. This was Moore's first book, so maybe he gets more descriptive in later releases, but in this one he often just skims the surface and notes a couple of interesting features of the culture and place. The effect is often one of having a few beers with an interesting traveler (who rattles on using a lot of Australian slang) in some hostel or guesthouse somewhere. Unlike some writers, Moore shows little interest in self-revelation (although he does discuss his family a bit and opines frequently about Australian pop songs) - sharing his adventures and his grumbling humor are the main things.
And what a journey it was! London and Eastern Europe fly by in the first 50 pages (with a memorable stay at a hostel called More Than Ways (their motto is "More than ways: one way of life!"), and then he gets into some real adventures in the former Yugoslavia, which happened to be at war at the time. No one could accuse Moore of avoiding troubled regions, that is for sure. He finds himself in the war zone in Mostar, Bosnia, hanging out with a few young men who get by dealing drugs to the soldiers. From there it is on to one of his favorite places, Istanbul, followed by Iran and Pakistan, and then a very dangerous excursion to Kabul, Afghanistan which he leaves in a big hurry after one of his fellow travelers is almost blown away by a half-crazed militiaman. After that it is northern India and the hippie haven of Kathmandu, (whetting my appetite for a visit to those places) where he checks out the shrine of a crazy old holy man who took drugs and lifted heavy stones tied to his penis. Then it is an underwhelming visit to Tibet, followed by a tour of western China, where he does not develop a great love for the Chinese and their practice of overcharging foreigners for everything. A memorable visit to the lovely Lao cities of Luang Prabang and Vientiane comes next, which required some maneuvering to enter from China (actually a big part of the book concerns Moore's efforts to get visas or surreptitiously enter or leave some place or other). From there he checks out Thailand (too overbuilt and touristy), Singapore (hates it), eastern Bali (very interesting), and then even does a little group tour of parts of his homeland. I look forward to joining Mr. Moore on some of his other journeys.
October 31, 2017
Peter Moore’s first travelogue details his overland journey from London to Sydney as he follows in the hippy trail popularised during the 1960’s and 70’s.
The author effortlessly weaves humour throughout the story which adds to this great journey and despite the trip occurring in 1994 still resonates well.Travelling through war torn areas such as the former Yugoslavia and a brief foray into Afghanistan, there’s a multitude of off-piste and irregular destinations that successfully separates this book from your standard run-off-the mill travelogue and makes this a right on read.
The author effortlessly weaves humour throughout the story which adds to this great journey and despite the trip occurring in 1994 still resonates well.Travelling through war torn areas such as the former Yugoslavia and a brief foray into Afghanistan, there’s a multitude of off-piste and irregular destinations that successfully separates this book from your standard run-off-the mill travelogue and makes this a right on read.
October 21, 2018
It's been a while that I've laughed out loud so many times while reading. Peter Moore has a brilliant sense of humour and it was bittersweet to reach the end of the journey with him. Reading this will have you yearning and dreaming to experience adventures. What shone through, was Moore's respectful approach to people everywhere, yet remaining true to himself nevertheless in sometimes physically and emotionally taxing situations. This is an author I'll be reading more of!
October 23, 2010
Don't buy this because it might be a Bill Bryson... because it's not. Bryson does a good book, with his astute descriptions of people he meets, and places he sees. This gives good descriptions of places that he sees, but there's virtually no people involved. Which is a shame, because if this self-styled hippie actually bothered to speak to other people, it would be quite a good book. But, sadly, it's not - not a bad book, but not the most entertaining; and no, not the funniest either.
September 26, 2013
Fantastic journey by Peter. Very easy to read and a very likable author. I was particularly interested in the chapters on the Balkans. He must look back on that part of his journey (and the Afghanistan trip) and think how utterly mad it was.
September 14, 2015
Quite an entertaining journey in which Mr Moore seemed to have fulfilled his ambition to retrace the hippy trail - filled with uproarious encounters specially that English teacher on the way to Prague and on the China-Laotian border and also some quite poignant ones like those in Bosnia....
August 20, 2007
Australian writer's story of traveling completely by surface (and there are several points where he's wishes he'd flown!) from London to Sydney. Really funny without ever going over-the-top to exaggerate situations.
August 10, 2009
I'm making my way through Peter Moore's collection of travel writing, as this is the kind of light reading that I can pick up put down and pick up again that is perfect for me while I am traveling. Though I think my appreciation for this book may have suffered a bit by the fact that I read it immediately after Kremmer's Carpet Wars (a fantastic and enlightening book about traveling in the near-East), as both books are travel memoir-style writing and pass through some of the same geographic areas.
August 30, 2010
EAsy introduction to travel books. You can stop and start at each chapter - as I did skipping over some of the journey through countries that didn't interest me. Amusing but not laugh out loud. good observations. A little disappointed he didn't get to into some more debunking of myths and misconceptions through the middle eAst. And shame he didn't get to chat to many women because they seemed pretty unrepresented except as fellow tourists. Light reading bound to encourage you to want to travel again
August 19, 2016
Hilarious read about Peter Moore's adventures when he travels overland from London To Sydney. His adventurous, hilarious and poignant moments (and the drab ones as well, which are more common during travel than travel writers make them out to be!) are all painted vividly in words, and I felt like I was right there on the grubby bus with him. True essence of travel writing. When wanderlust hits and I need a spot of arm-chair travel, I might just reach out for this one again!
November 30, 2016
This book quickly hopped to the top of Mt. TBR, since once I get a Peter Moore book in my sights, the rest of the world does not exist.
This book was fabulous, not only is his writing as engaging as it is in Vroom! and Swahili, but he took me through places other travel writers haven't.
Though this trip was ~10 years ago, it was wonderful insight into travel to exotic places like Iran, the former Yugoslavia, Afghanistan and Laos, plus others.
A must read for all travel buffs and PM fans
This book was fabulous, not only is his writing as engaging as it is in Vroom! and Swahili, but he took me through places other travel writers haven't.
Though this trip was ~10 years ago, it was wonderful insight into travel to exotic places like Iran, the former Yugoslavia, Afghanistan and Laos, plus others.
A must read for all travel buffs and PM fans
July 29, 2008
This was the first journey I took with Peter Moore, and it was a hell of a trip.... It was funny and real. It was light and dirty. It was everything you want to have when you go on a nine months trip around the world. OK, so China was a bit long, but it's a big country after all!!! By far the best book I read for a long while.
May 30, 2013
A fun, quick read with good, brisk writing and interesting observations. I agree with previous reviewers that it's fine to skip chapters you're not interested in; it's easy to get back into the book at any point. I loved the music recommendations at the beginning of each chapter. Will definitely read more from this author.
December 8, 2024
London to Sydney, No flying allowed. Because we’re on the old hippie trail, Through Jungle and desert.
A ten thousand mile brilliantly disaster ridden idea, From war torn baltic states to the paradise of Kathmandu, With border guards of unpredictable levels of hospitality.
A cultural faux pas is only an imaginary line away.
A ten thousand mile brilliantly disaster ridden idea, From war torn baltic states to the paradise of Kathmandu, With border guards of unpredictable levels of hospitality.
A cultural faux pas is only an imaginary line away.
February 26, 2008
Enjoyed even more after moving to Europe but a truly Aussie tale of trying to get home overland - London to Australia.
On completion, I went on to read 'Vroom with a View' and tracked down his website. He has numerous titles to his name and eventually I'll read all of them.
On completion, I went on to read 'Vroom with a View' and tracked down his website. He has numerous titles to his name and eventually I'll read all of them.
January 3, 2015
Not his best book that I have read yet but still good. I did have to put it down and stop reading it for about two weeks and then came back to it and enjoyed it even more when I came back to it. I have two of his other books to read but these are in paperback.
September 16, 2015
This book just wasn't my cup of tea, but I know other people have enjoyed it. This is the story of the author, Peter Moore, who decides to travel home from London to Sydney without stepping on an aeroplane.
July 8, 2007
Very funny Australian travel writing
July 14, 2008
Made me both want to travel right then, and appreciate my home more. Thanks to Peter for travelling and letting me travel vicariously through him.
August 19, 2010
Peter Moore, I adore you--too bad I'm already married! Details his true attempt to return home to Australia from England using no planes. He's witty and brilliant, all his travel books are gems.
August 31, 2010
This book made me want to go to Laos. And Iran.
July 24, 2018
An ok read, on the whole i enjoyed it but it didnt blow me away. average.
January 13, 2012
menarik
May 15, 2012
I thought this was ok. I love to travel and I thought I would love this book but it was lacking in any real insight or wisdom. Just kind of a travel log about an interesting trip.
March 23, 2013
An exciting and interesting tale of a mans travels though beautiful countrys and dam right dangerous places.
September 15, 2013
I've nearly finished this book, how sad! Feel like i've been by Peter's side the whole way. I hope he has written more stuff!
April 30, 2014
was an amazing journey just the fact to some of the places i have been he gave quite a negative take which i disagreed with
April 29, 2016
Read the first few pages. I wanted something light, not sophomoric.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 46 reviews