Where the Pavement Ends: One Woman's Bicycle Trip Through Mongolia, China & Vietnam (Hardcover)

~ (Author) "Sandwiched between Russia and China, Mongolia is a harsh, beautiful, windswept land of extremes..." (more)
Key Phrases: eight kuai, rear rack, Ikh Uul, Kon Plong, Kon Turn (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Living in Seattle and failing to make her mark as an actress, Erika Warmbrunn decides to chuck it all and go traveling. Her resulting novel, Where the Pavement Ends, is an absorbing account of her ambitious eight-month solo bicycle trip through the countries of Mongolia, China, and Vietnam. While Warmbrunn's accounts of the travails of traveling in far-off lands doesn't necessarily break new ground, she writes with humor and candor. If you have even a twinge of wanderlust, you'll appreciate this book. Her adventure begins in Mongolia, where she cycles past curious onlookers in dusty towns with names like Khatgal and Moron. Abandoning her set-in-stone itinerary, she spends a memorable month in the village of Ashaant teaching English to schoolchildren and living in a traditional ger (tent). In China she braves the cold and nerve-racking interrogation but is awed by the Great Wall and intrigued by fellow backpackers' tales, told over noodles and beer. By the time she reaches Vietnam, with the frenetic Saigon and its ever-present reminders of the war, she is psychically and emotionally spent. Four thousand miles is a long way to go--even when it's a journey in search of self. --Jill Fergus

From Library Journal

In 1993, this 27-year-old American woman set off alone from Irkutsk in Siberia and eight months later ended up 5000 miles away in Saigon. Hers was not so much a test of endurance, although there was plenty to endure such as eating sheep's head in Mongolia, confronting bureaucratic hassles in China, and fending off overly eager children in Vietnam but rather a journey of self-discovery. She stopped for a month to teach school along the way and took public transportation a couple of times. She writes poignantly and frankly of the dilemmas caused by First World low-budget travelers in Third World countries. Should they pay more than locals, what hospitality and privileges should they expect, and what should their impact be on the people they encounter? She confesses to occasional bad behavior, exasperation, and a lack of sensitivity. Travels such as hers are not so rare today, but thoughtful, honest, insightful writing about the cross-cultural experience is. A fine addition to public libraries; highly recommended. Harold M. Otness, formerly with Southern Oregon Univ. Lib., Ashland
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 249 pages
• Publisher: Mountaineers Books; 1st edition (March 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0898866847
• ISBN-13: 978-0898866841
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #378,046 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I'm not Lance, April 9, 2003

By A Customer

The good news is, I really liked this book. The bad news is that when I finished it I quit my job, sold the house, drained my IRA and bought a bicycle.

If you have ever traveled in the third world and experienced the mixed emotions of being a rich American in a poor country you will recognize yourself in this story. From the priceless experiences she has with people who let her into their homes and into their worlds, to those who have had much more experience with wealthy Western travelers and make their livings from them, she captures the two sides of this kind of travel.

This is a book about a journey, not an expedition. Unlike so many books of this genre, the author parks her ego at the door. While riding a bike, especially as far as she does, is an athletic accomplishment this is not a book about an athlete. She does not try to impress us about how many kilometers she rides a day or how difficult a particular mountain pass was to climb. This is the story of a journey by an intelligent and introspective woman who is interested in getting away from the hippie travel circuit and seeing places she is told not to go and learning about people you will not see from the train or meet in the tourist hotel.

How wonderful it must be to have all you really need with you on your bike and not really care that you don't know exactly where you are.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Inspiring, September 7, 2001

By	Jeremy "jcmilam21" (Berea, Ohio) - See all my reviews

Erika's story is inspiring. The amazing people she met all along her trip, the problems she encountered all make for fascinating reading. She so wonderfully puts into words an amazing experience. Regardless of if you like to travel to foreign countries, bike long distances, or just to read a great book, you'll love this one. I found myself just stopping to think, "Wow" so many times. Absolutely wonderful!

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A spiritually uplifting trip into the Far East, July 15, 2001

By A Customer

The author did a wonderful job of describing the people, places, and different foods that she encountered on her trip into Mongolia, China, and Vietnan. After reading this book, I became slightly envious of the author having the guts to make such a trip. I wish I had it in me to pack up my things and venture out on a bicycle into the far-off regions of the Far East. If you like positive roadtrip stories, check this one out. You won't be disapppointed!