Two Idiots Abroad: In Eastern Europe

Join author and erstwhile Tourism graduate Dan and his alumni friend Chris as they prove that despite their qualifications, they are absolutely awful at travelling.

Together, they bumble through mismanaged itineraries, arrive in locations with nothing more than an inappropriately packed rucksack, miss vital medication and hardly ever have any accommodation booked. This is a story about their three disastrous attempts to backpack around Poland, Ukraine and the Czech Republic.

As the trip progresses, Dan becomes more disheveled, drunk and defeated by the ensuing chaos, throughout which a solid friendship is both tested and reinforced by a steady stream of oddballs as well as bizarre and often dangerous situations.

This is an amusing and painfully accurate portrayal of two hapless blokes in the 'prime of their lives', crisis-managing their way through their annual leave. Trying to finally have a successful trip, they end up witnessing the beginnings of a brutal and ongoing civil conflict. It's a 'reality travel' book written as a lighthearted counter-argument for those who think that backpacking is the single greatest thing you can do.

Alongside well-documented and self-deprecating accounts, the locations are well researched and historically referenced in a way that informs and entertains. A self-styled 'antidote to the plethora of inspirational travel books written by "professional" explorers'... Think Karl Pilkington meets Michael Palin, and you'll still be a little way off!