Bowling With Buddha: Travels in Southeast Asia

Travelling by boat, plane, bus, tuk-tuk, taxi, hydrofoil, foot and ferry through Vietnam, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Myanmar, the author discovers a mind-boggling blend of ancient and modern. He encounters a cast of characters in a land where saffron-clad monks on iPhones share subway cars with cross-dressing call girls. He finds a patchwork of pristine mountain cascades and fetid urban waterways, idyllic rice paddies and urban sprawl, and a place where the lights of a bowling alley just may cast their neon glow against the walls of an ancient Buddhist monastery. Sometimes frenetic, sometimes peaceful, but always a trip, "Bowling With Buddha" is a fascinating look at Southeast Asia through the eyes of a bewildered traveler who's not seeking enlightenment, just trying to get a clue.