Desmond Hogan is one of Ireland's leading writers. In addition to his novels and stories, he has traveled widely (for various newspapers) to some of the strangest and most fascinating parts of the world. In the past fifteen years, he has visited Soviet Russia, Central America, Europe, Africa and the Middle East. Each of the pieces in this volume is both a personal and a geographical journey, and taken together they amount to a vivid picture of a changing world.