From salsa dancing in a rum-induced haze and struggling to exercise in Colombia (“the guerillas were using the track again today”), to ...
read full description
reviews
Feb 21, 2008
Kattie
rated it: 
Interesting book...ask the author to lend you money, she is very trusting.
I'm hoping that this book is in some part fiction. I hope she's not really that gullable, and I hope those aren't really her parents or she's adopted. Traveling the world is one thing...
So I guess what I'm saying is that the choices made by the author bugged me while reading. Odd little story.
I'm hoping that this book is in some part fiction. I hope she's not really that gullable, and I hope those aren't really her parents or she's adopted. Traveling the world is one thing...
So I guess what I'm saying is that the choices made by the author bugged me while reading. Odd little story.
0 comments
like
(1 person liked it)
Apr 11, 2009
Catherine
rated it: 
Wendy Dale has a lot of guts. She details the good, bad, and ugly of her journey and doesn't hold back even when it's less than flattering to herself…and one could argue that there are many of those moments.
There's a lot of humor in the book. I particularly loved the "latte" conversation on page 57. Classic! I also enjoyed the several times when she addressed her reader directly. She writes with a very matter-of-fact, conversational tone.
The important messa More...
There's a lot of humor in the book. I particularly loved the "latte" conversation on page 57. Classic! I also enjoyed the several times when she addressed her reader directly. She writes with a very matter-of-fact, conversational tone.
The important messa More...
Jan 27, 2010
Kathy
rated it:
I almost put this book away a couple of times but eventually I decided I needed to know how everything worked out. Wendy Dale combines stories of her dysfunctional childhood & family with tales of her travel adventures and then gets down to the nitty gritty of the book's title. She falls in love with a Colombian man who has been incarcerated in a Costa Rican prison and she is determined to prove his innocence and free him. Wendy is an extremely funny and descriptive writer and I enjoyed those
More...
Sep 26, 2007
Yelena
rated it: 
I generally shy away from travel literature penned by women as, in my experience, a lot of it gets into the author's personal romantic trysts and angst and strays from the adventure and information I find worthwhile in travelogues. This book purported to be different: a tale of fulfilled wanderlust and off-the-beaten-path locales.
Which it sort of was, until the author gets laid for the first time at which point the entire book devolves into her concerns about the man, then men, she l More...
Which it sort of was, until the author gets laid for the first time at which point the entire book devolves into her concerns about the man, then men, she l More...
Oct 07, 2009
Seasweetie
rated it:
This was an interesting autobiographical book. I enjoyed it and was entraced by it, but also frustrated by the author's seeming to take for granted things that were handed to her that others would have given their right arm for. I won't fault her - or anyone else's - naivete, though. I could relate to that, and to her in that regard.
Jul 26, 2011
2009- From reading the back of the book, I was expecting this book to tell funny stories about the narrator's travels, and that IS how the book started out. Then it switched over to her romance with a Columbia in a Costa Rican jail. I may not have traveled as much as the author, but I'd like to say I have a lot more common sense.
Feb 07, 2010
Aaron
rated it:
This book grates. It basically boils down to, "Most people do this, but I do this other thing! My life is so crazy and interesting!" Yeah, not so much.
Apr 28, 2009
Lauren
rated it: 
I don't remember much of this book except that is a insider's perspective on being an expat in Columbia and that I really enjoyed it.
Feb 20, 2009
I like her voice - very funny. But it seems like her description of one vacation after another. Somewhat weak story arc.
Aug 05, 2011
Anita
rated it:
Easy reading, somewhat amusing. Nothing to seriously lose yourself in though.
Sep 01, 2009
Kimberly
rated it:
Easy read, makes my travel adventures seem like guided bus tours in comparsion.
Dec 17, 2009
Of COURSE I have a bookshelf titled "Quirky and Fun"---and this book fits the bill. Keep in mind, however, that this is coming from someone who has a long history of meeting people on airplanes and then getting to be good friends with them. I have never, however, dated anyone I've met on vacation, nor have I ever been involved with a man (or men) in prison, unlike our fearless heroine here.
This fun little read is great for the summer season of travel. While you're waiting b More...
This fun little read is great for the summer season of travel. While you're waiting b More...
Nov 06, 2011
Katie
rated it:
I enjoyed this book until about half-way through. It was entirely too drawn out and sometime felt humorous and other times like she was struggling to show some genuine emotion. It took me a long time to get through the last third of the book,..would have rated the first half much higher.
Jul 03, 2009
molly
rated it:
what bothered me about this was that i could see the terrible decisions coming about a mile away.
Dec 16, 2009
April
rated it:
H.E. lent me this book. The author is one of his friends and gave him a signed copy, and like him she's smart, world experienced, political, and very funny. The book reflects all that and more.
I found myself laughing out loud in a lot of places, so if you like travel, writing, and humor, I recommend reading this book.
Finished reading July 14, 2007.
I found myself laughing out loud in a lot of places, so if you like travel, writing, and humor, I recommend reading this book.
Finished reading July 14, 2007.
Aug 26, 2008
Rebecca
rated it:
Interesting novel. I'm not sure it was funny, although it's touted as humor. It was more vulnerable and painful than funny. I finished it on the plane, coming back from another state which will be my new home in two months, and I thought home really is where you are internally as much as externally. Location isn't everything.
Jul 21, 2008
Helen
rated it:
This was the perfect summer read. It is more of a "what not to do on vacation" travel guide and does so with hilarious and unbelievable happenings to the main character. I would definitely recommend it to those who love to live vicariously through the crazy (and not-recommended) travels of others.
Apr 12, 2007
chauncey
rated it:
funny book written by an American woman with wanderlust. she ends up stuck in south america with no money and no passport, but eventually finds her way back to the States. it's a great read for anyone who has ever felt the siren call of far off destinations and other ways of life.
Jan 09, 2008
Erin
rated it:
I didn't really enjoy the author's personality (and at some points, her sense of humor) so I had a difficult time getting into this book. However, the sections pertaining to the legal system of Costa Rica and the general state of affairs in Colombia are engrossing.
Nov 27, 2011
Jeannie
rated it:
Travel lore books are quickly becomming one of my favorites...I can travel without leaving home and with no expense! I loved her style of writing, putting the reader right in the thick of things, even the personal things happening in her own life. Loved this book!
0 comments
like
(1 person liked it)
Jun 16, 2008
Amy
rated it:
I really liked this book at first, but she made some decisions that I thought weren't that great. We all make foolish choices in the game called love, but there were a lot of red flags that I think she missed. It was okay, but the last part really dragged on.
Aug 07, 2007
Cheri
rated it:
This book made me laugh out loud. I enjoyed the smart writing and biting humor.
My friend gave this to me to read after I felt small and insignificant next to the great travels and deeds of some of my friends. Maybe it's great to be stuck at home after all!
My friend gave this to me to read after I felt small and insignificant next to the great travels and deeds of some of my friends. Maybe it's great to be stuck at home after all!
Dec 01, 2008
Tori
rated it: 
It started out great, but eventually I grew tired of her general ditziness and diatribes regarding past vacation experiences. It felt like I was reading a travel journal where I wanted to punch myself in the face afterwards for reading it.
May 31, 2008
Maneka
rated it:
I read this book when I was living/teaching English on an indigenous reservation in Costa Rica. I identified with so many things she was speaking about both as an ameriacan and someone living in another country. I loved this book.
Dec 16, 2009
Sascha
rated it:
This book reintroduced me to the fun of travel essays. Although the book is not quite as funny as Bill Bryson's most famous, it held its own. Wendy Dale helped me go to places I would not likely go on my own and then she reminded me why.
Dec 16, 2009
Chris
rated it:
I picked up this book expecting comedy, and that is what I got for the first few chapters. After that it got a bit more serious than what I expected, but overall it was still entertaining. Ends of kind of a downer.
Jul 15, 2008
Bethany
rated it:
the author/narrator is not always very likable, and at times her propensity toward self-aggrandizement became rather irritating. however, the book overall is entertaining and there are moments of insight.
Dec 17, 2009
Sarah
rated it:
If you're interested in Central American culture, this would be a good book for you to check out. If you are a needy girl with a history of destructive relationships, avoid this one at all costs.
Nov 04, 2007
Valerie
rated it:
Enjoyed reading her accounts of mishaps and adventures in Latin America. Not sure if I would emulate some of her choices, especially with men, but it was a great poolside read.
