Book Review – Traveling in Sin By George and Lisa Niver Rajna.
It’s time for another awesome book review and I’m delighted to feature one from two fellow travellers, globertrotters and writers. Lisa Niver Rajna and George Rajna run the fantastic site We Said Go Travel and I also interviewed them on my World Travellers Series earlier in the year.
World Travellers – Lisa and George from We Said Go Travel enjoying drinks!
Both Lisa and George are members of the Traveler’s Century Club. That means they have both been to over 100 countries!! I’d say they’re travel experts and well versed to give you an insight into their travelling lives. Traveling in Sin is a 286 page e-Book documenting their journey, it takes them through an emphatic range of places like Borneo, French Polynesia, New Zealand, China and Mongolia.
There are a load of twists along the way as they also tell their personal story of how they met, how they shared their love of travel and how, somewhere along the way there’s a marriage proposal…
It’s also an immaculate love story within, including private e-mail messages the couple sent each other to begin with, the decision to take 11 months out to see the world together, the falling in love on the road story…
The journey takes them “off the wall” (as I like to say – to places you haven’t heard of). Here’s an exercpt from their visit to Bora Bora:
“The 45-minute flight from Moorea to Bora Bora did not provide idyllic panoramic vistas of the French Polynesian motus. A cloud layer followed us until we descended toward Bora Bora, an island with a bracket shaped motus surrounding and protecting the main land mass. “
Lisa and George traveling in sin to Bora Bora, French Polynesia…
There’s also a complete lack of shyness from this flirtatious couple:
“Later back at our pension we made love, and agreed that we should consummate our love at least once in each location.”
Traveling in Sin – Lisa and George at Sydney Harbour Bridge.
From a personal perspective, I loved the stories from places I had been to. They ticked off the Pohutu Geysir in Rotorua, Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Beatles Bar in Kuala Lumpur. Shame we didn’t meet up for a karaoke session in that bar – I liked it. The bar has since closed down by the way…
Traveling in Sin takes the couple to the Beatles Bar in Kuala Lumpur!
As I sipped a cup of tea onboard a flight, reading Traveling in Sin on my laptop I was just inspired once again by Lisa and George – they’ve been on a hell of a load more journeys than me. But I’m willing to play catch up. I’m on a quest for the 100 country mark and with my backpacking girlfriend and I having been together for more than three years now, you sometimes think to yourself “what a wonderful world”.
Traveling in Sin: Indonesia!
The love story takes centre stage throughout as well and in a clever way, a proposal takes place, somewhere along the journey (I’ll let you read it for yourselves 😉 ). The crazy stories flow and flow, there’s that odd moment when George eats Dinosaur Bone (possibly), the time when Lisa dreamt her contact lens turned into a grasshopper, a “Team Vodka” session in Vietnam and that moment of crazyness when George got too drunk and passed out. Believe me George and Lisa – I know all about it – I get days of anger from my girlfriend when I drink too much (and rightly so I must add).
The end of a crazy trip – arrival in Los Angeles after traveling in sin for a year!
Plus an intriguing story of a Chinese guy they met who got assaulted by three prostitutes, one of whom gave him a blowjob! The raw and real travel stories make for the best reading eh?!
Traveling in Sin – travel has its odd modes of transport, tubing in Vang Vieng in Laos is one – go easy on the drink though!
For me, the best thing about Traveling in Sin is the way it’s written. It’s a passionate, enthusiastic, real-life travel memoir. The joint authorship gives it that gender splitting edge. They are telling their travel story the way it is, the way any traveller should. I write a diary of my journey and always have done, even to this day I make handwritten travel notes and then convert the best of them to this travel blog.
Whether you’re a seasoned backpacker, a high end traveller, a holiday maker or someone who just loves a real life travel and love story, get downloading this book! It will make a great read on your next journey and you may be suitably inspired.
These are the chapters:
Chapter One: The Beginning
Chapter Two: French Polynesia (Tahiti, Moorea, Bora Bora, Huahine)
Chapter Three: New Zealand (Auckland, Rotorua, Bay of Islands) Chapter Four: Australia (Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane)
Chapter Five: Thailand (Phuket, Koh Phi Phi, Trang)
Chapter Six: Malaysia (Penang, the Cameron Highlands, Kuala Lumpur)
Chapter Seven: Bali, Indonesia (Bali, Lombok, Sumbawa, Flores and Rinca) Chapter Eight: Sarawak, Borneo (Kuching, Semenggoh, Bako, the Niah Caves)
Chapter Nine: Brunei (Bandar Seri Begawan, Ulu Temburong) Chapter Ten: Sabah Borneo (Kota Kinabalu, Sepilok, Mabul, Sipadan)
Chapter Eleven: Indonesia II (Kalimantan, Java, Sumatra)
Chapter Twelve: Thailand II (Koh Lipe, Koh Tao, Koh Chang/Samet, Pattaya)
Chapter Thirteen: Vietnam (Hanoi, Sapa, Ha Long Bay, Dalat, Ho Chi Minh)
Chapter Fourteen: Cambodia (Phnom Penh, Siem Reap, Battambang, Kratie) Chapter Fifteen: Laos (Don Det, Vientiane, Vang Vieng, Luang Prabang)
Chapter Sixteen: Northern Thailand (Chiang Mai, Pai, Mae Hong Son)
Chapter Seventeen: China (Kunming, Langzhong, Yangshuo, Xi’an, Beijing)
Chapter Eighteen: Mongolia (Ulaanbaatar, Gobi Desert Tour, Terelj)
Chapter Nineteen: Los Angeles, the United States of America
Traveling in Sin may be ordered on www.amazon.com and www.wesaidgotravel.com.
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