Dhaka to Dakar: Book One – Through Asia

Dhaka to Dakar: Book 1 – Through Asia [link – buy here]

This is the second edition, available from Payhip in PDF format. Includes dozens of photos I took. Here is a summary:

Backpacking expert Andrew Boland embarked upon a mission in 2004, to travel from Dhaka in Bangladesh to Dakar in Senegal by plane, train, bus and whatever transport he could find. Dhaka to Dakar is a travelogue about this journey. In this book, Dhaka to Dakar: Book 1 – Through Asia, Andrew visits seven countries in Asia – Malaysia, Singapore, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Iran and Turkey, in the first leg of his adventure.

Andrew takes an early morning boat on the Ganges, survives food poisoning more than once, journeys into the Khyber Pass, nearly gets engaged Iran, nearly gets adopted in Iran, and marvels at the amazing city of Istanbul where the leg finishes. Nearly 6000km by air, this part of the journey is much longer by land –from Dhaka Andrew takes buses to the Indian border, later one through the Baluchistan desert, another from Tabriz Istanbul. He revels on the trains in India, and scoots to the Pakistan border in a rickshaw. Join him on the trip of a life time!

The first edition is available on Kindle.

On Amazon Kindle (first edition):

Book One: Journey Across Asia

Find the Book:

Book One: Journey Through Asia (Amazon US link)

Book One: Journey Through Asia (Amazon UK link)

This is the first volume of the journey. The trip starts not in Bangladesh, but in Malaysia – it was on the way! See how I feel about the journey I am emarking on. My arrival at the starting line proper, Dhaka- Bangladesh, perhaps the craziest city on Earth.

Follow me across the subcontinent through India, Pakistan to the Middle East in Iran and Turkey. Will I get married in Iran, die of food-poisoning in India or will the wild town of Peshawar, Pakistan eat me up and spit me out? All is revealed in this book. The individual chapters are also available:

Reviews on Amazon:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not just a travelogue October 6, 2011

By RobinF

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

Andrew Boland has a very engaging writing style that is easy and pleasurable to read. He is an adventure traveller and is able to convey a real feel for the destinations he visits. He relates a very personal journey and clearly engages quickly with those he meets along the way. The odd typo and change in font do not detract from the reading pleasure. Look forward to Books 2 and 3.

Chapter One: Malaysia and Singapore

Chapter Two: Bangladesh

Review on this chapter from Amazon :

4.0 out of 5 stars An observant and unbiased eye for that touch which makes a travel diary different February 8, 2014

By Veeresh Malik

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

Andre Boland spends a week in Dhaka, entering by air and departing by road, towards India. While we don’t get much, at this juncture, about his travel part, what we do get is a brilliant short stay guide to Dhaka as well as an Australian’s eye view of life in Bangladesh’s Capital city.There is mention of the oldest church in the world, an Armenian Christian church, He calls it the oldest church in the world, which is not really true, since it was built in and around 1781. But that’s OK.

What I liked about this short chapter is the keen human touch he brings to his experiences in Bangladesh. For that alone, I do wish the whole book was also available free, as the Chapter I read was free when I downloaded it!

There is joy and positiveness in the chapter.