The Long Direction

Book excerpt: Singapore to Montreal. 275 days. 23 countries. Three continents and an ocean. More than 20,000 kilometres. A journey of a lifetime.Is it possible to travel from Singapore to Canada without flights? In a bid to find out, intrepid 20-year-old traveller Ganesha Balakrishnan embarked on a life-changing quest that saw him hitchhiking across deserts and steppes, sleeping on the couches of strangers, camping on snow-capped hills, city parks and beaches, and sailing across the Atlantic on a cargo ship all while armed with just a 60-litre backpack and a mettlesome attitude.The Long Direction isn't a mere travel memoir but a historical, social and cultural commentary on the numerous countries Balakrishnan visited, a recount of spine-tingling - and sometimes life-threatening - experiences and a compilation of life stories of the people he met along the way. Whether writing about back alleyways of ancient cities, being stalked by the secret police, or having a romantic encounter in lands where same-sex relationships are both illegal and taboo, Ganesha Balakrishnan gives a thrilling account of what's it like to leave everything behind and take the road less travelled.