Very early on Erika Fatland points out that all I know about the region that covers a genuinely covers a large portion of landmass is Borat and 'My Wife'. And she isn't wrong. That is pretty much all I know. And as she travels through these 5 very distinctive countries that image of Borat in a Mankeni did thankfully melt away. It's a great travel log of a book, and it is always going to be interesting because I knew nothing about these regions. But no matter what the Ghost of the Soviet Union runs through it. To the point that it did blend the countries so much. But only because the Soviets isolated them so much from the rest of the world. The book hits all you us the usual stranger in a strange land of the travel log. It didn't really hold any surprises for me but it was a delight to read.