Book excerpt: "E.T. Laing's career has thrown him into some of the world's most colourful corners. During the long course of his travels to work in 70 countries, he's witnessed a Communist Party boss lose a chilli-eating contest in China; confronted a gaggle of drunken soldiers who threw his passport into a ditch in Nigeria; been kissed again and again in front of a cheering crowd by a tiny babushka [grandmother] at a market stall in Russia; and faced the displeasure of a despotic ruler in the Middle East. From the funny to the downright terrifying, Laing's tales touch the extremes of poverty and wealth, of beauty and brutality. ..."--Back cover.