Some error occured while loading the Quick View. Please close the Quick View and try reloading the page.
"What’s the strangest thing you’ve ever seen or experienced?”
Gina and Scott Gaille have traveled to more than 100 countries, including many off-the-beaten-path places in Africa, South America, and Asia. Wherever they go, they ask this question. Everyone has a story, and some are truly extraordinary.
Strange Tales of World Travel, Volume 2 is the follow-up to the Gailles’ award-winning debut. Their sequel entertains readers with 50 more thrilling, hilarious, heartbreaking encounters, including:
- Mr. Centenarian, the 111-year-old who attributes his longevity to drinking and bathing in a magical river
- Mr. Serengeti, who picked the wrong bush to relieve himself in while on safari
- The Refugee, who witnessed his friend get shot for begging a soldier to protect his family from approaching rebels
- Mr. Lucky to Live, who was scalped by an angry baboon, and many more.
Each story represents an indelible memory for its narrator. These are peak moments in their lives, tales they tell and retell. Once again, the Gailles bring them together in this captivating second volume of Strange Tales of World Travel.
"I could not put this book down. I learned so much not only about the animal world and customs and conventions in different countries, but also how resilient humans are and how much we sometimes take our 'good luck' for granted. Gina and Scott Gaille's question, as they travel to some of the most fascinating places on the planet—'What's the strangest thing you've ever seen or experienced?'—results in a thoroughly entertaining, highly informative, sometimes hilarious book." —Judge's citation, Nonfiction Book Awards
"Curious travelers and travelers who encountered the curious: unite! This collection delivers on what it promises. It's easy to read, funny, at times terrifying, and had me laughing, gasping, and making a list of places I want to go...and avoid." —Judge's citation, Nonfiction Book Awards
"From Florida to Africa to the Galapagos and beyond, I gathered wisdom and warnings from the narratives, such as don't pee on a hyena and there's a reason guides don't book solo charters in the Everglades. The dash of adventure was nicely balanced with outright compelling storytelling, so I reveled in their insights into tribal cultures. Overall, I was excited to turn the page to see what happened next." —Judge's citation, Nonfiction Book Awards
Praise for Volume 1 of Strange Tales of World Travel
“This book contains some of the most astonishing tales I’ve ever encountered. One after another. They make for obsessive reading.” —Tim Cahill, author of Jaguars Ripped My Flesh
“The entire point of travel is to encounter the unimaginable. Gina and Scott Gaille have collected some of the most remarkable tales to ever see the light of day. A hoot to read.” —J. Maarten Troost, author of The Sex Lives of Cannibals
“A fabulous new book! Two- or three-page stories, each one brings you to a different part of the world.” —Frommer’s Travel Show
“Strange Tales of World Travel presents a world you will not find in glossy magazine articles, breathless blogs, or self-adulatory Instagrams ... it’s a world of adventures gone awry, ... of intimate glimpses of unimaginable wealth and unquestionable power, of close encounters with the wilder edges of human culture .... The result is a collection that is, as the book’s subtitle suggests, bizarre, mysterious, horrible, and hilarious—like travel, and life itself.” —From the Foreword by Don George, author of Lonely Planet’s How to Be a Travel Writer
“Damn! I thought my book had the strangest bunch of true travel tales under the sun, but the Gailles’ collection leaves me in the dust. Maybe even obliterated in a Sahara sandstorm.” —Albert Podell, New York Times best-selling author of Around the World in 50 Years
Bronze Winner in Travel Essay category - 2020 Independent Publisher Book Awards (IPPYs)
Honorable Mention in Travel Book category - 2019 North American Travel Journalists Association (NATJA) Awards
Finalist in Travel category - 2019 Foreword Magazine INDIES Book Awards
2. Pura Vida, Costa Rica
3. Cultural Leftovers, Ethiopia
4. Reciprocity, Iceland
5. Watch Where You Step, South Africa
6. First They Took Our Guns, Cambodia
7. Musth, Kenya
8. Don’t Become a Travel Statistic, Bora Bora
9. Echidna Love, Australia
10. The Boy Butler, Ethiopia
11. The Young Man and the Sea, Pacific Ocean
12. Paternity Test, Tanzania
13. Dragon Well Tea, China
14. Zebra Fight, South Africa
15. Sinking Boats, Galapagos Islands
16. Unintended Consequences, Tanzania
17. Were Trolls Real, Norway
18. Inexplicable Horror, Rwanda
19. Claustrophobia, Turkey
20. The Marriage Proposal, Guinea Bissau
21. Wine Done Wrong, Italy
22. Baboon Attack, Tanzania
23. War of the Wolves, Wyoming
24. Follow the Rules, Tanzania
25. The Next Victim, Florida
26. The Guinea Worm, Ghana
27. The Towers of Pain, Chile
28. The Elephant’s Closest Relative, Kenya
29. Ambush, Costa Rica
30. The Giraffe Kisser, Kenya
31. Guess Who’s Coming to Breakfast, Brazil
32. Flying Toilets, Kenya
33. Whale Slaughter, Azores Islands
34. The Painted Wolves, Botswana
35. The Hurricane, Bermuda
36. The Roque Santiero, Angola
37. Score One for the Salmon, Alaska
38. Crucifixion Beach, Togo
39. Unwanted Visitors, Kazakhstan
40. Jack’s Camp, Kalahari Desert
41. The Rescue, Tanzania
42. The Bathroom Apartment, India
43. Tigerfish Attack, South Africa
44. Lilac-Breasted Roller, South Africa
45. Where’s Suriname, Suriname
46. Dirty Needles, Angola
47. Adoption Gone Wrong, Zimbabwe
48. Coup d’Chef, Libya
49. One Man’s Journey, East Africa
50. Swim Contest, Uganda