In New Europe Michael Palin sets off to discover the half of Europe that until recently has been largely out of bounds. Shown in BBC TV documentaries, the famed travel writer & comedian explores 20 eastern European countries, encountering painful pasts & exciting prospects. Palin`s journey started with a simple idea: that only a couple of hours from home is a half of Europe that is for him as unknown & unexplored as the plateau of Tibet or the vastness of the Sahara. Cut off for most of his life by Cold Wars & Iron Curtains, Europe`s eastern lands are now open for business. & it’s as much a voyage of discovery as any of Michael’s other journeys, as he finds himself in countries he’d barely heard of, many of them new names on the map, many unfamiliar & mysterious, all with tragic histories & much brighter futures. Starting in the snows of the Julian Alps, on the borders of Italy & Slovenia, Palin heads east to discover the half of Europe he never knew. Heading down the ancient trade route of the Adriatic coast he turns north into the Balkans, gingerly picking themselves up after the vicious fighting of 1990s. Albania takes Palin into a different world of strongly eastern influence which he follows through Bulgaria, Macedonia, & into Turkey, where Europe & Asia meet. Turning north to Moldova & Romania, he follows the mighty Danube into Serbia & Hungary, the very heart of Europe, & on to Ukraine. A final sweep from north to south takes him through the Baltic States into Poland & across the Carpathian mountains into Slovakia, the Czech Republic & what was until recently East Germany. Altogether Palin visits 20 countries, more than in his Himalaya & Sahara journeys combined. Throwing himself into local life with his usual reckless curiosity, he samples pig fat with a brandy chaser, meets Romanian lumberjacks, drives the 8.58 stopping train from Poznan to Wolsztyn, learns about mine-clearing in Bosnia, treads the catwalk at a Budapest fashion show & watches Turkish men wrestling in olive oil. With striking photographs by Basil Pao, the book is a fascinating insight into a relatively uncharted territory. It’s New Europe, but vintage Palin.