When you finish school and university, dear reader, there is one way to continue your education: to get out of your comfort zone. Leave the couch and grab a backpack, boots, and a passport. Love the ports, the airports, the unknown words, sleeping in a tent, the strange faces, the unexpected encounters.

Reach the explosive Venezuela of the dying Chavez, sexy Cuba where everything changes except for the worship of Che, pre-industrial Ethiopia with its cut-off clitorises, Vietnam where dog is a great delicacy, the Land of Fire where Darwin was inspired by his theory, New Zealand of the Maoris where the water runs backwards, to see the world upside down: not just cities, which are mere showcases – to see all the truth, you must also visit the villages and the mountains.

Don’t be afraid, you don’t need to be an athlete. Whoever wants to climb, climbs. I did it for the first time sixteen years ago – you'll see how and why.

So I decided to gather in a book the funniest, darkest, most unexpected stories that crossed my path while walking through the mountains and cities of the world. I thought to tell you what happened to me and what I learned, so that maybe next time you’ll come along too.