Lopatin tells you all about his most harrowing, and life-threatening travel experiences to fifty-three countries and thirty-five states. For example, he speaks about how he reacted to an imminent plane crash, about the five masked bandits who carjacked his Mexico City taxicab, and about the terrorists shooting at his tour group at a Middle East border crossing. Lopatin tells you what he learned from his travel experiences and provides important travel survival strategies including, but not limited to: - Reading and adhering to relevant travel advisories before you leave; - Leaving healthy and getting ready for the germs you find overseas; Buying travel insurance (you might need it); -Avoiding pickpockets, burglars, and unscrupulous merchants; -Learning the culture and language of the country you are visiting;and -Making sure your luggage arrives when you do. Each chapter contains one or two stories about the adventures, lessons-learned and interesting persons Lopatin met along the way. For example, Lopatin describes, with embarrassment, how Hibah, the Istanbul jeweler, cajoled him into buying overpriced bracelets that he really did not want or need. He writes about how he felt so totally alone in Tokyo, perhaps the most crowded city in the entire world. Certainly, the most colorful character he met along the way was Miguel, the overweight, charasmatic Mexico City taxicab driver, who drove him to the pyramids outside of Mexico City, and then negotiated his way out of a hostage misadventure when the taxicab was later ambushed by those five masked bandits on a scarcely used Mexican roadway. Lopatin will show you how to plan your next vacation to make sure you have a great time and come home in one piece.
About the Author: Lopatin is passionate about travel, particularly travel that takes him to exotic destinations overseas. So far, he has traveled to fifty-three countries on four continents. He believes travel is one of the best ways to expand his horizons. It provides him with perspectives and points of view that he would not have developed had he stayed at home. He says that with travel he has become more familiar with people having different philosophies of life, cultural and religious beliefs, and lifestyle traditions. Additionally, he says that with travel, he's gained a better perspective on who he is and why he behaves as he does. Lopatin is a self-described survival coach, helping his readers build strategies for surviving the challenges we all face in life. He is also the author of "Manage Your Chronic Illness", a book that chronicles his battle against chronic illnesses, and how he navigated his way through and around physician offices, insurance companies, and hospitals on his way to health and wellness. He is also the author of "How to Survive Your Promotion", a book that chronicles his struggle to survive as a fledgling executive in a tough business environment. Lopatin has a Masters in Public Administration. For most of his professional career, he worked for the city government of San Francisco as an audit manager and as a finance director. Lopatin is also a prolific speaker. He speaks to countless audiences about what he writes in his books. He is a long-time member of Toastmasters International, earning their highest award, the Distinguished Toastmaster.