Not All Sunshine and Sand: The Tales of a UK-Middle East Truck Driver

Book excerpt: Recounting his many hair-raising experiences as a truck driver on the Middle East run, some of them humorous, some alarming, Paul Rowlands recalls the camaraderie of the trucking fraternity. This book takes the reader on a ride through foreign lands in the cab of a long-haul lorry, providing an insider's perspective on overland travel. A tremendous tale, in which run-ins with the locals, dramatic encounters with foreign drivers and mechanical problems seem the norm for a long-haul lorry driver. Paul Rowlands takes us into his world as a truck driver, initially around rural Suffolk and the rest of the UK, before embarking on the Middle East run.The long-distance lorry driver deals with life in the raw, with many hardships and occasional comforts: difficulties are tempered by the sheer beauty of mountain passes, lakeside stops and the generous hospitality of the people he meets. Trucking camaraderie has seen Paul through many a crisis, and he shares the belief that help is always at hand when a fellow driver is facing a problem. The new edition of this hugely popular book incorporates 72 photographs taken at the time, many of which have never been previously published.