More than 300 million people in the world speak English and the rest, it sometimes seems, try to.

The universe is not only queerer than we suppose; it is queerer than we can suppose

To my mind, the only possible pet is a cow. Cows love you. They will listen to your problems and never ask a thing in return. They will be your friends forever. And when you get tired of them, you can kill and eat them. Perfect.

It is always quietly thrilling to find yourself looking at a world you know well but have never seen from such an angle before.

Yes, U.S. travelers dress better. The British are always so conspicuous in hot climates. They don't seem to wear shorts. American men seem to be comfortable wearing hot-weather clothing.

There is something about the momentum of travel that makes you want to just keep moving, to never stop.

The real problem you get with humour is that you only have so many kinds of jokes within you, and you mine that vein a lot. This isn't just common to me; it's anybody who's funny.