When I went to Hong Kong, I knew at once I wanted to write a story set there.

Luxury is the enemy of observation, a costly indulgence that induces such a good feeling that you notice nothing. Luxury spoils and infantilizes you and prevents you from knowing the world.

When I'm writing, I like to travel alone. If you really want to find out about a place, you need to be as free as possible to be spontaneous. You also need to be lonely, because loneliness is a great teacher, too.

My house is a place I have spent many years improving to the point where I have no desire to leave it.

Travel works best when you're forced to come to terms with the place you're in.

Tibet has a very proud people but it's culturally gone and overrun ever since the Chinese took over. It's like saving the rhino. When a species is endangered, it's gone.

...a society without jaywalkers might indicate a society without artists.