And there are new kinds of nomads, not people who are at home everywhere, but who are at home nowhere. I was one of them

The 70s were a wonderful time to be young. I think most young people at that time were pushing the boundaries, asking all sorts of questions of society, of life and of themselves. They were very politicised. It was part of the air that we breathed.

When there is no one to remind you what society's rules are, and there is nothing to keep you linked to that society, you had better be prepared for some startling changes.

I just don't see myself as a travel writer. I can't. I don't.

Some of us just don't want to be famous ... anonymity cannot be bought for any price, once you have lost it.

That odd idea that one person can go to a foreign part and in this rather odd voice describe it to the folks back home doesn't make much sense in the post-colonial world.

I experienced that sinking feeling you get when you know you have conned yourself into doing something difficult and there's no going back.