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Writer and raconteur MacGregor recalls experiences ranging from sweet romance to enduring friendship to extreme danger in South America, Europe, Asia, and Africa. The opener finds him working in Colombia where guerrilla forces were often known to kidnap and sometimes murder rich expatriates, and but for a technical problem, he might have met that very fate. On a two-week sailing vacation in Australia, navigating on a stormy night, he nearly runs head-on into a huge transport ship. Back in Colombia, he plants a plastic pink flamingo in the jungle for a lark, only to learn to his embarrassment that the effigy is being studied by environmentalists. In Brazil, he meets a gorgeous Latina woman destined to be his wife. A new job in China has to be curtailed since he arrives at the time of the Tiananmen Square terror. Other international incidents, both amusing and chilling, round out this memoir, revealing a life boldly lived and zestfully embraced.
The author, who has a master's degree in business administration, states that he had a yearning to work in construction that was satisfied in his overseas contracts in mining operations. At times it's obvious he traveled simply for the sake of curiosity and excitement. He attributes some of his wanderlust to his childhood in a multicultural family, and some of his enviable grit and tenacity to his Scottish/Irish background. His stories give a vibrant picture of foreign cultures, exotic climes, and occasional visits to backstreet dives with "mates" from Australia and good pals from almost everywhere on the globe. Looking back on the many narrow escapes he has had, he writes that such exploits have given him a belief in divine intervention. MacGregor hints that more such tales may be forthcoming, and his audience will certainly welcome another in the series.