Lands of lost borders : out of bounds on the Silk Road

**A travelogue and memoir of the author's journey by bicycle along the Silk Road.**As a teenager, Kate Harris realized that the career she craved—to be an explorer, equal parts swashbuckler and metaphysician—had gone extinct. From what she could tell of the world from small-town Ontario, the likes of Marco Polo and Magellan had mapped the whole earth; there was nothing left to be discovered. Looking beyond this planet, she decided to become a scientist and go to Mars.In between studying at Oxford and MIT, Harris set off by bicycle down the fabled Silk Road with her childhood friend Mel. Pedaling mile upon mile in some of the remotest places on earth, she realized that an explorer, in any day and age, is the kind of person who refuses to live between the lines. Forget charting maps, naming peaks: what she yearned for was the feeling of soaring completely out of bounds. The farther she traveled, the closer she came to a world as wild as she felt within.__Lands of Lost Borders__is the chronicle of Harris’s odyssey and an exploration of the importance of breaking the boundaries we set ourselves; an examination of the stories borders tell, and the restrictions they place on nature and humanity; and a meditation on the existential need to explore—the essential longing to discover what in the universe we are doing here. In The Spirit Of The Places In Between And Into The Silence, This Is A Transcendent Memoir About Travelling Wildly Out Of Bounds On The Fabled Silk Road. Carried Me Up Into A State Of Excitement I Haven't Felt For Years. It's A Modern Classic.--pico Iyer. As A Teenager, Kate Harris Realized That The Career She Most Craved--that Of A Generalist Explorer, Equal Parts Swashbuckler And Metaphysician, With A Flair For Basic Science And Endless Slogging--had Gone Extinct. From What She Could Tell Of The World From Small-town Ontario, The Likes Of Marco Polo And Magellan Had Mapped The Whole Earth. So She Looked Beyond This Planet, Vowing To Become A Scientist And Go To Mars. Well Along This Path, Harris Set Off By Bicycle Down A Short Section Of The Fabled Silk Road With Her Childhood Friend Mel Yule. This Trip Was Just A Simulacrum Of Exploration, She Thought, Not The Thing Itself--a Little Adventure To Pass The Time Until She Could Launch For Outer Space. But Somewhere In Between Sneaking Illegally Across Tibet, Studying The History Of Science And Exploration At Oxford, And Staring Down A Microscope For A Doctorate At Mit, She Realized That An Explorer, In Any Day And Age, Is By Definition The Kind Of Person Who Refuses To Live Between The Lines. Forget Charting Maps, Naming Peaks, Leaving Footprints On Another Planet: What She Yearned For Was The Feeling Of Soaring Completely Out Of Bounds. And Where She'd Felt That Most Intensely Was On A Bicycle, On A Bygone Trading Route. So Harris Quit The Laboratory And Hit The Silk Road Again With Yule, This Time Determined To Bike It From Beginning To End. Like Rebecca Solnit And Pico Iyer, Kate Harris Offers A Travel Account At Once Exuberant And Meditative, Wry And Rapturous, And Above All Full Of Hope. Lands Of Lost Borders Explores The Nature Of Limits And The Wildness Of The Self That, Like Our Planet, Can Never Be Fully Mapped. Weaving Adventure And Deep Reflection With The History Of Science And Exploration, Lands Of Lost Borders Celebrates Our Connection As Humans To The Natural World, And Ultimately To Each Other--a Belonging That Transcends Any Fences Or Stories That May Divide Us.-- Kate Harris. Includes Bibliographical References (pages 295-300). Issued Also In Electronic Format. "In the spirit of The Places in Between and Into the Silence, this is a transcendent memoir about travelling wildly out of bounds on the fabled Silk Road. "Carried me up into a state of excitement I haven't felt for years. It's a modern classic."--Pico Iyer. As a teenager, Kate Harris realized that the career she most craved--that of a generalist explorer, equal parts swashbuckler and metaphysician, with a flair for basic science and endless slogging--had gone extinct. From what she could tell of the world from small-town Ontario, the likes of Marco Polo and Magellan had mapped the whole earth. So she looked beyond this planet, vowing to become a scientist and go to Mars. Well along this path, Harris set off by bicycle down a short section of the fabled Silk Road with her childhood friend Mel Yule. This trip was just a simulacrum of exploration, she thought, not the thing itself--a little adventure to pass the time until she could launch for outer space. But somewhere in between sneaking illegally across Tibet, studying the history of science and exploration at Oxford, and staring down a microscope for a doctorate at MIT, she realized that an explorer, in any day and age, is by definition the kind of person who refuses to live between the lines. Forget charting maps, naming peaks, leaving footprints on another planet: what she yearned for was the feeling of soaring completely out of bounds. And where she'd felt that most intensely was on a bicycle, on a bygone trading route. So Harris quit the laboratory and hit the Silk Road again with Yule, this time determined to bike it from beginning to end. Like Rebecca Solnit and Pico Iyer, Kate Harris offers a travel account at once exuberant and meditative, wry and rapturous, and above all full of hope. Lands of Lost Borders explores the nature of limits and the wildness of the self that, like our planet, can never be fully mapped. Weaving adventure and deep reflection with the history of science and exploration, Lands of Lost Borders celebrates our connection as humans to the natural world, and ultimately to each other--a belonging that transcends any fences or stories that may divide us."-- Provided by publisher NATIONAL BESTSELLER WINNER OF THE RBC TAYLOR PRIZE WINNER OF THE EDNA STAEBLER AWARD FOR CREATIVE NON-FICTION "Every day on a bike trip is like the one before—but it is also completely different, or perhaps you are different, woken up in new ways by the mile." As a teenager, Kate Harris realized that the career she most craved—that of a generalist explorer, equal parts swashbuckler and philosopher—had gone extinct. From her small-town home in Ontario, it seemed as if Marco Polo, Magellan and their like had long ago mapped the whole earth. So she vowed to become a scientist and go to Mars. To pass the time before she could launch into outer space, Kate set off by bicycle down a short section of the fabled Silk Road with her childhood friend Mel Yule, then settled down to study at Oxford and MIT. Eventually the truth dawned on her: an explorer, in any day and age, is by definition the kind of person who refuses to live between the lines. And Harris had soared most fully out of bounds right here on Earth, travelling a bygone trading route on her bicycle. So she quit the laboratory and hit the Silk Road again with Mel, this time determined to bike it from the beginning to end. Like Rebecca Solnit and Pico Iyer before her, Kate Harris offers a travel narrative at once exuberant and meditative, wry and rapturous. Weaving adventure and deep reflection with the history of science and exploration, Lands of Lost Borders explores the nature of limits and the wildness of a world that, like the self and like the stars, can never be fully mapped. A travelogue and memoir of the author's journey by bicycle along the Silk Road. As a teenager, Kate Harris realized that the career she craved—to be an explorer, equal parts swashbuckler and metaphysician—had gone extinct. From what she could tell of the world from small-town Ontario, the likes of Marco Polo and Magellan had mapped the whole earth; there was nothing left to be discovered. Looking beyond this planet, she decided to become a scientist and go to Mars. In between studying at Oxford and MIT, Harris set off by bicycle down the fabled Silk Road with her childhood friend Mel. Pedaling mile upon mile in some of the remotest places on earth, she realized that an explorer, in any day and age, is the kind of person who refuses to live between the lines. Forget charting maps, naming peaks: what she yearned for was the feeling of soaring completely out of bounds. The farther she traveled, the closer she came to a world as wild as she felt within. Lands of Lost Borders is the chronicle of Harris’s odyssey and an exploration of the importance of breaking the boundaries we set ourselves; an examination of the stories borders tell, and the restrictions they place on nature and humanity; and a meditation on the existential need to explore—the essential longing to discover what in the universe we are doing here. "As a teenager, Kate Harris realized that the career she most craved--that of a generalist explorer, equal parts swashbuckler and philosopher--had gone extinct. From her small-town home in Ontario, it seemed as if Marco Polo, Magellan and their like had long ago mapped the whole earth. So she vowed to become a scientist and go to Mars. To pass the time before she could launch into outer space, Kate set off by bicycle down a short section of the fabled Silk Road with her childhood friend Mel Yule, then settled down to study at Oxford and MIT. Eventually the truth dawned on her: an explorer, in any day and age, is by definition the kind of person who refuses to live between the lines. And Harris had soared most fully out of bounds right here on Earth, travelling a bygone trading route on her bicycle. So she quit the laboratory and hit the Silk Road again with Mel, this time determined to bike it from the beginning to end."-- Publisher's website