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Podcast: Barbarians at the Gate
Episode: Riding the "Harmony Express" with author Thomas Bird
Description: In today’s episode, we talk with journalist and travel writer Thomas Bird about his latest book, The Harmony Express. Entering an uncertain new chapter of his life several years ago, Bird decided to embark on an exploration of the People’s Republic of China via the country’s vast web of railroad lines. In the spiritual footsteps of travel writers such as Paul Theroux (Riding the Iron Rooster and The Great Railway Bazaar), Bird took the trains as his trajectory, exploring and documenting the diverse ethnic, geographical, linguistic, and culinary worlds of China by rail...