Borders up! - Vitali Vitaliev

One could assume that with the collapse of communism, East Europeans would drink much less than before: a democratic society should be able to provide many more means of escape than alcohol - books, a free press, foreign travel, high quality consumer goods, etc. The reality however is different and Vitali Vitaliev travels to Hungary, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Bulgaria and Romania to find out why. A former drinker, Vitali Vitaliev is now a teetotaler which adds much spice to a narrative brimming with wit, insight and a profound sympathy for the struggles of humanity. Can the former Communist countries of Eastern Europe adjust to the demands of capitalism and adapt to the huge cultural shift it requires? The collapse of the Russian economy suggests not, but Vitali reveals a population vigorously defiant and resolutely colourful in the face of, sometimes, terrible hardship.