Do travel writers go to hell? - Thomas B Kohnstamm

For those who think that travel guidebooks are the gospel truth.

WANTED: Travel Writer for Brazil
QUALIFICATIONS REQUIRED
Decisiveness: the ability
to desert your entire previous life-including well-salaried office job, attractive
girlfriend, and basic sanity for less than minimum wage
Attention to detail: the
skill to research northeastern Brazil, including transportation, restaurants, hotels,
culture, customs, and language, while juggling sleep deprivation, nonstop nightlife,
and excessive alcohol consumption
Creativity: the imagination to write about places
you never actually visit
Resourcefulness: utilizing persuasion, seduction, and threats,
when necessary, to secure a place to stay for the evening once your pitiable advance
has been (mis)spent
Resilience: determination to overcome setbacks such as bankruptcy,
disillusionment, and an ill-fated one-night stand with an Austrian flight attendant

As Kohnstamm comes to personal terms with each of these job requirements, he unveils
the underside of the travel industry and its often-harrowing effect on writers, travelers,
and the destinations themselves. Moreover, he invites us into his world of compromising
and scandalous situations in one of the most exciting countries as he races against
an impossible deadline.