The Rough Guide to Everywhere

Shanghai: adventure writing

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Episode notes

Adventure writing has the ability to transport you to the place you’re reading about: taking in the unfamiliar script on a road sign, savouring sharp smells and fragrant tastes, basking in the hot heat and tingling in the freezing cold, feeling the rhythm of the music beating through the air. In this episode, we speak with author Maggie Ritchie, who travelled to Shanghai to research her new book, Bold Girls, in which two young Glaswegian women move to Shanghai at the turn of the 20th century. We also speak to reporter Jennifer Lin, who travelled from Philadelphia to Shanghai to trace the roots of her Chinese family, through the written words of her grandfather. When we travel, we go in search of adventure – but along the way, we realise that it can also be found in the most surprising of places... This episode was hosted by Aimee White (@aimeefw) and produced by Femi Oriogun-Williams for Reduced Listening (reducedlistening.co.uk).