Let’s pretend, for purely rhetorical purposes, that I—an American male journalist—got a 200K book advance to find God, write a travel book about a quest for sensuality and spiritual growth. I would call it Eat, Pray and Reif, also known as Drink, Play, F@#k, One Mans search for Everything in France, Macau and Thailand. Wouldn't it just scream out, blatantly male “mid-life crisis narrative”.
I start by going to France, where I eat a lot of Quiche , drive around and take some power naps. I also study Franglaise with a cute, younger French woman named Isabelle, and think to myself, how nice it would be if the American women in my life had had the awareness to treat men in all the French ways.
Then I take a red eye flight to Macau for three months of debauchery on the Hong Kong Express , Finally, over to Thailand, the land of smiles...before I get my Baht back to the United States of Unconsciousness.