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Product Description
Sunday Express
It looks like a travel book and reads like a travel book but it's
the spoof of the year.
the spoof of the year.
Product Description
"San Sombrero" is the hilarious new follow-up to the bestselling "Jetlag Travel Guides to Molvania and Phaic Tan". Often described as 'the Venice of Central America' (due to the fact that many of its coastal cities are sinking), the sun-drenched isle of San Sombrero has something for everyone - be they music-lover, eco-tourist, history buff or UN Human Rights Commissioner. From the frenetic nightlife, of its capital Cucaracha City, to the guaranteed solitude of a west coast beach during sea snake season, there's simply so much to see and do in this tropical jewel. This fully updated "Jetlag Travel Guide" covers everything you need to know including: When to go: the wet season is best avoided, as the heat can be intense and many roads impassable. April is considered to be a better option as the clouds of stinging hornets provide partial shade from the sun's rays. Getting around: public transport can be confusing - remember the city displayed on the front of a bus is often not its destination but, in fact, the birthplace of the driver. Eating out: in restaurants be wary of ordering a 'kids meal' - this will often involve baby goat. Politics: San Sombrero is a democratic socialist republic - meaning its President may only be assassinated by a two-thirds majority of parliament. Music and dance: the traditional music of San Sombrero is considered to be as infectious as many of the island's water-borne diseases, while the steamy carumba ranks as one of the world's few dances in which bodily fluids are routinely exchanged.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
14 of 15 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This book is the third title from "Jetlag" Travel guides- the Australian parody series that has already produced "guidebooks" to the fictional nations of Molvania and Phaic Tan. The guys who started it all are featured at the back (a work of fiction, and an obvious mock of other well known guidebooks.)
The format of this book is essentially the same as the first 2. The first half of the book is a guide to the South/Central American republic of " San Sombrero." It covers many topics such as sport, food and drinks, politics and people. San Sombrero is of course pure fiction. The nature of the book is as a general parody of South America- obviously I don't want to give away the jokes! The hilarious thing here is the fact that it reads exactly like a pretentious guidebook- patronising, naive and overly critical and self rightous. Anyone familiar with Lonely Planet books and their ilk will get the overreaching joke here.
The rest of the book is divided into 6 chapters, each covering a region. Each chapter lists hotels and restaurants as well as snippets about local heros and villains. All is, of course, total fiction. My biggest criticism of these section is their unoriginality- the same jokes about ultra-luxury in hotels and ultra basic small hostels were a staple of the first two books. The humour is essentially the same for restaurants too- the funny reviews of poor hygenie standards in San Sombrero's hotels could really be put in any guide- we have seen the same jokes already in Phaic Tan and Molvania. They are of course still funny!
My favourite part is the travel specialists- The main man is again Phillip. He is the miserable , anti-social guy who divides the world into two groups- tacky, ignorant tourists and himself. Ultra paranoid Tina returns with the same jokes as last time. We also have two new writers- an eco-freak and an extreme sports fan.
You also get a bonus guide to what is " hot " and what is not, featuring for example spa resorts so elite and luxurious that even the tour buses run on essential massage oils.
In conclusion this is a great book- funny, witty and very readable- you can pick it up and read it anywhere, any time, and page. Fans of the first two might see the same jokes beginning to be re-cycled, but this is a minor point. Ultimatley it serves as a parody not of small nations but of western guidebooks and their ideology that everywhere is essentially a tourist attraction to be veiwed through western eyes and ultimatley exploited. The quote from the founders rings true here- " The Jetlag ethos has always been the same: all profits go to them. "
The format of this book is essentially the same as the first 2. The first half of the book is a guide to the South/Central American republic of " San Sombrero." It covers many topics such as sport, food and drinks, politics and people. San Sombrero is of course pure fiction. The nature of the book is as a general parody of South America- obviously I don't want to give away the jokes! The hilarious thing here is the fact that it reads exactly like a pretentious guidebook- patronising, naive and overly critical and self rightous. Anyone familiar with Lonely Planet books and their ilk will get the overreaching joke here.
The rest of the book is divided into 6 chapters, each covering a region. Each chapter lists hotels and restaurants as well as snippets about local heros and villains. All is, of course, total fiction. My biggest criticism of these section is their unoriginality- the same jokes about ultra-luxury in hotels and ultra basic small hostels were a staple of the first two books. The humour is essentially the same for restaurants too- the funny reviews of poor hygenie standards in San Sombrero's hotels could really be put in any guide- we have seen the same jokes already in Phaic Tan and Molvania. They are of course still funny!
My favourite part is the travel specialists- The main man is again Phillip. He is the miserable , anti-social guy who divides the world into two groups- tacky, ignorant tourists and himself. Ultra paranoid Tina returns with the same jokes as last time. We also have two new writers- an eco-freak and an extreme sports fan.
You also get a bonus guide to what is " hot " and what is not, featuring for example spa resorts so elite and luxurious that even the tour buses run on essential massage oils.
In conclusion this is a great book- funny, witty and very readable- you can pick it up and read it anywhere, any time, and page. Fans of the first two might see the same jokes beginning to be re-cycled, but this is a minor point. Ultimatley it serves as a parody not of small nations but of western guidebooks and their ideology that everywhere is essentially a tourist attraction to be veiwed through western eyes and ultimatley exploited. The quote from the founders rings true here- " The Jetlag ethos has always been the same: all profits go to them. "
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
If this is your first trip to San Sombrero do buy this invaluable guide to get the (very) low down on the Central American paradise. The guide really does reveal all and in the style that you'll be familiar with from other guidebooks: color photos, city maps, vital hotel and where to eat info, bold type text for things to do and look out for.
Seasoned travellers might think I've seen all this before though. This latest satire hasn't really moved on from 'Phaic Tan', still very funny and stylish looking but hardly new. But wait. There's more! Inserted in the back flap is a classy looking thirty-page brochure: the Jetlag 'Hot Guide'. Looking just like one of those glossy mags found in suites of up-market city hotels. Arty photos and vacuous copy describe what the well-heeled should spend their money on and possibly drink because the back cover has an ad for Uzbekistan's finest vodka.
The Jetlag folk have produced another (similar) winner with San Sombrero but I hope the next fake goes for something completely different, maybe a cruise line brochure or a complete city guide.
Seasoned travellers might think I've seen all this before though. This latest satire hasn't really moved on from 'Phaic Tan', still very funny and stylish looking but hardly new. But wait. There's more! Inserted in the back flap is a classy looking thirty-page brochure: the Jetlag 'Hot Guide'. Looking just like one of those glossy mags found in suites of up-market city hotels. Arty photos and vacuous copy describe what the well-heeled should spend their money on and possibly drink because the back cover has an ad for Uzbekistan's finest vodka.
The Jetlag folk have produced another (similar) winner with San Sombrero but I hope the next fake goes for something completely different, maybe a cruise line brochure or a complete city guide.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
"San Sombrero" forms a trilogy of spoof guide books with its predecessors, "Molvania" and "Phaic Tan". This book, like its predecessors, parodies how trendy travel guides portray any country, no matter how squalid or unwelcoming it may appear, as some kind of modern utopia. Thus, San Sombrero, a Central American military junta, is painted as a beautiful and inviting land of cocktails, carnivals, and coups.
Of all of the Jetlag travel guides, this is perhaps my favourite, for as well as the usual travel guide format, the writers have added countless extras, including a pull-out "hot guide" (lampooning the tourist brochures sometimes found in travel guides), and expanded advert pages. Interestingly, San Sombrero began as an advert, when "Molvania" advertised a faux travel guide called "Viva San Sombrero" - perhaps they liked the idea so much that they turned it into a real book. The advert that stuck out for me was one for the Isle of Fogg, located in the Outcropp Islands off the coast of Scotland. Having spent sometime in the Outer Hebrides, I could easily relate to the humour in the advert, and if there is ever a Jetlag guide for the Isle of Fogg made, I will very happily buy it and read it.
If you enjoyed "Molvania" and "Phaic Tan", then "San Sombrero" will definitely be for you.
Of all of the Jetlag travel guides, this is perhaps my favourite, for as well as the usual travel guide format, the writers have added countless extras, including a pull-out "hot guide" (lampooning the tourist brochures sometimes found in travel guides), and expanded advert pages. Interestingly, San Sombrero began as an advert, when "Molvania" advertised a faux travel guide called "Viva San Sombrero" - perhaps they liked the idea so much that they turned it into a real book. The advert that stuck out for me was one for the Isle of Fogg, located in the Outcropp Islands off the coast of Scotland. Having spent sometime in the Outer Hebrides, I could easily relate to the humour in the advert, and if there is ever a Jetlag guide for the Isle of Fogg made, I will very happily buy it and read it.
If you enjoyed "Molvania" and "Phaic Tan", then "San Sombrero" will definitely be for you.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Great laugh!
I am a fan of this series and have all other books by jetlag. This book is a great fun if you appreciate this sort of humour (I do). Read more
Published 5 months ago by Lyuba
A perfect present
I bought this for my partner and the giggles, hysterical laughter and tears haven't stopped. I have opened at random and was left giggling to myself - it's a good laugh; well... Read more
Published 20 months ago by Mr. Philip R. Goddard
v.funny
As with the other 2 jetlag travel guides, Its one liners, sarcastic, and paradox statements still work to a tell a tale of this huge but vast country. Read more
Published on 1 Feb 2009 by E. M. Butler
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