A former regional journalist has recalled being abducted by Russian farm workers in a new book recording dozens of tales from his travels in Eastern Europe.

Alex Wright’s ‘Eastern Europe Misadventures’ recounts 36 adventures from across the region during what he calls “a golden period of travel”.

Stories range from almost being abducted by a group of Russian farm workers in Latvia, to trying to smuggle across the border to Moldova in the boot a fixer’s car, to almost coming a cropper on Macedonia’s high mountain passes.

Alex, pictured, began his career on the Dorking Advertiser, Surrey Mirror and Croydon Advertiser, before moving to work as deputy business editor on Bermuda’s national newspaper The Royal Gazette.

He has since worked as news editor for Insurance Times and Global Reinsurance, and also had a stint as senior researcher and writer at Which? magazine.

Alex said: “East Europe is a unique place and one that I have been fortunate to have travelled the length and breadth of, exploring all manner of interesting countries, sights, people, cultures, and food and drink.

“It became a passion of mine since my first trip to Hungary in the summer of 1997 and I haven’t looked back since.

“I wanted to share some of the special journeys and experiences that I have had along the way, including places I have visited, sights I have seen, people I have met and activities I have done during a unique time after communism’s collapse and the start of a new and potentially more dangerous Cold War.”

The ebook is out now and the book will be out in paperback from tomorrow.