Written for the Davis Enterprise, January 27, 2011
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In 1946 my aunt and uncle decided to retrace the route of Marco Polo and trek the mountain passes along the borders of Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, Russia, Pakistan, Turkmenistan, and China. Things didn't go so well. They couldn't cross into China, as it was falling to the communists. My uncle became gravely ill, and they had to abandon Marco Polo's route as the border closed.