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Euan Kerr
St. Paul, Minn.

Writer sees another side of China - from his car

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Peter Hessler
Peter Hessler says he learned a great deal just by driving through China, including how quickly the country was changing as it opened itself up to a free market economy.
MPR photo/Euan Kerr

When writer Peter Hessler decided he wanted to see China, he went out and got himself a Chinese drivers license, rented a car, and hit the road.

Hessler served as Beijing Bureau Chief for the New Yorker for a decade, and he writes about his adventures in his book "Country Driving."

Hessler says over those 10 years, almost 100 million Chinese drivers also got their licenses.

He told MPR's Euan Kerr this not only makes driving a little crazy, it also provides a useful metaphor for the way things are changing in China.

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Peter Hessler
Peter Hessler says he learned a great deal just by driving through China, including how quickly the country was changing as it opened itself up to a free market economy.
MPR photo/Euan Kerr