The Golden Kite

"Prior to Japan declaring war on China and later Russia, a Japanese military officer set out on a mission to reconnoiter the Trans-Siberian Rail Road as well as the transportation and communications infrastructure of Germany, Poland, Russia, Mongolia, Siberia, China, and Manchuria. On February 11th, 1892, Major Yasumasa Fukushima, stationed at the Japanese Legation in Berlin departs on a journey of 9,000 miles, 14,000km on horseback, across two continents and seven countries to arrive at Vladivostok 488 days later. While outwardly doing this as a wager at the officers' club over several drinks, it was probably, in fact, one of the longest reconnaissance missions in recorded history"--Preface.