2014

TRAVELLER: Masato Aoyama, Moscow, Russia

November 29, 2014

[Editor's Note]: Masato grew up in Japan and with a keen interest in travel and languages (such as English and Russian) he combines his skills and interests to live where the Russian language is spoken and takes as many side-trips as possible to countries he has never visited. Masato recently survived living two years in Almaty, Kazakhstan, and currently is doing a 2-year stint in Moscow, Russia. His passion for travel, cultures, the arts, and meeting people has even inspired me to travel to new destinations! Masato was habitually enjoying raw fatty pork bacon on toast (treating it as sushi) until I told him that raw pork bacon really should be fried in a pan! [MORE...]

#33 – Wildlife, SOUTH AFRICA

November 28, 2014

Viewing wildlife in South Africa scores relatively high on most criteria, though the overall score is dragged down by the lack of good and safe public transport, and overall safety in this country riddled by crime. While South Africa is not an expensive country, private game reserves with good accommodation can be quite expensive! [MORE...]

#34 – Ship Breaking Yards, BANGLADESH

November 21, 2014

Ship Breaking Yard, Chittagong, Bangladesh

The Ship Breaking Yards near Chittagong, Bangladesh, is like no other place! Labourers engage in back breaking work to dismantle the world's large ships. It difficult to gain access and, as is generally true for much of Bangladesh, the transportation, food and accommodation are of very low standard here in Chittagong. [MORE...]

TRAVELLER: Min Che Su (a.k.a. Ninja), Taipei, Taiwan

November 20, 2014

[Editor's Note]: I met Min Che Su in late September 2013 in the town of Kashgar, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in western China. I just returned from exploring Central Asia, while he just arrived in the region and was about to cross the border into Kyrgyzstan. I was sitting alone when a terribly sick Min Che asked if he could sit with me at the guesthouse restaurant. We shared travel stories and I then also swapped my Kyrgyzstani som (money) for his Chinese yuan. While he was waiting a week for the China border to re-open, we travelled together by train to Hotan, far south into the desert. Dubbed "Ninja" by our fellow traveller, Frenchman Jeremy, Ninja will likely travel to many far away places as long as he does not again drop his passport in a taxi! [MORE...]

#35 – Ruins of Baalbek, LEBANON

November 14, 2014

The ancient ruins of Baalbek, Lebanon ranks high on all criteria except for safety and local hospitality. The town if Baalbek and the Beqaa Valley of Lebanon (close to the Syrian border) is a major stronghold for the terrorist group, Hezbollah, so safety is a real concern here. People are not too friendly to foreign visitors. Get in and get out alive! [MORE...]

Kazakhstan – larger than all of Western Europe!

November 8, 2014

Almaty Kazakhstan is is big. Very big! In fact, it is the world’s largest landlocked country by land area and the ninth largest country in the world. It is even larger than all of Western Europe. A country this big should be approached one step at a time. Start off with Kazakhstan’s former capital, and largest city, Almaty. Before the nation’s capital was moved in 1997 from Almaty in the south to Astana in the north, this is where the nation’s political power was concentrated. Nowadays Almaty is the commercial and cultural capital of Kazakhstan and is also the city with by far [MORE...]

#36 – Salvador da Bahia, BRAZIL

November 7, 2014

Salvador da Bahia scored moderately high among all the criteria except a general concern about safety. Be streetwise when visiting, don't walk alone at night, and be careful where you go at any time of the day or night. [MORE...]

#37 – Cave Monastery, MOLDOVA

October 31, 2014

Moldova's Cave Monastery near Orheiul Vechi scored high on the three most important criteria: Intrepid Index, Excitement Level and Extraordinary, but low on Ease of Access, Transportation and nearby Accommodation. Certainly worth the challenging part of getting there. [MORE...]

TRAVELLER: Thomas Antenen, Switzerland

October 27, 2014

[Editor's Note]: I met Thomas in August 2014 at the Lutheran Guesthouse in Goroka, Papua New Guinea. Together we attended the weekend Sing-Sing festival and then visited a village in a rural area outside of Goroka. Thomas is one of the happiest people I have come across, and he just loves mingling with the local people. He really sets an example of how a great foreign traveller should embrace the locals and their culture. Happy travels Thomas, and thanks for showing people in far away places just how nice and warm hearted some foreign travellers are! You are truly an inspiration to your fellow travellers! [MORE...]

#38 – Guanajuato, MEXICO

October 24, 2014

Guanajuato City north of Mexico City scored above average on all 10 criteria, in particular on "food & drinks" and "local hospitality". It certainly is a very colourful and interesting Mexican city to visit. [MORE...]

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