“It’s easy to fall into something new that shines” – Ben Paulley (2005). So a week ago yesterday I arrived in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan having crossed overland from Kazakhstan. On arrival I received a 60 day entry visa stamp, so yes I can stay legally as a tourist here for a brace of months. At the Read more about Why I’m Spending at Least a Month in Bishkek, Magnetic Kyrgyzstan🇰🇬[…]
I arrived early morning into the city of Almaty in Kazakhstan after what had been a pretty intense few weeks of travel (I toured Chernobyl and Auschwitz in consecutive weeks). It was Christmas Eve, there was snow in the air and I needed a place to stay. Step in, the cosy, family run Almaty Backpackers, Read more about Backpacking in Kazakhstan: Staying at Almaty Backpackers/ Silk Road Hostel[…]
My journey east took me by train from the gorgeous city of Lviv to the bustling Ukrainian capital city, Kiev. It was here that I was able to backpack round the sights of the city, learn more about Ukrainian culture and tour the Chernobyl Exclusion zone (some 29 years after the disaster in the area). Read more about Backpacking in Ukraine: Staying at the Tiu Kreschatik Hostel in Kiev[…]
Kraków is an old school backpacker’s trail hang out. Most overland backpackers and inter-railers end up here on their journeys around Europe, it’s such a cliched stop over, some North Americans even think it’s the capital city. Some travellers make it their only stop in Poland. But despite my long travel adventures, until December 2015, Read more about Backpacking in Poland: Staying at the Highly Rated Mosquito Hostel in Kraków[…]
It was my first time in Poland in 8 years. It did feel hard to believe that it had been so long, probably aided by the fact that I have met so many Polish people around the world in my jobs and travels the last few years. And it was time to tour Poznań finally. Read more about Backpacking in Poland: Staying at the Poco Loco Hostel in Poznań[…]
I’ve stayed in hundreds of hostels down the years on my backpacking journeys. Each one has its own style and uniqueness about it and that is one of the joys of travel to me. Belfast City is Northern Ireland’s capital and November 2015 saw me staying in a Belfast hostel for the first time ever. Read more about Backpacking in Belfast: Staying at the Largest Hostel in Northern Ireland🔴✋️☘️[…]
“I think this hostel is after a mad right” – Chaz Fitzsimmons Well after a couple of crazy days in Vientiane, touring the sights, staying in the Sabaidy Guesthouse for $3 a night, we got a truck and a mini-bus up north to the crazy town of Vang Vieng. Yes, this place is totally nuts. Read more about Backpacking in Laos: Staying at Vang Vieng Guesthouse, Vang Vieng[…]
August to September 2015 saw my third visit to the Danish capital city of Copenhagen. I’ve stayed in a few places down the years in Denmark and Sweden as well as having toured Christiania, Helsingor, Malmo, Ladonia and Angelholm, but this was my first time to stay in a central hostel in Copenhagen. Naturally, I chose Read more about Backpacking in Denmark: Staying at the Downtown Hostel in Copenhagen[…]
I was recently back in good old Singapore and I loved it. It was a sentimental journey as you might have read. This time, I had the choice of staying in a budget backpacking hostel dorm like my roots or my own room in a four star hotel. I am so glad I opted to Read more about Backpacking in Singapore🇸🇬: Staying at the Green Kiwi Hostel in Bugis[…]
I’ve written up lots of stories from my 10 days backpacking in Iraq but I have yet to cover all of my hotel stays there so expect me to write about them all at some point. I recently wrote about the Parlaman Hotel which is the nearest thing Iraq has to a Backpacker’s Hostel at Read more about Backpacking in Iraq: Staying at the Bikhal Hotel in Erbil, Iraqi Kurdistan[…]