jaffa israel top 10

Backpacking in Jaffa, Israel: Top 10 Sights on a FREE Tour

Jaffa sits on the Mediterranean Sea on Israel’s west coast and it’s a city in its own right, despite the fact that these days Jaffa and Tel Aviv pretty much sit side by side and blur into one. Jaffa is one of the oldest settlements around and has been ruled by Turks, Egyptians and Jews Read more about Backpacking in Jaffa, Israel: Top 10 Sights on a FREE Tour[…]

Backpacking in Iran: Sunset at the Kaluts Desert

It’s been a crazy few months of travel, from backpacking in Iran to visiting my home town again to doing travel Podcasts and there have been way too many highlights to mention. When in Iran, you can’t miss a visit to the desert. Iran has lots of desert areas and we’ve toured a few of them. One Read more about Backpacking in Iran: Sunset at the Kaluts Desert[…]

kurdistan sulaymaniyeh

Fridays Featured Food: Hotel Breakfast in Sulaymaniyeh, Kurdistan, Iraq

So you want to know what breakfast in Iraq is like?? Well my only real experience of this came in a hotel in the city of Sulaymaniyeh, which is in Iraqi Kurdistan and I’ve no idea how truly authentic this is, but here goes for you today none the less. Most hotels in the Kurdistan Read more about Fridays Featured Food: Hotel Breakfast in Sulaymaniyeh, Kurdistan, Iraq[…]

shahr e kord backpacking

Backpacking in Shahr-e Kord, Iran: Top 7 Things to do in this Unknown Gem

To find out how on earth we ended up in the dreamy mountain town of Shahr-e Kord in Iran, you’ll have to go all the way back to our time in the city of Baku in Azerbaijan and a chance encounter with Rasoul, our new Iranian friend. We met Rasoul in the Caspian Hostel in Read more about Backpacking in Shahr-e Kord, Iran: Top 7 Things to do in this Unknown Gem[…]

christian church iraq

Backpacking in Ainkawa: A Christian Suburb of Erbil, Kurdistan, Iraq

When you travel in the Middle East you get used to Mosques. Islam is the main religion and there are Mosques everywhere. However, Christians, Jews and Buddhists also reside in these parts of course. But a Christian Quarter in Iraq? Yes – in the Kurdistan region of Iraq, often referred to as Iraqi Kurdistan. While Read more about Backpacking in Ainkawa: A Christian Suburb of Erbil, Kurdistan, Iraq[…]

porridge in belarus

Friday’s Featured Food: Belarussian Porridge in Bobruisk, Belarus

It’s a long time since I wrote anything about Belarus (even though I once wrote a chapter for a book on my trip there). And as it’s yet to feature on my Friday’s Featured Food series, I thought it was time to recollect that day I tried Belarussian Porridge in the drab city of Bobruisk. Read more about Friday’s Featured Food: Belarussian Porridge in Bobruisk, Belarus[…]

easiest and safest 5 countries backpacking

The 5 Safest Countries I Have Backpacked In

I’ve been asked a few times about staying safe when you travel and it’s definitely something I need and want to write more about. I’ve written some articles about this before including mostly health safety and also personal safety in South America. But I haven’t really delved into which specific countries I have found the Read more about The 5 Safest Countries I Have Backpacked In[…]

jonny blair working in iran

Working Wednesdays: Helping out at Issa’s Allotment in Zarad Band, Iran

Anyone who has travelled in Iran will tell you that you always get offers to stay with families and live with them. This happened to us a load of times, and we ended up in three family houses over the course of a month and it could have been more. Two of our host families Read more about Working Wednesdays: Helping out at Issa’s Allotment in Zarad Band, Iran[…]