On my travels around the world, one of the most fascinating aspects of it for me, is changing countries. I just love the idea of crossing a new border, seeing a new flag, watching a different international football team, changing currencies, saying thank you in a different language and so on. I despise cloned countries…
Read MoreI spent 10 days backpacking slash working in Saudi Arabia in 2018. As the world of travel fades out of view from existance, it’s time to dwell on those halcyon days. Riyadh is the capital city. We had a total of three days backpacking in Riyadh at the end of that trip. We had lots…
Read More“Gerry Armstrong, what a worker he is” – John Motson. In February 2020, when I hit country 186 on my personal list of recognised separate states, one of my priorities was to watch a football match there. That country was Lesotho and I arrived into the capital city Maseru ready for the big match. That…
Read MoreMy backpacking adventures in Saudi Arabia continued with some day trips away from the humungous capital city Riyadh. It was towards the end of our trip that we ended up in Ushaiqer (which sounded like “U Shag Her” at the start). On the same day that we visited the Salt Flats, the village of Rabat,…
Read MoreLet’s start with the surprising fact – Tbilisi is a great city. It is just incredibly under rated. A liveable city. A safe city. A vibrant city. A sleeping giant crying to be found. I expected nothing much from it, I expected an eastern grey textbook dull drab dreary ex-communist Stalinist patchwork of Soviet style…
Read More“Little dune buggy in the sand, little blue dune buggy in my hand, little blue dune buggy” – The Presidents of the United States of America. I didn’t expect this to be enjoyable by any stretch. After all I grew up near a beach in Bangor in Northern Ireland and used to slide through the…
Read More“Hundred mile high city” – Ocean Colour Scene. As hard to believe as it may be, Saudi Arabia’s capital city, Riyadh, is a modern up and coming metropolis. While the country is often dubbed “The Forbidden Kingdom,” once you arrive into Riyadh you will be pleasantly surprised by the enchanting list of activities within a…
Read MoreBackpacking in Saudi Arabia was a crazy adventure after being invited there in 2018 as part of representing Young Pioneer Tours at the Hotel Show. We started off exploring Jeddah and Old Town Jeddah before heading to check out the city of Taif for its annual Rose Festival and then we delved deeper into the backpacking…
Read More“She’s making movies on location, she don’t know what it means” – Mark Knopfler. I am not a film freak, I rarely watch them. In fact, these days I only ever watch films when I am on flights or a friend invites me to watch one, be it cinema or on a laptop. I only…
Read MoreSaudi Arabia has built a strong stand in the travel industry and has achieved a tremendous amount of growth in technology and standards of living. Today, major cities in Saudi Arabia are well connected to each other which has made it a lot easier for domestic travelers who travel for vacations or professional purposes. An…
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