March, 2010

Fregmonto is heading off to study in Bhutan — the last hope for Western tourists searching for an authentic Buddhist cultural experience now that Tibet has been thoughtfully modernised by its caring older brother China.

John R shares snippets of life in Somalia, from the bashed up streets full of armoured vehicles, to the graffiti created by the American military.

Do guestbooks actually have a point? It seems that South East Asia is obsessed with them, despite there being little logic or wisdom in the inane writings of others, writes Kevin O’Faircheallaigh.

Rome, the city where tourists live peacefully — minus their cameras — with a huge homeless population. It might not always be pretty, but it’s interesting, writes Tristan.

Travel advisory warnings always send me into a spin, writes Kevin O’Faircheallaigh. Two hundred words describing the many ways I can die in this country, followed by two useless ones on how to avoid it: “Stay alert”. That’s it?!

Ashlee Betteridge reports from Bali on its day of silence to mark the beginning of the Hindi Saka New Year. Yes, commercialism does take a back seat in Bali, at least once a year.

Switzerland: it’s an odd country of neutrality mixed with camo dressed teenagers and nude hiking but fanatical privacy, says Crikey reader Tristan.

One of the trickier ethical dilemmas of traveling through Asia comes in the form of the treatment of animals. So how does one deal with the elusive ‘tiger elephant’? asks Kevin O’Faircheallaigh.