Uzbekistan – quick travel guide

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Conservative but friendly country of the historic Silk Road, with lots of desert and big picturesque mosques.

One of the 4 “Turkic” STANS…Kazahkstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan. I’d say Uzbekistan is the best known tourist destinations. Due to its picturesque colorful mosques. Its conservative culture makes it not as big city fun as Kazahkstan (not much of nightlife or fancy things), not as small town charmy as Kyrgyzstan. And though it isn’t worth staying a long time but it’s very much worth seeing.

Each major city and town on the historic Silk Road can be seen within 2 days (3 if you want to spend time inside each site and museum). And since there’s 4 major towns…Tashkent, Samarkand, Bukhara, Khiva. You can see all major sites within 8 to 12 days. And best of all, Uzbekistan is very cheap.

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Almaty – quick travel guide

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Big green city set in a forest in the mountains. (I call it the Mexico City of Kazahkstan.)

Almaty is absolutely the vibe in Kazahkstan. It has everything. Many Kazahks will tell you this is the best place to go. Why? Because the city life is there…all the bars, restaurants, clubs, shopping, activities. But also…the nature is here as well. The whole city is covered in green trees, bushes, and shrubbery everywhere. Feels like you’re walking in a giant park. Yes, the city is hotter temperature than Astana, but you could walk 30km outside all under tree shade if you wanted. A park-like setting is always just outside your door. All the famous lakes (Kolsay, Kaindy, etc), Charyn Canyon, all the nature tours…is also by Almaty.

So whatever you do. Come to Almaty. You can get a good sense of it in 3-5 days. But you also could spend a whole 2 weeks here and not get bored.

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Tbilisi – quick travel guide

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Most vibrant city in the Caucasus region, a favorite hip spot for diehard expats.

Georgia is a mountainous country in the Caucasus region, right between southern Europe and the Middle East. Such a distinct culture (with their own cool-looking alphabet), amazing food and a really nice vibe.

Although Tbilisi itself is pretty flat. I do recommend you do at least a few day tours out of the city to get a feel for the amazing mountain terrain. Georgia is so much more than Tbilisi! I really enjoyed wandering around town with local friends and also meeting other foreigners. I met many Russians, Ukrainians and Kazakh people here.

Stay 3-5 days to visit the main sights, neighborhoods, food, and nearby daytrips. But you could also stay longer to soak in the vibe. It’s cheap here! You can get a huge apartment for very little, cheap food, cheap massages, etc.

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Worst Airlines – avoid flying with them if you can!

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Sharing the worst airline companies from all my travel experiences.

1. America

  • Alaska Air
  • Spirit

Low prices, but super small uncomfortable seats. And that’s not the worst part…it’s the horrible trashy people who fly with them. Lots of ghetto folks who are unruly and uncivilized. No fun to be around. Lots of trash talking and even fights on the plane are not unheard of. I haven’t had any bad experiences with Virgin Airlines but have heard many complaints about them, too.

2. South America

  • Copa Airlines – I had stuff stolen from my checked-in luggage. Some useless items like personal care lotions and what not, but also sentimental items like a custom-made shirt. Don’t bother buying baggage insurance because it doesn’t cover you in the event that your “luggage is damaged” or malfunctioning zipper. And guess what…that’s how they break into your luggage. So basically…the theft voids your insurance. Hahaha, what a joke of an insurance scam.

3. Europe

  • RyanAir & Wizzair – really shitty experience all around. Hidden fees for every essential thing (like carry-on luggage), check-in penalties if you don’t do online check-in way ahead of time, small cramped uncomfortable seats, no free water or food on plane.
  • AirSerbia – lots of delays.
  • LOT Airlines – delayed or cancelled flights. And their staff never has an answer or update to tell you. If you ever need to connect between Krakow and Warsaw…you might be wise to just take the train instead to avoid missing your connection.

4. Asia

  • VietJet & Vietnam Airlines – it’s a race to the bottom for these two. Aside from unfriendly staff and unprofessional way of dealing with issues that always seem to come up…the worst part is the flight delays. You can always expect 2-4hr delays. 6-12hrs is not unheard of. Just about everyone traveling in Vietnam has had a horror story with one of these two companies.

Wroclaw – quick travel guide

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A nice medium-size city. Feels small and walkable yet also big enough to have everything, and also several areas for you to explore.

description paragraph… highlights

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Greece – quick travel guide

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The famous country of ancient mythical gods and present-day picturesque beaches.

Greece to me is a mix between Italy and Turkey. And in so many ways. Culturally, historically, architecturally, ethnically…it’s a mix of the Italian Mediterranean vibes of Turkish Arabian influences. Personalities of the people are also a bit similar to me…something between Italian warmth and Turkish fire/sassiness. Pricewise, it’s also in the middle of those 2.

I haven’t spent enough time to really know all about Greece but can suggest you look carefully at why you’re going. I think back in the days, Greece was considered as a cheaper beach alternative to Italy. Today…if you’re really looking for a cheap beach destination, maybe Montenegro or Albania is for you. Greece is indeed still cheaper than Italy in general but not like it used to be. But if you know that what you really seek is specifically Greek culture and greek things, then yes of course…go to Greece.

Greece needs a minimum of 5-7 days. So you can do a couple days in Athens (seeing historic stuff), then check out the beach life on some islands. If you wanted to do more, 10-15 days should be solid to see a variety of places.

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France – quick travel guide

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Learn about the most romantic country in the world. It’s sights and culture.

France reminds me a lot about Italy. In that it’s a place many people already know about, long before they get there. French culture is everywhere in pop culture and media. It’s repeatedly romanticized (and for good reason) and imitated, and inspired by.

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Sweden – quick travel guide

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Beautiful island country (over 200,000), blending modern minimalist technology with old fashion homesteading lifestyle.

To someone who isn’t familiar with Sweden or Nordic European countries…Sweden is ultra-modern and minimalist. In architecture, general design of how all Swedish things look. The culture is somewhat like a more futuristic Germany (as I would say is typical with nordic countries). Landscape-wise, the country is made of many little islands all connected to each other. Imagine like a mix of a more minimalist Germany and Netherlands put together.

The lifestyle is very much homesteading. If you ever wanted to have big city comforts but still be in touch with nature, growing your own food, biking everywhere, and being surrounded with trees and green, Sweden is the spot for you. I think outsiders imagine Sweden as a country of technology and minimalism, but it’s very much a nature place as well.

You could easily see a couple main cities in Sweden within 10 days. 5 days is minimum to get a vibe. Stay longer to enjoy different towns. I would say Swedish cities are not so drastically different from each other like in other countries (Rome vs Venice).

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Paris vs London – which city is better

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Deciding between these 2 popular capital cities?

I don’t blame you. Both have many to offer, and also share many similarities. However, there are still many distinctions that can set them apart.

Of course…I recommend you to visit both and see for yourself, but I’ll still make this guide in case you want to hear more opinions beforehand.

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Kazbegi (Stepantsminda) – quick travel guide

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One of Georgia’s many beautiful mountain towns.

Is it Kazbegi or Stepantsminda? Stepantsminda is the town, Kazbegi is the mountain. But people just call the whole area Kazbegi (its old name). It’s not just the mountains that are beautiful but also the ride on the way here (from Tbilisi).

The big question is should you stay here or just do a 1-day tour from Tbilisi. I will absolutely recommend staying here. It’s beautiful and you need to see the sunrise and sunset for the full experience. Also being able to go around and take your time to take in the views. Instead of being rushed to take photos and jump back on the bus.

Weekend stay would be perfect. 2 nights for sure. I usually stay 3 and could do even more.

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How to send money abroad (international transfer)

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Revolut & Wise are the most convenient and lowest fees.

  • PayPal is a mega ripoff. Big fee and also they rip you off on the exchange rate.
  • Western Union, WorldRemit, Cobra, Megatone, etc…the fees can be good and reasonable but they run a different scam. Money isn’t available for pickup in volatile countries (like Argentina) unless rates are favorable during pickup. At least that’s how I suspect they operate.
  • For this reason…many countries have their own regional transfer institution in their countries (like PIX for Brazil).

Germany – quick travel guide

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Beautiful modern country…clean, safe, high quality of life, and with wide range of cultures.

The German vibe as best described to me as clean and polite. Perhaps Germans and German culture is not so extroverted and outwardly charmy as say the Spanish or Italians, but indeed it has a lot of its own charms. Look past the stereotypes of beer-drinking polite people, and you’ll find so much more to explore.

I would say Germany is the most multi-cultural country in Europe. Does it have more ethnic groups than say England? Probably not. But it feels in Germany, there are more cultural groups staying true to their culture (and not assimilating so much into German culture). Depending on who you talk to, this can be a good or a bad thing. As a tourist, I’d say it’s a good thing since you get to see many flavors of people in one place.

Germany is known for having great economic power and quality of life, making it an ideal place for immigrants and visitors to be. It’s beautiful, charmy. Has old school way of things, but also modern way of things. Well-functioning infrastructure in every way.

As for the cities themselves. Germany is definitely a big country in that there are many cities worth visiting. 1 week is enough to say you saw Germany, 2 weeks is better to get some range, and 3-4 weeks if you really like it and want to explore more of what Germany has to offer.

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Hotel & AirBnB review – bad hosts, scammers

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Will start listing here all the bad hosts I encounter all over the world.

I’m well-travelled and tolerant of varying degrees of hospitality around the world. What I won’t tolerate is completely unacceptable business ethics. I hope you never have to deal with them.

Will keep adding to this list over time.

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United States – quick travel guide

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The world’s greatest pop culture powerhouse. The land of the infamous “American dream”. Everything you’ve seen in TV and movies.

This is a country of many big cities, big space, big cars, big companies, big celebrities. Many things you’ve always heard of, and heard about this place, they’re all here.

Why come to America?

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Kazakhstan – quick travel guide

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Lovely mountain country with westernized people of Asian descent, but Russian language and Muslim religion. The culture is also a hybrid of Asian, Russian, and Muslim.

Kazahkstan was my first country in the “STANS” and I loved it. Friendly people, interesting nature/landscapes, nice tourist sites, good food, their culture new and exotic but also relatable at the same time. Very cheap costs. Interesting architecture. It’s a strange mix of Turkish, Asian, and Slavic influences all at the same time.

You could definitely see the 2 main cities in a week. But I’d recommend an extra week so you can visit the nature as well. I thought the nature was beautiful but could also be similar to what you’ve seen before in Switzerland, Canada, America, or Peru.

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Astana – quick travel guide

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Capital city with modern architecture, government buildings, new apartments, and huge open squares with space, cooler fresher air (than Almaty).

Just about everyone in Astana will tell you that you should go visit Almaty because it’s cooler, it more green, has more nature, more culture, more history, more tourist things, and just overall better than Astana in every way. You might also hear claims that Astana people are nicer and more down to earth compared to Almaty people. And also that Astana people “love sky”. Since there’s a whole lot of that. It seems people only come to Astana for school, work, or career. Outside of that, they’d much prefer a life in Almaty.

I’ve been to both cities and appreciate both. Astana stood out for me by its architecture. I’m not talking about the many new modern apartment buildings constantly in development throughout the city. I’m talking about the gold and teal colored ones in the government area. Other than that, Astana stands out with its large city of flat ground and open air where you can see lots of sky and feel cooler/colder fresh air blow around you all day long. This is distinct from Almaty which is kind of like a city in the mountains where the valley traps all the hot air, humidity, and clouds.

All of Astana could be seen in 2-3 days. But you really could get a feel of it (and nice photos) within 1 day, 2 tops. Generally if you’re short on time, everybody (including Astana people themselves) will beg you to go to Almaty instead.

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Cluj-Napoca – quick travel guide

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Probably my favorite Romanian chill city. Beautiful, good mid-size.

Cluj is a beautiful small-mid city, and I definitely prefer it over Bucharest (which is also cool and vibey). Cluj just seems more convenient and properly sized, it’s also a university town with lots of young folks and affordable housing. Bucharest offers much more nightlife options and more areas to hang out, also more upscale style type of places.

But overall, there’s very little tourist value here. And if you’re looking for fun exciting unique things to do and see, Cluj may seem boring or not having any unique quality.

2 days would be enough to see all tourist things and live the chill life of eating and hanging outdoors.

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Timisoara – quick travel guide

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A cute, colorful, small Romanian city…that’s beautiful and not too small. (But it is small).

Enjoy the nice vibes, eating and drinking outside. Walking around the beautiful old town. 2 days would be the right amount to enjoy it.

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Bogota – quick travel guide

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My favorite big city in Colombia (its biggest), with many areas to explore.

While many travelers claim Medellin as their favorite city in Colombia, I personally found Bogota to be better in every way. Medellin is small and hip, with a convenient pretty and foreigner-friendly party area in El Poblado, and many beautiful people all congregated into this area. But IMO, it’s boring if you’re looking to do anything other than partying and going to restaurants, bars, cafes.

Bogota actually has lots more to do. A charmy colorful old town area, big squares and corners where people hang out, museums, much bigger and fancier party districts, much more shopping options, and multiple foreigner-friendly neighborhoods. I personally think Medellin is attractive for being small, cute, and cheap…and perhaps with a certain lifestyle vibe. But comparing every metric, Bogota feels superior in every way.

4 days is enough to cover the old town Candeleria area and Monserrate mountain, key museums, and also party/explore in the Zona Rosa area. Stay couple days longer if you want to enjoy the life, and perhaps visit the Zipaquira salt mine.

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