I loved the Peaks of the Balkans trail which I did last October, so having done some research I have decided to section hike the Via Dinarica – an extraordinary 2000 km trail that starts in Slovenia and passes through Croatia, Bosnia, Montenegro and on to Albania. I have a week and am planning to […]
Backpacking in Bosnia Read More »
Leaving Chitral along the main highway (which was about wide enough for a car and a half) Saaed played chicken with oncoming trucks, vans and ‘mummy daddy’ cars (more on them later). We turned off the main road at Ayun – a mostly muslim village, and home to lots of Afghan refugees, and headed up
Kafirs in the Kalash Read More »
Saying farewell to the Hunza, we returned to Gilgit after stopping to load up with some cherries from the tree in Saaed’s cousins garden. Gilgit was a bustling metropolis compared to Hunza and the bazaar was in full swing. We stopped to take more photocopies of our passports for the multiple checkpoints we would encounter
Heading up the Hindu Kush Read More »
Sleeping in the airport Our flight to islamabad was two hours delayed – no explanation – or at least no explanation until we were on the plane and half way to Pakistan. Apparently Imran Khan’s protest machine (he recently lost his role as Prime Minister) had led to road closures all over the country. BA
Hanging out in Hunza Read More »
Day 5 Hoq Cave, Arher beach and Ras Erissel I was looking forward to today – a hike uphill to the very deep Hoq Cave. Many of the tourists skip it in may due to the heat, and the guide book said it was about 2 hours to get there, but also that it was
Socotra Yemen part 2 – Hiking and Wadi swimming Read More »
I had been planning to go to Socotra for a while. It’s a bonkers place – very unusual trees, a remote location, very devout muslims, no wifi or 3g, no government, no rubbish collection, and not much in the way of women’s rights. It is bloody hard to get to – flights go on Monday
Socotra, Yemen (part 1) – Dragon blood trees, dunes and dolphins Read More »
The birthplace of writing in Uruk En route to Nasiriyah we stopped at Uruk – the most important archaeological site in Mesopotamia, a Sumerian city state founded 7000 years ago. There is not much to see as most of the city hasn’t yet been excavated (though the nazis did come in the 30s to build
Iraq 3 – Baking in Basra Read More »
Baghdad’s last supper We went traditional on our last night in Baghdad and went for river fish (mazgouf) at Abu Nawas. The fish is cut in half and then barbecued and served with bread and vegetables. One fish was enough for three – delicious. Then we wandered back the 3km through town. Evening is the
Iraq 2 – Holier than thou in Karbala and Najaf Read More »
Iraq is without question, one of the most fascinating lands in our crazy world – home to the mythical Tower of Babel, the Garden of Eden and the hanging gardens of Babylon. Also the birthplace of Arab nationalism, millions of Kurds, and Saddam Hussein. The recent war against Isis has largely been won, and after
Iraq part 1 – having a blast in Baghdad Read More »
The weather forecast was pretty ropey and the official site said most of the paths I wanted to do were closed. But nonetheless I headed to Gatwick for an early flight to Funchal. The plane’s second engine wouldn’t start so we returned to the stand from the runway. And then there was an altercation with
Mountains in Madeira Read More »