Few countries in the world have the geographic and cultural bipolarity of Vietnam: it’s an elongated country, historically divided between the North and the South, and with a mighty hub city in each part. Ho Chi Minh City, Saigon or simply HCMC is the country’s biggest city and the dominant city of the South. Hanoi,…
Author: roaminggene
Happy 2020!
The clock has struck 12 and counted down the last minutes of the twenty-teens just about everywhere in the world now, so I would like to wish you, my dear readers, a Happy New Year and a fantastic 2020! Let this year, and indeed, this decade, be another amazing one in travel, photography, and all…
7 Bad Habits Of Backpackers
As humans or various cultures and languages, we have a few things in common, regardless of our background. We may not always understand each other, but there are certain unspoken rules, or guidances if you will, that keep us together as humans. Nowhere else are these rules as important as when we travel, but unfortunately,…
The Story of a Photo – Bagan Sunrise (Myanmar)
As I wrote before, Bagan is one of my favourite sites in the world. Of course, I visited it when Myanmar was just opening up to tourism after years of military rule. That meant it was not yet overrun by tour groups and weekend trippers from Singapore and Hong Kong. In fact, you could have…
Destination: Uzbekistan
When mentioning Asia, too many people, especially in North America, automatically mean East Asia – China, Japan, Vietnam, Korea. That’s only a fraction of the whole enormous continent, however. For anyone actually interested in the Asian history, the attention should be inevitable drawn to Central Asia, or the so-called “The ‘Stans” – the 5 former…
My Photo Gear
A lot of people ask me about my photo gear – what do I use, where do I buy it, what do I recommend for this or that purpose. I have previously given photo gear recommendations in this blog in the “Photography Advice” section. As for where to buy, if you are in the US,…
Transportation Primer: Taxis
In my previous post, I wrote about the basics of bus transportation. Now, let’s talk about taxis. From my experience, taxi and other small vehicle drivers are some of the most dishonest, most aggressive people you are likely to meet in just about any country. These are rough men, hardened by the years behind the…
Transportation Primer: Buses
As a traveler, outside the place where you stay the night, you will spend most of your time on the road. And unless you are on a multi-day hike or a bike ride, that means some mode of transportation. As someone who has countless hours of experience with pretty much every mode of transportation, from…
The Story of a Photo – Together (Nepal)
It was early – not even 6 am yet, but the streets of Kathmandu were very much alive. Food vendors were firing up their stoves, small-time merchants began to arrange their goods on the sidewalk, and in general, the people (and an odd cow) were starting to go about their business. Yes, Nepal’s capital, as…
The “20-Dollar Rule” and Other Useful Hotel Tips
In one of the previous posts, we discussed the pros and cons of accommodations in hotels, hostels, AirBnB or Couchsurfing. I will now share the most widely known secret that lots of inexperienced travelers are unaware of. Based on my experience of around-the-world travels, you can find a room in a hotel for $20 plus/minus…