by Calvin Sun | Oct 14, 2021 | How Did You Do That?, October 2021: Saudi Arabia, Rules Are Meant To Be Broken, Saudi Arabia, Travel Warnings, Way Way Off the Beaten Path, What Dreams May Come
Ta’if About a 2 hours’ drive north of Jeddah lies Ta’if. Located within the Mecca region and one of the oldest towns in Saudi Arabia, it has been famous for its rose production and views over Mecca itself: Along the way we stopped to say hi to the...
by Calvin Sun | Jul 1, 2019 | Afghanistan, Crisis, Epiphanies on the Road, June 2019: Afghanistan, Post-travel Reflections, Rules Are Meant To Be Broken, Summer 2019: Unknown UAE, Afghanistan, Rwanda, & Uganda, Travel Warnings, Way Way Off the Beaten Path
09:30AMAs I’m writing this a few explosions just occurred within our vicinity a few km away (it’s already on the news). Still hearing some gunfire in the distance where the plumes of smoke are. We just went up to the rooftop to take a look: What...
by Calvin Sun | Jun 28, 2019 | Afghanistan, Crisis, June 2019: Afghanistan, Summer 2019: Unknown UAE, Afghanistan, Rwanda, & Uganda, Travel Warnings, Way Way Off the Beaten Path, What Dreams May Come
Well this just happened; and the Taliban just missed us only by 30 minutes: Bomb blast in Afghan mosque wounds 11 worshippers. AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): A bomb blast inside a mosque wounded at least 11 people Friday in northern Samangan...
by Calvin Sun | Jun 25, 2019 | Afghanistan, Epiphanies on the Road, How's the weather?, June 2019: Afghanistan, Mo' Money Mo' Problems, Post-travel Reflections, Summer 2019: Unknown UAE, Afghanistan, Rwanda, & Uganda, Travel Warnings, Walking Tours, Way Way Off the Beaten Path, What Dreams May Come, What to Pack
(Given the ever-changing security situation here, this post will be updated as circumstances develop so check back often) Travel WarningsA helpful warning as I set off for Kabul today:Do not travel to Afghanistan due to crime, terrorism, civil...
by Calvin Sun | Aug 29, 2018 | August 2018: Azerbaijan & Nakhchivan, Azerbaijan, How Did You Do That?, Lessons Learned, Nakhchivan, Rules Are Meant To Be Broken, Travel Warnings, Uncategorized Stories, Unrecognized Territories, Walking Tours, Way Way Off the Beaten Path, What Dreams May Come
It’s time to shift monsooning back into higher gears — today we’re visiting Nakhchivan! A landlocked exclave separated from Azerbaijan by Armenia (or as some say, physically located within Armenia), but an otherwise autonomous region under the control of the...
by Calvin Sun | Aug 20, 2018 | August 2018: Turkmenistan, Flying Fancy, Getting that VISA, How Did You Do That?, Rules Are Meant To Be Broken, Travel Warnings, Walking Tours, Way Way Off the Beaten Path, What Dreams May Come
How do I begin? When people ask what I found to be the most fascinating countries in the world, my usual reply would always have been “North Korea and Myanmar.” 5 hours in Ashgabat was enough to shoot Turkmenistan to the very top. Known as...