121 articles tagged with off the beaten path
The first light of dawn breaks over Auki's harbor as fishing boats drift out into the Solomon Sea, their silhouettes like musical notes against the gradient sky. This isn't the polished, Instagram-filtered Pacific you see in travel brochures. Auki, the...
When I mentioned to friends that my winter adventure plans included Mbuji-Mayi in the Democratic Republic of Congo, I received more puzzled looks than I could count. 'Why not somewhere more... conventional?' they asked. But conventional has never been my...
The first time I laid eyes on Guilin's limestone karsts jutting dramatically from the misty Li River, I understood why this landscape has inspired Chinese artists for centuries. But what truly surprised me was how much more this region offers...
The taxi driver raised an eyebrow when I told him my destination. 'Fernando de la Mora? Not AsunciĂłn?' It wasn't the first time I'd received this reaction. While most travelers to Paraguay gravitate toward the capital city or the famous...
When my tech career had me staring at screens for 12 hours a day, I promised myself that my travels would always involve genuine human connection. That's exactly what I found in Lambaré, Paraguay—a place most travelers zoom past on...
Standing before the Temple of Bel—or rather, what remains of it—I'm struck by the profound silence that blankets Palmyra's ancient stones. The golden hour light casts long shadows across columns that have witnessed over two millennia of human history, trade,...
When most people think of Mauritius, they picture pristine beaches and luxury resorts that cost more than my entire retail buyer's monthly budget. But after spending a week in Vacoas—a bustling inland town that most tourists bypass—I discovered the beating...
The air carries a peculiar blend of salt, fish, and diesel as I stand at the edge of Nouadhibou's bustling port. This is Mauritania's second-largest city—a place where the Sahara meets the Atlantic in a collision of cultures, commerce, and...
The morning light in Asmara hits differently – casting long shadows across Italian-designed facades that feel simultaneously out of place and perfectly at home in this corner of East Africa. My running shoes hit the pavement at dawn, each stride...
After 35 years tracking down missing persons, I've developed something of a sixth sense for finding what others overlook. These days, I apply those same investigative skills to uncover hidden travel gems—particularly pristine beaches that haven't yet succumbed to mass...
The Caribbean sun beats down differently here than in Sydney's eastern beaches. There's a particular weight to it, a historical significance that seems to simmer in the humid air of Colombia's coast. My journey to Cartagena began as many business...
You know that moment when you're standing in a foreign bus terminal with your backpack, tired from an overnight journey, trying to decipher transportation options in broken Spanish? That was me last fall in Tarija, Bolivia's undiscovered wine paradise. After...
When most tourists think of Puerto Vallarta, they picture the bustling Playa Los Muertos or the resort-lined shores of Zona Hotelera. But having visited this coastal gem six times over the past decade, I've discovered that Puerto Vallarta's true magic...
¡Hola viajeros! Remember that feeling when you discover a place so authentic it makes your heart race faster than a World Cup final? That's Mopti for you—Mali's best-kept secret and a destination that stole my heart faster than I could...
The first thing that strikes you about Sarh isn't the heat—though at 38°C in December, it certainly makes an impression. It's the rhythm. Every corner of this southern Chadian city pulses with a cadence entirely its own, like a cricket...
