One of my favorite things to do in a new city is to get naked with strange women and bathe. Well, that’s how some people have described it to me, but in my mind it’s the most normal thing. This probably has to do with me being from Finland, where nudity and going to sauna …
On my first night in Johannesburg, I’m in an Uber heading downtown. My driver is a tall, quiet 50-something local man. He picked me up at my guesthouse called Melvilla, in a leafy northern suburb, which I had heard was safe enough to walk around during the day. I was told nowhere in Joburg was …
“We smoke like Turks. And like similar sugary desserts,” says Ljiljana when we break for soya lattes midway a four-hour street art walking tour. We’re sitting on one of the numerous Belgrade terraces enjoying the mild early May weather. I’m surprised to hear the admission of similarities to Turks from a Serbian as the hundreds …
The white towel, heavy on my shoulders, gets cold too fast again. But the steaming water is so close that I cannot get too annoyed, and besides, I’m far too relaxed for impatient thoughts. So I embrace the task at hand and once again wring the towel dry and dip it in the steaming hot …
I’ve been desperate to experience Manila – never have I been to a city and not seen it, heard it, felt it, tasted it, like the past few days. As we walked out of the university building, I already mourned how short a time I’d have to take the city in; mourning the loss before …
I’m on the back of a boda boda, Uganda’s ubiquitous motorcycle taxi, worried about being late for a meeting. In a traffic jam, my boda driver passes cars and other bodas in a way that should make anyone scared for their safety. The drivers have helmets but there are none for the passengers. I am …
I had already visited Uganda once, but that time I never went on a game drive. This might sound strange as safari is one of the biggest reasons people travel to Africa, but I was happy just visiting my friends, who had recently moved to Uganda, and going road tripping with them and Danny. I was also happy …
If they’re worth it, like Lebanon, Turkey, or Georgia, I love returning to places I’ve already been to over and over, but still there’s nothing quite like going to a destination for the first time. Recently I got to experience this thrill in Guatemala. While I’ve been to neighboring Mexico many times, Guatemala was different enough …
I really hadn’t planned my visit to Tanga at all: the previous night in Dar es Salaam I had randomly booked a cheap hotel online. As soon as I got there after my 6-hour bus ride from Dar, I headed out to wander around in the afternoon heat in search of food. Although a big city, Tanga …
As much as I’ve traveled, perhaps one of the most exotic places I’ve ever visited, at least to other people, is the Finnish Lapland. Why I don’t quite notice its exoticism as quickly as others is because I go there every single summer. In fact, I’ve been there every summer without fail since I remember, even though …