Not following these rules may well get you or your guide arrested or killed in North Korea, so pay close attention.
1: Don’t call the country North Korea
Referring to the nation as the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Korea or DPRK, will help to keep you out of trouble, while you’re on the inside of the country.
2: “If you can’t say something nice, don’t say nothing at all.”
Don’t speak negatively about the country, its people, or its leaders. This is an major offence and has landed tourists in hot water, such as being sentenced to hard labor.
Don’t zoom in on pictures of ex-leaders or Kim Jong Un. He is the Supreme Leader and is literally like a God in North Korea. You have to respect him at all times, so absolutely no memes or jokes about him.
Even if you’re throwing a newspaper in the trash bin with him on the front page, it can be seen as a big offence! Forget all about folding a newspaper in two with Kim Jong Un getting folded.. In that case you have to fold it in 3, so that the Leader isn’t folded! I’m not joking, this is actually very useful knowledge.
You could get in big trouble by not doing this.
3: Prohibited items
The following items are prohibited in North Korea:
– Religious material – Pornographic material – Political material – Travel guides
You can bring in your laptop, tablet, camera and cell phone. Even though telecommunications are tightly controlled in North Korea and internet is close to non-existing!
Don’t pack a lot of stuff for your trip, because all electronics – not to mention your browsing history – may be inspected by customs officials. A good advice is to play with open cards and take out all electronics from your bag before the screening, it shows the military you have nothing to hide!
4: Photography
North Korean government authorities may view taking unauthorized pictures as espionage, and could confiscate cameras, film and/or detain the photographer. This includes photographs of airports, government buildings, construction sites, military infrastructure, transport hubs or anything which isn’t considered a tourism location.
I took a lot of pictures/video clips, but respected the above mentioned rules, so didn’t have any problems.
Make sure you’re not filming scenes of poverty or other situations that may cause a negative impression of the DPRK. To be fair you won’t see a lot of extreme poverty in DPRK, because they have no taxes and free housing.
Judge the situation before taking photographs in the DPRK, including of officials, soldiers or other people.
Drones are definitely a no-go. You won’t be allowed to bring a drone on the inside.
5: LGBTQ
While same sex relationships aren’t illegal in North Korea, authorities generally don’t accept them. It’s important for LGBTQ travelers to remain discreet at all times.
6: Don’t discuss or practice your religious beliefs.
North Korea is an atheist state that restricts public religion. Participating in unsanctioned religious activities such as publicly praying or toting around a Bible is a sure-fire way to get arrested, detained, or expelled from the state.
7: Don’t break the rules.
Breaking a rule of the tour will not only put your life in danger, but will also put your guide at risk. He or she will face imprisonment and even torture for assisting your attempts at alleged espionage. Follow my 7 rules and do not take the rules lightly. If you want to break the rules, North Korea is probably not the right travel destination for you.
8: Vacations abroad
North Koreans are not allowed to go for vacations abroad. This is a violation ofhuman rights, but the people of North Korea are probably unaware of this fact. So know this before you’re trying to get your North Korean citizenship!
If you happen to be in North Korea during a national day or festival event like me, locals tend to be more at ease. Like in any culture, celebration, good food and beverages always help break the ice.
I was super lucky attending the May Day celebrations, where I could walk totally freely around myself, get in contact with many locals through sports and even joined a local picnic with karaoke out in the woods!
Absolutely special, but extremely rare you’ll have time on your own in North Korea!
Please remember to follow these rules, this is not just any country.. But it surely is a special one.
I just came back from Iraqi Kurdistan, staying most of my time in Erbil, a city very close to Mosul, which was Isis Headquarter until few years ago…
Is it safe to travel to Iraq?
This is the $1,000,000 question that any adventurous traveler wonders at least once in his or her’s life. The answer is: ”it depends”.
For a long time Iraq has had an negative reputation in the media and around the World for its safety issues.
Thethread of ISIS
Starting with the Iraq-Iran war in 1980, to the Saddam Hussein Gulf conflict (where Saddam Hussein gassed 5,000 Kurds in Halabja etc.) and then the current civil war now after the USA invasion, where the bloodthirsty Islamic State appeared in the country..
I admit it, it doesn’t sound as the best travel destination! But the reality is different.
I stayed most of my time in Erbil in Iraqi Kurdistan. Erbil is the most modern place in the region, guarded by the legendary Peshmerga. Therefore from a safety point of view, the entire region can be classified as relatively safe.
If you take a look at the maps below, you will see the evolution of the ISIS territory.
As you can see, from 2014 to 2017, ISIS was, basically, bordering Iraqi Kurdistan.
In July 2017, the Iraqi forces took Mosul back, so the region got safer than ever.
Loads of checkpoints
There are loads of checkpoints across all cities and roads, where they will ask for your passport and, occasionally, they will even check the car.
As a Western foreigner, I didn’t have any troubles, but once I was traveling by taxi with an Arab man, and the Peshmergas (Kurdish soldiers) took my driver out for 10 minutes at least. They found him suspicious in their eyes. They basically question everything here, which is a good thing to prevent terrorist attacks.
Is Kurdistan safe? What is it like to travel there?
When I went walking to Erbil’s citadel, I couldn’t believe what my eyes saw: Kids playing football in the streets, nice cafés and terraces and everybody seemed to have a happy, normal life.
Didn’t see any tourists though on my 10 km solo walk around the city, but I was quite shocked when I saw a local Kurdish guy with a beer in his hand. I would personally never drink in the streets in a muslim country, as I respect the country’s rules as a guest, but this little episode showed me that Kurdistan is one of the most liberal and open-minded parts of the Middle East, that follows a similar lifestyle to Lebanon.
The airport security is extreme
I had never before seen such a degree of airport security. Only Israel comes close!
From the moment I left the city until the moment I boarded the plane, I passed through over 10 different checkpoints. I had to get out at three checkpoints and they checked everything inside the car with police dogs and with all the guys armed.
Cars and buses couldn’t go to the departure or arrival terminal, so I had to walk the last part myself.
Should you visit Iraqi Kurdistan?
Even if you go with a friend or you go solo like me, you should! Yes, there’s a risk involved when you’re going to a country like Iraq, but there’s a risk anywhere in the World! And the risk here in Kurdistan is very low.
With a huge touristic potential, impressive landscapes, a deep history, and some of the most hospitable people you’ll ever find, Kurdistan is a must-visit destination. Just go!
Here are some random pictures from all over the world. One from each country/territory. I will add more here and there from new travels and adventures, so check back every now and then. Enjoy!
I believe that everyone should try solo travel at least once. It builds your confidence, shows you what you’re capable of, improves your social skills, gives you time and space to think, and helps you learn more about what you like and need in life.
2. Eat the local food
Food is one of my absolute favorite ways to get to know a place better. I love trying new things, and I’ve found a thousand amazing dishes that I never would have discovered if I’d stick to the normal stuff from the supermarket. Trying new food isn’t scary, and you’ll build your confidence up as you fall in love with more and more things. Try everything, even if you have no idea what it is. I promise you won’t regret it.
Some of the most interesting foods I tried were balut (a developing duck embryo) in the Philippines, living mopane worms in Zimbabwe, snake blood in Vietnam or tuna eyeballs in Japan (that one was a bit creepy!)
3. Plan as little as possible
One of the first lessons I learned on the road was that your plans will nearly always change. I still make the mistake sometimes by booking multiple flight tickets and trying to plan my trip from home, but it’s honestly better to just go with the flow.
Sure, you should have a rough plan for your trip, but don’t book everything in advance or you’ll likely feel too restricted and end up regretting it. Book a one-way ticket and your first few nights of accommodation — you’ll figure the rest out along the way. It’s not as intimidating as it sounds. If you’re in a tourist destination there’ll always be someone who’s willing to take your money by giving you a place to stay.
4. Travel insurance is everything
Seriously. If you do only one thing before you leave, make it getting travel insurance. I’ve heard far too many horror stories of travellers injuring themselves in remote places and ending up in hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of debt. Don’t think that it won’t happen to you, because you know those travellers they thought that, too.
5. Keep everything important in your daypack
I have had lost luggage before and had my big backpack ripped open in Barcelona one time on a bus trip. I’ve also been on dodgy buses in Africa where we’ve arrived at our destination and people have had valuables stolen from their backpack by someone hiding out in the luggage hold while we were transit.
If there’s anything I’d be upset to lose, I keep it in my daypack, which is always by my side on travel days. For me, that’s my passport, laptop, camera, external hard drive, a debit card, and some spare cash. As long as I have all of those, I can survive indefinitely. I use the Anti-Theft Secured Affinity USB Daypack.
The good thing about the Affinity USB Daypack is I can put it inside of my Osprey Fairpoint 40 Liter Backpack, which is the the best travel backpack in the World, according to travelandleisure.com.
7. Take more photos of yourself
I talked to one guy in Tbilisi, Georgia 2 years go from Uzbekistan and he told me: “Don’t be so shy. Go and ask for a picture” with some Georgian people in traditional clothing. There have been so many times when I’ve been too shy to ask someone to take my photo in a place and I’ve almost always regretted it. Photos of the beautiful places you visit are great and all, but when you get home, they’re not all that different to the ones everyone else has taken there, too. Photos with you in them are special and they’ll come to mean a lot more. I recommend the Sony A6000 with 24.3 Megapixels. To compare my IPhone X has a 12-megapixel camera. The Sony A6000 is a compact camera and doesn’t take too much space. It takes BANGER photos!
Or maybe I’m just a narcissistic millennial. Who knows?!
8. Learn a few words of the language in every country you visit
You’ll gain more respect from the locals if you can at least say hello, please, sorry, and thank you. It can be a cool ice breaker, which can lead to new adventures. On the note, remember: if you don’t speak the language, it’s your problem, not theirs. And please don’t start speaking louder to make yourself understood. Try miming instead, or using a translation app on your phone. Google Translate is a life saver!
9. Bring several debit and credit cards with you
I always bring at least 3. Sometimes your bank will block your card, sometimes your card won’t work in an ATM, and sometimes you could even lose it or have it stolen. Bring at least three debit/credit cards with you that are all linked to different accounts (with money in them!) Keep one in your backpack, one in your daypack, and one on your person. I need to practise this even more myself, because it’s so stupid and risky to keep them all in the same place, especially if you’re traveling in Africa or South America. Don’t do that!
10. And a stash of emergency cash
I carry a spare 300 USD that’s split up in various places in my backpack, daypack, and occasionally, my shoe when there’s a chance I might get robbed. Like when I went walking around to the slums in Cape Town, South Africa myself. It means that in a worst case scenario, I can pay for some food, a dorm bed, and a call to my family to get an emergency wire transfer until I can get back on my feet again. I go with U.S. dollars because it’s the most widely accepted currency around the world and easy to change.
I’m the living proof of that! I expect the worst, but hope for the best. Expecting everything to go perfectly on your trip is only setting yourself up to fail. Nobody goes traveling and comes back without any stories of mishaps! No matter how prepared you are, at some point you’re going to get lost, get scammed, miss your bus, get food poisoning, injure yourself… the list is endless! I was really mad, when a guide stole my Rayban Sunglasses in Zanzibar, Tanzania, because I kind of expected to have the best time there, relaxing on the beach. Expect bad stuff to happen, and don’t beat yourself up when it does. In a month’s time, you’ll find it funny rather than frustrating.
12. And don’t lose your temper when it does
It achieves absolutely nothing and makes you look like an assh*le. I was taught that the hard way, when I got pissed off at the border from Uganda to Rwanda (I was exhausted and treated unfairly – but that’s another story), in fact they rejected me to enter Rwanda and I had to take a horrible bus 15 hours back to Uganda’s capital Kampala to grab another flight back to Tanzania, where I was at that time.
Instead, calm down, put a smile on your face, think of how this will make a great story one day, and rationally figure out an alternative plan. This too shall pass. Caaalm down, Gustav!
13. Visit the touristy stuff in a city
The main tourist attractions are popular for a reason. While getting off the beaten track can be fun, the things you’ll see are rarely as impressive as the popular sights. Don’t be a travel snob — hit up the famous stops as well as the lesser-visited stuff. Going to random places normally just shows you that they aren’t well known for a reason. That being said freestyling is fun, and I enjoy doing that too exploring other cultures, but sometimes there are reasons why tourists haven’t ventured to some tiny village before: Maybe there was nothing to do. I personally wouldn’t go to Paris for the first time without seeing The Eiffel Tower. Maybe that’s just me? I bet not.
Advise from the person who lost a looot of stuff while traveling.
Checking out is when you’re most likely to lose something. CONFIRMED! Whenever I check out of a place, I now check the bathroom, I check under the beds, I check the desks, and then I make sure I have my passport, laptop, camera, money, phone, and external hard drive + Powerbank. (Forgot 5 of these at least!)
My favourite Power bank is by far ‘The Anker PowerCore’ with 20100mAh and I always go with this one. I’ll be fine if I leave anything else behind. Having a routine that you go through every single time will help you keep track of everything. I learned my lesson when I lost my newly (expensive) bought microphone for my IPhone in Marina Bay Sands, Singapore back in 2016, or when I forgot my passport in Surfers Paradise in Australia and some random Australian dude came running with it 5 minutes before I was moving on with the bus, asking “ay mate, is that yours?”. Talk about being lucky!
At that time I had only 1 passport, now I fortunately have 2!
15. If you’re not sure if you should bring it, don’t
The lighter your backpack, the better. If in doubt, leave it behind. Trust me, you can buy pretty much anything you could possibly need in most places around the world. You’ll soon learn that all you need when you travel is a change of clothes, some money, and a passport. Everything else is adding to your comfort. Furthermore you’re able to fly very cheap to many destinations with small luggage!
16. Travel in shoulder season to save money and avoid the crowds
Shoulder season is my favourite time to travel. The weather is usually mildest, everything is more affordable than in high season, and there are fewer people visiting, too.
17. Use a VPN
You’ll be connecting to a whole range of unsecured Wi-Fi networks on your trip, so you need to a use a VPN to protect yourself from hackers, malware, and all that good stuff. It’ll also allow you to change your location so you can watch your favourite TV shows online! I use ExpressVPN, which is 99 bucks a year. When my social media platforms literally shut down in Malawi, I realized it was a good idea to set up a VPN.
18. Leaving your comfort zone is the best thing you can do for yourself
I cite leaving my comfort zone as the number one way in which travel has helped me. It was leaving my comfort zone that gave me confidence in my abilities as a traveller. It helped me to overcome anxious situations and it introduced me to new experiences — most of which I unexpectedly loved!
19. Don’t change your currency at the airport
That’s where you’ll get the worst exchange rates.
20. If there’s no internet, embrace it
Play a card game with someone in the hostel common room, read a book, lay on the beach, go for a walk or go swimming, talk to a stranger, think about life. Some of my favourite travel memories are from times when I didn’t have an internet connection to suck me out of the moment.