In what was completely normal to me at the time, but remarkably odd when I think about it now, from the years 2005-2011 I did not make a single international trip. The book-ends of these were one month in Iran in 2004, and one month in Sweden in 2012. A lotttt had happened in those years, and a lot has happened after, but those things are not in the scope of this post.
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It is past midnight, and it is now the 1st of June 2017. I am snacking on some ice cream, and a 600ml bottle of water is nearby. I am keeping myself up for the pre-fast meal (“sehri”) which will see me have small amount of food and water before the dawn prayers, and then fast, God Willing.
I have a “Ramadhan Routine” where I break my sleep into two portions on working days - a few hours before evening prayers, then I am up from dusk to dawn, and then I sleep another few hours before waking up to go to work etc. A few years ago when I was not employed, I went fully nocturnal and would be up from noon to dawn, and sleep from dawn to noon. I loved that one month best.
Nevertheless, I am up now, and I feel remarkably keen on getting a few life-admin stuff things out of the way. The motivation to get stuff done in the wee hours of the morning is unusual, and I welcome it. I tidied up my desk yesterday (and found a missing ring into the bargain) and today I will do some other life-adminy stuff. However, the urge to write a blog has come, and I will not stand in it’s way. It has indeed been a while since I wrote.
So, then, to the topic I want to write about.
It was when I noticed that today’s date was the 1st of June, and when I recalled that I went to Sweden exactly 2 years ago, that I decided that this would be a good time to write a little of my travelling of the past two years. I have done a lot, and grown a lot, and learned a lot, and maybe some things would be better recorded lest I forget them. Format will be a short summary of each trip and anythings learned to be carried on. I will write about these in more detail anyway later on, inshaAllah.
SWEDEN, 1st June 2015 - 5th June 2015
I don’t know why I wanted to go to Sweden, but it had been some time since I was last there. I do know that I love the place to bits, and I had missed my family that live there, so there were actually were reasons to be had if I were to look deep enough. I was working on the Friday, and my new boss had only just been appointed, and the very first thing I did was ask him for some time off, which I was worried would make an impression that was not favourable, but he was okay about it. I booked cheap tickets, but they could have been cheaper. I had been watching the prices for a few days before I booked, and it was pretty astounding to me that they would keep on going up by £5-10 per day. A short trip was duly booked, and it was just what I needed. I spent some time with my cousins, I tried my best to refamiliarise myself with the Swedish language, and I achieved all three of the goals I wished to achieve - to have a Kebabrulle, to have a Kanelbulle, and to visit the lake-town of Signtuna and gaze across the Malaren lake. I am always blown away each time I visit Sigtuna, and this is no different. I also made the intention to visit in winter, when the lake is frozen over. When it was time to leave, I was not happy to be leaving, but such is life. Sweden has a hold over me that will not be going away anytime soon.
Lesson:
- Book as early as possible. Seriously; crystallise and clarify your plans as soon as possible, and then book. Always worth it.
IRAN, 19th September 2015 - 4th October 2015
My best friend M and myself went to Dubai in September/October 2014, and we had a great time there. So, we planned on going again at the same time in 2015, but complications with his passport and time off meant that it was not fixed. As the dates approached, we both decided that M was not coming, so I arranged a 2 week trip with my other good friend A. After mooting various fractions involving e.g. a week in Iran followed by a week in Dubai, we decided on a full two weeks in Iran, and planned accordingly. Then my brother decided to come along, and then M decided that he would come along as well. It was not ideal for me, who was sorting out the flights and visas, and M’s passport was not ready until 3 weeks before our flight (!!!) but in the end it was all sorted and we went to Iran via Dubai. As the itinerary was long-decided between myself and A, my brother and M had no input and were effectively passengers for the whole trip, which did lead to a little friction. If I had known they were coming from the off, I would have planned things differently to accommodate for them. You truly get to know people when you travel with them, but I knew all of these people very well anyway, and I know I would have been able to accommodate them if I had known they were coming from the off.
The trip itself was something along the lines of a beautiful dream; myself and A had planned a very intensive trip that would leave enough time for pilgrimage, but also allow us to see parts of Iran that few others visit, and so we spent 4 days in Mashhad, 4 days in Qum, and one day each in Isfahan, Yazd, and Shiraz. There was time to visit Tehran and Nishapour in there as well, and also the ancient ruins of Persepolis. Two domestic flights and an overnight train from Tehran to Mashhad were also thrown into the trip for good measure. The only thing we missed was one day in Kashan, which is close to Qum, but timings did not allow. Being there during Zilhajj for 2 Eids and Day of Arafat was something truly special, and I have too much to write about, so it makes sense that I would stop here.
Lessons:
- Know your group dynamic. Myself and A planned what would have been a great trip for the two of us, and looking back, we would have happily done it all over again, but not so my brother and M.
- Planning. This drove home to me that with a little planning and help, its very possible for me to organise a pretty epic trip, and it was something I would end up doing time and again.
- Local Sim. I cannot state how helpful it was to be able to connect to the internet everywhere I went. Simple translations from Google Translate, being able to look at maps and make use of these, being able to communicate on the go; all of these things are so useful that I made it a point to always be able to have this ability going forward.
ITALY, 30th January 2016 - 1st February 2016.
I was now in the habit of planning trips way in advance, and I saw a deal that would allow myself and a friend to watch the Milan Derby. I asked all my friends, and only one was willing to go on the day. It turned out also to be his first football match, and the day was on his birthday, which made me feel all kinds of epic for facilitating this for him. Anyway, 6 weeks in advance I paid for these, and sorted out the flights shortly after, and end up taking just one day off work. I put some time into researching what was possible to do in Milan and the province of Lombardy, and came up with a list of things I wanted to visit, and was so happy to have actually achieved nearly everything I wanted.
Highlight of the trip was something I have since dubbed a “perfect” day - We went to Lake Como, then to Brunate just above Como, then to Chiasso, which was the border between Italy and Switzerland, then went to Lugano, spent a few hours there (and where I have taken one of the best pictures ever on my phone), went all the way back to Milan, had an Italian pizza, and then watched AC Milan trounce Inter Milan in a packed 80,000 seater stadium. I may have other days like that in the future, but I do not think may will come as close.
Lessons:
- The benefit of a short, sharp trip. We spent a sum total of 48 hours almost exactly on the nose in Italy and Switzerland, but it honestly felt like much longer. I personally feel that the experience of time is different; something about being away from your normal routine, of being more alive in the moment and more open to visceral experience makes it so. There are additional ramifications for this, but I cannot find the words to articulate them, and now is not the time.
- Cross border trips are fun, but take your passport always. The Swiss police at the border in Chiasso let everyone cross the border but scrutinised myself and my travel companion to the nth degree before letting us in. I had mooted carrying both our passports in my satchel, but I was glad I had done so. Despite that hiccup, a chance to experience two countries, even if one is for a short period of time, in my opinion is always worth it.
- Holiday planning. With holidays being tight (but fair) at my firm, this was the first time I had taken a “long weekend” type trip, where I have 3 days on holiday, but only one is taken from my allowance because the other two were on a weekend. This particular element was so beneficial to me that I would use it over and over again.
SWITZERLAND, 20th February 2017 - 27th February 2017
A random invite to go to Switzerland with my brother is not anything I would turn down, and so we went. I have been to Zurich before, in the German side, and was one month ago in Lugano in the Italian side, so this trip to the French side would complete the trifecta. One member of my family has a timeshare rental type apartment place in the mountains, and that is where we lodged.
Run of the mill winter-mountain things were done here; taking a cable car up the local mountain, and ski piste, walking to the top of La Chamossaire, and then back down again in freezing cold and knee-high snow, my first ever ski lessons, and just exploring the wonderful way Switzerland just is. A day trip to Montreux was also fit into the schedule, and there was time for plenty of reading and hot chocolate too, and of course, bonding with the sibling. A small amount of time was spent in Geneva both arriving and departing, and I wish I could have done more there, but all in all a great trip.
Lessons:
- Switzerland is bloody expensive. Like seriously. Be very prepared for this fact, and do not complain whilst you are there about it. However…
- Switzerland is a truly exceptional place, and genuinely I feel one of the best countries to live or visit. If you have not been there, you should try to go.
EGYPT, 25th March 2016 - 28th March 2016
An interesting last minute decision by my father to take me and my brother to Egypt was met with surprise, a little bit of doubt, and finally, a sort of “why not” cautious optimism. We booked our tickets literally 2 days before we were flying and were penalised with literally the most eye-watering fares for flights I have had the discomfort of seeing. We were gouged. But hey, Egypt. It was very low on my planned places to visit, but obviously once I knew we were giong I made sure to research the place throughly. The concierge at the hotel set me up with a local sim and I was good to go.
What is possible in 2-3 days in Cairo? Enough. One day was spent visiting the Pyramids in Giza, which obviously is a must, and also squeezed into the rest was a visit to Tahrir Square, the Egyptian Museum, three shrine visits, the American University in Cairo bookshop, and the Cairo Tower, where I was introduced to Umm Ali - a delicious bread pudding that is a local delicacy. The Nile is pretty epic too.
Lessons:
- Don’t fly Egyptair. Just don’t.
GERMANY, 30th April 2016 - 2nd May 2016
Another bank holiday/3 day weekend approached, and I decided with another of my friends to try Germany. This was interesting and not planned like the others because literally we went to the skyscanner search engine, put our dates in and looked for the cheapest flights to anywhere from Birmingham. Dusseldolf in Germany came up, and we booked it. Then we looked at what was available nearby, and booked our hotels accordingly.
Dusseldorf is part of the Rhine-Ruhr conurbation - a highly developed area in Germany with a massive agglomeration of cities close by - Bonn, Cologne, Dusseldorf, Monchengladbach, Duisburg, Mulheim, Essen, and Dortmund - all very very close to each other, with three airports located close by as well, and excellent mass transit links and options. We had landed on our feet by choosing Dusseldorf, and made the most of it, spending time in Cologne, Leverkusen (including stumbling upon a Bundesliga football match) and Dusseldorf, as well as going to the historic city of Aachen, and also to the Dreilandenpunt - a place where the borders of Belgium, Holland, and Germany meet, and with some bodily manoeuvring you can technically be in all three counties at the same time.
Lessons:
- Public transport. My policy is to avoid taking any rental cars and taxis unless absolutely necessary, and relying on the public transport system instead. This drives home the different experiences and differences, and I believe adds more flavour to the local experience. Germany’s mass transit system is very very well organised, and reasonable too, coming second only to Switzerland in my estimation. Highly recommended.
UAE, 24th August 2016 - 30th August 2016
The UAE called again, and is one of my favourite places to visit. My best friend M, my brother, and another one of my friends L arranged this 3 months in advance, and as always, the logistics planning fell to me, a task which I love and delivered with great aplomb.
This time there was no need for researching what to do, as myself and M had been there in 2014 and loved it, and part of this would be to show my brother and L our favourite places, mixed in with some new activity. I selected the same neighbourhood as last time, and my favourite thing was noticing how everything all came back to me; the cute Bahraini mosque around the corner which felt like home, going to the typical touristy sites, feeling comfortable in the heat and utilising the mass transit system, visiting the markets on the old part of the city again, and a day spent in Sharjah, and, of course, the Karak tea.
Not for me is the glitz and glam, but the other part of the city, where millions of Desi expatriates and labourers live and work, and the shops set up to service their needs is my favourite place, and where good food and shopping can be had for a fraction of the prices of the touristy areas. Some parts of it feel like strolling through a time gone past. Myself and my brother only spent 6 days, whereas M and L stayed for another few days.
Lessons.
- Arrange things yourself as much as possible when you can. Package holiday sites are nice and convenient, but a little work in sorting out flights, hotels, and visa (not needed in this instance) pays its own rewards, and you can come in comfortably cheaper than many comparison/package sites. This helps when you crystallise your plans in advance, and in this case booking everything 3 months in advance was most helpful.
- Currency fluctuations. In 2014, I was able to get nearly 6AED for £1. In 2016, after Brexit, it became 4.80AED for £1 at the best money exchange streets. Not cool.
ØRESUND (Copenhagen and Malmö), 24th September 2015 - 25th September 2016
The Øresund region is and has always been of interest to me. Any cross-national areas have always been so - I have a fascination with borders and states and state soveriegnty in this respect. The Øresund region comprises the capital city of Denmark, Copenhagen, and the second city of Sweden, Malmö. They are very close, connected by road and rail across the Øresund Sea, and people flying to Malmö actually fly to Copenhagen and then take the links across to Sweden.
We spend a roughly equal amount in both places, landing in Copenhagen at midday, and visiting various sites as well as attending the ComicCon festival, which was something I have wanted to do for a long time. One of the unexpected highlights was the Davids Samling, which is a fantastic museum on Islamic art and history, and one where I could easily have spent a very long time. A nice bonus was a temporary exhibit on Ferdowsi's Shahnameh on the day we were visiting. After the day, we went to Malmö in the evening, slept at a hotel there, and then spent the morning visiting most of Malmö's central sites. Of course, it was necessary to have a Kanelbulle, and this was done in both Copenhagen and Malmö. Thereafter, it was time to buy a ridiculous amount of Swedish Marabou chocolate, and then make our way back to Copenhagen airport and back to the UK. A thoroughly enjoyable trip, and one which I may make again.
Lessons
- Mix up your travel companions. I went this time with my good friend Dave (not his real name), and I decided after the trip that travelling with different people is actually a good thing; everyone is different, and brings something different to the table. The opportunity for a bad experience with someone new is always there, and thankfully this has not yet been the case for me. In the back of my head in this regard is a Hadith which (paraphrased) states that one of the ways to truly get to know someone is to travel with them.
IRAQ, 7th October 2016 - 20th October 2016
This was it. Early on in the year, I made the intention of going to ziyarat as my first priority, and the rest of the trips I make were not necessary but I would see these as additional bonuses. If I ended up only going to Iraq then 2016 would have been a success for me from a travelling perspective. I made enquiries in January about going to Iraq for Ashura, booked the holiday dates accordingly, and paid for my trip in instalments throughout the year. My mother wanted to come, so I added her to the trip as well midway through the year.
Performing pilgrimage in Iraq during Ashura is markedly different than during Arbaeen, and consequently the experience is different, with different things to take away. The whole subject of Iraq and this trip is something I will write about in a separate post, and consequently I will stop here. I have no words but praise for our group, who arranged everything professionally, and, when Turkish airlines cancelled our flight back from Najaf, our group moved us to Baghdad immediately and we flew out the day after. I was hoping personally to avoid the headache of Baghdad Airport, but this was a minor price to pay for an extra day of Ziyarat.
Lesson.
- As I hope is evident, I am a huge proponent of arranging things by myself, however, in some cases this is not possible, and you will have to go by a group, like we did for Iraq. In this case, make sure you go with a reputable group with experience of having done this a few times and recommendations you can vouch for. The costliest groups are not necessarily the best.
- Baghdad Airport is the worst. Literally the worst. Istanbul is a close second.
SWEDEN, 3rd March 2017 - 6th March 2017
My uncle’s 60th birthday in Sweden was a major family event, and so with plenty of notice, flights were booked and a great time was had by all. I had a scheduling conflict with holiday, and so I could only take one day off work, but it was worth it.
Apart from the birthday event, which was great and overflowing with well-wishers from across the globe, I was able to secure a nice load of Swedish chocolate, and visited the lake town of Sigtuna again and walked on the frozen lake, an experience I will not forget easily. Sweden in winter, with snow underfoot and bitterly cold but refreshing wind is quite something. Again, Sweden has a hold on me which I am happy to be a prisoner of.
Lesson:
- Going back. With the world so large and so much to see, I am not normally given to going back, but I can happily make an exception for Sweden. One part of sweetening the deal is going back at a different time, in this case winter, which allows you to experience something different.
TURKEY, 14th April 2017 - 19th April 2017
My colleague was getting married in Turkey, and had selected the Easter Bank holiday - a 4 day weekend - for the festivities to allow us to attend. I added 2 more days of leave to make it a 6 day trip, and it was worth it. Personally, I have never been keen on visiting Istanbul, but given that I was going to be in Turkey, I decided to go visit anyway, with the idea that I then need never come back again.
The wedding was in the province of Muğla, and we flew to Dalaman Airport, which was the closest. A few days were spent there, during which the wedding was attended (and I took a lottt of pictures with my new camera), and some time spent on the beach in Oludeniz, and exploring the Blue Lagoon nearby, which I wholeheartedly recommend. It is a tranquil and unspoilt paradise. I then flew to Istanbul for about 48 hours and made the absolute most of it, visiting as many of the sites in the historic quarter as possible, and catching a truly magnificent sunset experience in a park on the Asian side. Armed with a local sim and an IstanbulCard was truly the best way to experience both. On one day, my watch told me I had walked 22 (!) km. It would appear that I am much more active when travelling than when working in the home country.
One of the highlights for me personally was what I believe to be a side effect of having travelled so much - instant orientation. During the whole of my time in Istanbul I new exactly where I was in relation to the major sights, the Bosphorus river, and my hotel, and I could always know without thinking exactly what I would need to do to get back, or to visit the next item on the agenda.
Lessons:
- Triangle trip. Maybe it’s part of getting comfortable with travel, but I think I am becoming more exuberant in terms of planning my holidays, and taking as much of it into my own control definitely helps. I think it’s just a lifting of internal constraints and opening yourself to the many variables that are possible. I took three flights via 5 airports to arrange my trip, entering and leaving via Dalaman, arriving to Istanbul Sabiha, and leaving via Istanbul Ataturk, and using two different London airports. I feel comfortable thus stating that a lot can be gained by going off the normal/conventional path of travelling, even a little.
- Travelling alone. I am not sure I would want to do this very often - I really enjoy travelling with just one companion, but in this case, it worked out well because of the intensity of the Istanbul leg of the trip, where I was literally on the go as much as I was able.
GERMANY/FRANCE, 19th May 2017 - 22nd May 2017
Strasbourg, on the France-Germany Border has always been of interest to me, but, remarkably, you cannot fly to the city direct from England. The best case involves flying to Paris and getting a connection from there. Thinking outside the box led me to see that the German city of Stuttgart was close by, and there was a good train link between the two cities, and it was possible to fly there direct from the UK. From that, and given my love for cross-national areas and multiple county visits in one go, the idea for another trip was borne, and I took my friend L with me again.
I did a preliminary costing for 4 days and compared it with Amsterdam, and it worked out that for the same period of time, Amsterdam would work out to be £100 more expensive for just flights and hotels only. Nevertheless, I presented both options to L and decided to go with whatever he chose. He chose Stuttgart and Strasbourg, so that was where we went.
A little research showed that Stuttgart in itself was going to be a fascinating city in its own right, and the choice was vindicated multiple times on the trip. We decided to go for a trip-within-a trip-option, so we would spend one whole day in Strasbourg as well, sandwiched between 2 days in Stuttgart. Both cities were truly magnificent, and for both we wished we had spent one day more in each. I will not go through the various attractions of both; these are left for the dear reader to determine for themselves.
Lesson:
- Trip within a trip. If you are travelling light, this is a very viable option, and should be considered. Bonus for us was that when returning to Stuttgart, despite only having been there for one day, we were immediately reoriented, and our 3-day transit passes were still active, so we could resume our exploring as per normal. If felt like two journeys in one, and when we were back in Stuttgart, Strasbourg already felt like the distant past - again something I feel to do with experiencing time differently when on travel.
CONCLUSION
24 months - 13 counties. Wow.
I do not feel that this period in my life will ever be replicated again. I am very grateful, and if anyone benefits a little from the sum of my experiences then I am happy, however, the main benefit is the growth myself that I have experienced.
To those considering it, enjoy the world whilst you still can.
Happy travelling!
