Lauren Juliff is a British travel blogger, author, and digital nomad who founded the travel site Never Ending Footsteps. In 2011, she decided to quit her job and see the world. She has since spent more than a decade on the road, visiting over 100 countries and sharing her experiences in an honest way that most travel blogs don’t, including highlighting some of the unglamorous mishaps she has learned from along the way. Q. Most travel blogs nowadays seem pretty polished and highlight only the glossy side of travel. Never […]

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The Dream of Celebrating New Year in Dubai For a long time, I had dreamed of spending New Year’s Eve in Dubai. On TV, the fireworks show around the Burj Khalifa always looked spectacular — a global celebration with lights, music, and thousands of people in awe of the world’s tallest building. It seemed like the perfect way to start a new year, something I wanted to experience at least once in my life. So, when I planned a ten-day trip to Dubai on my own, I timed it so […]

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The Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque is an epitome of grandeur and harmony. It is located in the heart of Abu Dhabi, the capital city of the United Arab Emirates. Often referred as the ‘White Pearl of the Gulf’, the Grand Mosque is the third largest mosque in the world and largest in the country. The structure was planned and executed by the first President of the UAE, His Highness Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan. He was the ruler of Abu Dhabi for more than three decades. Because of his […]

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The valley of Ladakh is one of the most visited tourist destinations in India. The valley is famous for its pristine landscape and snow-capped mountains, and at the same time, it is one of the highest inhabited regions of the world. The Ladakh valley is blessed with two mountain ranges running through its boundaries, namely the Himalayan Mountain Range and the Karakoram Mountain Range. In the last decade, the area has seen a high influx of tourists, and in recent years, it has outperformed some of the most famous tourist destinations in India. The […]

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The westernmost tourist hot-spot in India, is the Golden City of Jaisalmer.  A majestic city with its citadel- the Golden Fort standing in the middle of the city, with each house crafted with yellow sandstone is nothing short of an oasis in the desert. The views of the mighty desert, the architecture of the marvelous Havelis, the vibrancy of the colorful markets and the culture of the historical city ensures an exalted experience for every visitor. This city realizes  a certain fantasy as if you have landed in the city […]

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Disclaimer: this post is all written in good humor 🙂 My most recent holiday, which is also the one that I get asked about the most – was to Turkey in early June of this year. I had recently graduated and there was no hope of a Swedish summer ever showing up (no surprise here!), so my husband and I packed up our gear, planned a spontaneous getaway with an open itinerary (like we usually do) and went on a quest for warm, sunny weather to make us forget about the […]

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One of these claims to be “The Most Interesting Blogger in the World” I was surprised when I picked up a copy USAToday and saw an item that cited me as “The first travel blogger.” I doubt it, though I was early to the game, not long after Al Gore invented the Internet. In 1993 the term “blogger” didn’t exist, so what I was posting was a real-time serialized account of my travels. If that qualifies, then perhaps the first travel blogger was Henry Morton Stanley, who sent dispatches back […]

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An acquaintance I met on Couch Surfing a few nights ago is a member of a local Toastmaster’s club here in Almaty. A day ago she informed me that she would like me to be the guest speaker at their upcoming bi monthly meeting which draws both students and expats. Toastmasters started in Santa Ana California as one small club in 1924 and now has local chapters in over 120 countries often with multiple meetups/groups in the same city. Their focus is to help members work on and improve public […]

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In summer the heat slams down onto Pakistan like a sledgehammer. The sun boils with a malevolent intensity as the temperatures rise, and rise, and rise. Houses become ovens and to go for a walk is to be physically assaulted by a heat which is like a cruel, merciless entity. Street dogs flop over, their sides heaving as they suck in the soup-like air. Birds migrate to the hills. Even flies, rendered idiotic and clumsy by the heat, blunder clumsily from place to place and are easily swatted by those […]

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Bata shoe stores are everywhere in Dhaka! Most people assume Bata is from “their home” country based on the companies’ large International distribution. Desher’s told us Bata is their own company, others said it is Canadian. In actuality Bata is based in Switzerland having been founded in 1894 in what is now the Czech Republic. The founder said, “Work collectively, and live individually” We made it safely back and are now in Thailand. What a major difference between food, people, culture, economy, and way of living between the two countries. […]

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Golden Temple Amritsar India – The incredible Golden Temple is located in North West India minutes from the Pakistan border. This beautifully constructed temple, courtyard, buildings and huge pool is well worth a visit if you happen to be in Northern India. It is a spiritual haven and is the most holiest shrine and pilgrimage site for the Sikh religion. Hundreds and hundreds of people visit this every day – most colorfully dressed and religious ceremonies are performed most days. More information can be found here: www.sikhnet.com/GoldenTemple we also have […]

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I have always been asked about the safety situation in Afghanistan and, by now, might have a word or two to offer. During our stay there, we were limited mainly to Kabul and its immediate surroundings, such as valleys or canyons that could be reached within a couple hours of driving. Keep in mind that right now is also the height of winter and many roads become impassable for extended periods of time. While I can’t personally speak for the rest of the country, I found Kabul and its surroundings […]

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Peshawar, Pakistan December 2005 Some of you have wondered what has happened to us in the wilds of Pakistan and Afghanistan, since it’s been a while that I wrote. Well, we have since made our way across Pakistan into the Northwest Frontier Province. If there is any “Wild West” left in the world, then this frontier area of Pakistan and Afghanistan is it. And the town of Peshawar has got to be the “Dodge City”, then. Far larger and spread out than I imagined, Peshawar is actually a pretty comfortable […]

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As soon as we stepped out of the shiny terminal of Lahore International Airport in Lahore, Pakistan, my uncle Waheed and I were overcome by the smell of kerosene. I thought at first that there must be a spill nearby, because it was so strong. Eventually we found our ride among all the cabbies and rickshaw drivers, who were jostling among themselves for customers. It was a twenty or thirty minute slog to get into the city from the airport. It was foggy. The headlights cast out long beams into […]

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If you take a fact file about Pakistan you will see the Islamabad is the official capital with its planned streets and neatly organized suburbs. You will also find Karachi mentioned as the economical and industrial capital with its huge twelve million people, bustling streets and polluted atmosphere. A city you may not find mentioned in that book is Lahore the cultural and spiritual heart of Pakistan. This ancient city on the bank of river Ravi has seen it all; Great rulers, wars and a lot more but one common […]

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