BjornFree

Going on a self-drive safari is easier than you probably think. At least as long as you do it in South Africa, and preferably in Kruger National Park, where all kinds of facilities are available. If you're not used to spotting animals on your own, stay in the southern part of the park, where you can just drive around and look for clusters of cars that already have discovered something exciting.

When you begin to think that you know what you're doing, drive further north, where there are way fewer people around. You can easily stay in the park for a couple of weeks, sleeping in a new camp every night.

Not a big fan of the local government, but their airlines and hubs are often the only practical alternative to get to some unusual destinations.

This was just before the whole Rohingya thing got started. I wouldn't go now. But seeing the sun rise above the many temples of Bagan veiled in the mist from thousands of wood stoves being fired up to cook breakfast is really something.

This is in Ashgabat, the capital of Turkmenistan. Among many, many strange things, this one actually stands out a little bit. If you're into architecture that involves a lot of gold and marble, you can't find a better place to visit.

While the Silk Road has been replaced by shipping lanes and air-freight, you can still find the ancient bazaar atmosphere in pretty much any major city in Iran.

The best time of the year for going on a self-drive safari is the next two-three months. It's dry season, so not too much green for the animals to hide in. (Some animals still manage to hide just fine, though, as seen here.) And there's no mosquitoes to worry about until the rains begin, so no malaria either.

There's a fairly high entrance fee for the park per day for foreign visitors, but if you buy an "annual pass" (the Wild Card), after a week you're there "for free" for as long as you want. And it's really, really easy to spend two or even three weeks just driving around in this huge park, staying in a different camp every night.