Bangladesh Travel: Rivers, Relics and Wrecks
After visiting the capital Dhaka and taking a voyage to the Sundarbans mangrove forest, Johan Smits continues his Bangladesh travel by road, river and rail, encountering ancient relics and huge,…
Five Great Mongolia Festivals Not to Be Missed
From horse-drawn sledges on a frozen lake to the world’s biggest camel race in the Gobi desert, Travel Begins at 40 has selected five great Mongolia festivals for 2020. Tsagaan…
Bangladesh Rickshaw Art : Photo Journey
Travel Begins at 40’s Johan Smits shares his love of the brilliant rickshaw art in Bangladesh with a series of colourful photos. To foreign visitors in Bangladesh, the ubiquitous and…
5 Wonderful Asia Off-The-Beaten-Track Destinations
Travel Begins at 40 spills the beans about five themed and truly off-the-beaten-track destinations in different parts of Asia. When travelling in Asia, you may feel it’s getting increasingly hard…
Why Sri Lanka Travel Industry Needs You
Jacinta Lim, co-founder at Seek Sophie, makes the case for how we all can work together to help the Sri Lanka travel industry recover from the impact of the Sri…
Japan Winter Festivals: Naked Men and Sake
From naked men to setting off fireworks and lots of sake, here is our round up of Japan Winter Festivals ranging from the quirky to the strange. Matsutaki Festival…
5 Wonderful Festivals of Lights Not to Be Missed
The symbolic power of light has always played a powerful role in the world’s many cultural and religious traditions. But apart from their traditional significance, festivals of lights are also…
Julian Carnall, Responsible Travel with Large Minority
Johan Smits discusses Sri Lanka, tuk tuk challenges and responsible travel with Julian Carnall, the man behind Large Minority and the Lanka Challenge. How did Large Minority come about? The…
10 of the Best Hikes in the World
Although hiking is fulfilling for many reasons, there’s no denying that it’s always better when the scenery is spectacular. These ten hikes are some of the world’s most scenic and…
Five Unmissable Hindu Festivals of India
Considering its vast size and enormous population, it’s no surprise that India is an incredible diverse country home to many different ethnic groups and religions. And with each of these…
Voyage to the Sundarbans Mangrove Forest
Taking an old paddlewheel steamer from Dhaka to the Sundarbans Mangrove Forest in Bangladesh, Johan Smits finds poetry, a lost city and a vast water forest. “What beauty, what shades,…
Levison Wood: Return to Nepal
Explorer, best-selling travel writer and former British army officer Levison Wood returns to Nepal on behalf of the Gurkha Welfare Trust to become acquainted with friends old and new…
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