Mongolia

Mongolia is one of the least densely populated places on Earth. It was largely nomadic until the 20th century, which has led to less developed (until recently) infrastructure. Of course, most photos in this gallery aren’t of cities or infrastructure, but the Mongolian wilderness, which is still around because of this nomadicism. While in this wild we kayaked down rivers that were too shallow, fished and washed ourselves in those very same rivers, built shelter and fire, saw some wildlife and the attempted wrangling of some horses. It seemed like Mongolia was in a constant war between man and nature, in both small and large ways.

Iceland

Sometimes you get lucky. The weather in Iceland is like Ireland. Cold, rain, people staring out windows. For some reason, the whole week I was there, it was sunny and fairly warm (for their standards). Ideal.

Iceland is a country in flux. Not politically or socially, but in terms of tourism. Iceland has recently made it a point to attract tourists, and they’ve done a great job. Presenting themselves as a social media destination has worked wonders. This idea of ‘going viral’ was also helped by residents and previous visitors to Iceland sharing their stories as the tourism campaign. And that was only their first campaign. Others include ‘Honorary Icelander’, ‘Iceland Academy’, and ‘Ask Gudmundur’. Iceland used it’s environment and social knowledge to its advantage. Tourism to Iceland has grown so much that the number of tourists per year outnumber actual residents 6-to-1. It’s an interesting time to be an Icelander.

Whatever you’ve heard about Iceland is true. The landscapes are otherworldly. The people couldn’t be nicer. Unfortunately, we missed Reykjavík Pride by a week, though we were in time for the Reykjavík marathon and Culture Night. I only spent a week there and feel like I only scratched the surface of what Iceland had to offer

Reykjavik, Þórsmörk, Glymur

https://www.ama.org/publications/MarketingNews/Pages/how-iceland-rode-a-social-wave-to-tourism-success.aspx

Tanzania

"I went looking for the dream of Africa. I woke up in Tanzania." 

"Kilimanjaro, into whose white peak Hemingway's gangrenous hero saw himself disappear as he slipped into death. From there we head into the Serengeti. "

"It's nuts driving into the Serengeti. After a short while you actually get used to the "Jungle Book" scene playing out in front of your car. " - Anthony Bourdain

Three Bourdain quotes that sum up my (and his) trip to Tanzania.

Tanzania is vibrant. We spent our time there in the most tourist-friendly part of the country, the northeast. Arusha and the Kilimanjaro area are very popular with tourists, and for good reason. Proximity to Ngorongoro, Kilimanjaro, and the Serengeti make Arusha a premier tourist destination. You know you’re in a tourist spot. That doesn’t make it any less spectacular. Seeing Kilimanjaro when you walk out of you’re tent in the morning is awe-inspiring every single time.