WHY NOT VISIT TRUMP'S BANNED COUNTRIES?

 

 

Just a few weeks ago, President Trump targeted the citizens of 19 countries as part of a new ban on travel to the United States. These are people he doesn’t want here. He thinks America is a private country club that he runs and he doesn’t want a certain element visiting.

 

Plus, he decided that he was going to expand the travel ban to include 36 additional countries –-  if they do not “address various security or diplomatic concerns” within two months. If this all sounds very unilateral and like it didn’t pass through any reasonable, democratic discussion, that’s because it is and it didn’t.

 

At least he didn’t say “two weeks” again. He knows we’ve all twigged that ruse.

 

And here is the list: 

 

 

 

Travel banned. Y’all are just not welcome!

 

Afghanistan

Chad

Republic of Congo

Equatorial Guinea

Eritrea

Haiti

Iran

Libya

Myanmar

Somalia

Sudan

Yemen

 

 

Visas restricted from…

 

Burundi

Cuba

Laos

Sierra Leone

Togo

Turkmenistan

Venezuela

 

 

Countries that could face travel restrictions

 

Angola

Antigua and Barbuda

Benin

Bhutan

Burkina Faso

Cambodia

Cameroon

Cape Verde

Dem. Republic of Congo

Djibouti

Dominica

Egypt

Ethiopia

Gabon

Gambia

Ghana

Ivory Coast

Kyrgyzstan

Liberia

Malawi

Mauritania

Niger

Nigeria

 

 

So naturally we should start with visiting the folks who can’t come to our apparently precious, and fragile, and increasingly racially bleached country. What would we find there?

 

And we do recognize that not all of these places are currently feasible to go to.

 

 

 

 

Afghanistan

 

 

 

 

It does not seem like they will ever let it go, as there is still ongoing discussion and criticism of the Biden administration’s handling of the US armed forces withdrawal. I for one am thrilled they are gone, finally — I can go without pesky American oversight. 

 

Well, traveling to Afghanistan is currently strongly discouraged by many governments due to the fairly clear ongoing security concerns and instability. But a whole collection of tourists (including me) are ignoring the warnings and venturing to explore this gorgeous country.

 

Because as they see it, the war is over and the Taliban are welcoming foreigners for a visit. So hell, why not. This makes me think of one of my favorite travel books, Rory Stewart’s The Places In Between. It is a 36-day walk across Afghanistan (in the footsteps of the 15th-century emperor Babur), starting just weeks after the fall of the Taliban. So Stewart takes this fantastical journey by foot from Herat to Kabul, accompanied by nothing else but the occasional villager or maybe a passing soldier. 

 

You will need a visa from a consulate (try Dubai, Spain, or Germany because America does not have one) with a letter from a tour company. I recommend Destination Afghanistan. And what would you like to see? We’ll start with the turquoise lakes of Band-e-Amir National Park, the Buddhist art and ruins in Bamiyan, and then stop at the Blue Mosque (Rawza e Mubarak) and add in a little shopping in the bazaars of Kabul. Speaking of Kabul, I am dying (not literally) to go – I want to go eat. But for others Skateistan (Afghanistan’s first skatepark) and the OMAR Landmine Museum might just do the trick. This is all part of the Silk Road which means history, culture and artifacts are simply amazing. And try not to get killed.

 

 

 

Chad

 

 

 

 

Chad retaliated against the US travel ban by suspending visa issuance to American citizens. So this could throw a spanner into the works. But good for them. Anyway I luckily have my South African passport, the “green mamba” to take me there. 

 

Some governments are currently considering it to be a high-risk travel destination due to ongoing issues with “crime, terrorism, civil unrest, and kidnapping.” So let’s avoid that shall we? Chad, well technically “the Republic of Chad,” is a landlocked country at the crossroads of North and Central Africa. Yeah, I wondered if you knew where it was. No, the Trump administration does not. I have always appreciated that Chad is the land of extremes, from the scorching Sahara Desert in the north to these crazy lush wetlands in the south. Plus the cultural diversity will thrill you — they have over 200 ethnic groups. 

 

If you do end up going, with another passport, the Ennedi plateau is weird and fantastic. It is a sandstone bulwark in the middle of the Sahara desert, which was formed by erosion from wind and extreme temperatures. And of course it’s a UNESCO site – there are prehistoric cave paintings, slot canyons, desert lakes and some utterly zany rock formations. 

 

The Zakouma National Park has fabulous safari opportunities — giant herds of buffalo, roan antelope and Lelwel’s hartebeest. Plus cheetah, leopard and spotted hyena. 

 

Where do you fly into, you ask? Let the Explorations Company work on that for you, they are the experts.

 

 

 

The Republic of the Congo

 

 

 

 

Did someone say gorillas! Yes it is true. The Republic of the Congo, also called Congo-Brazzaville, is a fantastically interesting central African nation with rainforest reserves that are habitats for gorillas. Also their capital city has the best name, Brazzaville. Say it out loud, sounds so swell. 

 

Not sure if the Trump administration knows this — it’s not an awful bet that they don’t, is it? — but there are “two Congos” that refer to the “Republic of the Congo” and the “Democratic Republic of the Congo” (DRC). The Republic of the Congo / Congo-Brazzaville, was formerly a French colony and is the smaller of the two, with a population of around 6 million.The DRC, formerly known as Zaire, and also referred to as Congo-Kinshasa, was a Belgian colony and is significantly larger, both in area and population (around 100 million). History lesson check. 

 

Kensington Tours is a good way to do your Congo trip. A trek with a conservationist to explore Odzala’s pristine rainforest, home to lowland gorillas, forest elephants, and rare birdlife sounds right up my alley. Actually the beaches of Pointe-Noire (second largest city in the country) sound idyllic also.

 

 

 

Equatorial Guinea

 

 

 

 

Looks like you do need a visa to visit, and a yellow fever certificate (I’m South African, we have a heavily stamped vaccine booklet). But that’s about it. According to the State Department it is deemed safe. 

 

It is composed of a mainland, Río Muni, and small volcanic islands including Bioko where the capital, Malabo, is located. In fact, Bioko Island (formerly Fernando Poo Island – I know right?) was stumbled upon by the Portuguese in 1472 while they were searching for a trade route to the East Indies. But of course it was already inhabited by Bantu tribes (some nomadic types) who had settled on the island before Europeans even knew it existed. 

 

Did you know that Equatorial Guinea is the only country in Africa with Spanish as its official language? And if you’re a birder type, well Equatorial Guinea according to the Audubon Society is the “land of lost birds” and will keep you full of beans. Although EG is easier than many other places to visit, I would still call Dylan from Lupine Travel. They have a perfect tour that takes you to all the right places in this country that is truly well off of the usual tourist trail. 

 

 

 

Eritrea

 

 

 

 

Nobody knows Eritrea like my friend Alexandra (Sascha) Pichler-Fong who is currently the United Nations Political Adviser in Eritrea. You can listen to my interview on my podcast with her right here, where she chats all about Eritrea and her time there. The location of this country is alluring, right on the Red Sea coast. plus it shares borders with Ethiopia, Sudan and Djibouti. 

 

To be clear, Eritrea travel requires some careful planning and preparation. You’ll definitely need a visa and travel permits for areas outside the capital, Asmara. According to many travel companies, including Rocky Road Travel, it is generally a safe country for visitors despite the lack of some resources such as internet access or ATM banking services. The country has been affectionately called Africa’s “Little Italy”, because of the significant impact of Italian colonialism (and I hear the espresso is excellent). In fact, architects and urban planners descended on the capital and left a unique blend of modernist styles behind –- fusing futurism, art deco and rationalism. 

 

The country is so rich with artifacts, many of which have yet to be excavated. Like for instance, the ancient city of Qohaito (in Tigrinya, the native language: ቆሓይቶ) was a pre-Aksumite city that thrived during the Aksumite period and worth spending time in. Today it is a UNESCO site. 

 

Oh and let’s not forget the untouched Red Sea coastline. Float away any of your troubles. 

 

 

 

Haiti

 

 

 

 

So… first we need to think about how many Haitians I know who live in New York and how this does this mean that, even a US citizen who is from Haiti and takes care of an aged parent has to self-deport if they wish to visit them once a year? Frustrating. Immoral. Anyway, travel to Haiti is — according to the State Department –- currently not recommended due to widespread gang violence, high crime rates, and a volatile security situation. Haiti has problems, there’s no sugar coating that.

 

But then again South Africa isn’t on the list, and they have a much higher rate of crime. So let’s be cautious, but excited? I mean, it does sound like it actually might not be the best idea at this exact moment. But we can fantasize for the moment and when it’s ready for us, we hop right over prepared and thrilled. 

 

What you want to of course do is learn more about Haitian culture. And what better than attending (respectfully, naturally) a Haitian vodou ceremony or dance. It is called “Yanvalou,” the name given to Haitian vodou, but has origins in Benin, West Africa. Think skulls, sequins and gunpowder smoke. 

 

I would recommend not just showing up in Haiti, contact BelleVue Tours and chat to them about it all. Haiti is special –- and it has a complex history. It is marked by a successful slave revolt and subsequent independence, making it the first black-led republic in the world. Worth getting focused for this trip I’d say. 

 

 

 

Iran

 

 

 

 

Well, the Department of State advises against all travel to Iran due to risks of terrorism, civil unrest, kidnapping, and arbitrary arrest. And there are the bombs coming from Israel or American deployed forces, which, at the time of writing, have stopped, but who knows what the situation is at the time of reading.  This, right now, is a no-brainer. Don’t actually go to Iran, at least not presently.   

 

I do have plenty of Persian friends –- you know “Tehrangeles” is a thing. And they travel to Iran often to see family. In sooth, my mother in the 70s (pre the 1979 revolution) said –- based on her travels there –- it was like Paris; chic and sophisticated. I did also hear Richard Stengel, former Under Secretary of State in the Obama Admin, say that Iran is the “most Western nation” in the Middle East. 

 

He also said that Iranians, despite chanting “Death to America,” do so in a respectful manner. He recounted a personal anecdote from a 2014 trip to Iran where young men chanting “Death to America” later welcomed him as an American and expressed interest in American culture and movies (especially Tom Cruise). 

 

Isn’t this all so much more interesting than the propaganda we’ve been subjected to when it comes to Iran? Now, if I were to head to Iran again I would use the luxury operator Ker & Downey to book it all. If you were to head to Tehran you could just hop off the plane and go find adventure and it’s rather simple and easy. But to really get under the skin of the country a tour operator has access to all the goods. 

 

The country is truly like a page out of “One Thousand and One Nights.” And Persia is one of the oldest civilizations on the globe — with ancient secrets and marvels to uncover. I fell in love with its poetry and literature; Rumi to Hafez to Ferdowsi. It is also home to one of the most awe-inspiring things you will ever see –- the very hot moving sands of Lut Desert (another UNESCO site), where these tempests sweep the area creating corrugated ridges. 

 

Same as what they have on Mars, literally. 

 

 

 

Libya

 

 

 

 

There are, unfortunately, warnings about Libya, which include crime, terrorism, unexploded landmines, civil unrest, kidnapping, and armed conflict. I mean, you’d have to be a hermit to not know that Libya is dangerous today.

 

However, a lot of that sounds slightly alarmist. It is slowly opening up to tourism, and as the second largest country in Africa, it has plenty of things to do and offer. And they now have a new tourist e-visa. 

 

The country has had so many fascinating influences since it was a crossroad of activity with the Phoenicians, the Romans, the Greeks, the Byzantines and even Ottomans leaving their marks behind. Modern-day Libya has been mired in horrid civil strife since the fall of the very awful, inhumane dictator Gaddafi in 2011. But the country wants tourism. 

 

After all, they possess some of the best-preserved ancient Roman ruins, sylvan oases, lost Saharan cities and the largest sand dunes in the world. Can you say dune boarding? I would happily just arrive in Tripoli and follow where Anthony Bourdain went for food. Libyan cuisine is a blend of Mediterranean and desert influences, featuring dishes like couscous, bazeen, a dense, unleavened bread made from barley flour, often served with meat, vegetables, and spicy tomato sauce, and shakshuka. (Not to be confused with Shake Shack.) And they use ancient ingredients like palm dates, grains, olives, olive oil and milk in their cuisine. For something sweet go hunt for magrood which is a date-filled semolina cookie. 

 

To do the country right, and get out of the capital I would again use Rocky Road Travel to do it right. They have a group trip where you will get a sense of the whole country – from Tripoli to Ghadames in the Sahara and back. 

 

 

 

Myanmar

 

 

 

 

One of the best trips of my life was to Burma (now called Myanmar). And you can read about it right here or listen to my podcast episode about it, right here. 

 

Unfortunately there really is armed conflict, a great potential for civil unrest, arbitrary enforcement of local laws (I saw that first hand) plus, as the State Department emphasises, “poor health infrastructure, landmines and unexploded ordnance, crime, and wrongful detentions.” That’s not the most appealing summation. 

 

The big cities, like Yangon and Mandalay, would generally be fine to visit now. But anywhere outside of that you are probably taking a risk.

 

It will be hard to get a visa, as they will question you endlessly about why you want to travel to Myanmar now. But it is possible. But I guess it is also possible to go to Mar-a-Lago, but I won’t. I went to Myanmar with Jacada Travel and it was amazing as they helped me really get into the culture of the country. But they have paused travel there for the moment. 

 

We did it all — scenery of Bagan, a terrain strewn with thousands of ancient temples to a meaningful visit to the caves of rural Pindaya to discover pilgrims meditating by thousands of gilded Buddha effigies plus I could witness the famous leg-rowing technique of Inle Lake’s fishermen. 

 

I ended my trip after a lot of trekking along the white sandy beaches on the Bay of Bengal. So if you absolutely have to go, just get yourself to Yangon (formerly known as Rangoon). You can stay at the Governor’s Residence and they will direct you on where to eat the best food. A warning, Burmese food is incredible. You may never want to leave. Try Mohinga, a fish noodle soup, plus tea leaf salad (Laphet Thoke), brothy Shan Noodles, and don’t worry, they have curries for every moment of your day. 

 

 

 

Somalia

 

 

 

 

Fine, it’s the pirates. They are both fantastical and deeply scary. I like the almost-sexy Orlando Bloom pirate, sure… but the real pirates taking people hostage could be seen as a deterrent to tourism, I can see that. Well that, and the fact that the rule of law is virtually non-existent. 

 

But just this week, at a forum in the capital, Mogadishu, the President announced the launch of Somalia’s Centennial Vision 2060. Basically a roadmap for peace, progress and prosperity. According to the news sources it is “a framework for economic and institutional development aimed at transforming the East African nation into a stable middle-income country within the next 35 years.” OK, so this might impact my travel plans. 

 

Because it does look and sound like an incredible destination that would be fabulous for tourists to come explore. The country was likely one of the first lands to be settled by early humans due to its location, and during the Stone Age, the Doian and Hargeisan cultures flourished there. Plus they have seven terrestrial ecoregions: Ethiopian montane forests, Northern Zanzibar–Inhambane coastal forest mosaic, Somali Acacia–Commiphora bushlands and thickets, Ethiopian xeric grasslands and shrublands, Hobyo grasslands and shrublands, Somali montane xeric woodlands, and East African mangroves according to a report in Bioscience. All of that sounds interesting to me. So let’s see how this “Vision 2060” thing pans out and then we can make some plans?

 

 

 

Sudan

 

 

 

 

Is it OK to say it’s hard to think about Sudan for me, because it’s so deeply sad what has happened there to people? So the idea of traveling to Sudan feels both highly emotional and just too dangerous to me. 

 

Would I be helping these folks by going there, in any way? Probably not. A few years ago the entire country was thrown into chaos when its army and a paramilitary group coaxed up a struggle for power. And now it is the world’s largest displacement crisis. I have read about this country my whole life and have always been dazzled by its melding culture with over 578 ethnic groups all communicating in numerous different dialects and languages. I have wanted to visit Meroe Pyramids from the Kingdom of Kush, the mesa north of Khartoum called Jebel Barkal, plus I believe the Sudan National Museum is a treasure. Although I heard it has now been looted, unfortunately. It had a collection of artifacts from Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic, A-Group culture, C-Group culture, Kerma Culture, Middle Kingdom of Egypt, New Kingdom of Egypt, Napata, Meroë, X-Group culture and medieval Makuria. You will have to ask AI to tell you more about some of those. 

 

Lastly, since this is going to sadly have to be a reverie for visiting, I can daydream about Sanganeb National Park, which is this amazing marine park in the Red Sea, perfect for diving and snorkeling.

 

 

 

Yemen

 

 

 

 

I guess it’s not good that Yemen’s Houthis say the Israel-Iran “ceasefire deal” does not include them. Right? And the governments around the world have said to avoid all travel to Yemen due to the ongoing hostilities there. And the fact they hate us, and keep attacking American ships, and we keep bombing them, although that part is usually broadcast in advance because the idiots in charge of our national security use unprotected phone messaging apps and invite random strangers into the group.  

 

Yemen remains one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises. According to Human Rights Watch, more than 18.2 million people need humanitarian assistance. OK so we’re not going. Fine. 

 

But I will tell you what you’re missing, the good stuff that is. Like Sanaa, the de jure capital and largest city of Yemen. Its old town (which really is a work of art) is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, with these amazing multi-story buildings built from rammed earth and adorned with white gypsum decorations. Plus these structures were built with local environmentally friendly materials, such as stones, mud, baked bricks, wood and gypsum. 

 

Did I mention it is one of the oldest cities in the world? Although an exact date for the establishment of Sana’a is unknown, according to Yemeni legend, it was founded by Shem, one of the three sons of Prophet Noah. More than 2500 years for sure. They have more UNESCO World Heritage Sites, too, like Shibam with mud brick “skyscrapers,” Socotra Island (the “Galápagos of the Indian Ocean,”) plus the historic city of Zabid (known for its Islamic University). 

 

OK, I have whet your appetite far too much! I also want to go. Alas.