Journey to the East Awards – The Best in Travel

When we were on the plane a couple of weeks ago, they were showing a documentary on the house of Christian Dior, giving some background history and the story of the young Belgian designer who took over after John Galliano’s infamous rant. I was not really paying attention, until an old interview segment with Dior himself where he was asked how closely he expected the seamstresses to follow his designs. He answered that the sketches are there to guide them, but that he likes to give them some freedom, some flexibility, because this is when they get the best results, when they allow space for “les bonheurs du hasard“, literally, “the joys of the unexpected”.

And that is what travel is all about. You have a rough plan, you kind of know which direction you want to go in, but the rest you leave open, wide open, to the joy of the completely unexpected.

When we took off on this journey, we knew two things. That we wanted to get to Hong Kong by land with an idea of the countries we would pass, and that our one main constraint determining the time we took to do this were visas. And maybe stamina. We set off with our bags, our two only pre-arranged visas for Turkmenistan & Uzbekistan (you cannot have one without the other if you are travelling by land) and ventured in the direction of a region we knew nothing about.

And now we know. Now we know that this is a region worth exploring, a region we now read about differently in the news, parts of which are often forgotten by the rest of the world. When we were compiling our list of Best in Food, we were also thinking about the people and places which most left a mark on us. For fun, this light-hearted list from our last year on the road are our highlights before the deeper reflection that will come.

It is about the ones which taught us to let ourselves go and trust. The ones which comforted us when we were vulnerable. The ones which taught us to laugh at the worst situations. The ones which gave us so many moments to stop and realise how lucky we are and how happy we are. The ones that keep your eyes, nose and ears busy for days and your appetite on high alert. The ones that teach you so many important lessons. The ones that you hope, perhaps wrongly, will never change. The ones you cannot wait to go back to and occasionally the ones you are happy to have seen once and never again (hence a short “worst in travel” list at the end too). 

There are many different ways of living on our planet, but something binds us altogether. And while infinite things around us seem to be collapsing when we see the violence in our world, this journey has shown me the opposite. That the good in this world will always outweigh the bad and that travel should be a part of every person’s education.

THE BEST IN TRAVEL

These are very general categories and are based on our personal experience. No place is the same twice, no memory replicable, no person comparable. But for us, this is how we remember it and what we will carry in our hearts. And hopefully pique your interest for some of these lesser known places. 

1. HOSPITALITY

Winner: Iran

First Runner-Up (it’s a tie) : Greece & Turkey

Top: Esfahan, Iran  Bottom: On the Lykia Yolu, Turkey

2. SMILES

Winner: Myanmar

First Runner-Up: Uzbekistan

Second Runner-Up: Laos

Everywhere in the market of Kyaingtong, Myanmar

3. SUNSET

Winner: Mawlamyine, Myanmar

First Runner-Up: Amorgos, Greece

Second Runner-Up: Fann Mountains, Tajikistan

By the port, Mawlamyine, Myanmar

4. EPIC ROAD TRIP

Winner: Wakhan Corridor with the best driver – Muhktor, Tajikistan

First Runner-Up: From Murghab, Tajikistan to Osh, Kyrgyzstan

Second Runner-Up: Kangding to Daocheng, Tibetan Sichuan, China

Out of the Pamirs and into Kyrgyzstan towards Osh 

5. TRAIN RIDE

Winner: From Hsipaw to Pyin U Lwin over the Gokteik Viaduct, Myanmar

First Runner-Up: Tehran to Mashhad, Iran

Second Runner-Up: Boukhara to Samarkand, Uzbekistan 

Top: The train from Hsipaw to Pyin U Lwin, Myanmar Bottom: On the train from Tehran to Maashad, Iran

6. CITY

Winner (it’s a tie for top three) :

a. Esfahan – Iran    b. Yangon – Myanmar    c. Gaziantep – Turkey

Yangon, Myanmar

7. MARKET

Winner: Kyaingtong, Myanamar

First Runner-Up: Fethiye, Turkey

Second Runner-Up: Boukhara, Uzbekistan

Top: Kyaingtong Market, Myanmar Bottom: Fethiye Market, Turkey

8. MONUMENTAL AWE

Winner: Naqsh-e-Jahan Square in Esfahan

First Runner-Up: Ishak Palace, Dogubeyazit, Turkey

Second Runner-Up (it’s a tie): Within the old Kala walls of Khiva, Uzbekistan & The Baygirs (wind chimneys) of Yazd, Iran

Top: The Naqsh-e-Jahan Square in Esfahan, Iran  Bottom: Old town of Khiva, Uzbekistan

9. LEAST TOURISTY

Winner: Turkmenistan (for a reason)

Karakum Desert, Turkmenistan

10. THAT WOW MOMENT INTO THE WILD

Winner: Hiking until you come out behind the Lhamo Gorge, Langmusi, China

First Runner-Up: Chasing Mount Ararat on the mountain facing it, Dogubeyazit, Turkey

Second Runner-Up: Zagros mountains with the Bakhtiari nomads, Iran

Behind the Lhamo Gorge, Langmusi in Tibetan Sichuan, China

11. CELEBRATION

Winner: Murghab Horse Festival, Tajikistan

First Runner-Up: Badaleng Monastery Light Festival in Kyaingtong, Myanamar

Second Runner-Up: Greek Easter in Ioannina, Greece 

Murghab Horse Festival, Tajikistan

12. RELIGIOUS FERVOUR

Winner: Pilgrimage to the Imam Reza Shrine in Mashhad, Iran

First Runner-Up: Doing the Kora in Labrang, Tibetan Sichuan, China

Second Runner-Up: Pilgrimage our Church the Lady of Health in Kotor, Montenegro

A pilgrim does the kora in Labrang, Tibetan Sichuan, China

WORST IN TRAVEL – HILARIOUSLY TRAGIC OR JUST PLAIN BAD IN A JOURNEY TO THE EAST

There are many runner-ups, but we picked the Best in Worst for you. 

1. TOILET

Winner: Jelandy, Tajikistan

2. SHOWER

Winner: Too many

3. ROOM

Winner: A tiny room with no window and a furnace chimney in the corner. We had not checked beforehand and the fully-booked town of Safranbolu on National Holiday weekend in Turkey left us no choice. (we are getting too old for this…)

4. DISASTROUS RIDE

Winner: The drive from Khorog to Murghab in a shared jeep was the definitely the most eventful. Tires detached and flew into the river while we were driving. After a visit to the mechanic to fix the tire, the car battery died a couple of hours later until we began to freeze as the sun went down.

On the road from Khorog to the Kyrgyz border on the Pamir Highway, Tajikistan

5. FOOD POISONING

Winner: Excitement turned into pain after a visit to a Chinese restaurant in Mandalay, Myanmar

6. MEAL THAT MADE US CRY (not in a good way)

Winner: Lukewarm lamb and potato water served up to a starving crowd in Jelandy, Tajikistan (also the winner of worst toilet, to be avoided all round)

7. SONG

Winner: Sitting in a dark, packed minivan driving into Tirana, Albania, when out of the silence THIS suddenly came on the speakers with zero reaction from the crowd. 

8. TOURIST CIRCUS

Winner (it’s a tie) : Jiuzhaigou National Park, China & Danxia Mountains, China

Danxia Mountains in Gansu, China

Where to next? What are your top contenders for any of these categories? Send us your ideas!