The Travel Wire: best travel reads #12

The rise and fall of Vang Vieng, Famagusta Ghost Town, extreme travelers, Keith Richards on a train, and more travel reads.

Welcome to The Travel Wire (by Nomadic Notes), where I curate the best travel reads of the week.

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Travel reads

• The rise and fall of Vang Vieng, Laos' notorious party town

“Once notorious as a debauched riverside party town, Vang Vieng had cleaned up its act in recent years, but is now in the headlines for all the wrong reasons once again.”

• Famagusta Ghost Town – Cyprus

• Great apes and tiny bears: chasing wild thrills in Borneo (archive)

• Meet the extreme travelers trying to visit every country in the world

• Real budget travel? It doesn’t exist any more (archive)

• Why you should swap overwhelmed Everest base camp for the near-spiritual beauty of K2

"Avoiding the crowds and commercialisation of Everest, Kate Eshelby navigates the rugged terrain of northern Pakistan for a truly untamed wilderness adventure."

• Why Montenegro is the new nomad & expat hotspot

"Prioritizing pleasure over pressure is one reason this “Wild Beauty” of a country is so appealing."

• The new train route that opens up one of Japan’s least-known corners (archive)

“A shinkansen extension has made getting to the temples and coastline of Fukui — 200 miles west of Tokyo — easier than ever.”

• Solo 4WD traveller reveals 'challenging' reality of camping around Australia

• Devon sent: a short, epic train ride into the wintry wonders of the Exe estuary

• Inside the wild world of Osaka’s dangerous, adrenaline-fueled float festivals

• Cairo Airport: Is there a worse major airport?

I don’t usually post reviews (eg hotel or airport reviews), but this became a story in itself. The Egyptian government replied to this review, which only amplified the story further (I only saw the story after seeing it in the NY Times). The writer of the article has since replied.

• Keith rides the Orient Express

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James Clark (Nomadic Notes)