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Destinations Europe Ireland

The Oldest Whiskey Distillery in the World

The oldest whiskey distillery in the world?

What is the oldest whiskey distillery in the world? What is the oldest whiskey distillery in the world? It seems like such an easy question to answer. Sadly, however, it is not. Doing a quick google search tends to show Bushmills in Northern Ireland, with a year of 1608, as the oldest. As with most things to do with numbers, this year is open to interpretation. This is not the year that the distillery was established, but the year in which a…

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Destinations Europe Iceland

One night out in Reykjavik, Iceland

Christmas tree covered in snow from my One night out in Reykjavik, Iceland

This time last year I was in Iceland for work. I arrived on a Monday evening and was working from 2PM on Tuesday until 6AM on Wednesday and then again from midday on Wednesday until 8PM. It was going well clearly! I was supposed to finish work by lunchtime on the Thursday, but didn’t finish until 5PM. I had a flight home on Friday morning so I had to go out and enjoy my one night out in Reykjavik, Iceland….…

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Destinations Europe Ukraine

Visiting the Carpathians from Lviv

River passing through Skole

Getting to the Carpathians by train Going to the Carpathian Mountains is one of the most popular tourist activities in Ukraine. Getting to the mountains is easy if you have a car but if you are on a budget or have limited time, then it is a little bit harder. In this post, I will show you how visiting the Carpathians from Lviv on a day trip is easy to do. On my visit to Ukraine earlier this year I…

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Destinations Europe Ukraine

Experiencing a Banya in Ukraine

Banya

Experiencing a Banya in Ukraine I arrived into Kyiv after a long bus journey from Warsaw which involved multiple toilet and cigarette breaks on the way. Oh and also being kicked awake by Polish or Ukrainian border police. I’m not sure which. It was an absolutely filthy afternoon with the rain just pouring down from all sides. I had no money on me and had to find my way to where I was staying. I eventually made it to an…

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Destinations Europe Ukraine

Understanding a Ukrainian Train Ticket

Ukrainian Train Ticket

Understanding a Ukrainian Train Ticket On my previous post here, I showed how easy it is to buy a Ukrainian train ticket online. Today I will show you how to understand the ticket. When you complete payment for the train ticket, you will receive an email link to your ticket which you can print out. This print out will allow you to get straight onto the train, no need to queue up at ticket booths!     So here is…

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Destinations Europe Ukraine

How to Buy a Train Ticket In Ukraine

Searching for trains

How to Buy a Train Ticket In Ukraine Buying a train ticket online in Ukraine is, perhaps surprisingly, very simple and easy. Train tickets can be booked up to 100 days in advance and there’s an English version of the site to use for those not fluent in Ukrainian. The site for booking tickets is http://booking.uz.gov.ua/en/.   Searching for a Train Ticket The first thing to do is to select where you are going from and your destination. When entering your choices, you…

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Destinations Europe Norway

Kjeragbolten: Scary, Exhausting and Exciting!

A stream of water flowing on the hike to Kjerakbolten

Kjeragbolten: Scary, Exhausting and Exciting! Over the summer I was in Norway, trying to complete three hikes which are on my bucket list – Kjeragbolten, Preikestolen and Trolltunga. Things did not go to plan as I was only able to do one of them. More on that later…   How to hike Kjeragbolten In case you don’t know, Kjeragbolten is a rock / boulder that sits in a crevasse in the Kjerag mountain in the south west of Norway with…

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Caribbean Cuba Destinations

Tobacco Farm and Town Carnival in Viñales

Tobacco Farm and Town Carnival in Viñales

Tobacco Farm and Town Carnival in Viñales My time in Cuba was sadly coming to an end with just two days remaining. I was going to spend them in the Viñales region, famous for its tobacco plantations. I can also honestly say that Viñales has some of the most amazing landscapes that I have seen anywhere in the world.     Precious Cigars You can’t come to Cuba and not sample the cigars. It would be just rude right? I didn’t…

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Caribbean Cuba Destinations

Santiago de Cuba: Revolution & Sunset

Santiago de Cuba

Revolution & Sunset in Santiago de Cuba Santiago de Cuba is a very important place in Cuba for what happened on the morning of the 26th July 1953. Fidel Castro led a group of over 100 rebels on an attack on an army barracks, generally accepted to be considered the start of the Cuban Revolution. The attack itself was more or less a complete failure and most of the rebels were either killed or captured and then executed shortly afterwards.…

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