Brief Introduction

Recently my old friend Harry from Villa Mansland asked me to write some travel articles for the Villa and over the course of time, reports from various countries throughout the world, will appear on this page. I hope these reports will be of interest to readers, as they will be in more depth than the normal tourist experience.
To give you a brief background, I suppose I got the travel bug while serving in the British Armed Forces as a paratrooper and with the old connections from the British Empire, the British still had bases all over the world and we travelled frequently.
Only downside it was often to conflict areas, which was quite dangerous at times, but at least the travel was free :-)
Since leaving the forces following a parachute accident, I have travelled the world almost constantly and not just visiting places, but also lived in various countries, sometimes for months or even years.
Of course this gives one a different insight into countries and their differing cultures, something which tourists who only stay for two weeks or less will not experience. It's not always a positive experience because you sometimes see things a tourist does not and it can be unpleasant.

Some of the countries featured are the kind of places not really on the general tourist trail, so may be of interest to those readers with a sense of adventure!
So you will get a warts and all picture of places, not just the nice things, but don't let that put you off places! It's unlikely to happen to you if you go for a short visit.
But if it does perhaps my experiences will be of help to you, if things do go wrong!

Talking of the nice things, well of course one of the advantages of travel is, one can meet some of the most beautiful boys the world can offer! I can say without a doubt, I have met boys during my travels I only managed to dream of years ago!
I shall most probably put some pictures of some of the guys I met on the reports.
Depending on where you visit, it is also a nice experience to find that the "youth culture" obsession of the West is not as prevalent in some places. Boys are much more friendly and don't look down on you, just because you're a little bit old or not as slim as you used to be.
Of course it can't be denied, that sometimes this is due to financial reasons, some have a desperate way of life, but in general it can be a positive experience as long as all parties behave with mutual respect, which unfortunately though is not always the case.
I will try and give an as accurate picture as possible, if you ever do visit those places.
Of course you may not experience the things I did, as the majority of people only go for short visits, which gives you a rather limited experience, but you will get a general picture of what to expect!

Also readers must realise that these reports are written with my personal perspective and preferences and other people may have a different view of things and disagree- or may even be offended by some comments.

But thats life! As the old saying goes -You cant please all of the people all of the time...........

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For some general travel tips click here

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