CuriousByNature

Wow 😮
And I thought the Guinness World Record for the longest heterosexual sex lasting 23 hours was impressive!

Most of us plan our holidays around TripAdvisor reviews, flight prices, and whether the hotel has a pool. Drew Binsky plans his around something slightly different. The 34-year-old American content creator has spent the last decade traveling to every single country on the planet, including North Korea, Afghanistan, and a handful of places that most travel agents would refuse to book for you on principle.
His YouTube channel has racked up 5.7 million subscribers and over a billion views, which tells you that people are very interested in watching someone go to the places they themselves would absolutely never go. And now, after a decade of doing exactly that, Drew has ranked the five destinations that actually scared him. Genuinely scared him. And the list does not disappoint.
Drew’s travel career started the way a lot of great stories do, with a semester abroad. In 2012, he went to study in Prague, visited over 20 countries while he was at it, and got bitten by the travel bug. He moved to South Korea to teach English and launched a blog called The Hungry Partier.
The rest, as they say, spiraled gloriously out of control. Along the way, he has set two world records, visiting 12 UNESCO World Heritage Sites in a single 24-hour period in 2016, and completing the fastest-ever regulated suitcase pack. Not the most conventional CV, but it appears to be working.
Mogadishu, Somalia
  Mogadishu, Somalia’s capital, took the top spot without much deliberation. Drew described it as a city with no rules and no laws, one where simply stepping outside your hotel requires a military escort, armed convoy vehicles front and back, and a group of soldiers in bulletproof vests actively scouting the route ahead of you.
Al-Shabaab, an Al-Qaeda offshoot, has a significant presence in the city, and the atmosphere that it creates is one of constant, unrelenting threat. On his last visit, Drew had gone to meet a friend at the Hyatt Hotel, which is now just rubble. “It’s just very, very scary and very unfortunate,” he said. Of all the countries he has visited, and there are 197 of them, Mogadishu sits alone at the top of the list.
Conakry, Guinea
  Conakry, the capital of Guinea, earned the second spot, and Drew’s description of it is not exactly a tourism brochure. He was stopped by police within ten minutes of leaving his hotel, got caught up in an active coup attempt, and described the general experience of being there as a “complete mess.”
Kandahar, Afghanistan
Kandahar, Afghanistan, came in third. As the historical stronghold of the Taliban, the city has operated under an intense atmosphere of control for the better part of 25 years. Drew found the ancient markets fascinating, but even there, something sat differently. He made it clear that he loves Afghanistan as a country. Kandahar is simply its own category.
Port Au Prince, Haiti
  Port-au-Prince, Haiti came in at number four, and the story Drew tells about it is the most personally harrowing on the list. He entered a gang-controlled area near the airport with a local guide and found himself in a situation that escalated quickly with armed men controlling the territory, demanding payment, weapons being pointed in his direction.
Tripoli, Libya
  Rounding out the list at number five is Tripoli, Libya, where Drew’s 2018 visit involved falling asleep to the distant sounds of artillery. Walking the streets came with constant police attention from officers wholly unaccustomed to foreign visitors. He did note that Tripoli has reportedly opened up considerably in recent years, and that he hopes to go back. That sentiment is honestly heartwarming.
  When it comes to unaliving numbers, the three most dangerous cities in the world are all located in Mexico, but people are still packing their bags and happily visiting Cancun for spring break. Sadly, the cities on Drew’s list are suffering deeply amid socio-economic turmoil.
By crime index, his evaluation of Port-au-Prince seems to check out, and it is followed by Port Moresby in Papua New Guinea, Pietermaritzburg, and Johannesburg in South Africa. Different metrics, different lists, but Haiti keeps showing up near the top of all of them.
What makes all of this bittersweet is that several of the countries on Drew’s list are, beneath the instability, strikingly beautiful. Somalia has some of the most untouched landscapes in the entire Horn of Africa, with pristine white-sand beaches, coral reefs, and ancient archaeological ruins that have barely been studied because so few people can safely get there.
Afghanistan, for its part, is home to the cobalt-blue Shrine of Hazrat Ali in Mazar-i-Sharif and the extraordinary travertine lakes of Band-e-Amir National Park. These are not places that lack beauty or history or cultural richness. They are places where the gap between what they could be for travelers and what they currently are is almost painful to sit with.
Danger, Will Robinson!
 
 

Random thoughts at 1AM
Norway are remarkable. Arriving home after their loss to England, the team went to the center of town and tens of thousands greeted and cheered them. Then they all did the rowing bit which has impressed the world. No riots or tearing up the city because they lost. Just unbridled joy at having done so well.   Messi and Argentina have been coddled by the officials. Every close call seems to go their way. VAR always works in their favor. And Messi.....wow!  One game he stomped on the leg of an apposing player with his sharp cleats. This would usually be an automatic red card and one game suspension. For Messi, no red card, no yellow card, not even a common foul called. Refs just ignored it. And when Messi wasn't playing he was yelling at the ref. "Do not speak to me like that! You speak to me with respect!.  England are showing something they usually don't show: Grit! Winning down in Mexico, beating Congo after being behind, overcoming Norway and Haaland, surviving the oppressive heat and humidity of Miami, and most importantly, winning when they play badly.  FIFA is probably gonna expand the field next time from 48 to 64 teams. There are not 64 good teams in the world. It would go on forever and we would be subject to game after game of uninteresting matchups. North Korea vs Albania. Honduras vs Syria. And on and on. Not a good idea. The way they use VAR (the replay system) hurts the game. It's fine for basic stuff like did the ball get fully past the goal line (goal or no goal). And, OK, I  don't like it, but it does measure off sides accurately. But slowing things down frame by frame to check on fouls is a misuse. Things always look worse in slow motion than they really are. And calling back a beautiful fast break goal because of a meaningless foul which happens off the ball and thirty seconds before is just awful.  Soccer at its best is a game of faith, passion, luck, skill, and character (or lack thereof.) FIFA's actions off the field threatens what is best about the sport. Like (after the intervention of Trump) cancelling the red card for the American player so he can play in the next. There is no appeal process available, says FIFA. But somehow one became available.  Of all the teams, the one that plays the most complete soccer has to be Spain. Their defense is outstanding. They can score goals with beautiful passes and one on one skills. They don't lose their heads when something goes against them. They seem so graceful out there, and can beat any team in the world when they are fully interested. But sometimes they just look....bored? Their most consistent characteristic is that they do not consistently play up to their potential.  Christian Pulisic, the American superstar, was a real disappointment. He couldn't stay healthy so he didn't play much. And when he did play, he was timid and uninspiring. He is supposed to be our leader and tone setter. He did very little. Guess he wore himself out filming all those TV commercials. A Spanish government official made the comment that there are no French players on the French team. We all know what he was intimating. But all the teams are like that now. Norway, Switzerland, Mexico, and others have minority players, or players whose ties to the country are limited.  This is the first time ever that the top four teams in the world have reached the semi-finals. 

I just came back from 10 days working in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. WOW! Such a BEAUTIFUL small city! Many Americans retired there, there are plenty of GREAT restaurants and more than decent social and cultural activities. 40 miles from there (but the road is pretty bad, it takes a good 80/90 minutes to drive) there is also Guanajuato, another BEAUTIFUL town.
Playa is VERY overrated now, and in all that area the sargassum has plagued what it used to be a fabulous coastline with amazing beaches.

Have you tried etsy?

Norway got screwed by the refs.  I’m done watching this World Cup.  Too many games decided by bad refereeing 

Unless you're looking for sackcloth to go with the ashes.
Thankfully, the Hessians didn't arrive until much later.

Too coarse for my skin - I prefer cotton.

The time came. 

Much less the Jutes.

Ahhhhhhh... so nothing to do with a bucket of fried chicken?

You've missed out.  Lots of fun.

@Milo Janus no you aren't.  I am.

At least Canada remained loyal 😉
From your London correspondent 🇬🇧

So what you're saying is that AnthonyMassages his age a bit?
 

At least it isn't Rainier...

This is an absurd accusation and a complete fabrication.
I compete in bodybuilding, I’m on performance enhancing drugs, and my libido and ejaculation have never been an issue. I have always ejaculated during sex. Always.
I also always ask my partner where they want me to finish. Mouth? Ass? Inside? I let the other person decide. If someone wants me to finish inside them, I do. That’s how I’ve always handled it.
What’s funny is that after years of being with countless partners, you’re the only person who’s ever claimed I “fake orgasms.” Not one person before you has ever made that accusation. That alone should tell people how credible this story is.
You’re presenting your personal opinion as though it’s an objective medical diagnosis, and it isn’t. Bodies are different, orgasms and ejaculation aren’t identical in every encounter, and pretending you can definitively determine what happened in every situation is simply false.
The fact is, I did ejaculate, and your own story actually proves that.
The reason I didn’t want you to pull off immediately is because after ejaculation I’m extremely sensitive, and it tickles for a few seconds. That’s exactly why I said, “Wait.”
You’re presenting your assumptions as facts, but they’re still just assumptions. You don’t get to rewrite what happened because it fits the narrative you wanted to tell.
If you didn’t enjoy our experience, that’s your right. But inventing accusations about me and publicly attacking my reputation crosses a line. Disagreement is one thing. Defamation is another.
And the whole “I won’t be seeing him again” line is just unnecessary and immature. You didn’t need to announce your departure to the world.
The reality is, my work has never suffered because of this imaginary issue you’re describing. I barely see anyone in the first place because I’m extremely selective. Every client is screened beforehand, photos are exchanged, and I choose who I spend my time with. If you didn’t want to see me again, that’s completely your choice, but making a public spectacle out of it by inventing allegations about me says far more about your character than mine.

If i ever meet up with someone I might ask them to bring me a hamburger.

Judging from the hat you're wearing in your avatar, that would not be advisable.  LOL

That's the main thing.  As long as she is happy with things, that's what counts. 

The NBA had its draft this week.  Charlotte picked a German player whose first name is Hannes.  They had another pick a little later and picked Christian Anderson (Jr., another German)

I guess the person who captioned the video hasn't seen a fully grown grizzly, if they think this one was massive.  To me it looks about 2-years old, and likely left it's mom earlier this season.  That might explain the relative timidness and curiosity about the dog, as well as it's susceptibility to intimidation.  I think the woman did everything correctly given the size of the sub-adult, but maybe not the wisest move to turn and run at the end of the video - that can trigger a chase response.

I guess the person who captioned the video hasn't seen a fully grown grizzly, if they think this one was massive.  To me it looks about 2-years old, and likely left it's mom earlier this season.  That might explain the relative timidness and curiosity about the dog, as well as it's susceptibility to intimidation.  I think the woman did everything correctly given the size of the sub-adult, but maybe not the wisest move to turn and run at the end of the video - that can trigger a chase response.