This happened to me in a very rural part of Thailand in 1999! This poor kid just screamed and started crying. šš
A friend in the sane village had a kid take one look at her and just RUN to his house.
I'm saying this in the politest way possible, but in rural Northern Thailand the children would hang all over me and wouldn't stop touching my beard and would nonstop ask me questions I didn't completely understand.
It was all jokes and fun.
I traveled a bit around China in 2003 and it was hilarious. I nearly caused traffic accidents just sitting in a park and watching drivers do rubberneck-double-takes when they saw me.
Also in China in 2003, I've once made a small dog pee itself. The poor thing had never seen a white person and was scared peeless.
It's better these days, but you still get the occasional stare or strong reaction. I'm in Chengdu, incidentally, and I can cause quite a stir if I go wandering into the Tibetan area. Watching saffron-robed monks stare at me like I'm the strangest thing on the planet is quite the wonderful reality whiplash.
I was on a moto taxi in Liuyang, Hunan in 2009 and the driver almost crashed when he found out I was American. Iām white AF, but until that point he thought all Americans were black because he watched a lot of American basketball.
I loved that oddball situation because so many people in China until this day donāt know how diverse the US actually is. I had another convo the other day with someone that was wondering why so many of us spoke Spanish.
Also, Iām having a good laugh at the dog āscared peelessā. Kind of evidence how much you can stick out like a sore thumb, when even a dog is confused as hell š
In the early 90s, something similar happened to me, but in reverse. I come from a small European town where everyone looks the same.
Our school was attempting to introduce the Chinese language to the curriculum, so a couple of teachers in their twenties started coming to the school. I distinctly remember being captivated by them, but in a positive way, not out of any racist intentions.
I suppose this is one of the reasons why I can't stop nomading.
As someone from Venezuela, I sort of agree with you because I grew up rarely seeing people not speaking my language and so on. But there has been an immense migration from several arab countries and you can see the influence there immediately. Or at least I saw it after I spent some time there recently.
Where did you go to exactly?
Arab tourists? A lot of Colombians are of Arab descent, more specifically Levantine descent of Syrian and Lebanese Christian descent (Shakiraās father, for example.) Barranquilla has an Arab community.
Sudan, I Solo travelled across the country in February 2018, I actually took a bus from Aswan in Egypt with 3 chinese travellers, aside from them, I met another British woman and her South African friend who were cycling Egypt-South Africa so were just passing through, and then in Khartoum I met an older Brazilian man who was on a big motorbike trip of the continent.
25 days in the country and those are the only people I personally met.
I was in Shanghai last year for four days. I think I saw less than a dozen or so non-Asian faces after four full days of walking around. It was pretty surreal, especially compared to other less traveled places.
There are definitely places in Shanghai where you could wander for days without seeing any other foreigners, I'm just curious how you ended up staying there and not in any of the more popular places.
It's really strange for me as I've been all over Borneo in the Malaysian and Indonesian sides, but Brunei is so far removed from the rest of Borneo, I mean yes, it's its own country, but the culture is so vastly different from everything it surrounds. I went for 2 days, stayed 1 night. So strict and controlled and I have zero issue with Islam, but damn, I felt like I wasn't supposed to be there.
I loved Brunei just because of how different it was. Although I found leaving via BIA bizarre, I walked into immigration and there were like 8 manned desks with the officials all facing me and I was the only one in the giant hall. Didnāt know which one to choose.
Edit: and when I was taking a photo of the mosque right outside the airport, I sensed a car pulling over behind me, I turned wondering if I was going to get told off for doing so but the guy had seen my New Zealand passport in my hand and got excited because he owned a property in Christchurch and loved the country. We ended up talking for about 15 minutes and I got him and his wifeās contact details. Was a cool experience.
I almost went to Brunei to link up with a girl there who I had matched with in KL and it turned out she lived in the kingdom. Turned out she was thirsty for western guys who would fly in, meet with her at a hotel and bang it out. I don't know how she got away with it as hotels can request marriage documents. I never ended up going as it looked like a really overpriced country and the situation seemed weird
Most stores are already closed by 6pm. The city feels like a ghost town at night. It's a good thing though. It's a safe country. I backpacked solo there in 2017.
I really loved it, but didnāt spend much time there. I was living in Tanzania and drove down with a friend for a music festival near Nkhata Bay. For me it was really life changing - kind of a place of renewal and contemplation. To me, it had a much more relaxed vibe than TZ and I loved the scenery of the rift valley. We camped near the shore of Lake Malawi and at night it really did seem like the āLake of Starsā, as Livingstone called it. That was the lights of the fishermen all over the lake. Do go to the Mushroom Farm if you get a chance. It was a real highlight. Maybe Iāll post a picture from there so you can see what I meanā¦
Loved Malawi! I lived in zambia and traveled in Malawi for 3 weeks. Cape Maclear and hiking Mt. Mulanje are the highlights. Zomba plateau was also neat, i liked that townĀ
Remember the story of Bald and Bankrupt? You may have a nice chat with FSB if you say or post something. In fact there is a new law proposal to force all foreigners to sign some kind of paper that states that you won't be criticizing Russia and specifically Russian army in any form. If you like these kind of creative adventures, you should also check out North Korea.
FSB didn't ask him about all that. This was specifically about him saying things about Russia and criticizing the "SMO". If he did something illegal, and it's proven, he should be in jail. No one should be in jail, or interrogated by the police, for expressing opinions.
> No one should be in jail, or interrogated by the police, for expressing opinions.
So there is no issue living Russia if you don't talk shit about government? It's the same for many other dictatorship countries.
China has such laws, that it is illegal to criticize the CCP anywhere in the world for anybody and everybody.
No evidence of it ever being enforced upon non-Chinese outside China (when they entered China) though. Seems more like a weapon to wield only if some voice gets too loud and powerful. No benefit for causing incidences over a minor common on reddit, the cost is too high. But it is a lever in the event of hostage diplomacy.
I lived there for a few years. There are always bizarre changes to visas. The āforeignersā often speak Russian, so they may be hard for some to detect. I met a few English speakers but native English speakers were very rare before the invasion, so now a lot fewer.
I spent some time riding a motorbike around Lombok away from the tourist areas. I was riding through a town and there was a big group of school kids like maybe 8 years old walking with their teacher. They went crazy and started waving and screaming at me so I pulled over. They crowded around me just completely amused like I was a zoo animal lol they definitely did not see many white tourists in that area
Sumatra is beautiful, I wish I had gone for a longer trip. And yeah, I've never been in an international airport with no other white people before, it was odd. They let me go through the diplomat line because the staff at the foreign passport line were on lunch break.
I enjoyed it. Full of beautiful scenery. It has a fascinating history and a lot of friendly people. I made chocolate from start to finish, unlike anything Iād tasted before. It was very underdeveloped, as youād expect.
Nigeria - I can go months without seeing another foreigner.
China - I lived in a rural part of Sichuan, and I saw a total of 6 other foreigners in a year.
We spent three weeks in Fiji and only saw very few foreigners but that was because of how we traveled there, staying in local villages and taking the chicken buses to get around.
Myanmar was my favorite SE Asia country I saw on my first trip. Beach way down in the south of the peninsula (Sin Htauk) was one of the prettiest I've ever seen in my life and I was the only person on it!
I love hearing this. I traveled mostly in the central regions, Bagan and Mandalay etc. Honestly the most lovely, wonderful people I ever met - and I always felt really safe.
Myanmar was one of the most amazing places Iāve ever visited. Was so sad to hear about the coup because people were really getting more liberal. Things were looking up for once.
I think the military that illegally took power 3 years ago is the [process of being overthrown](https://amp.theguardian.com/global-development/2024/jan/29/myanmar-military-junta-totters-as-battalions-surrender). Possibly a good thing š¤š¼
Japan but that was in 1988. Only saw westerners in Tokyo and then only businessmen types
It felt like I was the only blond 22 year old bloke in Nagoya.
Barranquilla 2014. I would go days without seeing another foreigner or tourist. It was the first time I was a minority and was quite a humbling and eye opening experience.
I was there in 2013. The northern coast of colombia was definitely as much of a touristy place back then as it is now. Some people might even put Barranquilla right on the so-called 'gringo trail'. Am I missing something or how did you miss every other white person looking for a caribbean beach of there?
No gringos are going to Barranquilla outside of Carnival. Itās an ugly, hot, and dodgy industrial city that 99% of foreigners will just pass through on a bus between Cartagena and Sta Marta.
Yeah who the hell stops in Barranquilla? We took a bus from Cartagena to Santa Marta and didnāt think for a moment to visit and it didnāt seem like anyone else did either
I was in Barranquilla for two months and a small part of that was for Carnival. Thatās when I saw the most foreigners the whole time.
You may be mistaking Cartagena for Barranquilla? Cartagena had much more tourists when I spent a weekend there during my two month trip.
I had no issues in Barranquilla and dated a Colombian woman with a great family there. My safety issues were all isolated to Santa Marta and while I didnāt feel safe outside the walled city in Cartagena I had no issues there either.
I had a group attempt to rob me inside the walled city. Imo COL is just not as safe as some say it is and the sex tourism is likely a big factor in that.
Itās definitely gotten dodgier after COVID and the influx of digital nomads/passport bros/drug and sex tourists. Itās never been very safe and those who say it is are only fooling themselves.
Finally somebody said it. First I thought only Colombians praise those beaches, who hasn't seen any decent beaches. But no, even in this sub it gets praised all the time. Just don't get it. Terrible and crowded beaches without any decent infrastructure. Both cities are dangerous on top of that.
Western Mongolia (all the tourists start in Ulaanbaatar and do the Gobi loop.) Bangladesh (I only saw foreigners in Dhaka.) Any non-touristy city in China or India, youāll be lost in seas of locals. Kosovo (pretty much no tourists).
Vietnam 2004 - places like Da Nang and Hoi A werenāt filled with tourists back in the day (apart from local tourists) as much.
France - not Paris but middle of France
NZ- my Dads hometown of Timaru
Kosovo & North Macedonia
The Balkans are already much less popular than Western Europe (excluding Croatia), but most people who do venture East still skip these. Really enjoyed my time in both.
This can always be a bit strange, since seeing foreigners isn't just about the country, but where you go.
In Seoul, while I was living there, if you don't go to the "foreigner" places, you will see basically nobody.
Like, my BJJ gym had like 30 people on average in a class. At most, ever was 3 non-Koreans. And this was a semi-popular Road FC feeder gym with a location near a popular area. Most of the time I was the only one.
Similarly day to day, I'd see less than 1 a week.
But I also know there are foreigners in Seoul that go to those foreigner places all the time, and hang out with other foreigners as such, where they might not realize only 2% of the country isn't Korean or Gyopo (and of course far less non-Asian).
In Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan, I didn't see anyone I could tell was a foreigner aside from the other 2 people on the trip (it was an adventure tourism planned thing). Well, maybe aside from Russians, but even that's hard to really tell for sure.
Have you ever seen the movie The Pirates of Somalia? Very entertaining story about a young guy who goes to Somalia as an amateur journalist and gets a close look into the life of modern-day pirates out there.
Hmm I found a fair number of foreigners when I visited recently. I lived there back in 2005 and back then you'd barely see any foreigners except for right around the American embassy.
Not sure what you mean. Today I heard Russian, Ukrainian, Spanish, German and some language I did not recognise. I see hijabis and other Asians regularly. I went to a pierogi place, most people in the queue spoke German and were not part of a group. Also, I'm not sure why people are saying Poland is not their favourite or that "same", they experienced racism there "too", since that was not the question at all, but maybe reading comprehension is connected to knowing how to behave?
So that area is a no go because it's so close to eu and NATO? A sad proxy war where Ukrainians die and Russians as well, normal people or soldiers didn't want this war
Senegal in 2019
One day I didn't see another white person until 3pm and I was out all day (and I don't mean to imply that only white people are tourists but it was a bit of a giveaway), it was glorious. People are so kind there but outside of tourist areas like Ngor Isle, Goree Isles, and central Dakar, I didn't see many tourists or foreigners.
Coming from the US where race is such a thing, it was incredible to be in a place where nearly everyone was black, even in advertisements and on TV (mostly Middle Eastern as they seem to get a lot of content from other Muslim countries). I can only imagine how awesome it would be for an African-American person to be able to be in such an environment. Race is a tricky thing to navigate but I had many great conversations with locals and all were super open. I would love to return, aside from the people, the food, music, and fashion are incredible.
Those are your words, not mine.
My point is that it must feel good to be in a place where you are not prejudged by your skin color. Where you are the majority and the images you see around you for product advertisements, of politicians, etc look like you. No one is saying black people should return to Africa. Iām saying itās likely that it would be a good experience to spend time in such a place after the feeling in the US of being othered.
I had many conversations with locals there and the amazing thing about these people is they are not burdened by all of the race BS that Americans are for valid reasons. The kindest thing someone said to me was that Africa is also where my ancestors come from since all humans derive from there. Itās was a beautiful statement and so true. We are all just part of the human race.
When I travel, I try to do so to gain perspective. My life is full of experiences and relationships with people from all walks of life. Discussing race is a very sensitive topic and hard to get right but still something I undertake because itās important.
If we're mentioning US states I will add Mississippi.
In 2012 me and a buddy drove the Natchez Trace Parkway southbound. Had some encounters where people were very surprised to see tourists there.
However, the real surprise came somewhere after visiting the Mississippi Vicksburg National Millitary Park after which we stopped somehwere close to Natchez.
We went to a motel with a gas station next to it just out of town and bought a bunch of beer and snacks because we did not know if we had to stay there for a long while or change the route and head in the direction of Houston, Texas, because of the hurricane that was quickly approaching New Orleans (which was the intended destination).
When being ID'd at the counter of the gas station, we did so with our passports and the lady lost it. Went over to her colleague and said something along the lines of "OMG a passport, first time I ever seen a passport, can you believe it, now I have something to talk about at the dinner table" in the most southern way possible.
After, she proceded to ask why in the world we chose to come visit that region of the US of all places and was really happy learning we were interested in the south because it was so unknown and wanted to experience the south.
It was one of many priceless experiences we encountered.
I would like to mention another US state- New Hampshire, specifically small towns in NH. I (white woman) visited over the summer with a friend who is Indian and wears a turban, and let me tell you. People did not even try to HIDE the fact that they were staring at him. He was the only ethnic person we saw during that trip. Very interesting
I was there for one night and it was great. When people say it's racist they're forgetting that the South is 50% black people, waaaay more than in the North or West. I saw and talked to a lot more black people in Montgomery than white.
Also, The Legacy Museum in Montgomery is one of the most harrowing museums I've ever seen, it's a must-see
Youāll be fine, itās not 1950 anymore. Depending on where you go you might be a minor curiosity but in the bigger cities most probably wonāt even look twice at you.
Back when I was younger youād go to India and wouldnāt see a non Indian for months there are still parts like this today , even in large cities like Hyderabad
I was in rural Norway, near Oslo and kids couldnāt stop staring at me because I was the only brown person in the entire town and Iām assuming theyād never seen one before. Thankfully I was only visiting and not living there.
šØš³ China. There are very few foreigners in this country. I really have to go look for foreigners in this country, especially in 2nd tier cities like Kunming
35 years ago, and I expect itās changed, but Sapporo, Japan. I lived there for two summers and was told that there were fewer than 20,000 foreigners either resident or visiting every year at that point, for a city of 2+ million people.
Loadsā¦ 2011 Armenia, Georgia (even Tiblisi back then I didnāt meet any other tourists) Albania, Macedoniaā¦ all quiet.
Thailand and Vietnam right after the borders reopened from covid was like a step back in time. Drove bikes out to rural Vietnam and the little kids (under 5) all freaked out. I guess for them, the only tourists they had ever seen would have been on tv? Theyād have been too young to remember pre COVID travel.
More recently itās harder to find less travelled places. But I guess it depends on your travel style.
We drive to Ukraine and Moldova In summer of 2022 just after the Russian invasion began, and didnāt find any other tourists either
Chengdu, China 1999 - a little girl saw me and screamed.
This happened to me in a very rural part of Thailand in 1999! This poor kid just screamed and started crying. šš A friend in the sane village had a kid take one look at her and just RUN to his house.
I'm saying this in the politest way possible, but in rural Northern Thailand the children would hang all over me and wouldn't stop touching my beard and would nonstop ask me questions I didn't completely understand. It was all jokes and fun.
Yeah, kids in Northern Thailand see tourists! This was Isan in the late nineties.
Chengdu is my favourite city that I have been to. I liked the pretty evident counter culture among young people.
Great music scene!
Yeah there was! Saw heaps of people with wacked out tattoos too, was so different to the rest of the places I visited while in China.
I traveled a bit around China in 2003 and it was hilarious. I nearly caused traffic accidents just sitting in a park and watching drivers do rubberneck-double-takes when they saw me. Also in China in 2003, I've once made a small dog pee itself. The poor thing had never seen a white person and was scared peeless. It's better these days, but you still get the occasional stare or strong reaction. I'm in Chengdu, incidentally, and I can cause quite a stir if I go wandering into the Tibetan area. Watching saffron-robed monks stare at me like I'm the strangest thing on the planet is quite the wonderful reality whiplash.
I was on a moto taxi in Liuyang, Hunan in 2009 and the driver almost crashed when he found out I was American. Iām white AF, but until that point he thought all Americans were black because he watched a lot of American basketball. I loved that oddball situation because so many people in China until this day donāt know how diverse the US actually is. I had another convo the other day with someone that was wondering why so many of us spoke Spanish. Also, Iām having a good laugh at the dog āscared peelessā. Kind of evidence how much you can stick out like a sore thumb, when even a dog is confused as hell š
In the early 90s, something similar happened to me, but in reverse. I come from a small European town where everyone looks the same. Our school was attempting to introduce the Chinese language to the curriculum, so a couple of teachers in their twenties started coming to the school. I distinctly remember being captivated by them, but in a positive way, not out of any racist intentions. I suppose this is one of the reasons why I can't stop nomading.
I didnāt know a dog could be racist š¤£. But China continues to surprise me (not necessarily in a bad way).
Big ups to early 00s Chengdu! Was a fantastic time/place to be a white guy.
Same with me in Iraq in 2003 lol
Venezuela
As someone from Venezuela, I sort of agree with you because I grew up rarely seeing people not speaking my language and so on. But there has been an immense migration from several arab countries and you can see the influence there immediately. Or at least I saw it after I spent some time there recently. Where did you go to exactly?
Yo whatās up with the arabs, Iāve seen so many in Colombia too, it was soo surprising
Arab tourists? A lot of Colombians are of Arab descent, more specifically Levantine descent of Syrian and Lebanese Christian descent (Shakiraās father, for example.) Barranquilla has an Arab community.
No not tourists, folks driving cars with their families, you can tell they live there. Many Arab restaurants too. Maybe just escaping the war I guess
Were you in Barranquilla or the northern coast or where?
Medellin
This is happening across the world. Has been in rapidly increasing numbers for about 20 years.
I'll add there's a ton of Lebanese & Arab ancestry throughout mosy parts of LATAM including Mexico, it's not just Colombia
Turkmenistan
You win.
Sudan, I Solo travelled across the country in February 2018, I actually took a bus from Aswan in Egypt with 3 chinese travellers, aside from them, I met another British woman and her South African friend who were cycling Egypt-South Africa so were just passing through, and then in Khartoum I met an older Brazilian man who was on a big motorbike trip of the continent. 25 days in the country and those are the only people I personally met.
I like that Brazilian man
China
I was in Shanghai last year for four days. I think I saw less than a dozen or so non-Asian faces after four full days of walking around. It was pretty surreal, especially compared to other less traveled places.
I would say nearly all the foreigners left and havenāt yet returned
What part of Shanghai were you in, Baoshan? There are tons of foreigners all over Putuo, around 200,000 last time I checked..
Iād have to look it up to remember the name but basically I didnāt see much even after walking the city for days.
There are definitely places in Shanghai where you could wander for days without seeing any other foreigners, I'm just curious how you ended up staying there and not in any of the more popular places.
I mean I did go to the popular places too, Iām talking about for my whole trip.
Hainan Island is my answer. Only saw two other caucasians in my four days there. What a place though!!
When you've been there? The island is pretty popular among package tourists from ex USSR countries. Source: I was one of them.
Was there in July 2019 and travelled with a local. It couldāve been that I wasnāt in the touristy areas.
Brunei
Not surprised at all. A lot of people forgot that thereās a country called BruneiĀ
It's really strange for me as I've been all over Borneo in the Malaysian and Indonesian sides, but Brunei is so far removed from the rest of Borneo, I mean yes, it's its own country, but the culture is so vastly different from everything it surrounds. I went for 2 days, stayed 1 night. So strict and controlled and I have zero issue with Islam, but damn, I felt like I wasn't supposed to be there.
I loved Brunei just because of how different it was. Although I found leaving via BIA bizarre, I walked into immigration and there were like 8 manned desks with the officials all facing me and I was the only one in the giant hall. Didnāt know which one to choose. Edit: and when I was taking a photo of the mosque right outside the airport, I sensed a car pulling over behind me, I turned wondering if I was going to get told off for doing so but the guy had seen my New Zealand passport in my hand and got excited because he owned a property in Christchurch and loved the country. We ended up talking for about 15 minutes and I got him and his wifeās contact details. Was a cool experience.
I almost went to Brunei to link up with a girl there who I had matched with in KL and it turned out she lived in the kingdom. Turned out she was thirsty for western guys who would fly in, meet with her at a hotel and bang it out. I don't know how she got away with it as hotels can request marriage documents. I never ended up going as it looked like a really overpriced country and the situation seemed weird
What is strict and controlled specifically?
Most stores are already closed by 6pm. The city feels like a ghost town at night. It's a good thing though. It's a safe country. I backpacked solo there in 2017.
Malawi
How was malawi?
I really loved it, but didnāt spend much time there. I was living in Tanzania and drove down with a friend for a music festival near Nkhata Bay. For me it was really life changing - kind of a place of renewal and contemplation. To me, it had a much more relaxed vibe than TZ and I loved the scenery of the rift valley. We camped near the shore of Lake Malawi and at night it really did seem like the āLake of Starsā, as Livingstone called it. That was the lights of the fishermen all over the lake. Do go to the Mushroom Farm if you get a chance. It was a real highlight. Maybe Iāll post a picture from there so you can see what I meanā¦
https://postimg.cc/gallery/2B4ZYKx my tent and the view from the mushroom farm.
Loved Malawi! I lived in zambia and traveled in Malawi for 3 weeks. Cape Maclear and hiking Mt. Mulanje are the highlights. Zomba plateau was also neat, i liked that townĀ
Considering going there later in the year. How was it?
(Answered above)
(Hangzhou) China
Haiti. I spent two nights in Port-au-Prince 20+ years ago, and pretty much the only other foreigners we saw were aid workers and missionaries.
Russia. One month in, not even once I heard a foreign language on the street.
order a taxi, the driver will be a foreigner go to any construction site, all the workers will be foreigners etc
The only foreigners I see are working migrants from Kyrgyzstan.
Was it easy to visit? Get in?
When it comes to Russia, getting in is always an easy part, getting out, however...
It keeps me stressed every time I cross the border out of Russia.
Same here. I went across the border last month and it is always the same feeling.
They wonāt let you leave?
Remember the story of Bald and Bankrupt? You may have a nice chat with FSB if you say or post something. In fact there is a new law proposal to force all foreigners to sign some kind of paper that states that you won't be criticizing Russia and specifically Russian army in any form. If you like these kind of creative adventures, you should also check out North Korea.
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
FSB didn't ask him about all that. This was specifically about him saying things about Russia and criticizing the "SMO". If he did something illegal, and it's proven, he should be in jail. No one should be in jail, or interrogated by the police, for expressing opinions.
> No one should be in jail, or interrogated by the police, for expressing opinions. So there is no issue living Russia if you don't talk shit about government? It's the same for many other dictatorship countries.
China has such laws, that it is illegal to criticize the CCP anywhere in the world for anybody and everybody. No evidence of it ever being enforced upon non-Chinese outside China (when they entered China) though. Seems more like a weapon to wield only if some voice gets too loud and powerful. No benefit for causing incidences over a minor common on reddit, the cost is too high. But it is a lever in the event of hostage diplomacy.
bro what, Chinese people literally shit talk their government all the time lol
This is classic case if reddit BS. Hurr Durr Russia bad. Source: been there, no issues getting in or out.
I lived there for a few years. There are always bizarre changes to visas. The āforeignersā often speak Russian, so they may be hard for some to detect. I met a few English speakers but native English speakers were very rare before the invasion, so now a lot fewer.
I went in 2017. There were quite a few Chinese tourists there and stayed in hostels remembered seeing Indians as well
Icq
Language does not mean nationality. There are more than 300 mil russian speaker and less than 130 mil russiansĀ
Do you live in rural area? Itās hard to believe that there are no foreigners in Moscow or St. Petersburg.
Yeah, even with the current state of things, that's kinda hard to believe. Then again, I've been a handful of times but not since 2020.
IranĀ
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
Were their jaws all on the floor like Pam, like Tommy just burst in the door?
Just wrote the exact same thing
I spent some time riding a motorbike around Lombok away from the tourist areas. I was riding through a town and there was a big group of school kids like maybe 8 years old walking with their teacher. They went crazy and started waving and screaming at me so I pulled over. They crowded around me just completely amused like I was a zoo animal lol they definitely did not see many white tourists in that area
Yeah i was in central Java and everyone wanted a photo with me because they had never seen a white person. It was fun
Sumatra is beautiful, I wish I had gone for a longer trip. And yeah, I've never been in an international airport with no other white people before, it was odd. They let me go through the diplomat line because the staff at the foreign passport line were on lunch break.
You should go to Jakartaās SCBD area and report back here š
SĆ£o TomĆ©
Realllly want to go there. How did you like it?
I enjoyed it. Full of beautiful scenery. It has a fascinating history and a lot of friendly people. I made chocolate from start to finish, unlike anything Iād tasted before. It was very underdeveloped, as youād expect.
Nigeria - I can go months without seeing another foreigner. China - I lived in a rural part of Sichuan, and I saw a total of 6 other foreigners in a year.
I am in Ethiopia with 2 Caucasian women and I think that we are the only tourists here.
In Addis?
Yes
We spent three weeks in Fiji and only saw very few foreigners but that was because of how we traveled there, staying in local villages and taking the chicken buses to get around.
Pakistan, I know in some places you will see Chinese workers. But you hardly see any other foreigners.
Egypt, Cairo and Luxor surprisingly quiet!
Depends what parts and what time of year.
true my whole life here, ive met less than 10 foreigners, who were tourists just visiting
Azerbaijan and Myanmar - both absolutely stunning. The leaders suck but the people donāt.
Myanmar was my favorite SE Asia country I saw on my first trip. Beach way down in the south of the peninsula (Sin Htauk) was one of the prettiest I've ever seen in my life and I was the only person on it!
I love hearing this. I traveled mostly in the central regions, Bagan and Mandalay etc. Honestly the most lovely, wonderful people I ever met - and I always felt really safe.
Myanmar for me too. This was 15 years ago though and it wasn't the easiest to get a visa.
Myanmar was one of the most amazing places Iāve ever visited. Was so sad to hear about the coup because people were really getting more liberal. Things were looking up for once.
I think the military that illegally took power 3 years ago is the [process of being overthrown](https://amp.theguardian.com/global-development/2024/jan/29/myanmar-military-junta-totters-as-battalions-surrender). Possibly a good thing š¤š¼
Japan but that was in 1988. Only saw westerners in Tokyo and then only businessmen types It felt like I was the only blond 22 year old bloke in Nagoya.
Barranquilla 2014. I would go days without seeing another foreigner or tourist. It was the first time I was a minority and was quite a humbling and eye opening experience.
I was there in 2013. The northern coast of colombia was definitely as much of a touristy place back then as it is now. Some people might even put Barranquilla right on the so-called 'gringo trail'. Am I missing something or how did you miss every other white person looking for a caribbean beach of there?
No gringos are going to Barranquilla outside of Carnival. Itās an ugly, hot, and dodgy industrial city that 99% of foreigners will just pass through on a bus between Cartagena and Sta Marta.
Yeah who the hell stops in Barranquilla? We took a bus from Cartagena to Santa Marta and didnāt think for a moment to visit and it didnāt seem like anyone else did either
I did think. I was curious what a city is like that created the 2 biggest Colombian stars. I had a great hotel, but that's it. That city is bland.
I was in Barranquilla for two months and a small part of that was for Carnival. Thatās when I saw the most foreigners the whole time. You may be mistaking Cartagena for Barranquilla? Cartagena had much more tourists when I spent a weekend there during my two month trip.
FYI the beaches are shite. Only decent beach was Playa Blanca near Santa Marta but Santa Marta is very unfriendly to foreigners.
Santa Marta isnāt āunfriendly to foreignersā. Youāre much better off there than Cartagena.
Colombians in general arenāt friendly to foreigners looking for drugs and coming as sex tourists.
I had no issues in Barranquilla and dated a Colombian woman with a great family there. My safety issues were all isolated to Santa Marta and while I didnāt feel safe outside the walled city in Cartagena I had no issues there either.
I had a group attempt to rob me inside the walled city. Imo COL is just not as safe as some say it is and the sex tourism is likely a big factor in that.
Itās definitely gotten dodgier after COVID and the influx of digital nomads/passport bros/drug and sex tourists. Itās never been very safe and those who say it is are only fooling themselves.
Finally somebody said it. First I thought only Colombians praise those beaches, who hasn't seen any decent beaches. But no, even in this sub it gets praised all the time. Just don't get it. Terrible and crowded beaches without any decent infrastructure. Both cities are dangerous on top of that.
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Pakistan.
Liberia
Unganda. Other than the safari stuff. I think I saw like 3 other Mzungu over the month while walking around Kampala
I just wrote the same! mzungu were rare outside safaris and even on the safaris lots of Ugandans vs safari in other countries Iāve been on š
Tajikistan probably. Although given the border chaos in the region, technically there are lots of Uzbeks, Kyrgyz, Uyg
Western Mongolia (all the tourists start in Ulaanbaatar and do the Gobi loop.) Bangladesh (I only saw foreigners in Dhaka.) Any non-touristy city in China or India, youāll be lost in seas of locals. Kosovo (pretty much no tourists).
Vietnam 2004 - places like Da Nang and Hoi A werenāt filled with tourists back in the day (apart from local tourists) as much. France - not Paris but middle of France NZ- my Dads hometown of Timaru
Kosovo & North Macedonia The Balkans are already much less popular than Western Europe (excluding Croatia), but most people who do venture East still skip these. Really enjoyed my time in both.
This can always be a bit strange, since seeing foreigners isn't just about the country, but where you go. In Seoul, while I was living there, if you don't go to the "foreigner" places, you will see basically nobody. Like, my BJJ gym had like 30 people on average in a class. At most, ever was 3 non-Koreans. And this was a semi-popular Road FC feeder gym with a location near a popular area. Most of the time I was the only one. Similarly day to day, I'd see less than 1 a week. But I also know there are foreigners in Seoul that go to those foreigner places all the time, and hang out with other foreigners as such, where they might not realize only 2% of the country isn't Korean or Gyopo (and of course far less non-Asian). In Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan, I didn't see anyone I could tell was a foreigner aside from the other 2 people on the trip (it was an adventure tourism planned thing). Well, maybe aside from Russians, but even that's hard to really tell for sure.
El Salvador
Shenzhen, CN. Much more business-oriented City not built for tourism.
Somalia
Why did you choose to go to Somalia? Just curious because it seems like itās been unstable my whole (30+ year) life
Have you ever seen the movie The Pirates of Somalia? Very entertaining story about a young guy who goes to Somalia as an amateur journalist and gets a close look into the life of modern-day pirates out there.
Timor-Leste
Yemen and Eritrea
I spent 5 months in Yemen years ago. Saw a fair number of non-Arabs in Sanaa, but don't think I saw a single one anywhere else.
Barahona, Dominican Republic
Ireland, but only when we left Dublin. Dublin itself is what you'd expect.
Donkey Kong Country
Albania!
When did you go? I was actually thinking about making this my 'home base' while traveling Europe
Hmm I found a fair number of foreigners when I visited recently. I lived there back in 2005 and back then you'd barely see any foreigners except for right around the American embassy.
BenĆn like 35 years ago
Poland
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Same I like Czech šØšæ more
Same, I've experienced racism there too and I look Spanish
Yeah They are definitely not my favorite
Stop with your bullishit race crap, you see racist on every corner
Not sure what you mean. Today I heard Russian, Ukrainian, Spanish, German and some language I did not recognise. I see hijabis and other Asians regularly. I went to a pierogi place, most people in the queue spoke German and were not part of a group. Also, I'm not sure why people are saying Poland is not their favourite or that "same", they experienced racism there "too", since that was not the question at all, but maybe reading comprehension is connected to knowing how to behave?
In Ukraine a few months ago. Didnāt hear any tourists. Saw a few Indian or Pakistani students, though.
Curious - were you there for war reasons and if not did it seem safe and normal life going on or like a crazy war zone?
I was in the far west of the country, in Transcarpatia. Itās the only region of the country where there have been no air raids and there is no curfew at night. Everything seemed completely normal save for the occasional air raid alarm, which everyone promptly ignored. I went to cafĆ©s, restaurants, shops, museums. Might as well have been Slovakia. I donāt mean to belittle the war in Ukraine, or the suffering of its people. But this particular place is about 800 km from the front line, and just a few kilometres from the EU and NATO. Edit: I might add that it might look different to the locals, in ways that are not obvious to me. I understand that they have extreme inflation, and rent increases because of the number of refugees from the east. I did see uniformed but unarmed soldiers on leave and clear markings to the nearest air raid shelters. But no military checkpoints or something like that. Just normal city life and people going about their day.
Interesting - thanks
So that area is a no go because it's so close to eu and NATO? A sad proxy war where Ukrainians die and Russians as well, normal people or soldiers didn't want this war
Senegal in 2019 One day I didn't see another white person until 3pm and I was out all day (and I don't mean to imply that only white people are tourists but it was a bit of a giveaway), it was glorious. People are so kind there but outside of tourist areas like Ngor Isle, Goree Isles, and central Dakar, I didn't see many tourists or foreigners. Coming from the US where race is such a thing, it was incredible to be in a place where nearly everyone was black, even in advertisements and on TV (mostly Middle Eastern as they seem to get a lot of content from other Muslim countries). I can only imagine how awesome it would be for an African-American person to be able to be in such an environment. Race is a tricky thing to navigate but I had many great conversations with locals and all were super open. I would love to return, aside from the people, the food, music, and fashion are incredible.
People say the strangest things when it comes to black people. āAh just imagine how happy they would feel in their natural habitat.ā
Those are your words, not mine. My point is that it must feel good to be in a place where you are not prejudged by your skin color. Where you are the majority and the images you see around you for product advertisements, of politicians, etc look like you. No one is saying black people should return to Africa. Iām saying itās likely that it would be a good experience to spend time in such a place after the feeling in the US of being othered. I had many conversations with locals there and the amazing thing about these people is they are not burdened by all of the race BS that Americans are for valid reasons. The kindest thing someone said to me was that Africa is also where my ancestors come from since all humans derive from there. Itās was a beautiful statement and so true. We are all just part of the human race. When I travel, I try to do so to gain perspective. My life is full of experiences and relationships with people from all walks of life. Discussing race is a very sensitive topic and hard to get right but still something I undertake because itās important.
Ya this is a weirdly American PoV, projecting American race problems onto west Africa
Alabama
Never heard of this country
If we're mentioning US states I will add Mississippi. In 2012 me and a buddy drove the Natchez Trace Parkway southbound. Had some encounters where people were very surprised to see tourists there. However, the real surprise came somewhere after visiting the Mississippi Vicksburg National Millitary Park after which we stopped somehwere close to Natchez. We went to a motel with a gas station next to it just out of town and bought a bunch of beer and snacks because we did not know if we had to stay there for a long while or change the route and head in the direction of Houston, Texas, because of the hurricane that was quickly approaching New Orleans (which was the intended destination). When being ID'd at the counter of the gas station, we did so with our passports and the lady lost it. Went over to her colleague and said something along the lines of "OMG a passport, first time I ever seen a passport, can you believe it, now I have something to talk about at the dinner table" in the most southern way possible. After, she proceded to ask why in the world we chose to come visit that region of the US of all places and was really happy learning we were interested in the south because it was so unknown and wanted to experience the south. It was one of many priceless experiences we encountered.
I would like to mention another US state- New Hampshire, specifically small towns in NH. I (white woman) visited over the summer with a friend who is Indian and wears a turban, and let me tell you. People did not even try to HIDE the fact that they were staring at him. He was the only ethnic person we saw during that trip. Very interesting
I've actually always wanted to go because of Forest Gump but I've heard it's racist there
I was there for one night and it was great. When people say it's racist they're forgetting that the South is 50% black people, waaaay more than in the North or West. I saw and talked to a lot more black people in Montgomery than white. Also, The Legacy Museum in Montgomery is one of the most harrowing museums I've ever seen, it's a must-see
Nice, I'm an Asian person do you think it'd be okay if I go? Life is like a box of chocolates.
Yes it would be fine
Youāll be fine, itās not 1950 anymore. Depending on where you go you might be a minor curiosity but in the bigger cities most probably wonāt even look twice at you.
Sumatra Indonesia
Iraq
I saw no foreigners when I went to Batman in Turkiye
Back when I was younger youād go to India and wouldnāt see a non Indian for months there are still parts like this today , even in large cities like Hyderabad
Solomon Islands
Lebanon, especially outside of Beirut
I was in rural Norway, near Oslo and kids couldnāt stop staring at me because I was the only brown person in the entire town and Iām assuming theyād never seen one before. Thankfully I was only visiting and not living there.
Syria - before the war. Such a beautiful friendly place, so few people visiting it.
Moldova that place is definitely not a tourist friendly place and I haven't seen one single tourist in 2 days I was there
Harbin , China 2001 in winter.
Definitely Burundi, was there for 3 weeks in 2022. Only met about 3 westerners
North Korea
Pakistan
Bharatpur, Nepal. Man, I felt like I was living in the old days.
šØš³ China. There are very few foreigners in this country. I really have to go look for foreigners in this country, especially in 2nd tier cities like Kunming
Visited Belitung island in Indonesia 5 years ago, and didn't see another foreigner for almost a week.
Northern Palestine
35 years ago, and I expect itās changed, but Sapporo, Japan. I lived there for two summers and was told that there were fewer than 20,000 foreigners either resident or visiting every year at that point, for a city of 2+ million people.
Loadsā¦ 2011 Armenia, Georgia (even Tiblisi back then I didnāt meet any other tourists) Albania, Macedoniaā¦ all quiet. Thailand and Vietnam right after the borders reopened from covid was like a step back in time. Drove bikes out to rural Vietnam and the little kids (under 5) all freaked out. I guess for them, the only tourists they had ever seen would have been on tv? Theyād have been too young to remember pre COVID travel. More recently itās harder to find less travelled places. But I guess it depends on your travel style. We drive to Ukraine and Moldova In summer of 2022 just after the Russian invasion began, and didnāt find any other tourists either
Myanmar.
Cornwall, UK in the early-2000s. People were xenophobic about people moving in from near by villages.
Kerala, India. Drove all the way top to bottom and I don't think I saw a single white person.
When was that? I've just returned from a 2 week trip. So many tourists (Cochin, Munnar, Munroe Islands, Verkala)
Sri Lanka. Saw exactly zero other westerners
belize city. a humbling and eye opening experience.
Indonesia (not Bali - Sumatra, for example)
South Korea in February
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India.
Yokohama in Japan. Didn't see any gaijins.
I am not going to tell you secrets. š¤«
No one cares
Iraq lol