My Top 5 Countries
of the 157 I've visited, so far.
People always ask me what my favorite places are. Easy answer. With one exception, I’ve visited all of my top 5 multiple times and at length already…and I’ll likely revisit them frequently moving forward. Few people can travel as frequently as I do. With that in mind, I think this list offers a good start for your bucket list. Of course, Machu Picchu in Peru is magnificent, Egypt’s Pyramids are unparalleled and Stonehenge is an 11, but this is about the countries as a whole, not just a single site. I’ll save that for another post.
Japan
I knew I would love Japan long before I ever visited.
My first visit was September of 2023, when the Yen was low and the Dollar was high. I did the usual tourist loop from Tokyo to Kyoto, with a brief sojourn in Yokohama.
My nervous system was subdued the minute I stepped off the plane. The quiet, order and aesthetic allowed me to breathe a bigger, cleaner breath than I had in decades. After three weeks, I felt certain I would return annually and explore every inch of every island.
My second visit began 3 weeks after the first ended. Following 3 weeks of admin in NYC, mostly spent selling all of the furniture I had in storage, I rented a 2 bedroom in Beppu, Oita, the Onsen Capitol of Japan. I spent December 2023 writing, eating and soaking in the volcanic waters and the singular culture of my favorite place on Earth.
India
India is Time Travel. Despite the surge of technological advances since my first visit in 2008, life differs very little from 4,000 years ago, when Shiva lit the crematory fire in Varanasi that has burned in perpetuity through today. Women wear the same 17 ft of fabric they’ve always worn, with the colonial addition the choli for modesty. Sadly, emaciated humans still pull the pudgy upper caste in carriages like horses. Gratefully, the Brahmin Caste memorizes the Vedas by chanting them from one generation to another, so the wisdom won’t be lost in cyber attack.
It’s the the most polarizing place on the planet. I’ve heard of multiple people boarding the next plane home upon arrival at Indira Gandhi Airport in Delhi. I, myself, run screaming to it and from it. I’ve spent over two years in the Subcontinent, divided over several trips, exploring every state. I lead an annual pilgrimage to the spiritual sites of the north because I know, first and second hand the transformative power of these places.
India is a sober psychedelic, for those willing to take the trip.
Iceland
Iceland is Space Travel. It’s obvious why it was a location for filming Prometheus, Game of Thrones, Interstellar, Star Trek and numerous other movies requiring an “otherworldly“ setting. Of course, Hot Springs are a major draw for me and Iceland has plenty, so you can visit one daily, first thing in the morning, when you rent a converted van to drive around the island. The van, gas, daily bathhouse ($5-30) and groceries are your only expenses. The epic scenery is free, and you can park on any of the paved roadside pull off parking spaces overnight. It’s simply the most spectacular, diverse and accessible landscape imaginable. Ginormous waterfalls, multiple rainbows daily, volcanoes, glaciers, and, of course, the Northern Lights.
You can easily do the Golden Circle loop from Reykjavik over a long weekend from NYC or add a free week long layover en route to northern Europe when flying Icelandair or PLAY Airlines.
Italy
Italy is astral travel. All roads truly lead to Rome. The food is fresh. The light is golden. The people are focused on family and will eagerly adopt you. While the landscape is lovely and offers Mountains, Beach and everything in between, it’s the art that sets it apart. The aesthetics of every object is considered in it’s creation. Function often follows form…at least until the 1940’s. Even after the adornments were pared away, the futuristic elegance of Italian modernism is the scandalous mistress to Scandanavia’s organic tradwife woods. Italy is humanity’s muse, reminding us what we’re capable of realizing. The Sistine Chapel, The Coloseum…the simple building blocks that we take for granted, like Columns, the Arch and the self healing concrete that modern science has only just explained…it’s around every corner waiting to be discovered by each new generation. Italy is never a bad idea.
Indonesia
A day spent on each of Indonesia’s 11,000 islands would require 46 years. I’ve visited the 7 major islands, and each offered an entirely different culture to and climate to explore. There are few places that feel truly remote, anymore, and most of them are Indonesian. Bali is basic…explore other islands to suit your particular passion. Volcanoes, Marine Life, Cultural Heritage, Orangutans, Tigers and Bears, Oh My! It’s all there, hosted by some of the world’s warmest people…serving some of the tastiest food. I’ve merely scratched the surface. Indonesia is a world within itself.