It can be pretty daunting flying about, especially if you are a stranger to different cultures, but two women have spent the last decade visiting every country possible, and they know exactly where you could go.
Sharing which countries have the friendliest people, Australian Rachel Davey and Slovakian Martina Sebova have had the opportunity to visit 100 nations recognized by the UN separately, before meeting each other in 2008.
Bonding over their love of travelling, the pair grew close and began to document their travels on their blog, Very Hungry Nomads.
It was shortly after the blog’s creation that they decided to tackle the remaining 88 countries recognized by the UN to find out who has the friendliest locals.
The pair first set out from Melbourne in 2018, and now as a couple, they have visited almost all of Western Europe, central Africa and the Middle East.
Even thought they have tackled most of the world, there were a few countries that stood out as the nicest places to be.
Martina explained: “The people in Sudan and Iran were some of the friendliest people that we have encountered.
“And most people would assume those countries are really dangerous based on the image [we see].”
She also went on to say that a small nation on the east coast of Africa – Eritrea – also held a place in the couple’s hearts.
However, it wasn’t easy for the pair to travel to all of these countries as over 70 in the world still criminalize LGBTQIA+ people and outlaw relationships, which means that Rachel and Martina would have to hide their relationship for fear of ostracization.
“We were visiting a lot of countries where even the concept of a same-s€x couple doesn’t exist,” Martina said.
“And we didn’t really want to put our personal safety at risk at any stage.”
But according to the nomads, this has ‘never been a big issue’ for them and that they didn’t try to hide their relationship.
“We never tried to cover it,” she added.
There were also some hurdles when trying to enter countries who declined their visas simply because they were women.
But it didn’t stop their love of travel.
Since then, the couple have visited countries like North Korea, Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, Bhutan and Pakistan, utilising any form of transport they can.
They even booked a 38-hour bus ride when touring Africa.
But, no matter how seasoned you are, there will always be blips.
“Rach gets lost in the hotel,” joked Martina, who works as a tour guide.
“I always say it’s a miracle that she made it through every country. We make a great team.”