What's the Most Unusual Country You Have Visited?

DEFTLEFTHAND

I went to the Faroe Islands with my father in 2005 to watch the Ireland football team play. I loved it, The people were very receptive to us apparently Irish monks discovered the islands many moons ago. The only downside was that the beer was a bit pricey.:D

Sindri

China, Andorra

EUSSR

Brussels. I ran away screaming, eventually.

flash1080

England, Scotland & Wales. Some of the things the Brits do beggars belief, it's no wonder their empire has almost fully collapsed.

Oranage2

In terms of cultural, poverty (I've seen kids eat of the street there) and most backward it has to be Leitrim

EUSSR

BroomBridge is a mystical place. You won't find it on any map!

DEFTLEFTHAND

EUSSR wrote: »

BroomBridge is a mystical place. You won't find it on any map!

But maybe on a railway route.;)

EUSSR

DEFTLEFTHAND wrote: »

But maybe on a railway route.;)

Tell that to the trains on that route that disappear into the ether! They must fall off the edge of the world or something. It's quite magical if I must say so myself.

XenaLady

Belgrad, Serbia.

DEFTLEFTHAND

XenaLady wrote: »

Belgrad, Serbia.

I was in Belgrade too last year, found it a bit backward but still manageable. What time period did you make your trip at?

XenaLady

Ive been there few times staying at my friends apartment not a hotel. I was staying in Zemun which actually belongs to the Novi Sad area, that was connected to Belgrade only recently.
Its a bit like rest of the Europe at 70s, but people are very friendly and everything kinda cheap to buy. An amazing 3 course dinner at a five star restaurant wasnt too dear.

The_Kew_Tour

North Korea.

Ghandee

Cuba.

Was great place don't get me wrong, especially Havana, but there was something about watching folk on the high ways (which were empty for the most parts) packed into the back of tipper Lorries (in the way Irish people use a bus) seemed strange, they all seemed to be military folk if that makes any difference?

Was also the first country I'd been in where beggars jostled to get you leaving your hotel, hoping for a few peso from you, with security actually beating then back sometimes!

But with Havana having roughly one police man/woman on the street for every for citizens (roughly a million cops) thanks to communism and employment!
Never felt scared though, Havana definitely one of the most interesting places i've ever visited in my life though!

Jimoslimos

Japan, quite unlike anywhere else on earth.

Mr.Crinklewood

Jimoslimos wrote: »

Japan, quite unlike anywhere else on earth.

Aren't parts like Chernobyl?

Immaculate Pasta

Northern Ireland.

It's sort of like of us but then it's not really like us... :cool:

BoDiddly

India.

Columbia

My current location, without a doubt. A weird and wonderful country, it's become my second home.

theteal

Yankland, Virginia to be specific. We stopped in a town to stretch our legs while driving down to Miami. The sense of an impending ass raping was so strong that we didnt stay more than a few minutes.

DEFTLEFTHAND

theteal wrote: »

Yankland, Virginia to be specific. We stopped in a town to stretch our legs while driving down to Miami. The sense of an impending ass raping was so strong that we didnt stay more than a few minutes.

Genuine LOL.:D

messymess

Iran was pretty unusual.

Bolivia was also pretty unusual both from a cultural and geographical point of view.

Pherekydes

Cork.

Bizarre place.

paky

Egypt

You have to squat down and take a c.rap since theres no toilets

Jay D

I can't get over the robbing b*stard Czech taxi drivers. Otherwise not the most unusual but seriously how is that culture not clamped out?

ifellover

luxembourg, nothing really there

adamski8

XenaLady wrote: »

Belgrad, Serbia.

yeah weird there, they had christmas yesterday!

El Siglo

Kolkata (Calcutta), India. Definitely a weird place, will not be going back there soon. Extremely dirty and generally unpleasant.

Azureus

Probably Bratislava. Strange place, such an obvious divide of rich/poor and insane drivers!

EUSSR

Latvia is a kip.

theteal

DEFTLEFTHAND wrote: »

Genuine LOL.:D

Genuine story too. One of the lads actually went for a bit of a jog to stretch (we had driven from Cleveland). The rest of us simultaneously picked up the uncomfortable sense, immediately bailed back into the car (7 seater thingy), caught up with the jogger, slid open the side door and grabbed him in without stopping. Best Spring Break Ever!

SharpshooterTom

Faroe Islands (Oct 10) & San Marino (Feb 09)

timewilltell

Uganda - I could actually see myself living there though, loved it.

Mr Benevolent

Sopot, Bulgaria. An odd place.

Karona

Rottnest Island off the western coast of Australia. They have weird little animals called Quokkas they kinda look like a mixture between a rat and a kangaroo.

And they have a beach called the basin where there is no gradual decline to the sea, its just sand and all of a sudden its mad deep water.

cassi

India! Wish I could undo that trip! Got so fed up eventually ended up booking a sweet hotel by the airport and not leaving it! I dunno what was stranger the man caked in makeup begging or the monkey caked in makeup begging?!

cloneslad

cassi wrote: »

India! Wish I could undo that trip! Got so fed up eventually ended up booking a sweet hotel by the airport and not leaving it! I dunno what was stranger the man caked in makeup begging or the monkey caked in makeup begging?!

It was the Monkey, that little dancing ba$tard!!

deirdre_dub

Madagascar, Saudi Arabia.

I absolutely loved Madagascar - the people are so gentle and so welcoming. Pity it is such a poor country. I can't wait for the economy to pick up so that I can afford to go back and give them a few more tourist euro.

Saudi Arabia was like a constant dose of WTF?! Such a completely different culture to ours. Still, I felt quite safe, if a bit wierded out.

later12

I guess I'd have to say Israel.

The vast influence that Jerusalem has had on mankind, and the ludicrous state of affairs that remain there today, with what is effectively an 'outdoor prison' definitely makes the country the freak of the nations in my opinion.

What's also so remarkable about it, is that when you're in the wealthy suburbs of Tel Aviv, you feel like you're in Los Angeles or Miami, not the theatre of war and human cruelty that that country is. I found the whole thing a bit mentally distressing in fact.

Superbus

The Vatican City is pretty damn weird.

misan9

Laos.

The most backward place I've ever see. Absolutely incredible culture, people and country though.

CamperMan

Ireland!

Paparazzo

Laos, Ecuador, Ghana, Alaska.

Loved Alaska and Ghana

Alessandra

Passed through Bosnia, whilst travelling in Croatia. It looked very poor, appeared to have little infrastructure and very infertile land. Those were the parts I'd seen though, hadn't seen it all.

losthorizon

Alessandra wrote: »

Passed through Bosnia, whilst travelling in Croatia. It looked very poor, appeared to have little infrastructure and very infertile land. Those were the parts I'd seen though, hadn't seen it all.

What! Bosnia is a lovely country and the people are really friendly especially the muslims.

I think Armenia is the most unusual place I have ever visited - went there after reading a book on the Armenian genocide.

The most amazing country I went to is Iceland - drove around it in a Nissan Micra when a four wheel jeep should have been the vehicle of choice. It really is a country filled with natural wonders and fairly scary.

I would love to go to Namibia and Lebanon. Namibia for the wildlife and scenery and Lebanon for the History, culture, ethnic mix, wine and night life in Beirut.

jdee99

East Germany just before the wall came down - was lucky enough to go there about six weeks before the wall came down and the day after. It was a very strange place

biko

Rijeka, former Yugoslavia.
A whole town in black and white, was an odd place.

Lord TSC

Dubai.

A land of extremes in terms of wealth distribution.

Coriolanus

Yugoslavia, country doesn't even exist anymore.

triple-M

craggy island,You can find out who shot JR there

Eve_Dublin

Quito, Ecuador. Dodgy. The one place in South America I genuinely feared for my life. I think everyone got mugged at least once in my hostel except me (cos I didn't carry anything around). There was a man wandering around outside our hostel with a brick day and night ready to (I'm presuming) smack us across the head with it.

electrobanana

Haiti ftw.. scary mentalists.