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If you could only visit 5 countries in your lifetime

Discussion in 'Zoo Cafe' started by Hipporex, 17 Mar 2019.

  1. Daktari JG

    Daktari JG Well-Known Member 10+ year member

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    5 countries I haven't yet visited
    Brazil
    Indonesia
    Ireland
    China
    Kenya
     
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  2. Jambo

    Jambo Well-Known Member 5+ year member

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    Yes, I do mean DRC. :D
     
  3. Daktari JG

    Daktari JG Well-Known Member 10+ year member

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    My guess is DRC is like most third world countries. If you're looking
    for trouble it shouldn't be hard to find, but if you mind your Ps and Qs
    then it probably is not a problem
     
  4. Jambo

    Jambo Well-Known Member 5+ year member

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    DRC is like most third world country’s. I know someone who’s been there, and they really enjoyed it. Trust me, i’ll do anything to get to see the wildlife there, one day. :p
     
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  5. Hipporex

    Hipporex Well-Known Member 5+ year member

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    Same. I got to see me some wild gorillas and (if possible) okapis.
     
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  6. amur leopard

    amur leopard Well-Known Member 5+ year member

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    Weeeell- I have only been to Niagara... and the less said about Niagara (minus the falls obviously), the better, probably. It has turned into Las Vegas but without the fame. I feel so sorry for the falls and the surrounding wildlife...
    However, I am going to visit NY and D.C soon, so that should be good.
    I haven't seen any US zoos but I have looked at their (generally brilliant) websites so often that I can't wait.
     
  7. amur leopard

    amur leopard Well-Known Member 5+ year member

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    Most wildlife tours tend to avoid the DRC - for fear of losing any guides or clients along the way. That said, the DRC is a magnificent country in terms of fauna, especially avian fauna.
     
  8. birdsandbats

    birdsandbats Well-Known Member 5+ year member

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    @amur leopard There is a town not too far from me called Wisconsin Dells that was once famous for wildlife and rock formations. Now it is mini Las Vegas, too.
     
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  9. amur leopard

    amur leopard Well-Known Member 5+ year member

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    Very sad when that sort of thing happens
     
  10. birdsandbats

    birdsandbats Well-Known Member 5+ year member

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    I agree.
     
  11. Terry Thomas

    Terry Thomas Well-Known Member Premium Member 5+ year member

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    You would not be disappointed with a visit to Sri Lanka -- plenty of wildlife to be seen.
     
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  12. Hipporex

    Hipporex Well-Known Member 5+ year member

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    I'll have to put it on the bucket list then.
     
  13. Jambo

    Jambo Well-Known Member 5+ year member

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    Same, most definitely. :)
     
  14. Terry Thomas

    Terry Thomas Well-Known Member Premium Member 5+ year member

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    You will not be disappointed. Having visited several tropical countries where I have tried to take photos and film of wildlife I have usually not been too happy. Not that the wildlife is not there, but it is often either nocturnal or found in high, thick vegetation. Not to hard to see but very hard to get photos etc.. Sri Lanka proved to be an exception, where I was pleased to be able to record over 100 species over a four week period.
     
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  15. FunkyGibbon

    FunkyGibbon Well-Known Member

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    I haven't been to the DRC, but I have spent plenty of time in some other developing (third world) countries and I can't really avoid saying that this seems to be both massively optimistic and wildly pessimistic. Some countries, like the DRC, are politically unstable, and some are not. Some have effective law enforcement and social order and some do not. And surprisingly those things don't necessarily coincide; just have a look at the UK government's travel advice for Papua New Guinea Vs Indonesia (with a particular focus on the provinces of Papua and West Papua). Papua currently has a significant insurgency (with accompanying counter-insurgency) and yet is still commonly visited by tourists. PNG on the other hand is civil war free but the crime warnings read like nothing I've ever read before.

    Safety and security - Indonesia travel advice

    Safety and security - Papua New Guinea travel advice

    Taking things a step further, if you wanted to find trouble in Vietnam I genuinely think you'd have to look incredibly hard.

    My point is that developing countries are not all the same. Frankly, with regards to crime and security I feel safer in most Asian countries (developing or not) than I do in the West (and I'm a Westerner).
     
    Last edited: 18 Mar 2019
  16. Gavinj90

    Gavinj90 Well-Known Member

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    This a hundred times over. I'm from a small town in North Wales and always feel a bit on edge if I go into the town centre, especially at night and/or around the bus station. I've lived in Asia most of my adult life and traveled around the continent extensively, and other than a few taxi drivers trying to pull a fast one, I've never had any issues here.
     
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  17. ThylacineAlive

    ThylacineAlive Well-Known Member 10+ year member

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    Tough question!

    In no particular order:
    Indonesia (includes so many different islands, including part of New Guinea)
    Ethiopia
    Ecuador (includes the Galapagos)
    Australia
    Democratic Republic of the Congo

    ~Thylo
     
  18. Buldeo

    Buldeo Well-Known Member

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    But, like, Humpty Doo is the greatest name for a town ever. The weather be damned!

    So is this a list of the five countries you haven't visited yet or the only five countries you could ever visit (even if you've already been there)?

    For me, at least right now, it would be:

    1.) The Central African Republic
    2.) The Democratic Republic of the Congo
    3.) Indonesia
    4.) Sri Lanka
    5.) Yemen


    Two of those might be crossed off by the end of the year though, and they're in no particular order.
     
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  19. amur leopard

    amur leopard Well-Known Member 5+ year member

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    When everyone on the Western side of the Atlantic goes to sleep, these threads die!!!
     
  20. amur leopard

    amur leopard Well-Known Member 5+ year member

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    I plan the trips for my family even though I am thirteen so I have managed to get to most of the good zoos in Europe and Canada quite easily. I don't see myself managing to convince my parents to go to the DRC anytime soon. They'll just say something like : What about Amsterdam?:D