Flying over the Ukraine , then later Afghanistan on Singapore Airlines SQ 25 from Frankfurt to Singapore on March 13, 2014, on ArcticTropic’s voyage to Myanmar. Flying over war zones is usually routine when the fighting units on the ground either do not have access to high altitude missiles or have no need to use them in their local conflicts. Eastern Ukraine is in a busy air corridor from Northern and Central Europe to South Asia. Obviously that has now changed.

No words.

Kalemegdan Castle overlooks the confluence of the Danube and Sava Rivers – the most important trade and military corridor in the Balkans. It is also where the Military Museum is located.

Serbia has been at war for almost all of its’ 1000 years of history.

World War II was unimaginably brutal.

In May , 1999 a $ 2 Billion US Stealth Bomber was shot down during the Kosovo War – just outside Belgrade. The pilot forgot to put on the “invisible switch”.China ( their Embassy was bombed by the same plane) then bought the wreckage from local farmers and now have a Stealth Bomber of their own.The Serbians are extremely friendly to Americans considering the rather recent hostilities.

Entrance to the Main Castle.

Kalemegdan Castle from below.

Kurdistan – ” The Other Iraq” has been safe for years, other than sporadic ,targeted attacks. Even in Saddam’s times Kurdistan was safe after 1991, since the airspace was under Allied control. There are thrice weekly flights from Frankfurt to Erbil. Pleas let us know about any providers or destinations in Kurdistan or any other part of Iraq, as the ground situation appears to improve daily.

A drive into the Heart of Darkness. The Congo is one of the few areas of the world that is becoming LESS developed , as the jungle reclaims Colonial development – hence all the better for exploration. ArcticTropic is open to any suggestions for listings of exploration leadership enterprises.

An associate of ArcticTropic, who works very hard for our country, travels frequently to Afghanistan. A link to his site.

In Days of Old ( the 1960’s and 1970’s) Afghanistan was a popular stopover on the overland Hippie Trail from Europe to India. Many an ancient hipster can still rave ( if he or she can remember) about spending days or weeks in the opium dens and hash houses of Kabul, while en route to Cosmic Enlightenment in Goa.

All that came crashing down in 1979 with the Soviet Invasion, the subsequent war, then the Taliban and now the simmering war between many of the world’s forces gathered along the Pakistan border.

Afghanistan is open for limited tourism once again. In general the North and West are said to be safer. ArcticTropic has two locations/providers in Afghanistan at the moment – below our usual minimum of three per country. We welcome further posts and pictures about Afghanistan. The above video is courtesy of the videographer who posted it on YouTube.