Please rank the following cities/countries, from a tourist stand point: <BR> <BR>Beit Jalla, West Bank <BR>Pristina, Kosovo <BR>Managua, Nicaragua <BR>Iraq <BR>Burundi <BR>Chechnya <BR> <BR> <BR>

They would all rank a perfect "10" if you were satan on vacation.

Given the choice, I would certainly pick Irak, which is certainly extremely interesting due to the very old history of this country.

These would be nice places (at least less worse) without the intervention of, respectively: <BR> <BR>Israel <BR>Serbia <BR>USA <BR>local/USA/UK <BR>local <BR>Russia

The only one I have traveled to is Nicaragua and I can honestly say the country is breathtaking. It's covered in mountains and tropical forests. The people are poor, but kind and though most people I met could not speak English and my Spanish is very poor, we were able to communicate easily. When I went, the student's were rioting against the bus transportation costing so much, and I did hear of a lot of violence, but did not witness it myself. I think the typical warnings would apply to stay away from crowds, don't run off to remote villages, having a tour guide or if you know someone would be helpful. But Nicaragua is not as bad as when the Sandinistas had control. they even have a Hard Rock cafe now! And the beaches are fabulous. I don't see how it would be compared to Iraq or Kosovo- though I've never been there.

All too good for Hiho<BR>

TB- You hit it on the spot! I was thinking that but too afraid to say it.

Bujumbura (capital of Burundi) is a nice, balmy, tropical place by lake Tanganyka. With all the palm trees and the lake promenade, you could think you were in Nice... if you can forget the curfew and the odd remote machine gun fire ! The altitude is not as high as in Kigali, so you escape Rwanda's sometimes chilly nights. If you can manage to come back by the curfew, there are pretty good restaurants too !

My husband was a diplomat in Iraq between 1986-88 and I loved my time there. Not only are the people nice and helpful, but they were so generous. ALso, iraq has so much history so there was so much to see.I drove from Bagdad to Basra and loved that sceneic drive. The hotels there were cheap so I was able to stay at a 5* (I usually stay in 3*). ALso, the food was amazing. I remember the iraqi's to be very faestive. It saddens me to see what has happened to the country since then, you MUST NOT confuse the Jack and Jill Iraqis with SADDAM HUSSAIN!! Since leaving Iraq I have been to numerous cities (venice, paris, madrid, roke, florence..etc) but none has been as magical as the cities in Iraq.

I loved Bujumbura, capital of Burundi.<BR><BR>For years this post used to be the best kept secret for Us diplomats working in Africa.<BR>Excellent way of life(belgian style),golf, water sports and direct access to some of the most exclusive safaris in africa; the mountain's gorilla's, the jane goodal's chimpanze reserve in the gombe stream and <BR>one of the most magnificent lakes on earth,the Tanganyika Lake...

ttt

Hiho,<BR><BR>Read "Holidays in Hell" by P J O'Rourke. The sarcasm throughout his book will match that of your question.

While you're at it, could you rank the following places as well, please?<BR><BR>Minsk, Belarus<BR>Pyongyang, The People's Republic of Korea<BR>Bisjkek, Kyrgyztan<BR>Freetown, Sierra Leone<BR>Tirana, Albania<BR>Chisinau, Moldova<BR>Medellin, Colombia<BR>Cali, Colombia<BR>Bogot&aacute;, Colombia<BR>Punta del Este, Arg/Par/Bra<BR>Tbilisi, Georgia<BR>Tripoli, Libya<BR><BR>Thank You in Advance!<BR><BR>

Well, only been to three of all the places you metion, but here goes:<BR><BR>1. Medellin<BR>2. Freetown<BR>3. Chisinau<BR><BR>Almost a tie since they are all lovely places....<BR><BR>Have a super vacation, Jagger!<BR>

Bogota, Columbia is absolutely beautiful. The underground cathedral is a must. Many wonderful restaurants, too. Also, Cartegena on the coast is fabulous