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Jess Battison
A man who claims to have visited every country says a city under a ‘red warning’ is the second best in the whole world.
Drew Binsky says he spent the last 12 years travelling the globe across ‘all 197 nations’ so he’s in a better position than most of us to rank his ‘top 20 favourite and least favourite’ cities.
Understandably, the bloke’s racked up quite the following on YouTube as he documents his travels and reveals his ‘best secrets’ about all kinds of different places.
While Prague in the Czech Republic may be his number one city as it ‘kicked off his travel bug’ when he moved there to study abroad, his number two is currently advised against visiting.
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Binsky says Beirut in Lebanon is his second favourite as it’s ‘freaking awesome’ but it does ‘break his heart’ that it gets a ‘bad rep’.
“It’s amazing, you have the Mediterranean coast, you have very openminded, smart people who speak English, French and Arabic,” he explains.
“Nightlife in Beirut is insane, everyone goes out and parties, has a great time.”
Binsky adds that the people there have ‘gone through a lot’ as he describes them as a ‘resilient bunch’.
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“And the cherry on top is that they have one of the best cuisines in the world – falafel, shawarma, tabbouleh, hummus and kibbeh.”
However, due to the conflict in the middle east, the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) currently advises against all travel to Lebanon.
And it’s worth noting the city is in a very different, devastating situation to when the YouTuber likely filmed his content.
A red warning across the whole country adds: “Your travel insurance could be invalidated if you travel against advice from the FCDO. Consular support is also severely limited where FCDO advises against travel.”
UK authorities explain: “A ceasefire in the conflict between Israel and Lebanese Hizballah came into force on 27 November, however, the security environment remains unpredictable.
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"Military activity, including airstrikes, cannot be ruled out. Tensions remain high and the situation could deteriorate with little warning.
"The closure or disruption of roads and exit routes at short notice could affect your ability to leave the country. Do not rely on the FCDO being able to evacuate you in an emergency."
Binsky went on to list his third favourite city as Seoul in South Korea, his fourth as Bangkok, Thailand, and fifth as Chicago, USA.