My visit to Singapore gave me the opportunity to take a side trip to nearby Kuala Lumpur, giving me my first taste of Malaysia. The city is relatively new, established in its modern form some 30 years after Singapore, yet somehow it feels comparatively ancient. I managed to spend 4 days in the city, and although I'll write a separate article on the Batu Caves, this post covers my thoughts and observations on an often overlooked city.

I recently had the opportunity to head back to Singapore, my first trip to the city state in almost 5 years. If you read my previous article on Singapore, you'll note that I only stayed a couple of days and mentioned it was one of the places I'd like to visit again, only with more time to spare.

Well I finally had the chance to revisit it, and I spent almost a week exploring areas of Singapore that I didn't have a chance to see the first time around. Read on for more about my views and observations about one of the more divisive places in Asia.

Known as the Eternal City, the Capital of the World and the first ever large metropolis, Rome as a city is almost unparalleled in terms of its history and impact on the western world.

I decided to spend a few days discovering the history and story of the city with tips from locals born and raised in the city and found Rome to be one of my favourite cities that I have visited - both as a general traveller, and as a Sikh.

It seems pointless making the trip to Rome and not visiting the autonomous Vatican City, the home of the Holy See, residence of the Pope and home of one of the best views of Rome. It's a short walk from the city of Rome, and as I found out, the Vatican City is definitely worth a visit.

It consistently ranks as one of the most visited cities in the world, and has a history that spans over two thousand years. It has been home to innovations, inventions and revolutions and in the middle of the previous millennium it was the largest city in the world.

Paris is so much more than the romanticism that its name conjures, its history includes episodes as violent as any other city and all these events have left their unique mark on France's capital city.

It's also one of the closest capital cities to where I live, a short train ride away, but it's perhaps because of this proximity that I often overlook it for other destinations. My trip last year was to visit friends that I worked with previously, and their knowledge of the city allowed me to see a side of Paris I may have otherwise have missed.

There's a lot that I enjoyed (food, culture, history) and some things that I didn't, but here is a list of 5 things I absolutely loved.

It's one of only a handful of one party communist states in the world and is best known in the west for two very violent wars that were fought in the territory in 20th century.

There is no doubt the Vietnamese people have had a rough couple of hundred years. After first being colonised by the French, they were then overrun by the Japanese during the Second World War. Two bloody wars of freedom followed, first defeating the French, and then defeating the Americans.

The country was, for decades, an international pariah. However, a shift to a more markets based economy has seen the country post impressive growth figures and is now one of the fastest growing economies in the world. In addition, a tourism sector that was destroyed by war is also thriving. I paid a visit to two of the major cities in Vietnam; Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), capturing the life of these two distinct areas of the country; two areas that were once bitter enemies, now reunited as one Vietnam.

Every so often I will type in 'Everywhere' into the departure form on Skyscanner and search for the cheapest tickets abroad. Tickets can be as low £15 and combined with a stay in a hostel, you can have a weekend away cheaper than a meal in London. It also gives me a chance to go to places I wouldn't usually consider and Luxembourg definitely falls into this category.

Although the organisation that I am working for has offices in New York (where I am based), it has its headquarters in Washington DC, and it was a work related matter that gave me the excuse to check out the capital of the United States.

I decided to extend my stay over a weekend so I could get a chance to explore DC, and the city was unlike anything I had expected; both in terms of size and energy. I managed to see the majority of landmarks and attractions during my stay and I'm sure I'll get an opportunity to return during my time in the States, but for now, here are my thoughts.

It's the most visited city in the world and a city that is synonymous with beauty, class and elegance. There's a reason why places around the world are sometimes called "the Paris of the ...insert geographical location". Despite living fairly close to Paris, I haven't been to France since a school trip I scarcely remember.

The city itself is very old, founded in the 3rd century BC, it has grown to be one of the most populous cities in the world, although compared to somewhere like London, it isnt particularly large in size. 

I was lucky when I went as I have a few friends currently living there. This meant that even though I only went for a weekend, I was able to fit in a lot of things as they knew the city inside out. As with Singapore, Koh Samui, Madrid, Barcelona and Santiago, having someone who knows the local area definitely helps.