Update: I originally posted this in 2018 but I've updated in 2022 following another visit
Airport Rating *****
Reception of locals *****
Cost: ££££

• No issues with airport security when landing or leaving Rome Fiumicino airport on two different occasions
• Saw only one other Singh during my 4 days in the city, but locals are welcoming and although not as multicultural as London or New York, it is still an open, cosmopolitan city
• Capital and largest city in Italy with a history stretching back 3,000 years including being the foundation of the Roman Empire
• Main Sights: Colosseum, Roman Forum, Palatine Hill, Pantheon, Villa Borghese, Trevi Fountain, Spanish steps, Aventine Hill, Via dei Coronari, Trastevere

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.

Update: I originally posted this in 2018, but have updated in 2022 following another visit
Airport Rating *****
Reception of locals *****
Cost: ££££

• One of the strangest cities in Europe, with an eclectic mix of history, culture, beauty, art and seediness.
• No issues at all with airport security, and Schiphol Airport has modern scanners so you don't remove liquids or laptops either.
• Not the cheapest city to visit, but better value than cities such as Zurich.
• In the spring time, full of UK stag parties clustered around the Red Light District, but locals are fine, although there is a growing nationalist movement.
• Main Sights: Westerkerk, Anne Frank House, the many museums, two Gurdwaras, canals, Amsterdam Arena, Vondelpark, Red Light District

Update: I originally wrote this article in August 2020 following my first visit to Brittany where I visited many of these cities, towns and villages. I returned in February 2022 visiting both Dinan and Treguier which I have added here.
Airport Rating n/a
Reception of locals ***
Cost: £££

• Home of the Breton people and one of the six recognised Celtic nations
• More agricultural and less industrialised than most parts of Western Europe, with a greater cultural homogeneity than larger French cities
• No troubles travelling around as a Sikh, but don't expect to see any other Sikhs or even broader South Asians
• Places visited: Ploumanac'h, Perros-Guirec, Guingamp, Rennes, Laval, Lannion, Dinan, Treguier, Bourbriac, Pont-Melvez

After 7 years in London, living in zones 1,2 and 3, north and south of the river, and east and west of Charring Cross, I thought it was about time I summed up my experiences of living in the city. It's obscenely expensive, and an echo chamber for metropolitan elitism that bears little to no resemblance to the rest of the UK. It can be cold, grey and miserable - and it is nothing but a giant monopoly board for the privileged few who buy property to launder their money, and then let it sit empty while rent prices go through the roof for everyone else.

But it is also creative, energetic and lively and with something for everyone. It has architecture that will make your jaw drop, history that will immerse you, and open spaces that'll make you forget you're in one of the world's most powerful cities. You could live here all your life, and by the time you figure it out, the city has changed again. It's a city you can love and hate in equal measure - but there is nothing quite like it anywhere else.