Overview
From the US State Department website:
Official United States Travel Warnings are issued when “protracted conditions that make a country dangerous or unstable lead the State Department to recommend that Americans avoid or consider the risk of travel to that country. A Travel Warning is also issued when the U.S. Government’s ability to assist American citizens is constrained due to the closure of an embassy or consulate or because of a drawdown of its staff. The countries listed below meet those criteria.1
Off Limits? You’ve got to be kidding! What do you mean, “don’t go there?”
Two expats on a voyage of discovery beyond their comfort zone.
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Global citizens exploring reality
Marco Orsini, an independent American filmmaker living in Monaco, and Bilal Mekkaoui, a Lebanese investment banker living in London, are considering travel in what are commonly known as “No-Go” countries. Though neither treats lightly the dangers from political instability, crime or contagion, both have suspicions about the ideological calculations behind the designation and concerns about its consequence for residents, visitors and international politics.
Dinner parties… What’s on the menu?
Dinner in the No-Go’s proposes a series of visits to countries on the list that Marco, an American, is discouraged from entering, followed by a series of visits to destinations where Bilal, an observant Muslim from Lebanon, might hesitate to travel. Dinner in the No-Go’s is public diplomacy conducted on a personal level, with both men eager to engage their in-country hosts and acquaintances on the issues that earn inclusion on the list. Religion, politics, economics, cultural traditions, public perception, local prejudice and comfort food are all “on the table” for discussion.
