While stuck in Thailand, waiting for Hong Kong to let me back in again, I started researching nearby places I hadn't visited yet and didn't have strict entry criteria (I was not prepared to undergo another hotel quarantine). Timor-Leste jumped out at me. All I knew about the country was they had a drawn-out battle for independence a couple of decades ago, but I couldn't name a single reason tourists would go there. The internet was not helpful. The very few websites I found only gave a brief overview of their most popular attractions, but all the logistics had to be gleaned from a handful of personal blogs, many of which were out of date due to COVID-19 messing things up. I decided to give it a go anyway. Stress levels were high for the one week I had to prepare for the trip, and I had no idea if any of my plans would work out. If nothing else, I could sit by the beach in Dili and take it easy for 11 days (although that's not the sort of holiday I usually go on).