Roo Around The World

My last interview with another travel blogger was a while ago now, with the lovely Hanne from the Places People Stories blog back in March, and this month I’m featuring yet another travel blogger; it’s ‘The Guy’ from Flights And Frustration!

HI, CAN YOU INTRODUCE YOURSELF?

1. Name: The Guy or more recently known as The Guy Who Flies

2. Age: Early 40’s.

3. Travel Blog: Flights And Frustration

4. Twitter: @TheGuyWhoFlies

5. Home Town: A small village about 10 miles west of Hull, East Yorkshire

6. Current Location: The study in our quaint little home in England.

7. Tell us a bit about where you are at the moment and what you’re doing there: I’m currently between travels at the moment so I’m in our home. I normally head off on international business trips most months though so it is a little unusual to actually catch me at home. Only a couple of weeks ago I was in Bristol, prior to that the US and Chile.

TRAVEL TIDBITS

8. First ever travel experience:

My first memories of travel are of our family holidays once or twice a year to the Republic of Ireland, more specifically Dublin. Both my parents come from there so we’d often go back to visit relatives. I remember staying in my grandparents’ houses or the homes of a couple of my aunties (the two sisters my mum is closest to).

9. Where’s next in your travel plans?

In May I have a couple of business trips planned to Norway and The Netherlands. Then in June the wife and I are going to spend a few days in Zurich, Switzerland. This will be our second wedding anniversary celebration. It is also exciting for us as we’ll be seeing OneRepublic in concert (- a band we are both desperate to see). I find it quite novel since I’ve only been to Zurich once before, way back in 2001. I went then primarily to see The Eagles in concert in the exact same venue. It will be a great trip down memory lane in a beautiful little city.

10. Give me the top 3 places you’ve visited and why:

1. Prague – this place always seems to have special memories for me even though I’ve only been twice. The last time was in March 2001 so I guess it has changed a bit since then. The first time I went was during an inter-railing trip with friends in 1993. We arrived after being on an overnight sleeper train. As it turns out I was robbed during my sleep and lost all my travellers cheques but thankfully recovered my passport. For some reason (I can’t remember exactly why) but we had to report to the British Embassy. To do this we crossed the Charles Bridge at around 6am in the morning. The place was deserted apart from a model photo shoot taking. There we were 4, tired young travellers crossing an iconic bridge watching a stunning model in a picture perfect setting. I almost forgot about the crime I’d been victim to and feel in love with the magic of Prague.
2. Melbourne – I’ve written a lot about Melbourne, little wonder really – I visit it maybe once or twice a year and love it more and more each time. For such a large city it has quite a concentrated city centre with easy access to all the main attractions (museums, shopping, sporting events – of which there are many). It is also well supported with public transport. There is a definite chic about the place, everyone dresses to impress. It is full of culinary delights to match any appetite. There is also a nearby beach where you can see the wild penguins at St Kilda.
3. Sardinia – full of beautiful beaches and relaxed Italians this was the perfect place that we chose to go on honeymoon. We were also adopted (yes she adopted us) by a dog in Sardinia. How we’d love to be reunited with her.

11. What 5 countries do you want to visit that you haven’t yet been to?:

Wow, 5 has got me thinking. I’ve been to a fair few already so 5 might be a challenge so I’ll try:-

1. Argentina – if for no other reason than that going to the South Pole is on my bucket list and the boats tend to leave from there.
2. New Zealand – I hear so many amazing tales and see the pictures of this place I still can’t believe that I haven’t made it yet. What can I say as a reason to go which hasn’t been said already?
3. Croatia – every time I see the gorgeous pictures of the seaside towns here I can’t help but fall in love. My wife has promised me that we’ll get there soon so I’ll hold her to that 😉
4. The Maldives – with the deep blue waters, wonderful snorkelling venue and the huts over the water I know this is where I want to be.
5. Iceland – I’d love to see the Northern Lights.

12. If you could avoid going anywhere where would it be and why?:

Israel, Russia and Turkey – from speaking to people who’ve been there and the security situations these places currently have little appeal to me at the moment.

13. What are your top 5 travelling items?

1. MacBook Air – otherwise how could I blog? Haha. I moved away from Windows to a Mac last October and haven’t regretted it once. For me it comes across as a lot more reliable and I now seem to be a lot more efficient online. I can also Skype/Facetime home so it saves money whilst travelling too.
2. Kindle – I’m far from the best reader in the world but I think this is an amazing creation. With thousands of books stored I can always find something to read no matter what mood I’m in. Although I tend to dip into reference books and books about blogging more than anything.
3. iPod Touch – what would life be without music?
4. A camera – to capture all those magical moments and places you may never see again.
5. Passport – I don’t want to forget that!

14. Best bit of advice you’ve ever been given:

“Be yourself” – you shouldn’t be anything else nor should you try.

15. Worst advice?

“It is what it is” – I often cringe at American English and this is no exception. I find it to be a relatively useless statement which is said too flippantly by some (not all) people who struggle to add anything meaningful to a discussion.

16. What do you miss most when you’re travelling?

My wife.

NOW FOR THE RANDOM QUESTIONS

17. Hostel, Hotel or other:

Serviced apartments – they give me the full freedom to eat in / out without the excess expense or limited options. Also by being serviced I know cleaning will be looked after if I’m too busy with work to have time to do it myself.

18. Favourite food from another country:

I’m not too sure about my favourite food but I certainly remember my favourite place to eat. In September 2000 I was staying at a beach resort in Langkawi, Malaysia. A short walk away from our resort we came across a little restaurant / bar which was run by a very charismatic lady by the name of Una. I can’t remember exactly what food we ate but it was all amazing. Little wonder we went back almost every night. It was an authentic range of home cooked Malay food but unlike anything I’ve had before or since.

19. Favourite mode of transport (plane, train, bus, tuk tuk etc):

I am TheGuyWhoFlies (on Twitter) after all so I guess I’d have to say plane? I am a big fan of trains though where I feel as though I can travel in comfort.

20.Guilty pleasure?:

Wakefield Trinity Wildcats (they are a rugby league team I’ve supported all my life). I guess that’s not very guilty is it? Yet considering how they are playing at the moment not too many people are proud to be following them. Otherwise I’m totally addicted to the TV show Suits.

21. Best travel app?:

I must admit I’m not big into using smartphones or travel apps. I do actually use TuneRadio a lot on my iPod Touch whilst I’m on the road. It helps me listen to the radio stations I like from home no matter where I am in the world.

22. Favourite travelling soundtrack/What are you listening to at the moment?:

“Come Fly With Me” Frank Sinatra, no, too corny? Okay, we have been listening to a lot of OneRepublic Native over the last year and I guess we’ll continue to do so in the build up to the concert 🙂

23. Favourite travel movie?:

I adore all 3 (so far) of the “Before” series starring Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy. “Before Sunrise” was set in mainland Europe whilst travelling by train, “Before Sunset” was set in Paris. “Before Midnight” was set in Italy. They are all beautifully set in the locations in a subtle way. The personal relationships in the love story is encapsulating and I just find the whole series spellbinding.

24. Favourite travel book?:

I must admit I struggle with this one. As I mentioned before I’m not a big reader, so I guess my own book “A brief introduction to airline frequent flyer schemes” (available on Amazon) – will that do?!

PROMOTE YOURSELF

25. Thanks for taking the time to answer all these questions. Now please take a few lines to tell everyone about your website…

Hi, I have been blogging for more than 2 and a half years on my personal travel blog Flights And Frustration. The website has an emphasis on air travel with lots of flights and airport reviews. I often fly Business Class long haul but have flown every class of air travel – so if you want to know what it is like in First Class you can find it on my site.

I also provide a variety of travel related stories, destination reviews, personal experiences and opinions. There is some “frustration” too as I share a few travel rants and amusing observations.