I don’t often admit this but…
I absolutely love airplane food … I even celebrate it with my own little ritual.
On my RTW trip I spent longer than expected in...
Koh Tao.This island off the east coast of Thailand was my first destination on my South East Asia trip. I originally only wanted to stay 4-5 days to do my open water diving license but ended up having to force myself to leave after 10 days.
Which place exceeded your expectations on your travels and why?
Angkor Wat, Cambodia. The ruins of all these temples in the forest are simply breath taking and you are literally allowed to wander all over the place and truly go exploring.
What are your top 5 must-pack items?
Camera, iPod, pen and diary, a pocket knife, a second credit card for emergencies
When staying in a hotel room for more than one night do you a) unpack your bags or b) live from your rucksack?
Live from my rucksack. I am horrible at packing so once I've managed to squeeze everything in my rucksack I try to avoid having to go through that packing process as much as possible.
If you could live anywhere else in the world, where would it be and why?
Close to a beach with actual sand (nothing against Brighton beach here…) and warmer weather… maybe Sydney again?!
Top 3 places?
Fraser Island, Australia. Milford Sound, New Zealand. Perhentian Islands, Malaysia.
Which is your favourite beach, where is it and why?
Golden Bay, South Island, New Zealand. Hire a kayak for the day!
Where/what would you really like to visit?
The salt lake/flats (Salar de Uyuni) in Bolivia. I just can’t make up my mind on whether I would rather see them in the rainy or the dry season…
What is the weirdest thing you have eaten whilst abroad?
Barbequed chicken hearts in Phuket, Thailand.
What's the best/worst thing you've eaten on your travels?
Bánh mì – the Baguettes in Vietnam. I think I literally lived off those for weeks.
What’s the best party you have been to whilst travelling?
A spontaneous beach party on the Perhentian Islands, Malaysia. Me and some people from my hostel wanted to have a few drinks at one of the two ‘bars’ at the beach (people serving drinks out of cooling boxes and you being seated on big cushions) but it soon started raining heavily so all of the approx. 50 people with the same plan as us took shelter at a small hut. A few minutes later some locals brought a stereo and a few more of these ‘bar-cooling-boxes’ and 30 minutes later we were all dancing in the rain around the hut.
What do you miss most from home whilst you are away?
Bread. Proper bread (this might be a German thing though)
What was your first great travel experience?
New York and the east coast of the States. I was 14 visiting my uncle for the summer school holidays and for me it was the first time travelling ‘alone’ without my parents and siblings.
Where is the most depressing place you've found yourself?
The Laos-Thailand Mekong border crossing. Literally being trapped between the two countries in a heavy monsoon rain with no boats being allowed to cross for what seemed an eternity and no shelter after just having survived a 12 hour boat ride on a speed boat (big canoe with a self-attached engine, cramped in between 8 others, speeding down the Mekong with 70kmh).
If you had just 24 hours in a big city which one would it be?
Sydney in the summer and New York in the winter.
