Are you like me and LOVE Indulging in chocolate? I think it is a universal pleasure. Every human on the planet consumes an average of roughly one kilogram of food annually. I know I sample chocolate wherever I travel to! Good chocolate please. With a projected 5.6% increase in chocolate revenue, surpassing even the forecasted growth of the world economy, it’s evident that chocolate holds a significant place in our lives and markets. However, amidst this prosperity lies a stark reality: the plight of cocoa farmers, trapped in cycles of poverty and exploitation. Despite the…
My Musings (Sundays)
Category Archives for My Musings (Sundays).
To the Authorities: Five Steps to Better Travel, Please
I shared last week about my 2023 travel experiences. As we look forward to 2024, there are five things that “those in charge” need to do to make travel markedly better. Treat Your Customers with Respect Too often, passengers are herded bewildered into long lines and then alternately shouted at or ignored. I believe this stress and the points above are helping to contribute to a lack of civility from passengers who push back at staff and each other. Can we send all staff globally to Tokyo Haneda or Singapore Changi Airport (pictured) to watch…
Unveiling the Hidden Truth: Behind the Online Booking Sites
Following my Agoda.com/Booking.com phishing experience described last week, I was keen to understand more about the behemoths I was dealing with. I am one of those travellers who love today’s digitally connected world with its plethora of online booking agencies at my fingertips. I like being able to book your next adventure with a few clicks. Up to now, my experiences have largely been positive. My phishing experience has changed that!What many do not realise is that our online hotel and airfare booking agencies are owned by just a handful of mega-companies. In this blog…
The Tunisair Dilemma: Is the Terrible Rating a Warning or a Challenge?
I am planning my October travels, and I am always game to fly a new airline (surprise!!!). (I have now flown 120 different airlines). I have a group of airlines that are in my top ten and a group in my bottom ten… I may have found a contender for what would be the world’s worst airline if I am game to fly them on a short hop from Europe to Tunis. Their flight time is just over one hour whilst their competitors onky offer indirect flights of five hours plus for three times the…
Al Stewart, Music and Morocco: Time Passages & Year of the Cat
Whilst travelling around Morocco, I kept hearing the music of 1970s British singer-songwriter Al Stewart, known for his thought-provoking lyrics that often weave together historical and literary references with personal experiences. Two of his most popular songs, “Year of the Cat” and “Time Passages,” have become classics of the era and remain popular to this day. Both songs showcase Stewart’s ability to craft intricate, poetic lyrics that tell compelling stories and offer insights into the human experience. “Year of the Cat” is perhaps Stewart’s most famous song. Released in 1976, the song tells the story…
Running My Way through 2022
Last year, I ran and walked 3,879.3 km, about 2,410 miles. This is the equivalent of walking/running from: Madrid to Paris to Istanbul Sydney Circular Quay to Wollongong to Canberra to Adelaide’s Henley Beach to Perth’s City Beach Singapore to Bangkok to Hanoi to Yulan I walked and ran across cities, parks, beaches, forests and mountains. With friends. With family. With strangers. And alone. In 17 countries. Thanks to my walking and running companions. No wonder, I feel tired at the start of 2023!! I had hoped to get to 4,044 km but I fell…
About My Blog: Wild about Travel
Welcome to 2023! I come from a long line of Nomads. My family moved from village to village across England throughout the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries. As soon as humanity invented Steam trains, steamships and motor cars, we used them to travel further afield. Relatives of mine travelled to the Americas (North and South) and India. My great-grandfather joined the Royal Navy and saw service in Brazilian waters. Two of his sons immigrated to Australia and his youngest daughter moved from the south to the north of England. Not something that was done by…
Vanishing Skies: Airlines that collapsed in 2022
It has been a couple of years since I have been focussed on writing about vanishing airlines. The last couple of years have been a bit crazy, haven’t they? The airline industry in 2022 was marred by a mad scramble to get flights back across the world. For passengers, our experiences have been marked by crowded conditions, lost luggage, massive delays and high airfares. In the midst of that, several carriers went bust. Of the airlines, that ceased in 2022, two were ones I was really sad about (Comair/Kalulua). One had an interesting concept and…
A Year for Kindness?
It is 2022….how many acts of kindness did we do in 2021? In this crazy world at this crazy time, kindness does not go astray. This is my challenge for 2022. Stay safe
Travel -after COVID19
In two weeks, I was meant to depart for an around the world trip: Thailand-Egypt-Athens and the Greek Islands- Milan- Malaga- Morocco- New York- Seattle and Spokane- Los Angeles-Taipei-Bangkok-Sydney. All carefully planned from late last year, it was going to be a fun trip that included three bucket list items and a new One World partner Royal Air Maroc. Seeing many of those destinations are now “COVID19 hotspots”, this would now be an insane and impossible trip. Instead, I am grateful that I am safe and healthy and, I’m looking forward to voyaging from MBR…
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