In the 2009 movie “Up in the Air”, George Clooney fantasises about the time, he will hit ten million miles. When it finally happens and the airline hands him his rare ten million miler club card, he is lost for words. I have just reached “Lifetime Gold” with Qantas after 20 years in their Frequent Flyer Program. This means I get all of the Gold-level perks including: 75% bonus on points Business Class check-in Greater checked baggage allowances (which I rarely use) Airport lounge access, and better access to upgrades For the rest of my life…
Laughing through the new British Airways Safety Video -for a good cause
Just watched the new British Airways safety video which will be rolled out onto their aircraft on September 1st, 2017. This safety video was produced in collaboration with Comic Relief, who are a major charity based in the UK, with a vision of a just world, free from poverty. Ten British celebrities are depicted auditioning for a coveted part in the new BA safety video in front of comedian Asim Chaudhry character Chabuddy G. There are eight sketches advertising the safety features and procedures on the aircraft. It starts with Chiwetel Ejiofor, who was nominated for…
Idiot Abroad: UK man in Thailand becomes vandal
When you are on holidays in a strange and exotic country, what do you enjoy doing? Shopping? Seeing the sites? Trying new foods? Visiting Religious buildings? What about graffiti-ing? A 38-year-old man from the UK decided that the Chiang Mai Railway station in Northern Thailand needed some new artwork so chose to get a spray can out and began to draw graffiti across the wall. On top of the stupidity of this, he did it on a weekday morning (Thursday, July 13) at 9 am in broad light. His actions were naturally observed by Thai railway…
Australia to Asia Comparing Eight Airlines
Over the last four years, I have averaged a trip from Australia to Thailand every two months. In that time, I have flown nine different airlines on about sixty flights between multiple Australian cities and Bangkok. Some have been direct and others have required transiting at various hubs across Asia. Overall Verdict for these flights Emirates has been the best airline, overall. I scored both my Economy and Business flights an average of: 100% on this routing. This has been my experience with Emirates on other routes. With Qatar slightly ahead, they are leagues ahead of…
How Big is that Island? The World’s Top 25 islands mapped.
I love gazing at maps. This map of the world’s 25 largest island nations and territories hooked me in. Seeing the actual sizes to scale makes you realise how big some island groupings are. Take Indonesia, for example. It is eight times bigger than New Zealand! The difference in size between the UK, home to 65 million and NZ, home to 4.5million, is not that much different. That tiny smudge on the north of most maps is Greenland, and yet it is about one-third the size of Australia! I have been to 12 of the top 25.…
Tragic Jet Blast Death at popular St Maarten viewing spot
We have all seen those videos of the planes flying low into St Maarten airport. They come just metres over people sunbaking on the beach. Across the road from the beach is the airport fence which has a barrier in front of it and signs warning people not to stand there: These signs are regularly ignored, it seems by tourists. Some are drunk and some are sober as they stand on the road clinging to the fence as the jet exhausts blow them down. Have a look at this video from 2 minutes 33 seconds on: Tragically, last…
The Ann Coulter-Delta Twitter War: Weird Over Reaction
Let me declare, I love my emergency exit seats. So does Ann Coulter, apparently. When sitting in Economy in the USA with their stressful security procedures, awful airports and scrappy airline catering, the exit row seat seems the last luxury left! A luxury, Ann didn’t want to forgo when Delta moved her from her chosen Seat 15D on their flight 2852 from New York La Guardia Airport to West Palm Beach, Florida. In the picture below it is the seat on the right of the aisle, on the aisle: The airline says the move was “inadvertent” while “working…
My awful hotel evening – felt like I was with Basil Fawlty
In the hilarious 1970s English TV series Fawlty Towers, the owner Basil Fawlty bumbles from one mistake to another. The mistakes usually result in very unhappy guests (and these days rude TripAdvisor reviews!). It’s side-splitting stuff-on TV. In real life, it is another matter. At a guesthouse I stayed at, the owners were a husband and wife couple. Check in was handled by the wife and went very smoothly. My room was in order and I was given good advice on where I could have dinner. Then I met the owner. He decided within minutes…
Drastic fines for Plastic bags as Kenya tries to get rid of them
In 2008, plastic bags were banned in Rwanda. The ban has seen their use plummet despite a vigorous plastic bag smuggling trade, Soldiers search cars to locate plastic bags at the country’s border crossings. Now Kenya is about to do the same with a two million Kenya shilling ($us19,200) fine for distributors and manufacturers of plastic bags. Or a jail term of four years. They will also begin policing borders for plastic bags in a year’s time. This is the third time Kenya has tried this. They attempted and failed bans in 2007 and 2011.…
Hack that Trip – keeping fit on Business Travel
I was sitting next to a man who was travelling 13 hours by plane for a two-hour meeting and then back again- in the same week! We talked about the loneliness and hectic craziness that results from such a rough schedule. He admitted to eating most of his meals in his hotel room. We reflected on how many business people put on weight and feel unhealthy. Some thoughts on hacking our trips: Be clear on our travel goals- why are you travelling to your destination? Evaluate whether you are meeting those goals – was the trip really worth…
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