I was walking along this Thailand beach recently and was distressed at how much litter I gathered up in one short 20-minute walk. Beautiful sand was covered with the detritus of broken bottles, glass, plastic bags and more. I found a plastic bag and had soon filled it with crap. It made me reflect on how much trash we travellers create. In the Maldives, Bluepeace estimates that each traveller produces 3.5 kilograms (7.7 pounds) of rubbish a day. Globally, eight million tonnes of plastic end up in our oceans. That is the same as five grocery…
Why and How I travel – My Manifesto
I have spent all my life traveling distances. The addiction started early with me with my first big journey when I was just a couple of months old. We drove across 2000 miles of Australia. Not many memories of that trip in my mind! I do have good memories of a childhood of trips including Scotland at the age of two (above), Africa from the age of four (far left below), the Middle East when I was six, Hong Kong at seven, London at 14, and Melbourne, Australia when I was 19. Sixty two countries later…
My 380th Qantas flight will be on a 380 – of course!
I am very nerdish about numbers and number patterns. I like that this week will see the 11th day of the 11th month! I have recorded every flight I have ever been on since my first plane trip almost five decades ago. A couple of years ago, I matched the aircraft with my flights. So my 737th flight was on a Southwest 737. Then my 747th was on a Qantas 747 (pics left and below), 757 on a United 757 and so on. Sadly the timing of the 787 roll out did not allow me to…
Three Airlines give points for AirBnB stays
I am a huge AirBNB fan both as guest and host (see below). I have stayed in AirBnBs in seven countries. Whilst there have been some very public battles between AirBNB and several cities, its expansion appears to continue unthwarted. In a study published this year, Skift suggested that ” hotels need not be too overly concerned about the threat of Airbnb on their bottom lines” I think it is significant that airlines are now giving points for AirBnbs booked through their sites. Delta has joined the club this week. Virgin America appears to have…
The Many sides of Malé, tiny capital of the Maldives -with Top recommended sights
When people ask me to describe Malé, the capital city of the Maldives I say “it is like no other place on earth“. Maldives, in fact, means “the islands of Malé’”. It was the King’s Island, the seat of the Maldivian Royal family from (at least) 1117 until 1968 with a couple of interruptions for republics and regencies. The Maldives are made up of 1192 tiny islands with a total land area of 298 sq km sitting in 90,000 square kilometres (35,000 sq mi) of Indian Ocean. Almost 400,000 people live in the country with about one-third (about 130,000) living in…
The disturbing image from the American Airlines Evac
Thanks to the proliferation of cameras, airline emergencies are increasingly being filmed by escaping passengers. Last week, an American Airlines Boeing 767 bound for Miami caught fire on the runway of Chicago’s O’Hare airport while taking off. The pilot aborted the take-off and evacuated everyone on board via emergency chutes as black smoke poured from the aeroplane. Twenty people suffered minor injuries. There is video of the situation inside the cabin: The thing that astounds me is how many passengers are carrying bags off the plane. You can see women with handbags, men with laptops.…
Sri Lankan to the Maldives -4 Marvellous Business Flights
BKK: Bangkok,Thailand to MLE: Malé, Maldives, Via CMB:, Colombo, Sri Lanka (and return) Four flights, Business Class. One A320, a 321 and two A330s While there are a stable of airlines I really enjoy flying, I get a kick from trying a new airline for the first time. We found a very attractive Business Class deal from Sri Lankan airlines from Bangkok to the Maldives which meant I got to ride in my 93rd airline and enjoy a new One World partner. Booking: 8/10 Their website is very easy to navigate and looks very clean…
Flying like a Fijian -tips for all airline passengers, I reckon
A clever way to remind people to behave -including consiering what food you bring on to a plane. I just discovered this fun video from Fiji Airways which engages the Fiji Rugby team to give seven lessons on good flying. Introduced by Fiji Rugby coach Ben Ryan. (Coach since 2013, Ryan took the team to become 2015 Rugby 7 winners. His work resulted in Fiji winning its first ever Gold Medal at the 2016 Summer Olympic Games, for Rugby. Ryan was this year appointed to be Fiji Airways Ambassador. The airline is a sponsor of Fiji…
My Middle Eastern Airlines Dilemma
I am flying from Dubai to Bangkok in December and I am overwhelmed by the sheer number of options for the 5000km/3000 mile flight. There are hundreds of viable Business Class and Economy Class options. If I travel the hour and a half journey by car to Abu Dhabi, there are hundreds more. While only three airlines (FlyDubai, Emirates and Thai) run direct services, they still have ten direct services a day between them. Multiple indirect services go via a whole range of fascinating stopover places! Kazakhstan anyone? So I kept playing and searching. I found in…
The 787 joins the Red Kangaroo
Of the 93 airlines, I have ever flown, one-third of my flights have been with Australian carrier Qantas. I have flown their 747s a total of forty-two times plus 182 of their 737s, multiple 767s and 18 Boeing 717s (although this is really a McDonnell Douglas product). I never flew any Qantas 707s or 727s. [See Comment below] I have been impatiently waiting for their red kangaroo logo to appear on the tail of a 787. In 2012, Qantas canceled 35 Dreamliners and delayed the options they had on 50 more. This week, the airline announced that their…
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