First of all, for those of you that don’t know what a Liebster Award is – it’s an award given to bloggers by fellow bloggers. Sara from Big World, Small Me nominated me for this award, so a big thank you to Sara! A little bit about the lovely Sara, she’s a Kiwi and a regular contributor to our monthly travel link up. I love reading about Sara’s adventures in London and overseas; and can’t wait to see all the upcoming posts about her wedding and honeymoon. Reading her blog post about her afternoon at Buckingham Palace for the Garden Party bought back some happy memories of my own Garden Party adventure with the Queen.
So a little about the rules:
Thank the person who nominated you and link back to their blog
Answer the 10 questions which are given to you by the nominator
Nominate some other blogs you love for the award and let them know about it
Create 10 questions for them to answer.
What is your favourite place in the whole world?
It’s a hard one, so I’m going to pick my favourite three countries – New Zealand, Croatia and Syria. New Zealand is beautiful and it’s where I call home; Croatia is like a second home to me as my grandfather was born there and Syria, as it just surprised me at every turn and provided me with my most memorable night’s sleep.
If you had all the money you needed what would your dream trip be?
To have an adventure in every country of the world and discover all the beauty that the world has to offer.
If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be?
After visiting Paris recently I thought to myself, I could really live in this pretty city. Gluten Free Chocolate Eclairs, Shoes and Romance – what more could a girl wish for! And for the record, I ate three of these little beauties!
Who is your travel companion or do you prefer to travel solo?
To be honest, I’m not that fussy when it comes to my travel companion. I do travel a lot with my other half and recently with my little sister Lisa when she was living in the Northern Hemisphere for a few months.
There are trips when I enjoy just travelling by myself as it gives you a real sense of freedom. But then again there are people I know that I will never travel with again and that they are lucky to be alive now!
What is something you never leave at home when travelling?
Easy Peasy – my passport, toothbrush, phone, camera and credit card. I normally forget to pack the memory card for the camera though hence the need for the credit card!
What is your favourite region of the world and why?
The Middle East or as the luxury travel industry is calling it – Arabia. I love the countries in this region; they are so mystical and I get goose bumps whenever I hear the call to prayer.
What do you love about blogging?
Reason No 1 – my memory is pretty appalling so it’s like keeping a travel diary but one that everyone can read. When I was doing my reminiscing post for 2013 I had forgotten that I had travelled to a couple of places during the year including a trip to Disneyland Paris only 2 weeks beforehand! I’m like that fish that constantly forgets from Finding Nemo but I can never remember his name, typical!
Reason No 2 – the friends that you get to meet. They say that there are two times in your life when you gain the most friends – when you start school and when you have children. I’m going to add a third – it’s when you start writing a blog! I have met some amazing women (where are all the men?!?) during my time blogging and a number of these lovely ladies join our monthly travel link up including Sara.
What is your ‘day job’ or is blogging your full time gig?
I have a day job as a Finance Manager which is pretty stressful and I work some pretty horrendous hours but the joy is that it makes me more grateful for every holiday that I go on. Blogging and a full time job is a juggling act as many bloggers will understand.
How far in advance do you book your trips?
On my recent trip to Krakow with my sister, I organised my flight and accommodation 5 days before the trip but normally its at least 6 weeks plus so that we can get some cheaper airfares. I’m not that good at planning at the moment (mainly due to that busy job).
What are your tips for saving money for travelling?
Stop buying shoes!
And if you can trust yourself with a credit card, apply for one that links up to travel loyalty programmes like British Airways or IHG and use the credit card like a debit card to get as many points as possible from all your spending which will then transfer over to free accommodation and flights. Just remember to make sure you pay the outstanding balance off each month!
I would recommend checking out the British Airways American Express card which offers a 2 for 1 companion ticket (you need to pay for the flight using Avios points and then pay taxes on top) – we have enough points to fly to Hong Kong in First Class with the voucher and it will only cost us the taxes! As they say – Bring it on!! (If you are going to apply for one, send me an email as we have a code that will give you some additional Avois points)
My Nominations
Sammy from To The Days Like This – I love Sammy’s blog and her posts put a smile on my dial – a little Australian ray of sunshine in England.
Rebecca from Runaway Kiwi – I love Rebecca’s blog as it’s just so quirky and she gets points for having the strongest Kiwi accent heard in London – love love love her!
Kara from Pen plus Passport – I love Kara and her thirst for adventure. I have to nominate Kara as her posts on the Balkans make me want to jump on the next available plane and if you are looking for a reading list for the Balkans then this is the girl to talk too!
Sam from Globetrotter Postcards – I love Sam’s blog and it’s a great blog to follow if you have just arrived to London as Sam gives you some fabulous tips including great places to eat, drink and discover!
My questions to you!
What’s your best tip for exploring London?
What is the one souvenir you always pick up on all your travels?
If you could travel with one person – who would it be and why?
What’s the one destination you would return too every year if you could?
What’s your favourite city break destination so far in Europe?
How many pairs of shoes do you take on your travels with you? (Just checking if I travel too light when it comes to shoes)
What’s your most embarrassing travel story?
As you lovely ladies are all expats; what’s the one thing that every traveller should buy before leaving your home country?
If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be?
What’s your favourite thing about blogging?
Come and join me on Twitter, Google+, Instagram and Bloglovin’ – I won’t bite!
xx
