I’ll return to my time working in London today on Working Wednesdays for a brief look at the time I did some research and report compiling for Zopa. I worked for Bite Communications in Ravenscourt in London and I was a Public Relations Assistant. The work was varied and the work was busy. I worked on a number of brands on there, most notably Apple, Sonos, Tiger Beer, Iomega, Yahoo, CPP and…Zopa.
Working Wednesdays: Report Compiling and Research for Zopa
It was my boss Susannah Hardy that got me doing some work on the Zopa account. Zopa is a lending agency (peer to peer, with them as “the middle man”) and they are very high profile and popular in the UK. The ins and outs of the job was basically I’d go into the filing system and go through all the information then get it put into a report format to print for the client. I’d run the entire thing past Susannah first. Before starting any job like this you’ll need to know a bit about the brands and briefing sessions were held. We had a lot of meetings in the PR world when I was at Bite.
As I feature a different job story each week on here, I’d just felt the need to share this one with you today. Of course it won’t blow your mind, and it doesn’t always have to. Sometimes the Working Wednesdays feature is also something I can use and reflect on from my work history. I’ve literally got about 100 more Working Wednesday posts in the pipeline if and when time allows me to write them so I’m ticking this one off. A bit of report compiling and research for Zopa back in 2006 and that was that, a year before this travel blog even started!!
Today I’m packing my bag for my next big trip but will aim to get as much posted as I can while I’m on the move. Don’t get bored – head to my Getting Started page.
Poatina – so remote it’s “not even in the Lonely Planet”
I use the Lonely Planet Guide Booksquite a lot when I travel and I like them. Usually they are correct, mostly they are useful but sometimes they are horrendously wrong and ill-informed. As soon as they go to press they are out of date, as prices go up, bus timetables change, visa regulations change etc. However today I’m going to do a post about 10 places I really enjoyed which weren’t even mentioned in the Lonely Planet – (at least not in the editions I had or at the times I visited). This is the real “lonely planet” guide – places so far off the beaten track, even the Lonely Planet doesn’t know they exist! We start off in lonely Poatina…who on earth goes there?
1. Poatina, Tasmania, AUSTRALIA
I’ll never really know why life took me to the mountain village of Poatina in Tasmania but it did. I lived in my tent up in the mountains back in 2010. At the time I was working on broccoli farms nearby. I can understand why Poatina isn’t in the Lonely Planet, however it’s a cool village that I can say I’ve lived in. Alcohol isn’t allowed or sold anywhere (unusual for Australia), the village offers great views, has decent wildlife (saw deers, wallabies, Tasmanian devils and possums there) and virtually closes down after 5pm.
Relaxing by my tent in Poatina, Tasmania, Australia. Great mountain views!
There’s not even a shop open! The entrance sign to the village reads “the way life was meant to be”, I don’t quite buy this definition but it’s worth checking out. They even have postcards and a communal village barbecue.
The General Store in Poatina. It’s not in the Lonely Planet, but I loved it…
2. Shinying/Sinying/Xinying, TAIWAN
How Shinying has missed out in featuring in the Lonely Planet I’ll never know. It is a massive city and in fact houses some of the government offices for the entire Tainan County (even with former Taiwan capital Tainan in the same county). I visited Shinying in 2009 and used it as my base while bacpackng round the island. My best mate Neil Macey spent a year or so living there. The city has its own train and bus stations and is well connected to other places such as Chiayi, Tainan and Kaohsiung.
Backpacking in Shinying! Where? Some massive city in Taiwan…
Shinying itself has several decent temples, a swan lake, a sugar refinery, a top class night market and a few relaxing parks. It’s a big and busy city. From a personal perspective it has extra meaning for two reasons, the first is that Shinying reignited my spark for travel back in 2009 when I was at a low ebb. The second reason is that the cover photo for my blog Don’t Stop Living was taken there! The picture of me with that globe that you might have seen, well it was taken by my travel buddy Natalja while backpacking in Shinying. Well worth a visit.
At Swan Lake in Shinying, Taiwan. The Lonely Planet missed it out…
3. Santa Ana Alta, COLOMBIA
A paradise in the Colombian mountains, a two hour bus ride north east out of Bogota, Santa Ana Alta was my home for a few days. A great farming area with sparse fields, great views, countryside walks, wildlife, nature and away from the madness of the big city. Travel bliss. I stayed with my mate Julio on his farm here and loved it!
Santa Ana Alta, Colombia. Even too Lonely for the Lonely Planet. Loved the relaxation of the countryside here!
4. Danxiashan, Guangdong Province, CHINA
I could list over 20 Chinese towns and villages I’ve visited that the Lonely Planet doesn’t even cover. That’s kind of obvious though, as China is the world’s most populated country and you can’t quite cover it all. Of the places that aren’t in the Lonely Planet, I’d say the World Heritage Site at Danxiashan was the most remarkable. A National Park with rivers, mountains and odd rock formations that has endless outdoor activites, hikes and remoteness. Foreigners don’t really go here. In fact my reports on it on this blog are probably the most informative stories you can get on Danxiashan in English on the internet (happy to be proved wrong by the way!). Interestingly there are sexual parts rocks – A Vagina Rock and A Penis Rock !
Sunset in the Danxiashan Mountains of China. Just outstanding!
5. Jougla Point, ANTARCTICA
Hidden away shyly and completely overaud by the presence of Port Lockroy, Jougla Point sits un-noticed in Antarctica. I was delighted when I learned on our trip we would be visiting it. It’s part of Wiencke Island which sits along the Antarctic Peninsula. In terms of sightseeing, it offers great penguin and cormorant watching and a nice view over to the British Base of Port Lockroy.
Lonely penguins at lonely Jougla Point in Antarctica on a lonely planet, but not in the book!
6. The Samade Buddha, Kurenegala, SRI LANKA
I was shocked that the Lonely Planet didn’t include this one to be honest. It’s a fantastic Buddha which towers over the town of Kurenegala. OK so Kurenegala isn’t the most picturesque or touristy Sri Lankan town, but it’s still a nice place to go backpacking in. Head up to the Samade Buddha which so obviously overlooks the town and enjoy the views. Take your shoes off and go inside. A Buddha that is really worth seeing!
The Samade Buddha overlooking Kurenegala in Sri Lanka – off the beaten track.
7. Juquitiba, BRAZIL
Juqitiba is a rural area consisting of rainforests, rivers and fields. And while local people live here and refer to it as Juquitiba, the Lonely Planet doesn’t seem to feature it. It’s a great place for outdoor activity. We went white water rafting there and loved it. It’s about 2 hours drive outside of Sao Paulo.
White Water Rafting in Juquitiba in Brazil!
8. Osterweddingen, GERMANY
Life parties away in Osterweddingen in the former East Germany but nobody else notices. I was staying there with my old workmate Rene who grew up in this remote village. I got invited to a local dinner, where Rene’s Dad was hosting a party as part of a local council event. This was just an amazing few days to be honest. I was eating with the family and staying in their house. Commercialism has yet to really influence Osterweddingen, though nearby thriving Magdeberg is your best bet for a big city of Sightseeing. Osterweddingen doesn’t have a train station but can be reached by bus.
In 2007 I ended up in Osterweddingen in Germany. Where?
9. Blandford Forum, ENGLAND
This is a typical English country town, which has been made famous because of the massive army baracks there. While living in nearby Bournemouth, I had a mate who was working in the army camp there and visited the town a few times. The central streets are pretty, there’s a nice church, market stalls and it had England’s first ever 24 hour pub. The Railway Tavern in Blandford Forum was where I enjoyed my first ever legal pint at 4am, back in 2008.
With my friend Gemma at the Railway Hotel in Blandford Forum, a few moons ago…
10. Comber, NORTHERN IRELAND
Comber is where my Mum is from. She was born there and she grew up there. It’s an excellent Northern Irish town which typifies a lot of the country’s appeal. Hard working people, a proud square and a good farming lifestyle make Comber a special place. This is also the birthplace of the man who designed the Titanic! Yes, Thomas Andrews was from Comber. The town is also famous for its very tasty potatoes. I love eating them with butter, you should try them out – Comber Potatoes.
Relaxing in Comber with my Mum and Dad on a rare trip back to my home country of Northern Ireland. This place isn’t in the Lonely Planet!
I could actually go on for a bit longer on great places I have been that don’t feature in the Lonely Planet books, but 10 is a nice number for now. Perhaps I’ll do another post on it at sme point. If you really want to see the world and experience it as a lonely planet, then yes you need to head to places that “aren’t even in the lonely planet”. Safe travels one and all. My videos:
Shinying:
Working Wednesdays – Barman at an Oasis Concert in the BIC, England.
What a dream Working Wednesdays when you find out you’re working at a rock gig of one of your favourite bands! It was 2008 when I finally got free entry to an Oasis gig as I was working on the bar there! Between 1996 and 2008 I had been to 13 Oasis gigs as a paying customer. Then in October 2008 while working completely casually as a bar man in the Bournemouth Pavilion Theatre and the Bournemouth International Centre, I found myself manning the bar pre concert!
My view from the BIC bar the night I got paid to watch Oasis live!
The best thing about working at a concert is that you are automatically inside the venue so free entry is an included work freebie! Now when I started my shift at the Oasis gig in 2008, I was helping set up the bar so I started at 6pm. The gig was due to start at 8pm.
The first two hours of the shift were manic and as you can imagine busy. If you grew up as a teenager in the UK in the 1990s you’ll know and understand the impact that Oasis had on that generation. It was all about going down the pub with your mates, drinking a bit too much and having a good old laugh!
Getting paid to work in the BIC bar in Bournemouth, England.
So the bar was rammed full until the sounds of Hello came on and Oasis hit the stage! Suddenly we had no more customers on the bar as everyone was inside watching the gig. It was now “toilet time” for me – which meant going inside and watching them. With my fellow staff on the bar we rotated so each of us could go in and catch a glimpse of the band. Alcohol was offically banned inside the actual hall and our bar was outside. But that didn’t stop customers sneaking drink in.
The busy Foyer Bar (took this at a quiet moment of course) at the BIC for Oasis in 2008.
I knew the door staff well and got inside and jumped and sang away to the Oasis tunes, totally loving it! I managed to even take one video of the band that night (as well of a few clips of working there), which are below, before I was back on the bar serving again when the band finished their set. As the song Champagne Supernova played and I served up the beers, I didn’t quite realise it then, but this would be the last ever Oasis concert I would see. Within a year the band were finished.
The BIC in the distance on my walk down to work the last ever time I saw Oasis live…
Despite working a few more shifts in the Bournemouth International Centre, this also ended up being the last big rock concert I was a barman at! Fitting that. Oasis split up a year later and released a Best Of called Time Flies in 2010. Life would never be the same again. In the intervening years I’ve managed to watch Noel Gallagher live in Hong Kong, as recently as last September. A gig which I have yet to write about.
Noel Gallagher rocking Hong Kong last year…the memories of Oasis!
So one thing to note – if you get a chance to work at a gig – do it! Free entry, you’ll have a great time, listen to some music, get paid and the lucky ones might even meet the band.
Videos from Working on the BIC Bar the night of the Oasis gig:
I backpacked my way from the Czech Republic across Europe once to do the Eiffel Tower. How about a bus from London to Paris? With Wi-fi?
There are a load of different options for travelling between London and Paris these days, all of which have their pros and cons. But increased fuel and taxes makes travelling by car or flying too expensive for lots of people. I wouldn’t even think about flying it to be honest!! Travelling by ferry is an option of course and you may have read that I used to work on those ferries, but there is a considerable journey between London and Dover, Newhaven, Southampton etc. to make, which can be expensive if you take the train or drive, and then the distance from Calais, Dieppe or Cherbourg to Paris is over 150 miles, which takes at least a few hours. Throw traffic issues into the mx and you’re talking a long day of travel…
The view from the top of the Eiffel Tower over Paris.
A cheaper option is to go by bus or coach. Bus fares are far cheaper than train or plane fares and you can now travel from London to Paris with iDBUS for far less than you would ever spend on the crossing, petrol and road tolls or airport taxes. Plus there’s Wi-Fi. I know I alwas go on about enjoying the views etc. but there’s also something cool about new technology and the fact you can use Wi-Fi on the London to Paris bus is great! Remember, I travel with my laptop and keep my blog updated on the move.
I update my travel blog on the move so the Wi Fi option is a real selling point for me. Be good to have a beer alongside me too on the London to Paris bus.
However bus fares can be tricky to negotiate, especially as most companies have variable fares that depend on the date you book – I used to be quite loyal to Megabus in my eary backpacking days. If you are very organised and book several months in advance then you can get some very good prices. But the closer you get to your departure date the more money you will usually pay for your tickets, I say usually, not always the case of course. So if you decide at the last minute to travel, or are self-employed and find that you have a quiet period in your work and want to take a break without losing much business, you can end up paying through the nose for your journey. However, iDBUS does offer set prices for their journeys that do not change which is kind of cool– they are set according to when you want to travel, not when you want to book (you also get a seat free for every three that you book which is a bonus if you’re heading with a few mates!).
Also unlike flying (or getting a ferry) you don’t have to wait in long lines for check-in, and if you include the amount of time you would spend waiting at the airport/ferry terminal to check in and then to collect your luggage you’ll soon realise that a two-hour flight takes more like five hours in the airports and air. The coach will take around eight hours from London to Paris and you will normally only need to arrive about half an hour before departure (they won’t make you stay in the coach station if you check in a bit late…).
Coach travel with a company like iDBUS (who do this London – Paris route I’m talking about) will give you comfort, free Wi-Fi and a few rest stops, plus direct travel from one city centre to another which all amounts to great value for such low fares. And check it out – these are low bus fares which suit student backpackers, people travelling on business, families and elderly people, all of whom have found coach travel to be economical and a comfortable way to travel. None of this chopping and changing and being stuck on a flight. The nice part about travelling by coach is that you can always find people to talk to if you want to, or you can shut yourself away by putting on your headphones or switching on your laptop. Yes – with WiFi of course. Now get me a beer, my laptop and WiFi on a bus and that’s just what I need! Safe travels one and all!
Footnote – Apologies for the lack of photos on this post and a few recently – I’m cursing Apple as they are SHIT company and have stopped me being able to access my photos and they are allegedly repairing my MacBook Pro. I can feel a rant on Apple coming on!!
Today’s working Wednesdays takes me back to the seaside town of Bournemouth in England. It’s a town I spent about 5-6 years in or around. I had a lot of different jobs there, some of which I have already written about (selling ice cream, barman in a hotel). Bournemouth was a really decent base for me. I had a lot of friends there, work was easy to come by, especially bar work, seasonal work and teaching.
Working Wednesdays: Serving Tea and Coffee at Ballroom Dances in Bournemouth Pavilion Theatre, England
I found myself with one of the easiest Tuesday afternoon jobs of all time. For about 16 months (late 2007 – early 2009) I was serving tea and coffee at ballroom dances to pensioners in the Pavilion Theatre in Bournemouth. Hours were easy (1pm – 5pm), pay was basic (about £6 an hour), the job was simple and the time passed by fast. I stood behind a bar inside the elegant ballroom serving tea, coffee and biscuits to pensioners who were dancing. Alcohol and soft drinks were also available, though to be honest 95% of the customers ordered tea or coffee.
The views out to Bournemouth Seafront gardens from the Pavilion Theatre while serving tea and coffee.
The event was run by the Pavilion Theatre itself and was hosted by Mel Douglas, a DJ and host. I ran the bar. He ran the ballroom. He had a helper on the door doing tickets. This was also a job with great views from the window! Out one window by the bar you could see the pretty Bournemouth summer gardens leading down to the seafront. And from the main ballroom windows I had a splendid view over Bournemouth seafront – beach, pier, English Channel etc.
Working Wednesdays: Not a bad view from the office window while serving tea and coffee in Bournemouth!
The job would basically be set up the bar from 1 – 1.30 pm (I was fast at this so this was easy for me – could get by reading a newspaper for most of that, hope you’re reading Red Eventful!). Then start serving some normal drinks. The dancing normally started at 2.15 pm and ran until 3 pm for a short break. 3pm to 3.30 pm would be the busy tea and coffee time. The customers all had a token for a free tea or coffee and biscuits so most of the time I wouldn’t even have to use the till! Then the final bit of dancing from 3.30 to 4.15 pm. Then close the bar, wash the cups and saucers and that was me done! I did this almost every Tuesday for 16 months!!
The WOST company of all time: Red Uneventful Cuisine!! Got to hate them!
Despite loving the job, the deeper truth wasn’t quite so sparkling and glamorous – at the time I was paid by a truly awful company – a horrible company called Red Eventful Cuisine. One of the worst catering companies ever in fact! They run under the disguise of Convex Leisure – a totally awful company. I really wish bankruptcy upon them!!! Just had to name and shame them – and especially two of their former employees – Daniel Hancock and Iain Robertson. Wankers of the highest order!! Good riddance guys!!
Of course this wasn’t my only job at the time so we mustn’t forget it wasn’t high on my priorities in life – just an extra bit of money and chatting to the pensioners really. I ran a football supporters club at the time, done PR work and also did the bars at night and the ferries by day. A while after I quit, the ballroom dances actually stopped, but then I noticed the re-started again and I recognise all my old customers in this photo!
If you enjoyed a tea dance in Bournemouth Pavilion in England in 2007-2009 then it’s possible you were served by me. Thanks for the memories, the travel dream lives on…
Next train to Charing Cross please!! The Day I…Dressed as a frog on the London Underground System.
I spent a year living and working in London, and a fair bit longer travelling there to and fro over the years. It’s a city oozing in passion, but it’s all a bit too “business like” for me. Full of people in suits and briefcases, people with phones that do stuff only computers used to be able to and it’s also full of “wannabes”, but I still love London. For the pubs, the underground system and the mates I made there.
Having a laugh with my work mates in 2006 for a fancy dress party.
When 2006 reached an end it was time for a work fancy dress party so I was in Weymouth a few weeks earlier and saw a discounted frog fancy dress suit for £15 so I bought it. On the last day of work before Christmas I left my house at 7 am dressed as a frog. When I caught the 7.07 am Slade Green to Charing Cross train I certainly raised a few eyebrows. People on the London underground are often way too sensible. Breakfast at Benjy’s in Embankment attracted odd looks then I boarded my District Line train to Ravi C P – Ravenscourt Park. I worked in Public Relations for a cool company (highly recommend them, both client wise and to work for) called Bite Communications. Ben White at work agreed it would be a fancy dress day at work.
At my office desk as a PR rep while dressed as a frog. London, England – 2006.
I got into work before 9am and worked the entire day at my office desk dressed as a frog. Nothing spectacular there. After work drinks in the Raven pub at Stamford Brook and again more attention just because I was dressed as a frog. All day I was proof that image and perception is a load of balls – you phoned me and spoke to me that day at work and there was me, sat sipping an Earl Grey tea while dressed as a frog. After the Raven it was Chinese karaoke, then time for my double train trip home.
Normal day in the office: Jonny Blair working in PR in London dressed as a frog
I actually lived in Kent at the time (Dartford) and had a bit of a commute to work and back. I had a quick beer at Embankment while dressed as a frog. People didn’t even find it that funny. Believe me it was. A frog walking into a pub and ordering a beer while wearing a frog head on his head will ALWAYS be funny.
With Ben White on his last day in Bite UK in the office in Ravenscourt Park, London.
On the way home on the Charing Cross to Slade Green train, I started talking and having a really sensible conversation with an Indian guy in a suit. He was wearing a suit. I was dressed as a frog. We got on quite well. When the train stopped at Slade Green station, I got off, walked home dressed as a frog and that was that.
In the Raven pub at Stamford Brook that night – diving on top of my workmates while dressed as a frog.
You might not find it funny at all. That doesn’t bother me. Some people found it hilarious. I LOVE it when people break out of the norm. I’d encourage you all to do the same. Apart from going naked in Antarctica and dressing as a pint of Guinness, I haven’t quite reached those heights since. “You’ll never change what’s been and gone”.
I found this link funny, which came up first on a search for office people dressed as a frog. I hasten to add that even Super Mario had a bit of sense…
And by the way if you have followed my blog Don’t Stop Living since day 1 (in August 2007), yes this story is a bit of a repeat, as it first appeared here: Jonny Blair as a frog.
But for my new readers and for my latest series of The Day I… it just had to be re-written about. Even the Beatles remastered their old songs 😉
Never underestimate the amount of FREE sightseeing you can do. Did you know that there are FREE museums all over the place, you just need to do your research beforehand. I used to go to museums a lot more than I do now, so these days I basically only go to FREE museums unless I have a major interest in a museum that you have to pay into. So my tips for visiting museums are a simple 3 step plan:
1. Every time you visit a new town or city, do a search for what museums there are there.
2. Find out which ones are free museums to visit.
3. Visit the free museums.
You might want to know exactly what museums are FREE, but this is always changing so follow the three step guide and you’ll find them. I’m just giving you a top 5 free museums from my travels, there are tons and tons more…
1. The British Museum, London, England
The UK, and London in particular is a good place for FREE museums. A lot of the funding comes from the government and the National Trust and to this day the British Museum is still free of charge. Voluntary donations are welcomed. British Museum.
FREE Museums: London in England has a load of free museums…
2. The Durban Natural Science Museum, Durban, South Africa
I loved the Durban Natural Science Museum in South Africa, not only because it was FREE but because the building itself looks like the City Hall in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Photo opportunities aside, it’s an excellent museum and totally free.
FREE Museums: My message signing the book in the Durban Natural Science Museum.
3. Te Papa Museum, Wellington, New Zealand
You could lose yourself for a full day in this smashing free museum in the New Zealand capital. I couldn’t make it to all the floors but took in my fair share of Maori and NZ history when I visited back in 2010. Te Papa Museum.
FREE Museums: The Te Papa Museum in Wellington New Zealand is excellent.
4. Australian War Memorial, Canberra, Australia
This is probably my favourite of the free museums. I loved Canberra in Australia and almost ALL the museums there are free to enter, including the fantastic War Memorial. It’s just incredible. It covers every major war in the world and doesn’t even just focus on Australian soldiers. We ended up spending hours walking round. I left a donation, bit it’s free.
FREE Museums: At the Australian War Memorial Museum in Canberra, Australia.
5. Zhejiang Provincial Museum, Hangzhou, China
In and around the West Lake of Hangzhou, all museums are free entry. Despite being mostly in Chinese, I still loved the idea of a free museum on an island on a lake, so in we went!
FREE Museums: Inside the Zhejiang Provincial Museum in Hangzhou, China. FREE.
On a final note guys, I really had to limit this post down to just 5 museums. If I wanted to count them, I’d estimate I’ve been to over 100 museums on my travels, of which about 30 were free entry, so please keep your eyes peeled for FREE museums on your travels. That’s today’s Monday’s Money Saving Tips.
You’re Getting Off at Ravi C P for Bite Communications
I had been working there since July the previous year. A busy job but I loved it by all accounts. On my last day of working there, I was given a list of “dares” to do, by my manager Jonathan Hopkins. Nobody in the history of the company Bite Communications had ever done all the dares. So as soon as I was given the task, I had to do them and I knew I would do them, and more. The night before had been my farewell drinks party in London, and the following day I would start my backpacking adventure by flying to Toronto in Canada. I was buzzing and got into work early for a coffee and to read my e-mails, do a Media Report for Apple and try to get everything cleared up and ready for leaving the job behind. I wanted to be as professional as I could on my last day, work wise, but I also wanted to give everyone and laugh and not be forgotten too easily.
Working at Bite Communications, 2006
So the dares were:
1. E-mail the whole company saying you are going for a poo (I even sent this e-mail to EVERYONE in Bite globally).
2. Do a cockney impression over the phone tannoy system.
3. E-mail round your top 5 (girls from Bite who you’d allow to “have a bite”).
4. E-mail Cat the HR resources manager saying you fancy her.
5. Run around the office for no reason, run up the stairs and slide down the hand rail.
6. Go and pretend to take a shower, then run back out in your towel to your desk to get something and go back.
7. Pull a moonie (show your ass) from the boardroom to the whole company through the office window.
8. Ask a fellow member of staff to waltz through the office.
Last day tasks at BiteLast day tasks at Bite
The highlight for me was pulling a moonie, i.e. getting my ass out in front of the whole company. Please try to envisage this. I did it from the boardroom, while there was a meeting on in there between 2 directors and some Senior Account Executives. I pulled my pants down and mooned against the glass window to the whole company. I kept my ass there for about a minute. My colleague Graham Day takes the credit for the photo which appears on here. You also need to remember that Bite is an excellent, all hands on deck, boundless limits PR agency. We were cool and we were quirky, but we were also damn hard working and cared about the brands. For one minute, all those on conference calls, all those sending important emails, all those scanning, printing, answering phones were sat at their Friday afternoon desks staring at my ass. They didn’t have to. They could have just got on with their work.
An e-mail from a colleague who shall remain anonymous has had me inspired ever since. Kind words, thank you, my friend.
And that was that, within a few hours I had been given an inspiring farewell speech which was totally unexpected. I had handed in my notice a month beforehand and everyone knew I was travelling the world before moving back to Bournemouth to finish my degree. I was emotional the moment I walked out of Bite that day and I still love my time there and the people I met. After leaving, I received a wonderful e-mail from a colleague (I’ve attached the email above) and they will remain anonymous, but I have been inspired by this e-mail ever since. It said that I put a lot into life and not to lose that passion. I broke down in tears as I planned my next adventure. I’m pretty sure that I could work for Bite again if I really wanted to. But you know what, I do my own PR now, I get out and see the world and tell everyone about it. That for me is why it seems appropriate that this was my final fling with office work…
Days later I was whackpacking round the world. I had left the office world of London far behind!
The next day I boarded a plane to Toronto, met two fellow travel bloggers, started my travel blog and haven’t looked back since. Yes, I enjoyed working for Bite Communications and showing my bum, but who wants to spend their life sitting in front of a computer in an office making phonecalls and replying to e-mails?? Certainly not me, In the intervening years, I managed to visit all seven continents, work in over 20 different jobs and I’m now up to over 110 countries on my journeys round the world. Stay safe and happy my Bite colleagues, but don’t work too hard. Nobody asked you to…
For the record, the PR office of Bite wasn’t the only place I got my bum out, you may have read my naked Antarctica story, my mate also caught me on the act while backpacking through Prague…
Baring my bum in Prague…I no longer work at Bite Communications
quite a lot when I travel and I like them. Usually they are correct, mostly they are useful but sometimes they are horrendously wrong and ill-informed. As soon as they go to press they are out of date, as prices go up, bus timetables change, visa regulations change etc. However today I’m going to do a post about 10 places I really enjoyed which weren’t even mentioned in the Lonely Planet – (at least not in the editions I had or at the times I visited). This is the real “lonely planet” guide – places so far off the beaten track, even the Lonely Planet doesn’t know they exist! We start off in lonely Poatina…who on earth goes there?
