A Liebster Award

The other day (well a week or 2 ago, then work got manic), I found out that I’d been nominated for a Liebster award!  This is something that I hadn’t heard of before and so I’ve looked it up and read about other nominations across the web!  It is given to bloggers by other bloggers and seems to be a way of telling someone else that you enjoy their blog!  I certainly appreciated Molly including me on her list of awards (especially since she gave me the final push to sort out my own blog page)!

And so quoting Molly: the rules of accepting the award are simple: post 11 facts about yourself, answer the questions set by the blogger who nominated you and then nominate your own favourites before setting them questions and letting them know they are nominated for the award.

So, following the script here are 11 facts about me…

1. I’m an accountant
2. I love sailing and cycling, they are my favourite sports but I haven’t done enough of either recently
3. I hadn’t been on an aeroplane until I was 20, in fact until I was 20 I don’t think I had been further from the UK than France!
4. I hate snakes and bananas in equal quantities
5. I have a lactose intolerance
6. I’m an only child and so is my husband
7. I have collected 8 www.comparethemarket.com meerkats – ridiculous I know, I see it as my pension fund!
8. My favourite places are in fact Cornwall and the north coast of Norfolk – as much as I see the world, I like what I know and I know what I like
9. I hate going under water and as a result will not jump into a swimming pool
10. I am terrible at packing a suitcase – roll-on luggage only terrifies me for this reason
11. My favourite tipple is champagne (or any good quality brand of sparkling really) and I particularly enjoy ‘a’ glass in the lounge at the start of any trip away

And the responses to Molly’s questions:

What is your favourite means of travelling – plane, car, train, etc?

I love flying (especially at the front in comfort) – I am fascinated by it (despite ‘getting’ it through my physics A-level) and love sitting with my nose on the window pane enjoying the clouds.  One of my husband’s best friends used to be the training captain for much of the BA fleet and I always have a little list of plane questions ready for him each time we see him!

Is there anywhere in the world that you wouldn’t go?

I don’t think I would go on a safari again.  Much as I enjoyed seeing the wild animals on game drives, coming across a green mamba on our decking just as we wanted to leave our remote camp on honeymoon isn’t up there with one of my best memories!  Nor is seeing it punch its head through the thatch on our cottage when it was angered by a cat that was trying to chase it away.  Thankfully this ‘meeting’ was right at the end of our stay…

Name the first five tracks on your road trip playlist.

The top ones currently are:

Get Lucky – Daft Punk

Don’t you worry child – Swedish house mafia

If you wanna – the vaccines

One day like this – elbow

Mr blue sky

Rucksack or suitcase?

Either, so long as I don’t have to backpack!  I’ve done all of my Duke of Edinburgh’s awards and so I’ve spent enough time with a backpack and no home comforts!

Where was the first foreign country that you travelled to?

France – as a child if we weren’t spending the summer in Norfolk or Cornwall (or Dartmouth for Whitsun) then we’d be staying under Canvas somewhere in Brittany or Normandy.

What’s the most adventurous thing that you’ve eaten abroad?

In a French supermarket I remember wandering around aimlessly with my Dad while my Mum did the proper shopping.  At the charcuterie counter they were giving away little slices of sausage.  To this day I do not know how neither of us were sick, it was raw and had the most disgusting texture.  I still remember it to this day and it must have been at least 20 years ago!  I think on the same holiday I ate my first langoustine – there we tears for this, I wasn’t expecting prawns to arrive in their shells!! It was all a bit real, but we battled on an now I am a big fan

Where are you travelling to next?

In 30 days we are off to Northern Ireland for 4 nights.  We are heading over for the Clipper Race homecoming festival which my husband used to be involved in.  Derry-Londonderry was his contract and stopover and so he’s heading back to see good friends and introduce me to the craik!  We’ve also got a couple of nights self-catering in Donegal which looks like a stunning spot for walks and pub lunching.  After that we have some yachting in Sardinia in September and a week in the Peloponnese in October

Name one book that’s really had an impact on you, and say why.

I always have my nose in a book, but I read too quickly for books to have much of an impact on me apart from make me cry!  My favourites are Arthur Ransome’s Swallows and Amazons collection – I could still pick one of those up any day and love it as much as the first time I read it!

What’s your favourite movie?

I have always loved the Sound of Music!  I don’t watch much TV or film so I don’t really have many favourites!  I did particularly enjoy watching Little Fockers the week after we met Ben Stiller in the airport lounge though!

Are you a morning person or a night owll?

Morning always – I hate the dark and I am way to fond of an early night with my book, so can’t risk foregoing that by getting up late!

What would be your ultimate, dream destination?

I would really like to try out the Maldives, and I’ve suggested my husband arrange this for my 40^th.  But in terms of our bucket list of places to visit – San Francisco, Bequia, Epernay and Namibia.

And so onto the blogs that I’m nominating – these are just a few that I enjoy reading and looking out for a new story on twitter, there are so many more but this is a very good place to start 🙂 (I’ve another list on my blog page too which includes some of the very established ones)

• Ashley from asoutherngypsy.com
• Adelina from packmeto.com
• Lina and Dave from divergenttravelers.com
• Lucy from lucydodsworth.com
• whywasteannualleave (indeed)

My questions for those bloggers:

1. Self catering or hotel?
2. Hot or cold weather?
3. Of the places you have been so far, which is your favourite and why
4. Do you plan a trip in absolute detail or wing it and see where the wind takes you
5. It is a minefield choosing accommodation – what is your secret
6. Where have you been that you really didn’t enjoy
7. What are the top places on your bucket list
8. Prefer a stay-cation or a vay-cation
9. Buy local trinkets or take photos?
10. Do you use social media when you are on holiday or switch it off and relax
11. Your worst holiday/travel story ever

Thanks again Molly!