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– What is the most impressive place in the world you have ever been? What advice would you give to someone who wishes to travel there?

It’s hard to say, for natural beauty I would have to say New Zealand. People who love the great outdoors and especially those you love hiking will LOVE New Zealand. New Zealand has a bunch of amazing multi day hikes called the great walks and they are really well set up. There are huts all along the track and they usually have running water and gas stoves for cooking. My tip for people wanted to travel to New Zealand for hiking is to bring all your gear with you, because outdoor equipment in New Zealand is very expensive when compared to North America for example.

In terms of impressive culture, I would have to say Angkor Wat in Cambodia. This ancient temple complex is HUGE…absolutely massive. And I had not even heard about it until just before my trip. Everyone hears about the pyramids, but I think this is just as impressive… if not more so. I actually wrote a blog post about tips for visiting Angkor – all based on the mistakes that I made 🙂

– What do you hate to forget in your suitcase?

I always forget a towel. I usually remember it for longer trips, but when I am just packing for a weekend or a week or two, I somehow ALWAYS forget to pack a towel. I don’t know why since a towel is a pretty important thing to have with you! Now my husband is on towel duty when ever we are going somewhere, to make sure we have at least one with us!

– What would you say to those travellers who are afraid to travel on their own, and end up going to a travel agency even if they do not like taking part in organized tours?

I used to be weary of travelling alone. I had always travelled with friends or boyfriends, and whenever I did travel alone it was when I was moving to a new country so I wasn’t constantly on the move. My first proper solo backpacking trip was a 6 week trip around the Pacific Islands. I actually found it really easy to meet people, and I found that I was more open to chatting to new people since I wasn’t in a “group” already.

I still do prefer to travel with someone else (means I don’t have to have all the planning responsibility!), but for sometime if you don’t just go and do it alone, you will never do it.

– What kind of food have you tried on your travels and you found it delicious/surprising? Can you recommend us any place where to try it out?

I really loved laap when travelling in Laos. I found it surprising because unlike other foods in South East Asia, it is not spicy at all! Laap was traditionally a raw meat salad, but now it is usually cooked. It is actually really refreshing and has a nice balance between two main herbs – mint and coriander. I prefer to get the chicken laap, which of course is always served cooked cause otherwise that would be dangerous – and I have already had to deal with Salmonella poisoning once while in South East Asia!

– Finally, tell us something that happened to you travelling and that you will never forget…

One of my most amazing travel experiences happening when I was travelling through Serbia and Hungary. I was travelling with two friends, but they both had to leave the trip early. But I didn’t want to cut my trip short, so I continued on without them. At one point I was taking a train from the south of Hungary to the town where the airport was located. It was a long journey, and overnight. It was also the middle of winter. Well my train ended up getting delayed, so I missed my connection and ended up stranded in a small town station somewhere in Hungary. The waiting room was closed so I settled in to sleep outside even though there was snow on the ground. Eventually some people came up and tried to talk to me but we didn’t have a common language. Eventually one man came back with a cell phone and the man on the other line told me that this guy was his father and he was a train driver. I explained my predicament and the guy decided to take matters into his own hands, led me across the tracks to a train engine not connected to any cars, and actually drove me himself!! If it wasn’t for him I would definitely have missed my flight!

Thank you very much Jade Johnston for your time and expert tips. If you want to know more about the blog here you have a description: OurOyster.com is the blog of travelling expat Canadian Jade Johnston. She has travelled to more than 30 countries and now lives in Australia with her husband. She plans to explore every inch of Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands before moving on to conquer more of Asia. She blogs about adventure travel, budget travel, and soon to be family travel as well.

You can also, follow her on Twitter: @our_oyster and Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ouroyster