Gary Moore

1. When did you go on your RTW trip?
   November 2001-November 2002

2. How old were you when you took this trip?
   29

3. Including your air ticket and other expenses (from accommodation to souvenir-buying), about how much did your trip cost?
   £4,500-ish

4. Nationality
   England

5. Where do you live now?
   Cambridge, England

6. Occupation
   
   Before your trip: Graphic Designer/DJ
   
   Now: Graphic Designer/DJ
   

   How did your travels affect your career when you got back?
   It didn't! I can freelance with my job

   What is the route you took/places you visited?
   Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Australia.

   Why did you decide to take this trip? What got you into this type of travel, and/or influenced you to go?
   It had been on my mind for sometime, lots of my friends had travelled and done various seasons here and there in France etc, they all used to talk about the cool adventures, that gave me the idea, I was pretty bored with my job and needed some kind of adveture in my life so decided to take the plunge, my friend made me ring everyone up and tell them that I was "doing the off," that way if I didn't go I'd end up looking really silly! (nice one Damo!) best thing I ever done. :0)

   Out of all your experiences traveling around the world, what was the:
   

   • Best Moment
     Getting out of the UK!

   • Worst Moment
     Coming home!

   • Biggest Hurdle, Obstacle or Difficulty?
     Making the decision to go.

   • Biggest surprise?
     How easy it was

   Who is the most memorable person you met on your trip and why?
   I have so many memorable new friends from my travelling, I think it would be rude of me to name anyone... you know who you are!

   How much planning and preparing did you do?
   Winged it a lot

   What was your favorite piece of gear?
   A very small torch that my Dad gave me, came in very useful in Thailand whilst trying to find my way up the rock face every night to get to my wooden hut!

   What did you bring, that in hindsight you could've left at home?
   Half my ruksack! I dumped most of it in Thailand. There must be some Thai guy kicking about with a top pair of old skool trainers on somewhere!

   How did your round-the-world trip change your life? How did it affect and change you as a person?
   It made me a happier person and a lot more chilled out and not to take things like health for granted, it also made me realise that there is a lot more to life than the 9-5 rat race and the flash cars/big house blah blah blah. You only have one short life so it's a good idea to get out there and do something with it!

   If you had to sum up your round-the-world trip in one sentence, what would it be?
   Go with the flow, don't plan everything, try to keep things open.

   Are you planning more trips and travels for the future? Are you planning another round-the-world trip?
   Well, I've just sold up and will be heading over to Europe for a couple of months (not sure where yet), after that I'm going to Whistler/Canada for a season for some snowboarding frolics and DJing, after that who knows! I have a few ideas in the pipeline but nothing set in stone.

   Why do you think people should go on round-the-world trips? Why not just take a regular old one- or two-week vacation instead?
   You don't see enough of anywhere on a package holiday, I don't think two/three weeks is enough time to be honest.

   What is the most valuable thing you learned?
   A big fat smile and being polite goes a long way.

   What is the biggest myth that people have about round-the-world traveling?
   Worrying about not meeting anyone. There are tons of people out there doing the same thing as you...no worries!

   Why do you like to travel?
   For adventure/meeting people/fun and just like living my life.

   What is your advice for people planning their own RTW trip?
   Errr go ahead and do it, keep an open mind and get off the beaten track! It might not be everyone's cuppa tea but if you don't try it you will never know.