Our People

An unforgettable and epic four week tour of Brazil, travelling 1,500 miles down the coast from the island paradise of Boipeba in the northern state of Bahia, to the southern city of Florianópolis – stopping en-route in Salvador, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Ilha Grande and Celso Ramos. Along with incredible India, Brazil is a country that just pulls me back again and again.

Out for a romantic dinner with my wife in Italy, and she decides to order our meal as she speaks a little Italian. It sounded really good to me, but the waiter responded (in English): “Sorry, we don’t have cannabis toppings on our pizzas”.

One of my most memorable holidays was to Thailand. It’s postcard perfect islands, friendly locals and breath-taking scenery were difficult to beat. We spent several hours searching the night-market stalls in Bangkok for some trinkets to take home but a white-knuckle ride in a motorised (and highly-dangerous) tuk-tuk ended badly as we screeched to halt in front of luxury hotel and our bag of souvenirs flew out and were discarded across the road.

After I left school, I went to work and travel abroad for a year. Part of my travels took me to India, where I took a motorbike over the Rohtang pass, through mountains with views comparable to those in Switzerland!

The road itself is infamous for being one of the ‘most dangerous in the world’ and living up to its name there were some daunting moments as we weaved in and out of locals and their cows whilst trying not to fall over the edge of the cliff.

However, this ride still proved to be one of the most exciting and beautiful experiences of my life and I came back with wonderful memories and quite a bit of sunburn!

In October 2018 my wife and I travelled to Japan for our honeymoon. Whilst in Kyoto, we took part in a traditional tea ceremony which involved wearing the traditional garment (in my case a kimono). A Japanese tea master then took us through the ceremonial preparation and presentation of matcha (green tea). The tea was delicious and certainly packed a punch which after a busy day of sightseeing gave us the energy we needed to enjoy the Kyoto nightlife!

This year I was lucky enough to go away on Honeymoon to Mauritius with my wife, Aisling. We spent one of our days visiting just about every major tourist site on the Island, including the 7 Coloured Geopark (pictured), the Black River Gorges National park, the Sacred Lake of Grand Bassin and most importantly the Chamarel Rum distillery, where we sampled around a dozen types of incredible Rum. Sadly, our honeymoon ended on a sour note as I managed to get a serious bout of food poisoning 30 minutes before our 11.5 hour flight. I now actively avoid all fast food restaurants in airports - lesson learned!

From re-visiting old holiday spots or stomping new territory, I always find a way to appreciate the city and destinations through different eyes every time - never tired of London, New York, or even home grounds in Edinburgh. 

In fact, I fell in love with Amalfi Coast so much that I had to return the same year. From scooting along long windy coastal routes on classic red Vespas, the beautiful views while hiking along the Path of the Gods, floating between mountains and clouds, the incredible dining, and not to forget limoncello under lemon trees - a little paradise on earth. 

Oh, and no matter where you find me on my travels - I'll stick to my Dutch roots riding a bike and can ALWAYS be spotted coffee in hand.

Whilst living in Hong Kong, I was really fortunate to be able to travel all over Asia very easily (and cheaply!). During the Chinese New Year holiday in 2017, I travelled to Myanmar for a once in a lifetime trip. It was truly the most beautiful place I have ever seen! One morning we decided to get up to see the sunrise over the temples in Bagan as it had been highly recommended by our guide who led us up onto the top of one of the ancient temples. Every day at that time, hundreds of hot air balloons take to the skies in Bagan and the resulting view is unbelievable. I’m definitely craving another big trip like this post-Covid!

Before we were married, my wife and I spent four amazing weeks touring Chile. One of the greatest experiences of the trip combined our love of travel and the great outdoors – a five day circular trek of the Torres Del Paine National Park. It combined all the elements we were looking for, incredible scenery, challenging terrain and the peace and tranquillity of the wilderness.

The moment that will stay with me forever came as we conquered Paso John Gardner – a mountain pass and at 1,200m the highest point of the trek. Having negotiated the scree and patches of snow which made up the ascent, we stopped to take in the view of Glacier Grey beneath us and mountains of Patagonia that seemed to go on forever. After a good rest, we reluctantly began our descent. As we did, a magnificent giant Condor flew in to view, his huge wings outstretched, effortlessly gliding above the white glacier beneath us. It was a beautiful combination of location and nature which we will never forget.

Learning to surf in Noosa, Australia. All was going swimmingly until I caught a massive 1 foot wave, fell over and twisted my ankle. I haven’t graced the waves since.

In 2021, after one of the many lockdowns we went through, I decided that a change in my work-from-home scenery would do me good. That is when I decided to spend a month working remotely from Spain. I split my time in between Alicante, Altea and Valencia, and whenever I wasn't working, you would find me at the beach either eating some sea food paella or grilled octopus (my favourite food).

When arriving in Valencia, I noticed that the city was very busy and with many tourists despite some COVID restrictions still being in place. As I walked along the streets, I spotted huge, colourful statues made of papier-mache around the city. I asked locals and they said I was lucky to be there for Las Fallas, a traditional festival held annually in commemoration of Saint Joseph with fireworks and parades. I joined the celebration and made friends along the way!

As a Spaniard passionate about mountains, I’ve always wanted to hike the highest summit in Spain: Mount Teide, elevation of 3,715 m. That dream came true during my last trip to Tenerife. But it was not easy. The natural park is protected so you need to request a permit to climb to the peak. I could not find any available dates. I didn’t give up and looked for other ways.

I’ve always wanted to watch the sunrise up there, but the shelter where mountaineers spent the night had been closed. The alternative? Walk all the way up during the night. I asked around and someone recommended a local mountain guide, as they usually have their own permits. He found another two people willing to do it. I landed in Tenerife, and I saw it from the coastal town where I stayed, it was massive.

6^th November, midnight, we started walking under the stars. 7 hours later, I was sitting at the top, close to the crater, waiting for the sun when this picture was taken. Pink and blue pastel colours, bright orange too. The sun said hi, slowly, a bit shy. Then we saw it: the shadow of Teide projected on the sea, rising to the sky.

In La Thuile, Italy, I went on my first skiing holiday. I found myself at the top of a dauntingly steep slope, its surface was covered with ice. To make it worse I had caught myself in a blizzard, reducing visibility and making it harder to get down. Not long into my descent, my skis slipped away from off my feet and went tumbling down the mountain. Suddenly, I was left on the slope without them. The only choice was to sit and slide down the remainder of the mountain on my backside. Despite the biting cold and stinging snow, I managed to get down the slope without any injuries.

I went solo backpacking from the far east to the west. I started with a day trek in the Philippines' Mt. Daraitan, a natural paradise with pristine rivers and waterfalls, dark hollowed caves of century-old formations of stalagmite and stalactite rocks to the picturesque view of Sierra Madre range. I flew to Boracay and fearlessly went parasailing and helmet diving. I was brave enough to go snorkelling and adventurously tasted exotic street food including cricket, spider and scorpion in Thailand.
 
As soon as I disembarked from the plane in India, I had to run really fast with my 7kg backpack just to make it to my connecting flight - I was the last passenger to board. Whilst I was in Dubai, I was fortunate enough to have reached the 125th level of Burj Khalifa - the world's tallest skyscraper with the world's fastest double deck lift. I spent the rest of my holidays exploring the UK.

A trip to my favourite city (Paris) was made all the better by the surprise puppy waiting for me at home when I landed back in Scotland! I never thought anything could top Paris, but hey... 

It’s too difficult to pick one travel story as the best part is experiencing different things. I love the memories of many weeks camping and diving on a remote coral cay on the Great Barrier reef as much as hours sitting on tiny plastic chairs eating the worlds best street food in Saigon!