Travel writing perks

Claudia

Claudia

I went on an Adventure Cruise with a local operator a few months ago.  Wrote a piece and had it published.  On Friday I popped into the Tui Tai office to give them a copy.  The owner/operator - a lovely lady - said 'are you doing anything next week?'  'not really, why?' 'Would you like to join the cruise on Monday?  It would be complimentary.'  Would I like to go on a complimentary cruise?  Is the Pope Catholic?
See you in a week or two.

Carol

Have fun.

Tessa Tangent

If you haven't already shot off, claudia, have a great time and well done!

I had to laugh.  I entered a competition with BBC Travel magazine or some such as it then was and wrote a piece about Singapore.  I was really fed up to be 2nd in the competition, despite fantastic comments about my piece.

I won my choice of the Rough Guides series and chose Europe.  It's been quite handy.  But, then, so would the first prize have been.  A writing contract with Rough Guides and all the respective associated free travel for a year.

The shame of it.

Jay Mandal

Well done, Claudia! TT, what a shame!

Claudia

Hello - fresh back from my adventures - looking very tanned, but sadly unhealthy with a chesty cold (exacerbated by the fact that I didn't stop diving and snorkelling when I shoulda'). 
Lots of threads to read and looks like we've got more new members - hello and welcome all. 
It's amazing how much happens around here in so short a time.  It's going to take me a day or two, curled up with my Lemsip, to catch up!
Thanks for the good wishes.

Aegean

Hi Claudia

Welcome back, hope you feel better soon.
Where was the cruise to?

The last expenses paid travel piece I worked on was photo journalism for a UK travel company in Crete. Seemed like a wonderful freebie at the time until I arrived. I will not bog you down with the details but it rained five days out of seven which made the photographs a challenge.
I took a ferry trip from Ag-Nik to Spinalonga and we got caught in a freak storm and started to sink. We managed to make it (just)to Spinalonga which is a former lepor colony. I am sure it would be fascinating on a sunny Cretan day. Yet after being stuck there for nine hours until it was safe to make the short crossing courtesy of the harbour police to Elounda , Spinalonga kind of lost it's interest. All photographs looked like a rain lashed day in the Shetlands.I made a fair amount of notes to work on a novel based around Spinalonga.As you will know this was a waste of time as "The Island" made it to number one in the best sellers (based on Spinalonga) ,before I had even a chance to start work on my version of life there. I managed to write up a few usable pieces but nothing I could tie in with the pics. Seemed to be a source of great hilarity to my family.

Carol

Welcome back and recover soon.

dorothyd

good memories to write about, commiserations on the cold, glad you are back!

Claudia

Aegean - this wasn't an expenses paid travel trip in that sense - it was a thank you for an article I'd written and had published.
The Tui Tai schooner cruises around our gorgeous Fijian islands - some very remote.  Check out their website: www.tuitai.com
It's an amazing experience.

Aegean

Sounds a wonderful experience Claudia , the website sells it for me.
They must have been really happy with your piece. Nice gesture.

By the way cats claw (herbal tablets) are a fantastic immune system booster and would help you throw off the cold and bugs much quicker.

Well done, good to read about writers being treated decently.