How many of you that travel with work

[Rhythm Thief]

I remember once being parked in Banff on the Moray Firth, overlooking the sea as the sun went down. I'd been for a stroll in the hills behind the town, then sat in the cab and cooked myself a prawn curry. Then I went to the pub they filmed the interior shots of "Local Hero" in and had three games of pool and many pints with one of the locals. A great night.

 

[Rhythm Thief]

And what do you lift your pint with?

Spoon down, pint up. And don't get the two mixed up. Usually I wrote that down and paperclipped it to whatever page I was reading at the time.

 

[Twenty Inch]

This can sometimes backfire though - in Kalmykia I found myslef looking at a bowl of soup made from pig's intestines.

 

[tyred]

DOn't travel for work anymore, but when I did, I always sampled the local pubs. Beats sitting in a hotel room on your own.

I remember being in Loughborough on a training course and being in a pub which called last orders at 9.30

If an Irish landlord tried that, there would be a riot.

 

[marooncat]

Don't travel with work that much but don't like going into a pub/restuarant by myself (always think a bloke on their own is more acceptable than a lass) so if i am away i tend to either end up in the hotel resturant with a paper or getting stuff from a supermarket and eating in my room.

Always try and get a hotel with a gym in it so i can go there in the evening as well..

 

[Rhythm Thief]

The other thing I used to do a lot was tie a bike up onto the back of the cab. I had some great rides that way, especially around Pitlochry and other scenic places. the only difficult bit was getting a wash afterwards, but it was only a problem if a young couple with an inquisitive labrador walked past while I was standing bollock naked behind the truck trying to have a wash in a tupperware box. Especially if they happened to come and try to retrieve the labrador while he was investigating the strange new human he'd found. I really am most dreadfully sorry, folks.

 

[Fab Foodie]

There was a time when I considered setting up some kind of international dining club where members would let the waiter know they were happy to share a table with whoever walked in. Restaurants would be happy because it would improve table occupancy.

Had the same thoughts, maybe a designated 'Sharing' table in a hotel or a Sad-Mans dining time. 95% of the people I meet on my travels are interesting and amiable people, only 5% or so would I run and hide from.

Agree about not messing with the locals, it can be easy in some countries to give the wrong signals. I'm older, wiser and more cautious than I was... also I'm not as quick on my feet!

 

[Kirstie]

I hate eating alone when away with work. It's worse if you're female because you get a lot of unwanted attention/stares etc.

So take away in the room it is for me, and exploring only in daylight.

 

[Rhythm Thief]

I hate eating alone when away with work. It's worse if you're female because you get a lot of unwanted attention/stares etc.
So take away in the room it is for me, and exploring only in daylight.

I can imagine that's a nuisance. It never happened to me. Sadly.

 

[gbb]

This can sometimes backfire though - in Kalmykia I found myslef looking at a bowl of soup made from pig's intestines.

Funny that...i ordered Soupa de cebolla (sp) in Uruguay (which i now know is onion soup), but when it came it had a yukky glutinous mess in it, which turned out to be a raw egg they crack in while the soups hot
I was so hungry, i spooned all the soup around the unknown 'filling' and tried not to look too hard.

 

[gbb]

On the plus side, you can enjoy some dishes the tourists dont get to see...
I was invited to a Cypriot family meal, pukka stuff. It was basically a barbeque, that included barbequed birds (freshly shot songbirds)..heads and all.
Would i eat that normally...no. But thats their culture and i'm not going to disrespect them.

 

[Greedo]

I do quite a bit of travelling on my own. Nowhere exotic. Newcastle, Doncaster (ahem), Newport for example.

I'll always go out and have a couple of beers.

Don't really like going for a formal meal on my own, though, as it's all too formal.

So I'll eat out in a bar if I can.

I did eat a kebab in a hotel room one night, though. Whilst sitting cross-legegd on the bed. Drinking fosters out of a can...

...in my y-fronts.

that made me laugh out loud.

I'm not really meaning a really top class restaurant. A curry, Chinese, decent pub, Italian etc......

 

[gbb]

You may be able to relate to this RT, but a friend of mine drives trucks from N.Ireland to the continent. He often stops off overnight in a secure hauliers yard near Peterborough...but he can't leave his truck (valuable loads)

Now that would drive me nuts. He's only 8 miles away from us when he's there...and can't even visit us for a meal, or even just a cup of tea.

 

[CopperBrompton]

I generally wander out, and usually try the local cuisine. I usually find someone who wants to practice their English, so company for a meal isn't generally a problem.

 

[Kestevan]

God, spent years working as a service engineer all over Europe, very often on my own.
I'd have gone out of my gourd if I couldn't get out and about.

Used to eat in the local restaurants/bars and would usually end up talking to someone......met some weird and wonderful characters in my time.

And I've probably played pool in that pub in Banff as well, whilst working at the local chicken factory