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Blogger Scott Carmichael

Introducing Gadling's newest blogger, Scott Carmichael.
Where was this photo taken? Paris, France. I've never been a very adventurous traveler, so it isn't the most exotic location. The reason Paris is special to me is because it's where I met my wife.
Where do you live now? I'm currently in Chicago after spending most of my life in various parts of Europe.
Scariest airline flown? Oddly enough, it isn't a third world airline but a Dutch low cost airline called Transavia. Back in 2001, British Airways had rebooked me after I missed my original connection from Heathrow to Amsterdam. Halfway through take off, an entire row of passengers got up screaming when they realized they had left one of their party behind at the airport. To make matters worse, he was the one carrying their passports and onward tickets. While barreling down the runway at 150mph, they decided to try and get their luggage and make their way to the front of the plane. If that wasn't enough, we also had 2 aborted landings trying to come into Amsterdam in rough weather. When we landed, for the first time in my life I was glad to be on solid ground.
What's your favorite city or country? Tokyo. It's the only city where I can really feel like I'm not in Kansas anymore.
Most remote corner of the globe visited? Taiwan. During an unscheduled stopover, I was stuck there for a day with a friend. Instead of doing the boring thing and staying at the airport hotel, we decided to rent a car and drive around the island. Turns out that isn't the best thing to do when you have no map, limited knowledge of the country and can't read Taiwanese. Barrels of fun.
What's your favorite guidebook series? Popout maps. It's all I need to find my way around. The combination of a Popout map and Google on my phone is true perfection.
What is your worst hotel experience? To fulfill a childhood dream of visiting the original Legoland in Denmark, I had booked a hotel "that looked quite nice". Turned out to be a combination of hell and a camping site (no offense if you like camping sites).
Favorite trip? That would have to be a 15 day cruise I took from LA to Hawaii (and back). For the first time ever, I actually took a trip where I had to relax and enjoy myself. The idea of being stuck on a ship that long scared me, but it turned out to be one of the best things I ever did.
The first thing I set out to pack is? My gadget bag. I'd rather forget my clothes than forget my gadgets. Yeah, it's sad, but it's what drives us geeks.
Worst armpit visited? Tunisia in the early 90's. This was supposed to be a fun touristy place, but turned out to be a combination of bad smells, bad food and bad ripoffs. The only good thing about the trip was that the foreign exchange store miscalculated our transaction and gave us 100x too much. We didn't figure this out for a few days until we started wondering why everything was so cheap. The only downside was that Tunisia does not allow you to take their currency home, so we left with bags full of kitschy junk.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Willy Jul 16th 2008 5:18PM
Welcome!
(I set out my gadget bag first, too. And it's the last thing I pack.)
Grant Martin Jul 16th 2008 5:32PM
Rock it, Scott.
Heather Poole Jul 16th 2008 5:42PM
Welcome Scott! I'd like to know, what, exatly, is in the gadget bag? And does the gadget bag fit inside the carry on bag? Or is the gadget bag the carry on bag? Details, please!
Heather Poole
Nick Hawkins Jul 16th 2008 8:25PM
Oh helo.
Matthew Firestone Jul 17th 2008 12:56AM
Man I love Tokyo. Probably why I can't leave the place, and spend so much time writing a column about it...
Welcome aboard - excited to hear you school me about all the fancy electronics in my backyard!
Jeff Jul 17th 2008 1:52AM
Hi Scott, welcome to the team! I don't have a gadgets bag, but perhaps it's high time I start putting one together -- maybe with your help!
Abha Jul 17th 2008 6:11AM
W-e-l-c-o-m-e!
Jamie Rhein Jul 17th 2008 1:12PM
Hi Scott,
I lived in Taiwan for two years and getting around was always an adventure. Whenever I actually arrived at a place I wanted to go, there was a consistent element of surprise.
You're a brave man to attempt it while driving.
Iva Skoch Jul 17th 2008 7:16PM
Welcome to the team!
Just wondering, where do you hide your gadget bag when you travel? Aren't gadgets the easiest thing to steal?