#TTOT Round-Up: Travel Surprises

Every Tuesday, it's Travel Talk on Twitter! Each week is a fun, new topic. Join either of the two sessions at 9:30am GMT and 9:30pm GMT to get in on all the fun travel talk! Just follow the #TTOT hashtag!

Here's the round-up of this week's #TTOT on "Travel Surprises!" 

Q1 via AngelinaFoster: What's the best surprise you've had on your travels?

• TravelBlggr: Finding a leatherback turtle laying eggs on the beach in South Africa
• SaraKateTravel: When my mom and I got free airline tickets and other coupons for taking a later flight (which we preferred), that was REALLY great
• ilivetotravel: When I realized that in most countries I can linger after a meal at the restaurant and they just don't care
• roniweiss: I've loved how nice people have been to me. When you're alone on the road, you're frequently relying on the kindness of strangers
• misspallen: That I can convert currency in my head when travelling, despite being terrible at maths. If shopping is involved then I step up
• qualityhunters: How landmarks actually look like in real life, TV gives a very different view
• elleswim: Biggest surprise: the world is a lot smaller than you might think

Q2 via SwannySA What surprises you most when traveling?

• HipTraveler: How people connect despite differences in cultures and how we find ourselves 
• familyonabike: How much more of the world there is to see and experience 
• hyperren: I'm still always pleasantly surprised by how nice, welcoming, and generous people around the world can b
• Turtlecovesuite: How good street food is wrapped in newspaper. Grosses out the wife though 
• RacheyRoo183: How you can go from "stranger" to "friend" so quickly. Beer and shared experiences make friends for life
• hjortur: When I see someone that I think looks just like someone I know - except the Chinese version
• secret_escapes: How badly I deal with the heat
• premium_ch: I am often surprised at how many people complain about how it isn't like home-that's the point of traveling

Q3 via LizJarvisUK Which country has challenged your preconceptions the most?

• VoyageJason: Fiji. It was the first time I felt like a minority. Met some kids who had never a white person before. It was amazing
• HTGlobe: India for sure! India has tested me on so many levels and it is for that same reason it is my favorite country 
• lethers: Germany, it's much more interesting than I thought. Many preconceived ideas annihilated 
• SADcars: Columbia! Everybody was telling us horror stories so we were a bit scared but then it was the best of all on our trip 
• detourdumonde: The US surprised. Especially when this cow-boy in Texas told me : "You know what? Jesus told me to give you 100 bucks." So he did 
• Alan_Curr: Pakistan. I expected cold stares and to feel uncomfortable, instead the people thanked us for coming to see their beautiful country 
• walkflypinoy: China. you think you got it all figured out then BOOM ass-less chaps for kids. Whuuut?!

Q4 via @AngelinaFoster What's been the most unwelcome surprise whilst traveling?

• kitwhelan: Worst feeling is realizing the bag that just got stolen had a passport in it
• Viajecin: The poverty you find when venturing out of the very touristic areas. It is sad, like taking off a mask 
• SomeSojourns: Every bout of surprise food poisoning
• WalksofItaly: People trying to rip you off because you are a tourist
• gfexplorers: Usually the expats and the expat 'Scene'
• OnTheRoadToYou: Getting stung by lots of baby Jelly Fishes off the coast of Zanzibar whilst diving 
• Stephee182: Pretty much every time I checked my bank account
• elle_croft: having my round-the-world flight cancelled by the airline for no reason half way through trip

Q5 via AbangAfrica Which destination was surprisingly different than expected, and why?

• thearcticnomad: I wasn't expecting the Philippines to be so very different to rest of SE Asia
• reidtravels: Scotland. I assumed they spoke English, but I couldn't understand any of the people there
• Roopunzel: I bet Israel is surprisingly different to what people gather from the news 
• FionaHilliard: Iceland's tiny population was surprising (325,000) and how village-like Reykjavik is
• scrapbookoflife: Everywhere in the Middle East has been so welcoming - very unlike common perception
• easyJetHolidays: How much there is to do in Luxembourg. It may be small, but good things come in small packages 
• wanderingzito: Oman. wasn't expecting to be treated well as an american solo female traveler. Completely surprised by amazing local hospitality  

And there you have it, "Travel Surprises!"  

Next week's #TTOT topic is: "Mountains!" Submit your questions HERE!

See you next Tuesday 9:30am and 9:30pm GMT for the next #TTOT!

As always, a HUGE travel community thank you to our #TTOT hosts and organizers: traveldudes, roniweiss, toddwassel, traveldesigned, insidetravellab, WildJunket, tbloggersunite and mobilelawyer!

Have YOU got anything to add to the "Travel Surprises" discussion? 

© Connie Hum 2012