Good day there katangas! And in this video I'm going to answer all the questions that
you've been asking about me over the years, mates!
This video is sponsored by Squarespace
How do you afford to travel?
That is a great question and
it just so happens that I have recently done a video about that
and you can watch that one right there!
What made you start your channel and how did you start getting haircuts around the world?
How did it all begin? Oh boy!
There is really no quick easy answer to that one.
The origins of the channel go all the way back to my solo budget traveling days.
I've always had a love of seeing what's out there in the world.
A couple of my earliest and longest trips were actually in Africa and Southeast Asia during the 90s.
As my travels grew longer, I needed to get my hair cut while I was on the road.
So I've actually been visiting barbers and getting my hair cut around the world for many years now.
I would always find this local barber and found the experiences within the barbershops
to be a far more genuine interaction with the local communities.
Keep in mind that I was always trying to escape the tourist traps while traveling.
So the barbershop was a place where I was not treated solely as a tourist.
In fact the barbers treated me just like anybody else that came into their shop.
And also the local shops were brilliant places to explore the local communities.
It wasn't until 1999 that we filmed an Indian barbershop experience
which later became our very first video uploaded to YouTube in 2006.
YouTube was a way to share this experience to a much wider audience way beyond family and friends.
We love that some of you still remember that first video with the music!
Later I re-edited this video and uploaded the current version in 2012.
At the same time, we rebranded the channel to Haircut Harry.
The second video we filmed was in 2010 at a barbershop in Istanbul's Grand Bazaar
Then gradually we started adding more videos of barbershop experiences over the years.
It was a slow process because we were both working full time and had very limited time to travel.
Harry can you tell us about Squarespace?
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How do you find the barbers and barbershops and what makes you choose them to film there?
I'm always looking for barbershops that have this history and these stories and collections that are typically built up over time.
Often these kinds of barbershops are like little museums and the barbers are equally as interesting as the collections.
We often research and choose the barbershops ahead of time however,
with the old school barbershops we're often relying heavily on local knowledge and searching on location.
Since so many of the old traditional shops are disappearing fast,
I have a particular interest in capturing as many of the old school shops as possible.
We've already filmed at a few shops that are sadly no longer with us. So
our videos have actually become a documentation of what these shops and barbers were like.
Throughout the year we get a lot of suggestions of barbershops from you guys. Thank you very much!
What we do is we put them into a Google map,
and then we refer to that Google map when we're traveling on the road.
What's your favorite barbershop experience and what was it that made it special for you?
I like them all for different reasons. It's really difficult to pick a single favorite one.
I mean all of the places have been very different, and they've all been great experiences.
But what I really like is when we're out there and we're videoing with the barbers
that we are able to create these great memories and really get to know something about the local communities.
Some that do stick out in mind are Angel on Route 66.
He is such an amazing gentleman!
Shimome in Kyoto and Mr. Chicken in the Azores.
And Mr. Lee from the historic Seongu barbershop in Seoul, South Korea.
Mr. Lee is in his early 70s and is a third generation barber.
He was born in the family home where his grandfather opened the barbershop in 1927.
Mr. Lee is a little over five feet tall and uses this rickety old footstool to stand on while working on customers.
He still lathers up his shaving soap on the side of a hot pot
heated on a charcoal stove and uses potato starch in the hair as a visual aid.
In the past, barbers used to use powders that contained asbestos so Mr. Lee switched to potato starch as it was not harmful to people.
He uses watering cans to wash your hair over a sink and does this vinegar rinse.
Not too long after we filmed a typhoon hit the city and damaged the shop.
So the shop has been remodeled now and it looks very different.
We were definitely happy to have had the opportunity to visit the old shop and film with Mr. Lee.
And of course, Ramesh will always hold a special place in our hearts
since he is the barber we filmed our original video with over 20 years ago!
We found Ramesh after 18 years when we traveled to India in 2017.
So this experience will always have a special meaning to us.
What are your favorite places to travel?
I'm definitely a warm blooded individual so I prefer tropical climates.
But at the same time I love a lot of history, and I love local cultures.
Indonesia is a country I've traveled to many times over the years and I've always loved it.
I've also enjoyed traveling to Algeria and Nepal.
In 2019 it was my first time traveling to Hong Kong and Japan,
and I found those very easy for travel and lots to see and do.
When are you coming to film in Germany, Spain, Indonesia, Brazil or my country?
So far I've traveled to almost 50 countries, but
I have not filmed in every single country.
So in the past I have actually traveled to places like Spain and Germany and Indonesia.
In fact I've traveled, spent a lot of time traveling in Africa a long time ago,
through Tunisia, Algeria. I was in Niger, Mali, Senegal and The Gambia.
And while on some of these trips, these longer trips, I did actually get a haircut.
But unfortunately, I didn't film it. I didn't have a video camera.
So hopefully, going forward we're going to be filming in every single country we travel to and then we'll share those videos.
What's your favorite part of getting a haircut? The feeling, the look, going to a different place in the world, or something else?
My favorite part of getting a haircut...my favorite part.
My favorite part has to be just going out there and meeting all these great barbers and visiting their shops.
For me personally, this is not about getting the very best haircut in the world.
Of course, I love an amazing haircut!
And I love experiencing a relaxing hot towel shave, especially while on the road.
But it is more about hearing the stories of the barbers,
the communities and learning all about the history of the shop.
Where do you live?
Currently, I'm residing in the United States.
I've actually lived in several different states over the years,
but one of my favorite places was Seattle, Washington where I was there for almost 10 years.
And a question from Matt, one of our Patreons.
What kind of hobbies do you enjoy doing when you're not working on videos?
So outside of travel and making videos for the Haircut Harry Youtube Channel
then I um ...
I like photography, I do a little bit of hiking,
I try to grow some vegetables and then I try to cook the vegetables,
and then I also...
I like watching documentaries. I'm a bit of a documentary junkie!
And one of our Patreons Monique asks a question,
Do you have a translator with you ahead of time to explain the filming to the barbers who do not speak English?
Well, on occasions we have worked with local guides or the local tourist office to help us.
We've done this in Peru, Romania as well as in India and Morocco to help communicate with a few shops.
A couple of times we've used the barbers we've met
and they've helped us out. Especially with finding some of those hidden gems!
So we would never have found Mr. Chicken in the Azores had it not been for Marco at João's Barbershop.
What countries and places do you want to travel to that you have not been to yet?
My bucket list!
My bucket list. Probably high up on my bucket list is Central Asia.
I've wanted to go there for a long time. Haven't had the opportunity yet, so fingers crossed.
The other place is probably Bali.
And that is because I have actually traveled to Indonesia a lot over the years,
and I've flown into Denpasar Bali more times than I've probably flown into any other airport in the world,
but i've never left the airport!
So I think I definitely need to go back to Bali
or back to Indonesia and back to Bali and actually leave the airport.
Well there we go mates!
I hope I answered all your questions there.
If I haven't just stick it down in the comment section below,
and maybe we'll get to it in another video.
In the meantime though,
what kind of accent do I have??