Guild Wars

[splashpot]

I've been playing World of Warcraft for the last 6 months or so but I'm tired of paying the monthly fee so I'm quiting. My brother has a copy of Guild Wars that he doesn't play anymore so I'm thinking of starting up a character. Anyone play?

I'm basically looking for any general advice for a newbie and some suggestions on what professions to pick (you get 2, right?). I played a shaman in WoW but I enjoyed playing almost all the classes. The only ones I did not like were rogues and hunters. I would also like to choose a class that I can solo effectively with. I would prefer to minimize my dependency on grouping with other players because I'm not always available to play to long stretches of time and I feel bad when I have to leave a group in the middle of something. So is there a profession combo that is more well suited for playing on my own? Any and all advice is welcome. Thanks.