Itching For a Vacation
This might sound ridiculous but with only five months into 2006 I'm thinking about my getaway at the end of the year! Practicality dictates to plan early with the skyrocketing gas prices: the airlines are within their pale of reason to ask for a fuel surcharge as a barrel of petroleum now costs $75 on the market. It's always advisable to book early as soon as I confirm the date unless I want to brave the last-minute deals, which usually don't exist for many of the Asian destinations. From my humble travel experience, Bangkok, Hong Kong, and Tokyo are usually booked up quickly due to popularity. Cambodia, which is the home of the world heritage site Angkor Wat, has attracted streams of visitors from all over the world. Shortage of flights into the tiny, under-developed, ill-equipped airport at Siem Reap mandate travelers to plan early.
The first sketch of this year's itinerary includes a trip to re-visit the Thai resortland in Phuket, where the entire strip of Patong Beach was swept and damaged by the tsunami in Dec 2004. The Thai government's indomitable effort to rebuild Phuket, along with international succor, has restored most of the toursy areas and recently the island hosted a campaign sloganed "Phuket is Back, Let's Celebrate", which culminated in the festive Phuket Gay Festival. I'm thinking about spending a week in Phuket and sailing to some of the coral islands. Other than usual travel mechanics like how to get to/from the airport, I'm spontaneous: I hate to be under the constraint of schedule. What's better than sitting on the beach, having a sip of tropical drink and reading a book?
The 58th Sapporo Snow Festival in Hokkaido, Japan would be my last stop before heading back to San Francisco. The festival is the largest winter's celebration in Japan featuring hundreds of beautiful snow statues and ice sculptures which lined Odori Park, the main street in Susukino and Satorando. I haven't worked out the fine details yet but it looks like the tentative route would be San Francisco--Phuket--Hong Kong--Tokyo/Sapporo--Home.
Anyone wants to tag along?
The first sketch of this year's itinerary includes a trip to re-visit the Thai resortland in Phuket, where the entire strip of Patong Beach was swept and damaged by the tsunami in Dec 2004. The Thai government's indomitable effort to rebuild Phuket, along with international succor, has restored most of the toursy areas and recently the island hosted a campaign sloganed "Phuket is Back, Let's Celebrate", which culminated in the festive Phuket Gay Festival. I'm thinking about spending a week in Phuket and sailing to some of the coral islands. Other than usual travel mechanics like how to get to/from the airport, I'm spontaneous: I hate to be under the constraint of schedule. What's better than sitting on the beach, having a sip of tropical drink and reading a book?
The 58th Sapporo Snow Festival in Hokkaido, Japan would be my last stop before heading back to San Francisco. The festival is the largest winter's celebration in Japan featuring hundreds of beautiful snow statues and ice sculptures which lined Odori Park, the main street in Susukino and Satorando. I haven't worked out the fine details yet but it looks like the tentative route would be San Francisco--Phuket--Hong Kong--Tokyo/Sapporo--Home.
Anyone wants to tag along?
6 Comments:
Wow! That sounds exciting.
...vacations. I've forgotten what those are. ...but I fear I won't be seeing one till 2007. unless a long weekend to LA.
Do you travel with friends/family?
A few areas I will have to experience in the future. I have ahd this undying itch to go to Hong Kong and Japan for quite some time. And I have heard about the Snow Festival in Japan. Envious here! But my primary international travel goal within the next year to two years is to get over to Aussieland and New Zealand, in particular.
Matt-
I usually travel alone or with a tight-knitted group of friends. I like to do things spontaneously when I travel and I'm not much of a shopper. I went to Thailand alone last year, spent almost 3 weeks there by trains.
Tony-
English-speaking countries are not my priority for now. I still have India, Tibet, Nepal, Morroco, Sri Lanka, Brazil, Chile on the list. But I can visualize the coral reef fin Golden Coast and the solicitous Maori tribe in New Zealand. Someday... :)
I don't think I could travel alone. I had to spend 2 days in NYC alone a couple of years ago and I was sooooo lonely. I like to be with people to do and see things. Not much of a loner. ...but, I envy people who can travel, be alone and have fun.
This doesn't sound ridiculous at all, then again I live for vacations :) All the destinations you mention sound amazing. One of my top places I want to visit one day is Japan.
Japan is very traveler-friendly even if you don't speak the language. All you need is a JR (Japan Railway) Pass, which is available in periods of time. I plan to take the Shikansen (Bullet train) from Tokyo to Sapporo, which allows me to see the urban areas petering away as I head to the north. The opposite direction of the line takes me to to Osaka and the ancient capital Kyoto. I'm fine tuning the travel details and hopefully find a pension to live in. :)
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