Travel Destinations

[Matticus13]

Here’s something I can share that will reestablish faith wonderful places still exist. I left UK a disillusioned young man for Africa at 24 & lost my heart. Africa then was beyond wonderful & the nature breathtaking. I lived there for over 12 years, but politics being what it is, a return to UK, then on to USA, was required. Predictably after my African experience there was no losing of my heart in those destinations.

Mere chance lead me to undertake a trip to Costa Rica, of which I knew next to nothing, other than from a poor quality tourist book bought before the journey.
Within 48 hrs I knew I had “found it” again. A place I could be as happy as I had been in Africa with true freedom to live & enjoy a paradise.
It took 7 more years before we could move here, but if ever you feel jaded or disillusioned that the world is no longer as wonderful as you had hoped, visit Costa Rica.

I’d be happy to help with information, or any other way I can, to ensure your visit is wonderful. It won’t take my help however, this country is just magical all by itself. It makes you believe again how great life is & how lucky we are to have it. Pura Vida.

I've heard good things. How's the cost of living compared to the UK/US? Not sure I could ever convince my wife to move down there, but worth a shot...

[VillageIdiot]

Starting to look at possibly Israel/Jordan for next year. Anybody have any travel insights to these two countries?

[diplomat61]

Here’s something I can share that will reestablish faith wonderful places still exist. ... Pura Vida.

Nice story, thanks for sharing.

[diplomat61]

Starting to look at possibly Israel/Jordan for next year. Anybody have any travel insights to these two countries?

Been to Amman a couple of times on business but sadly no tourist experience there (unless you count the occasion I took a taxi from Damascus as my only chance to see some of the country).

As a westerner I am not sure I would want to travel in that region at the moment.

[Senlac]

Here’s something I can share that will reestablish faith wonderful places still exist. I left UK a disillusioned young man for Africa at 24 & lost my heart. Africa then was beyond wonderful & the nature breathtaking. I lived there for over 12 years, but politics being what it is, a return to UK, then on to USA, was required. Predictably after my African experience there was no losing of my heart in those destinations.

Mere chance lead me to undertake a trip to Costa Rica, of which I knew next to nothing, other than from a poor quality tourist book bought before the journey.
Within 48 hrs I knew I had “found it” again. A place I could be as happy as I had been in Africa with true freedom to live & enjoy a paradise.
It took 7 more years before we could move here, but if ever you feel jaded or disillusioned that the world is no longer as wonderful as you had hoped, visit Costa Rica.

I’d be happy to help with information, or any other way I can, to ensure your visit is wonderful. It won’t take my help however, this country is just magical all by itself. It makes you believe again how great life is & how lucky we are to have it. Pura Vida.

I've heard good things. How's the cost of living compared to the UK/US? Not sure I could ever convince my wife to move down there, but worth a shot...

Cost of living is minimal compared to either UK/US. In that I’m not referring to prices as such because many things are expensive. Cars, gasoline, supermarket groceries etc. But that’s not the point.
Property taxes, house rental (if preferred) health insurance (govt.) utility bills, produce bought at local market are all very reasonable.
If you adopt a “Tico” lifestyle you can live happily on next to nothing.

Don’t waste effort convincing your wife, let Costa Rica do it:-) A few visits are essential to get to know the place anyway & a few visits here will usually result in not wanting to return home after the vacation...Then you move:-) Good Luck

[Proton45]

Europe is my favorite travel destination

[Fluminator]

This thread will be useful for me soon because I'm finally debt free and making money lol. Never been able to leave North America before.

[diplomat61]

This thread will be useful for me soon because I'm finally debt free and making money lol. Never been able to leave North America before.

You are in for a treat, but how do you choose where to go first?

On my first trip to India I was in a minibus with a bunch of Americans who had never left NA before, I spent as much time watching and listening to them as I did looking out of the windows.

[yavuzovic]

Lol I think this was my thread from last year and I ended up going to Singapore, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, South Korea, Hong Kong (as well as a bit of the Middle East).

HA! How many places to visit just in the first half of the year. When I compare myself (not counting the ones I flew over) I have been to only two countries in my life.
This winter I visited Saudi Arabia for a week. I haven't been in a coast there so I can't make a comment about it to be for swimming. I mostly visited either religious or historical places in three different cities and some small places away from them. What I noticed was that the city has a style and every building in the city center are yellow-white and all make a very beautiful sight together. Comparing to it, my city is a colour mess
I visited somewhere else every year in my home country, Turkey, though. The fact, I of course recommend my own country but you should've come last year when the economic crisis was at peak. Sharing my experiences in 3 regions:
1- Istanbul is a place I visited many times. Bad decision for summer because it is always very hot and not a very good place for swimming. I'd recommend a culture and cuisine trip in late spring.
2- Aegean region and islands (you may include Greek islands here) : Sea is good, a westerner won't struggle to adopt, I would say Aegean cities are good places for vacation.
3- Mediterranean Region: My Albanian friend visited Antalya and this year coming again. Mediterranean region isn't much different from Aegean but I would say Aegean first. For some reason tourists prefer Mediterranean more though.
I would like to visit East too but didn't have an opportunity. It has very good spots and dishes.
I would like to visit Balkans and/or Iran if I had chance, especially my grandfather's town in Macedonia but all I talked is mostly cultural so Arabia, Turkey or any of these options may not make the same effect on you.

[diplomat61]

How many places to visit just in the first half of the year.

My record in 7 in 7 days:

1. Australia to Singapore
2. Day trip to Indonesia
3. At home, washing & repacking
4. Singapore to Japan
5. Meeting in Tokyo, then to China
6. Meeting in Shanghai, then overnight flight to Netherlands
7. Meeting in Rotterdam, then flight to UK

[yavuzovic]

How many places to visit just in the first half of the year.

My record in 7 in 7 days:

1. Australia to Singapore
2. Day trip to Indonesia
3. At home, washing & repacking
4. Singapore to Japan
5. Meeting in Tokyo, then to China
6. Meeting in Shanghai, then overnight flight to Netherlands
7. Meeting in Rotterdam, then flight to UK

Great, I'm also young just 17 surely I'll visit more. That's quite a lot though.

[flash2015]

I think you just hit on my specialist subject.

I am lucky enough to have travelled to over 50 countries, most of them multiple times, across 5 continents. Of them all, my favourite city is Sydney, and the most "different", the place I would spend more time exploring, is Japan.

You mentioned that you are thinking of travelling in "Asia". That's a huge area and most definitely not homogenous. I lived and travelled in the region for over 10 years, but have only scratched the surface. If you try to cover the whole region in a short period of time you will spend a lot of time travelling and only see some busy cities.

So, unless you have years to spare, I suggest focus on China. It is going to be hugely influential on our world so why not get some insight? A big city like Beijing, Shanghai, or Guangzhou is a must (and they are all different) but you need to get out into the countryside to understand the poverty, and thus the pressure that drives the CP.

Darn, I think I am only in the 40s. I am jealous. Have you got your 18 centers too (I have - Lon, Par, Spa, Por, Bel, Hol, Kie, Den, Mun, Ber, Norway, Sweden, StP, Mos, War, Vie, Con, Ven)?

I am not sure China is a good place to start in Asia. At least from my experience it was much harder for a foreigner to get around China than other countries in Asia. I don't think it has the same support structures for tourists, very few signs (if any) were in pinyin and the food felt dodgier than other countries. It also was far more expensive than other countries too. Your dollars will certainly go much further in SE Asia.

[Claesar]

Darn, I think I am only in the 40s. I am jealous. Have you got your 18 centers too (I have - Lon, Par, Spa, Por, Bel, Hol, Kie, Den, Mun, Ber, Norway, Sweden, StP, Mos, War, Vie, Con, Ven)?

...

Oh wow, I'm going to hit my 18th when I arrive in Marseille for the WDC. That's a sign, right?

[flash2015]

Darn, I think I am only in the 40s. I am jealous. Have you got your 18 centers too (I have - Lon, Par, Spa, Por, Bel, Hol, Kie, Den, Mun, Ber, Norway, Sweden, StP, Mos, War, Vie, Con, Ven)?

...

Oh wow, I'm going to hit my 18th when I arrive in Marseille for the WDC. That's a sign, right?

I think so!

[diplomat61]

Darn, I think I am only in the 40s. I am jealous. Have you got your 18 centers too (I have - Lon, Par, Spa, Por, Bel, Hol, Kie, Den, Mun, Ber, Norway, Sweden, StP, Mos, War, Vie, Con, Ven)?

That's a good question. Just worked out that I have 21 (Edi, Lpl, Lon, Bre, Par, Ven, Rom, Vie, Bud, Smy, Kie, Mun, War, Gre, Bul, Rum, Swe, Nor, Spa, Den, Por), plus 9 other land areas and 5 of the seas.

I am not sure China is a good place to start in Asia.

That's a fair comment. I was thinking more of it being useful to know more about the place, but it is certainly a bit harder to navigate, especially away from the major cities.

[diplomat61]

Correction: I have 20 (Edi, Lpl, Lon, Bre, Par, Ven, Rom, Vie, Bud, Smy, Kie, Mun, War, Are, Bul, Rum, Swe, Spa, Den, Por), plus 9 other land areas and 5 of the seas.

[VillageIdiot]

I’d agree on China being a challenge. My wife is Chinese so I’ve always extremely enjoyed my visits but I’ve had friends visit who did not view their experience near as fondly due to the steep culture shock and language barriers. But if you can overcome that China has so very much to offer.

[VillageIdiot]

Starting to look at possibly Israel/Jordan for next year. Anybody have any travel insights to these two countries?

Been to Amman a couple of times on business but sadly no tourist experience there (unless you count the occasion I took a taxi from Damascus as my only chance to see some of the country).

As a westerner I am not sure I would want to travel in that region at the moment.

I’ve attempted to do research of people who have travelled and most I’ve heard is that if you stay away from troubled spots and borders it has a relatively safe feel to it. Did Amman not come across as safe in your experience?

[Durga]

I just did Israel/Jordan last August. Did Jerusalem, Haifa, Eilat, Tel Aviv, drove through the West Bank and floated on the dead sea and everything in Israel. Went to Aqaba and Petra in Jordan. I'm going on exchange to Tel Aviv in October and plan on doing more internal travelling. The region is fine and safe for westerners - and Jordan is incredible. The people are really friendly and the food is great. Petra is a must see. I want to go back and do more of Petra and camp in Wadi Rum.

[Restitution]

How do you have the time and money to do all this travel? Incredibly jealous :O