Sabi nila, isulat mo ang mga pangarap mo para mas maging totoo ito sa’yo. Ang sabi ko naman, why not, chocnut???
I have always believed in making lists. When I make a list and look at it, it becomes more real to me. And when it becomes real to me, I begin to plan my way around it.
Two years ago, I started studying places I want to go to and I’ve finally come up with a list of countries that I hope to explore:
ASIA
Cambodia, China (Beijing), China (Shenzhen), China (Hongkong), Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, Philippines, South Korea, Thailand, Vietnam
EUROPE
Czech Republic, England, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Russia, Spain, Switzerland
NORTH AMERICA
United States of America, Canada
SOUTH AMERICA
Brazil
CARRIBEAN
Jamaica
MIDDLE EAST
United Arab Emirates, Israel
AFRICA
Egypt, Namibia
PACIFIC
Australia, Fiji, New Zealand
Oh ha? Per continent pa yan ha? Ilan kaya talaga ang mapupuntahan ko dyan? At ilan naman kaya ang mapupuntahan kong lugar na hindi kasali sa list ko?
So far, eto palang ang napupuntahan ko:
Philippines, Australia, China (Hongkong), China (Shenzhen)
That’s 4 out of 31 places…27 more to go.
I don’t plan to go to all, wishful thinking lang naman. But I want to go to at least half of the countries that I listed above. Keeping fingers crossed! Life is full of endless possibilities so we’ll never really know what’s going to happen next…my dreams of travel might really come true someday.
I want to travel because I want to learn more of the world. I want to learn of other people’s cultures, way of life, religion and cuisine. The keyword is LEARN.
I want to travel because I want to capture photos that tell a story. And thru these photos, I want to share how beautiful the world is.
I want to travel because I want to meet different kinds of people and learn from them and their experiences.
TRAVEL AS PART OF OUR LIFE
Chris and I have talked about putting premium on travel as we grow old together and as part of parenting our future kids. Since we were able to experience an itsy-bitsy slice of the world, we are hoping that our kids would have the same learning we’ve acquired like having a bigger perspective in life, thinking more of others and not only of oneself, being insightful and independent, becoming tough but never losing the compassion for others and valuing experience more than wealth.
As the sole treasurer of our household, I have decided that it is important to have a travel fund for (1) emergency reasons [we have friends and relatives abroad and it would be nice if we can visit them especially when they need us] and (2) for recreation and learning of the whole family.
AND IF I CAN’T TRAVEL, NOTHING CAN STOP ME FROM LEARNING
That’s why I have started a collection of The Lonely Planet Guide Books.
That’s why I always always always look at the World Map.
That’s why I’m interested knowing about what’s happening around the world.
That’s why I like reading people’s blogs from other countries.
And with that, let me end by sharing one of my credos in life:
Writer's Notes:
This entry took the longest to finish and get published. It took me awhile to finalize my list based on research on the net, books and family's/friends' recommendations.
All quotes used are my favorite travel quotes which made a positive impact on me and my life.
All photos are from The Lonely Planet website. Photos 1-4: Burj Al Arab (Dubai), Ivan the Great Bell Tower (Russia), Fushimi Inari Shrine (Japan) and Mt Mayon (Philippines).
