A lot of headwinds predicted to come this year. But don’t worry. Take courage. If you have worked and lived long enough, then you would’ve already started this year from experience and not from scratch. Like me during these past 24 months, I’m sure you’ve been through a lot and through all kinds of work situations and challenging people (e.g. bad leaders, backstabbers, crybabies and troublemakers, people who find all sorts of drama in life, and people who treat you like a deadbeat because they think you don’t have money 🙂, etc.). These nutcases wreaked a lot of havoc in the workplace (and in our personal lives) but we are still here somehow. So keep moving forward. Plan ahead as always and adjust along the way.
And by planning, I mean to think of traveling again 🙂. It’s been a while since my last post. Honestly, the inconveniences of preparing for travel these days have disheartened me and dampened my enthusiasm (which explains the writing hiatus). There were however, a few encouraging events earlier this year. For one thing, I moved to a better and healthier workplace where good leadership and collaboration are practiced. I also saw my daughter (my only child) through college; which a few years ago seemed impossible for me to do. There was also an improvement in my health; thanks to a new lifestyle of clean eating and strength training. According to a recent health check, my body says it’s only 41 years old even though I’m already 52🙂. I realised somehow that I have invested in the important things in life (which are not things by the way) and that now I still have enough physical strength and resources to do the other things I enjoy with the people that matter to me the most. So we start over.
I usually don’t write a travel bucket list but I was inspired by some posts of the people whose blogs I follow here; and to see that we all go through the same experiences and share the same passion. I am writing it here more to push myself to plan again than to inspire others though. Haha 🙂 (sorry about that). Whether or not I will be able to visit these places in the near future doesn’t matter at the moment; but I do hope it pushes me forward to rekindle these old passions for travel, amateur writing, and digital photography. So here you go.
1) Bhutan (Bhutan); 2) Doha (Qatar); 3) London (United Kingdom); 4) Brisbane (Australia); 5) Beijing (China); 6) Istanbul (Turkey); 7) Auckland (New Zealand); 8) Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam).
As you might have noticed, I’m not much of a beach tourist. I believe my home country already has too much to offer when it comes to beaches and nature; but its urban landscape leaves too much to be desired🙂. As an architect, I am fascinated by progressive cities and beautiful architecture (which is evident in most of my posts). A Euro tour is still a dream and will not happen anytime soon. For now, I am planning to restart with Brisbane this coming winter. Whatever makes me happy. Haha🙂.
I also share below five favourite cities (or countries) that for me are worth revisiting (maybe much later). Enjoy reading please!!
Japan (Tokyo): This is the city that inspired me to explore more of the world around me and to study digital photography. I fell in love with this city almost immediately during a visit in the autumn of 2013 (a gift from my employer; which made it really memorable).
Australia (Sydney): This is the only country I know where I can experience winter during the middle of the year. We visited Sydney during a surprisingly rainy summer; but that didn’t stop us from enjoying its beautiful landmarks, free museums, food, and dramatic skies. Would love to come back here during winter.
United Arab Emirates (Dubai): An architect should see this city at least once in his lifetime. I came to this place during the peak of one summer to take advantage of very low hotel prices. This country changed my perception of the Middle East and inspired me in my work to always create something original from scratch.
South Korea (Jeju Island): A company trip took me to a second visit to Seoul and a first experience of Jeju Island. The cool weather contrasting with traditional spicy food (and of course, combined with the lovely and hospitable people) was the perfect treat for everyone after a successful and profitable year of business.
Hong Kong: I have seen Hong Kong twice but I never seem to get enough of it. Hong Kong’s pace is exciting and crazy. Its modern urban landscape is balanced by equally beautiful and hidden enclaves. Hong Kong for me is always a wonderful quick winter destination.
So there you go. Thank you to those whose travel bucket list encouraged me to share my own here. As always, stay grateful and inspired. Take care when traveling and see you all in my next post. Cheers!!!🙂
From Lines to Lenses 