Travelling

I love travelling. I've been to a lot of different places, almost all of which, I can say I loved completely! If I had to make a list of where I've been, it would read like this:

Jamaica - When I was 5 w/ the family...I had a birthday when I was down there, & I remember the housekeeper made me a chocolate cake :)
Florida - Several times
Las Vegas - Two or three times at least
Alabama - Once...was enough
Myrtle Beach - At least twice...Loved it as a kid
California - LOVED IT!!!
Punta Cana, The Domnican Republic - On my own for the first time to a Club Med in my 20's...It was a great experience & I gained 2 friends out of it
New York City - Loved it,was amazed by it, altho at the time, it rained for almost the whole time I was there....Would love to see it when it's sunny
Maui, Hawaii - Went for Christmas a couple of years ago,18 days, Loved it, Died & went to heaven LOVED IT! Would go back in a split second


So obviously, I love to travel. It has mostly been w/ my family for the most part, but I've loved every minute of it. I've yet to have a bad travel experience, save for delays, but you can't do much about those. The problem is, travelling to anywhere desireable is so flaming expensive & in most cases far, far away! Basically, I'd say I'm pretty happy if I have the option of lots to see & do, whether it's tourist attractions of local spots, or, I'm also perfectly content sitting on a beach by an ocean or some body of water, w/ lots to read, books & trash mags & some music - well, I'll have that now that I have my awesome Ipod :).

That's why I am SO looking forward to finally heading off to Australia & hopefully a bit of New Zealand next year. This trip has been on the "TO DO/PLACES TO GO" list for EVER. Ever since I was a teenager, when I heard the first notes of Australian music by bands like Hunters & Collectors, INXS, Mental as Anything, Split Enz, & Crowded House, I've been dying to get to Australia. Sometimes that desire waned a bit, as I've gone to other places or been interested in other things. But it's always been in the back of my mind. I want to go there, & see & do as much as I can possibly fit in.

It's been a long hard slog tho, saving up for this little adventure is the biggest challenge I've faced. It takes a lot of money to get to where you want to go, & Australia is no exception. In the long run tho, I think it will more than be worth it in the end. I'm still hoping to go for at least 2 months, but it'll have to see. Unfortunately, money is still the ruling factor. I know for sure that I'll be in Australia for a full month. It's the New Zealand portion of the trip that I'm not sure about yet. A lot depends on how far I can stretch what I've saved. I've saved well, & been given extremely generous gifts of $$$ to help the travel fund.

Ultimately tho, I'm really hoping to do Auckland, New Zealand for at least a week, maybe two if I'm lucky. My rationale is, if I'm going to go that far over to the other side of the world, it would seem a shame to not at least try & get over to New Zealand, not to mention the fact that it'll take me another God knows how long to save up again to go back over there, & who knows when/if I'll ever go back again?

See, that's the problem w/ being infected w/ the travel "bug". It's like, when your parents start you off early travelling around, it becomes a part of your pyche, a part of who you are. And it becomes addicting, something that you look forward to doing because it gets you out of your blah (if you have a blah, occationally mudane) life. Travelling is exciting! While I don't love being stuck at an airport any longer than I have to be, I love going there, & observing the people coming & going, to'ing & fro'ing. One of my favorite things to do is people watch, I find it so facinating.

And then, there's the destination, barring anything going wrong, you get to where you're going & you have a great time hopefully, w/ as little hassle or problems as possible. But then, maybe that's the naive side of me, thinking that, nothing will go wrong. For the most part, I've travelled w/ my parents & usually, if anything has gone wrong, my father has always been able to deal w/ it & make things run somewhat smoothly. This time, for my next big adventure, I'm on my own & I just hope that if things do go wrong, I'll be able to handle them calmly, w/o freaking out & with aplomb.

Just out of curiousity, I thought I'd check out Atlantis Paradise Resort and Casino, because I've heard so much about it. It looks fabulous, it looks absolutely huge, basically, it's a mega resort. Well, it's absolutely gorgeous, that's for sure! However, it's also exorbitantly expensive!! My jaw hit the floor when I saw the rates! But, I guess I shouldn't be surprised, I mean, a place like that, as huge & as luxurious as it is, it's got to pay for itself somehow. I don't really think tho that it might be for the "average person" tho...Woweewow!