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kikaykim · 6 years ago

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Taiwan Trip 2018

I’ve always been curious about what the heart of Asia can offer and by taking advantage of its government’s initiative for Free Visa to attract more tourists, it’s time to get to know this neighboring country.

I turned to AirAsia for cheap flights and got a good deal for Taiwan from Dec. 17-21. The dates are the best as they’re literally 1 week before the holiday break kicks off so I don’t need to worry about the “back to reality” dillemma that we get right after spending a holiday away from home then going back straight to work.

I did a lot of research by reading blogs and watching vlogs on Youtube. The information I got from the two mediums really helped me out in planning my 4 days trip. AirAsia flights to Taiwan from Clark are always at night so I only have 4 days instead of 5.

The next thing I did after securing my flight tickets, I looked for discounted hotels/hostels. I always turn to Agoda because they have the cheapest accommodation deals. Been booking hotels with them since 2016. I never had an issue and their customer service, although the queue is too long, you’ll spend a tantamount of time waiting on the line for a rep to attend to your concerns, is superb. Agoda also have the options for “pay nothing until” or “pay at the property”. I also considered looking through Airbnb but in the end, I found myself booking two accommodations via Agoda. Mind you, always read the reviews of people for that hotel you want to book. It will definitely help you decide if it’s the right one for you.

I also thought of booking activities, buy tickets and rentals online (aside from flight tickets) when planning my trip. I turned to two travel applications: Klook and KKday.

Klook:

-Rental of 4G Wifi Mobile Broadband I got on Sale. My usage is 5 days. The pickup location is right at the Arrival Area of Taoyuan Airport T1. It was an easy transaction, instructions on the Klook voucher is accurate. I presented the QR code on the voucher on my phone, my passport and Debit card (credit card can be used too). The card is required so when you loose or damage the device, they’ll charge you. Signed the receipt and that’s it! The device was low on power charge though, so I got to use it the next day but boy, it’s so fast! No lagging anywhere I go in Taiwan. The price shown below is for 1 day use only. So the price will multiply depending on how many days you’re going to use it.

-Taichung World Flora Expo Ticket. This ticket is for the entrance fee of the three world flora expo sites. I’ll go into detail of the itinerary later on.

KKDAY:

-booked a Day Tour Package for three tourist spots: Yehliu Geopark, Shifen and Jiufen.

What you need to know for first time travelers in Taiwan like me:

1. If your arrival time and immigration process allows it, catch the airport MRT going to Taipei or any other places in Taiwan. Otherwise, take a bus or Uber or Taxi. I was lucky to catch the MRT. MRT Airport Operating hours: 6am - 12am only.

2. Purchase the Easycard. It’s going to be your bestfriend in going around the city and neighboring states/provinces. It costs NTD$500 - there is a NTD$100 fee so your balance on the card will be NTD$400. The Easycard can be used both in MRT and Bus. This is available to purchase at any Information booth in MRT stations. Taiwan has a very systematic and easy to understand transportation system so I’m really happy about it. It’s so easy going up and down stations to your destinations.

3. It’s December, it’s Winter. Do you need to wear a jacket? I would suggest to search for the weather forecast from the duration of your stay. In my case, it never rained. It was sunny. The lowest temperature I experienced was just 17degrees Celcius -at night. Temperatures tend to get low at sun down. During the day, while wearing a fleece jacket, puffer jacket and a sweater, met with humidity and highest temp of 28degress Celcius, I got too sweaty!! So on my last day in Taiwan, I was wearing a sando and shorts. No sweat, no cold feeling though I attracted attention for wearing differently. I can’t help it, I’m a tropical island girl so 17, 20, or 28 degress are not cold enough for me except when I’m about to have my period, my body temps get low, I’m shivering at 20 degress at the office aircon. Lol. But you will notice the Taiwanese people are still wearing layered jackets I think it’s because they just got used to wearing those clothing during Winter months. And anyway, most of the year, it’s raining in Taiwan and the rain adds to the cold temperature so yeah, maybe that’s the reason. I was just lucky I guess that the duration of my visit was sunny, no rains at all.

4. Taiwanese are very friendly, accommodating and helpful that in spite of language barrier, they will proactively help you out when they see you confused or trying to figure out which way to go. That alone made my journey very easy and I really felt safe there.

5. Speaking of language barrier, taxi drivers speak little to no English and they’re having a hard time understanding what you’re trying to say. So I suggest that you prepare an address of your destination that’s written in Chinese. When I was going to the hostel from Taipei Main Station, the taxi driver was clever enough to call the hostel to get the address in Mandarin.

6. There’s plenty of climbing and walking from stations to stations and hiking trails. So you must wear comfortable shoes, and you should be an active person to prevent yourself from suffering painful legs and knees.

7. Get a copy of the Taipei Metro Guide pamphlet. It will help you navigate which train line to take to get to your destinations. You can get it from the Information booth or train officers around the stations. You can also get a soft copy online at english.metro.taipei -just type it as it is on your web browser.

Here’s my detailed itinerary..

Day 1. A DIY trip I planned:

Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial

Elephant Mountain

Mala YuanYang Hotpot

Chun Shui Tang Milk Tea

Maokong Gondola

Longshan Temple

Taipei 101

Ximending

Shilin Night Market

What I actually able to fulfill: all of the above except the ones written on RED. Yes. I ran out of time, I wasn’t able to squeeze them to the schedule.

Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial - this is just a walking distance from the hostel I stayed in. No entrance fee as it is a public place. I was in awe at how huge those traditional structures are and how spacious the whole park is. It’s magnificent! Also, the Exit 5 of the Chiang Kai-Shek MRT station is right in the compound.

Elephant Mountain - it’s a hiking trail where you can get a great view of Taipei 101 and the city from afar. It is a popular destination for both locals and tourists alike. This is where my knees got in real trouble, I could use a wheelchair! The steps are too steep going up, I was not able to finish the trail and get to the boulders because my legs, specially my knees were giving up. This is the price to pay for not being an active person. Though, there is a spot, a balcony where you can already take a photo and see the city from there without going up to the boulders. That’s where I stopped and got the below 2nd photo.

How to get here: from any MRT station in my case, Chiang Kai-Shek Exit 4 station, take the RED line to Xiangshan station and go to Exit 2. From Exit 2, go straight to the park then turn left at the end of the park, go straight then turn right. Continue walking straight until you see the sign on the above photo on the left side of the street. When in doubt, just Google then look for the result from “Guide to Taipei”. Tried pasting the link here but this silly tumblr can’t save it, the app crashes.

Mala YuanYang Hotpot at Ximending - took a lunch at this unlimited hotpot that is popular to tourists. This place gets really crowded mostly by Korean tourists. The lunch costs NTD$545 and dinner is NTD$635. You can have unlimited premium meats, seafood and other hotpot essentials, unlimited drinks with plenty of varieties and this is the most exciting part: unlimited Häagen-Dazs and Movenpick ice cream!!! Aside from other desserts like fruits, puddings and egg tart. The only limited though, is time. Your lunch and dinner is limited to only 2 hours. It is located in Ximending which is also happens to be Taipei’s shopping district. So in this stop, I was able to hit two places in one go. And I think Ximending is livelier at night. So if you want to get dinner instead of lunch at Mala Hotpot, then I think that’s a better idea.

How to get here: Ximen station is your drop point station. It is in the Blue and Green lines as it also serves as the transfer station for Green line. Blue line has transfer stations from Taipei Nangang Exhibition Center station and Zhongxiao Fuxing station from the Brown line, Taipei Main Station from the Red line, Zhongxiao Xinsheng from the Orange line, and Ximen station from the Green line. From where I was at Xiongshan station of the Red line, I dropped off the Chiang Kai-Shek station then transferred to the Green line and stopped at Ximen station.

Taipie 101 - the most famous landmark of Taiwan. It’s astonishing! Since it’s sunny on the day I went up the Taipei 101 Observatory, I was able to see the whole city, crystal clear! What I forgot to do though is to get to the 91st floor observatory. The main observatory is at the 89th floor and it took us 37seconds to get there from the 5th floor where the ticket for the observatory is being sold at NTD$600 per person. It is indeed the fastest lift!

How to get here: Take the RED line going to Taipei 101/World Trade Center station.

Maokong Gondola - it’s a gondola ride with three mountain stops. The last stop is the Maokong village where there are a bunch of tea shops. It is better to get there before sunset to see the city sunset while enjoying a tea. Unfortunately in my case, I got to ride the gondola past 5pm. Night time comes early at 5pm. But I get to see the city at night while riding the gondola and enjoying the cold breeze.

How to get here: from Taipei 101 station which is in the RED line, take the same line to Daan Park station which is the transfer station for the Brown line. Take the Brown line going to Taipei Zoo station. From Taipei Zoo staition, just follow the signs that leads to the Maokong Gondola. It will cost you a total of NTD$200 for a round trip from the gondola.

Chun Sui Tang Cultural Tea House - based on Google search, it is the one that started the Milk Tea craze! They also have the Taiwanese Beef Noodle soup which is also a famous Taiwanese dish. Hitting two birds with one stone. This is where I had my dinner. The milk tea tastes bittersweet which I really like. The beef noodle soup tastes good too! The servings are huge!

How to get here: Take the Red line going to Chiang Kai-shek station. Go to Exit 5. The restaurant is located just under the stairs of the Chaing Kai-Shek Concert Hall.

And that’s a wrap for my first day in Taiwan. My next posts will detail my journey for the rest of my 4 days in the country.

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sportymama · 5 years ago

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“The tragedy of this life is not that it ends so soon but that we wait so long to begin it.”

Packing Shenanigans

The cinnamon whiskey is hot as it’s sweetness hits my throat and coats my belly. It makes me feel good and warms me up. Although the inside of our paper-thin ultralight tent is like a sauna inside, I’ve been freezing all day. I lay back and hear the murmured whispers of other people around us. Backpackers are rolling into camp, setting up their room for the night. The wind is hard, and it’s whipping the thin material of our tent vestibules, making it hard to rest. The sun is still high. Today, thank God, was an easy hiking day. I need to sleep. Only a day prior, I had been fever-ridden, sleeping restlessly in a hostel in Puerto Natales, Chile piled four-high with sheepskins for warmth. I lay back wondering if it was smart to start this journey. It was risky. I had considered staying back in Puerto Natales and sending G on his way, but I had to give it a shot, knowing that once we started, there was no turning back. No search and rescue, no way off of the O except finishing it in its entirety. That’s the stubbornness in me.

When I had woken up this morning, the fever had broke. I still felt like death when we boarded the bus in Puerto Natales that took us to the ranger station of Torres Del Paine in Laguna Amarga. This is a two-hour trip, so I slept on the bus and prayed that this sickness would leave me. There was too much planning, logistics, and heart that had gone into this trek — one of the hardest travel plans we’ve EVER made.

We climb out of the bus with 60 other backpackers, check-in, and start our day. It’s slow, my chest incredibly congested, my nose stuffed. Even on a good, healthy day, I knew this journey would have some difficulty. I second guess my decision to start. What if I literally cannot make it? I have to! We are carrying everything we need for the next eight days on our backs, and even though we are accustomed to this and have packed light, my pack feels heavy. I am so congested. My breathing incredibly labored.

The mostly flat/rolling terrain and 13-kilometer hike was a blessing on this first day out of Laguna Amarga. I was still star-struck with the whole idea of us being in Patagonia. Pata-freaking-gonia, I kept thinking. It’s one of those trips we’ve talked about and dreamed about for years. Now I’m sick and miserable and fighting each step to get to our first camp.

As I lay back in our tiny Big Agnes tent, I think, “there’s no turning back now.”

We are at Serón.

Logistically speaking, this trip was outrageous! We didn’t want to go with a guide, a team, a mule train…you get my point, so I was left to the booking arrangements. There are three players in Patagonia; Fantastico Sur, Vertice Patagonia, and CONAF. These are the three places you will go to for booking all camps and refugios. We had decided to hike both the W and the O circuit; The “O” includes the “W” trail, with the addition of the backside, or northern section of the mountain to make it a long loop, – 130 kilometers. A max of 80 people are allowed onto the backside O a day. It’s undoubtedly a more challenging trail, and it’s also without refugios, but it’s all worth it when, as you finish climbing John Garner Pass, you get an unprecedented view of the icecap Glacier Grey.

The booking process was maddening. Very strict dates are required, and none of these agencies work together. Not to mention they ALL hold different camps and refugios on different parts of the trek, and not in order. CONAF being the government-held camps does not even open for registration until much later in the year, so as we booked Fantastico and Vertice camps in August for our February trip, we could not book CONAF until sometime around November. The spots fill quickly, so as you can imagine, by the time CONAF rolled online for reservations, the dates we had booked through the other two agencies didn’t work out into the CONAF schedule. The day we landed in Santiago, Chile, we didn’t have a full camp itinerary, and let me tell you, as you walk into each camp, they check your reservations, along with your passport and the PDI slip. If you are off by a day, you will be asked to go back.

Campsites are arranged like this:

Vertice Patagonia – Campsites: Dickson, Los Perros, Grey and Paine Grande

Fantasticosur – Campsites: Serón, Los Cuernos, El Chileano, Central and Frances

CONAF – Free Campsites: Italiano, Paso and Torres Ranger Station & Camping

After arriving in Santiago, Chile and spending a day and night we flew down to Punta Arenas and stayed at a great hostel. I was chilly as we took a walk around town, and we were amused that our weather app showed that we were in the “Antarctic Zone” as it is the southern-most city before Antarctica. We wandered down by the water; The Straight of Magellan, for a while and headed back to our hostel and to bed early as we had a bus to catch at daybreak.

Straight of Magellan

Punta Arenas

Straight of Magellan

Thankfully we had three days to spend in Puerta Natales before heading onto the O. I was incredibly sick and we still did not have our reservations for camp. After going back and forth between the offices of Vertice and Fantastico, waiting in line and jostling dates we thought we had them all together, but after further review I had missed a camp, shifting a date, and had to start all over with new dates. I was down for the count at this point, in bed, shivering with the worst flu ever. My poor NON-Spanish speaking husband had to go back to these offices with new dates. By the grace of the Holy God, he was able to “pictionary” his way through. They made some calls for him and BOOM, he came back with our itinerary…..to leave in the morning!

Seron Camp is a basic camp. It’s a grassy field with two picnic-style tables that have a tarp for wind cover. You have to cook in these designated tarp areas only at every site. I barely remember being at Seron, to be honest. I slept and went into the hut to cook dehydrated soup with our MSR stove one time. I loved hearing and seeing all of the friendly faces and different nationalities and languages of the people we would be spending the next 8-9 days alongside. Once you start the O-circuit, and because they limit the number of people on the trail, these become your leap-frogging trail friends.

The following day, we broke camp early and headed out to Dickenson Camp. The views were unbelievable, and we kept finding ourselves stopping every chance we got to take it all in! It’s a steep climb and steep downhill coming into Dickenson. Today was 19 kilometers; It’s one of the most beautiful camps on the O. Once you arrive and check-in, you can find a spot for your tent anywhere you want. We shrugged out of our packs and wandered around. We saw a fox scampering along the treeline. We set our tent so that in the morning, as we unzipped to make coffee, we would have a perfect view of the soaring mountains and glaciers. Dickenson has a great set up for cooking. A little cabin-like shelter, with electricity — also, hot showers and bathrooms and even a small area where they sell snacks. We bought Pringles and chocolate here.

After pitching our tent, we showered and laid in the hot sun, waiting to see who and when the others would roll into camp. It was at this camp that we met “the two traveling nurses” who were from the States, working at different locations in the States until they save enough for their next great adventure. They travel on their earnings for a few months, return to the US, work for a few months only to repeat the process over and over. We loved swapping stories about the places we’ve all been in common and the enjoyment of different cultures, cuisines and our unquenchable wanderlust.

We also met “One Pole and the Goodr Girls”, a group consisting of a guy and two women traveling together. One Pole lost one of his trekking poles along the first leg of the trip and came into camp with one…deeming him “One Pole” The women he was with both wore my favorite brand of athletic glasses; Goodr and have friends who work for the company, thus-The Goodr Girls.

There was also an Argentinean father and two sons, two Chilean buddies traveling together, and a pair of Aussies (a father and son) who we cooked and had dinner with at Dickenson. We’ve never laughed so hard in our lives as we did with these two and their quirky personalities. Still, some of the moments we laugh about the most from this trip come from these two.

Con’t-

Patagonia Dias Uno a Siete "The tragedy of this life is not that it ends so soon but that we wait so long to begin it."

#wordpress #Blogger #camping #Chile #dreams #everyday love #faith #hiking #humor #moon #O-circuit #Patagonia #prayer #travel

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iansoakparanormalelimination · 7 years ago

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My Paranormal Life: The Bog Creature

My life has been turned upside down and backwards many times, so many times in fact that I wonder why the twists seem to take the shape that it has so repetitively. With the last several years culminating in several life changes that started when I was a child, introspection set in and I began to really sift through the years seeking answers. Or at the very least some kind of clues. Nearly going blind will do that to you, nearly dying several times didn't seem to be the ticket.But those are tales for another time.The differences in my life from others I know has been so dramatic that in the growing darkness of my sight I began to try to piece together something. Was I always different or was this difference pushed onto me? Or was I always different and then made MORESO?Going back into my memories the differences begin right away. No one else I know can remember their first steps, getting diapers changed, the distaste for the feel of plastic pants over their underpants as they are potty trained. The first feel and silence of being sat in a depression of snow at 10 or 11 months. I could read well before entering Kindergarten because of my mother's teachings, since she labeled everything with the name of the thing in our shared bedroom, even my crib. Yes, I can clearly remember those times, even the abuses my parents and elder siblings sent my way, though those didn't ramp in intensity until after I was back home and turned 6 years old. Forgive me, I'm getting slightly ahead of myself but with reason, as you'll eventually read.Oh, and my blindness that I avoided, which you've doubtlessly been asking yourself about? Trauma Induced Cataracts from concussive impacts to my head from beatings and car accidents...no, not when I was driving, these happened when I was a child and before the law and normal use of seat belts stepped in to protect us from ourselves. and our parents.Now, needless to say this is all completely true. I know you'll all wonder if this is the case, if it's true, can I provide you with as much documentation as you need that won't be compromising, etc? I could, but that would make my life somewhat less private, but the information is available. Even my Doctor's information on the implants in my eyes so I can see can be screenshot and put up if you need convincing.But why am I telling you these things about my vision? Simple really...something didn't like the idea that I could SEE them. Really see them.As I am a child of two nations born in the US, this means a large amount of cultural background goes into the sum of my parts. With a Cuban father and mother from England, you can see what an amazing contrast there would be between the two parts of my family. The differences are so vast with one half of the family being very spiritual, Santeria being a large part of the religious makeup of the Cuban side. On the other is the celtic influence of my mother's family, with deep ties to the old faiths of the islands of the United Kingdom, all the way back to old religions of pagan and druids.As a baby I never knew how protected I was by my tias(that's aunts in Spanish) and their diligence to keep the house we lived in safe from the other world they knew was there, and feared...terrifically in fact. Constant blessings, use of camphor, holy water and cleansing with incense happened all the time. These kept my dreams untroubled and I feared the dark only because I could not see.Eventually, we moved and the home I would grow up in did not have ANY of those benefits. I began to see things in the darkness most easily. Aside from feeling things when I was near something spiritually active at a distance, I could see things, too. See what? Indistinct shapes, swirling patterns of movement as of fog or ether and something causing eddies in it just out of sight. But sometimes I saw more....much more.Take for example my tio Mickey and his wife, my tia Olga. As a little child we'd go there all the time because tia Olga was my godmother. Her mother, forgive me I do not recall her name, lived with them and had her own room. She was very old and not in the best of health, but she had an aura about her that said she was kindly and wished she could do more when my brother, sister and I came to visit than just sit in her room or lie in bed. Sometimes she was too exhausted to get out of bed and we had to play quietly on the other side of the house on the covered porch.I had a habit of wandering off and going places I was told not to go, following feelings that seemed to draw me on that were tied to my gut around the level of diaphragm. Inf act sometimes I would wander blocks away from home or to parks, scaring my family silly. I would go to tia Olga's mother's room and as I'd walk in, a man standing next to her bed would look up and smile most of the time. My memory of him is as hazy now as it is of her, but I remember dark but warm eyes, steely gray hair swept back and slicked down to keep it neat with a light blue guayabera. He was thick in the upper body, muscular but not overly so. I couldn't see his lower body since he was on the opposite side of the bed. She would look away from him to me, following his gaze to see me standing in the doorway."Hola, señora." I said."Ay!" my tio Mickey would say from up the hallway to get my attention, and I'd turn to look at him as he and his big dog, Duke, came towards me. I look back to apologize for bothering her, my mother's demand for proper English manners you see, and the man was gone. There was no place for him to go I should point out. And no one else lived there since my cousin, Michael, had moved out some years before. Keep in mind I think these events happened when I was 4, I'm pretty sure of it as my cousin's wedding had been the year before this when I was three.No one could ever tell me who that was, no one wanted to even mention it. The fact is it only started whispers between adults about the events, fearfully whispered discussions amongst them. Discussions I was not allowed to even think of eavesdropping on.It wasn't long after this that my tia Olga's mother passed on. I never found out who the man was in the room with her, but I am assuming it was someone very close to her for the simple fact I never felt menaced by what I saw and the room felt brighter after she passed, as if her illness or frail body had trapped her light. And once it was free the room fairly scintillated from its passing touch. Funny to think that years later when I brought my girlfriend(who would eventually become my wife) to visit tia Olga in her sickbed that it was in that very room. No, she was not there looking over her daughter, but the room was still bright with the light she'd left behind.A parting gift to ease her daughter's pains.Not all I saw was friendly as I'm certain you're wondering at this point if everything I saw was benevolent or kindly. As I'd said before the protection afforded us was lost when we moved as my mother never let my aunts do their ministrations again. We were given these tiny bags with a bead and a rosary medallion inside to wear under our clothes against our skin, pinned to our clothing with safety pins, to ward off evil. Because of the thing I mentioned, and a considerable many more brevity doesn't allow me to mention, I was given one more than my brother and sister. One of my patron saint, Joan of Arc. No, I'm not a female, but there is no Saint Sean. That's my name, by the way. Sean....same spelling as Sean Connery for whom I was told, jokingly or not, to be named after. Joan in French(she was French after all) is Jeanne. That's pronounced the same way as Jean of Jean Luc Picard fame for the Trek Nerds amongst you. Which as you can easily hear sounds a lot like Sean, a name that none of my cuban relations could easily say except my cousin, who was raised in the US.Forgive me for all this preface, but I thought I'd give you some idea of the events and history before the "Big Event".My mother's relations had come to visit us singly or in combinations for a little while, and I do believe I even got to see my Great Aunt Lily more than once in the US. My mother's father, Grandad, had been setting aside money since she'd left home to have her come home, either to stay or for a visit, and this money he'd made from quitting smoking. Funny enough, he'd been saving so long that the amount had grown high enough for us to all come visit them over the Summer. My father had to work so he couldn't come with us, his job was very demanding. Our "Talismans" given to us by the Cuban side of the family were not allowed to come with us and remained in a box back home, despite loud protestations. My mother was most insistent on that as she was embarrassed by them.We got our passports and in June of the year Star Wars IV A New Hope came out. So we were literally flying to UK less than a month after its initial release and I had to miss the phenomenon of the Summer that it was in 1977, but its impact was felt all over England in merchandising that tantalized me in the form of bubblegum cards with stills from the movie on them.My time in England was, to put it lightly, not boring.Why, you might ask? Whether it was walking everywhere or taking buses or trains, we were dragged to every moor, castle, monument, palace, and place of interest my mother could think of to see. This in direct contrast to the part of Los Angeles where we'd lived that requires a car and a long trip to get anywhere meaningful...it was a shock to say the very least about it one can say. All of this while traveling between the homes of my Grandad and Nanny(that's my grandmother if you hadn't guessed), my Aunt Sonia and my Aunt Celia in various places around England.From Heathrow we were driven out of the city to my Aunt Sonia's home and outfitted the next day with cagoules and wellies. For anyone not familiar, those are rainproof jackets that cover to the thigh and waterproof calf height rubber boots. For you see we had been impelled to come because that year since the previous 2 years had been a "Drought" and rain had been scarce, but 1977 was the end of the drought and we saw 3 sunny days all Summer long as nature dumped 3 years worth of water on England to make up for her laxness.Sonia's home was new and the neighborhood she and her family lived in was newly urbanized portions north of London that once just been rolling hills and forests. I slept well there, felt nothing and nothing ever happened. The same could not be said of Celia's or my grandparent's homes.Celia had an old home that was more than a century old and with much history, in a portion of England known for minor nobles living, and dying, nearby in their mansions. My grandparents flat was in the middle of a rebuilt portion of London, in an area that had been annihilated during the Bombing of London.When we first went to stay with Celia it was a bit of a shock. Upon first stepping through the front door and removing my wellies, I noticed the air was thick...and cold. To the left of the large front door was a toilet behind a closed door under a large staircase with a banister. My eyes were drawn to it as we were lead inside by my aunt, distracted with talking to my mother about her coming wedding. Another reason for our presence, so my mother could be there for her younger sister's wedding.The cold stopped as we got to the third stair and turned right on the small landing and proceeded up the stairs. Now the air was just thick and unwelcoming. We were shown to our room we'd be sleeping in, we children. It was across the hall from Celia's room and next to my mother's room. I kept looking at the door to my aunt's room, a pulsing sensation in my ears and pressing on my chest. So distracted was I, that I didn't even notice I was being asked something by my mother as she ushered me into our room to unpack.Celia smiled at me as she opened the door to her room, something about getting into her regular clothing now that she was not traveling anymore that day. I looked past her into the room with eyes wide and the feeling of dread growing. She saw my curiosity."What is it, Sean?" she asked me she looked over her shoulder into the room. Past her I could see her bed and nothing else. I looked back at her as she entered the room and then walked out of sight to the right towards what I would later learn was the walk in closet. Doing this she crossed my view of the bed and when it was clear again I saw something that chilled me to the marrow and the pressure came back enough to make me gasp.There, in the bed, now sat an old woman in a sleeping cap and nightgown that looked like something from the 18th century. Her hair was grey and tied up into the cap, her skin was parched and wrinkled but she couldn't have been older than 70. I apologize I cannot be more descriptive than that, not only was it 4 decades ago I was terrified. As I write this the terror is fresh in my breast and my heart is hammering just as it did then. The woman was sitting in the bed looking in the direction that Celia had walk out my field of view, then slowly she turned to look at the doorway. It seemed at the time she was turning her head at the sound of my gasp. Her eyes were angry, unwelcoming and accusing of some misdeed I was being blamed for.I've included a link to something vaguely similar to what I saw. Keep in mind, it's not the same but it can give you a rough impression of what I saw.At that moment my sister and mother walked past, breaking my line of sight as they walked past to go downstairs to get the rest of the suitcases to unpack. I stood frozen, my brother asking me what was wrong as they walked by. After they passed the old woman was nowhere to be seen.I told no adult, nor my sister, as I remembered the response seeing things like this had gotten me in the past at home. I confided in my brother only, and he'd told me he hadn't seen anything. He proceeded to tell my mother and sister all about all I'd said and all the future events. And yes, she looked real. Like any person you see on the street looks. Solid and alive. That's how a great deal of the spirits I see look, or so I have learned. They appear as they did in life...rarely as how they died unless it was violent or traumatic. This was something I would learn much later but I mention it here in case you're wondering.Needless to say, I always kept my eyes averted from her room so I'd never see that woman again, even refusing to use the upstairs bathroom as I'd have to pass her and risk seeing or feeling her again.My grandparents flat had no oppressive feel to it, but there was a ghost all the same. A figure would walk into the bedroom where my brother and I slept, look around and then leave. He was dressed in a strange helmet shaped like a brimmed soup bowl with a chinstrap and a strange heavy jacket with leather buckles that looked water resistant. I could never see his feet as it was always too dark in the room. As the man entered he always seemed to bring a light with him, as if he glowed mildly. Otherwise I would not have been able to see much of him in the pitch dark of the middle of the night. I have no idea if I woke each time he came, but when I did awake it was usually prefaced by the feeling that I thought my mother had just walked in to check up on my brother and I, which she did now and again.I'm including a link to a picture of what the man looks like that walked through the home at night looked like.One thing I forgot to mention was my mother's morbidity when it came to graveyards. She has been tracing our family tree for ages, and this meant we were usually dragged to find headstones with her maiden name on them. One particular graveyard near my Grandad's flat was apparently where my great grandparents were buried. This graveyard was never empty of people walking through it and looking around. We'd be there many times, clearing the weeds and bracken from the shared grave of my great grandparents and placing flowers before I asked my mother why so many people were milling about. Her answer was:"I don't know Sean.....what people?" she asked as she looked around, finally paying attention to what I asked her. As the youngest in the family I'm rarely listened to and almost everything I said was dismissed or outright ignored. Never before had I wished my mother had ignored my question.I looked up at all the people who were walking amongst the graves and pointed at them. Specifically I pointed at a girl with reddish hair tied up in a pink ribbon that was wearing a light sweater and a dress that came to her knees. Remember when I said we saw three sunny days that summer in England? This was not one of them. We were in our rain gear, this girl and all the others were not. They were all in different attire. Some looked dressy such as suits and dresses, while others were dressed casually. Some looked like they were dressed in the current clothing styles, some were considerably older. I had not noticed it before that moment. Further, not a single one of them even had an umbrella or rain gear of any note to ward off the pattering rain I could hear making noise against the plastic cagoule hood. And though the rain was not falling heavily, it was falling around us sufficiently to turn a sweater completely sodden in minutes.Suddenly breathless, I realized two things:Ghosts can appear in the daylight outside. Something as a child I'd assumed was a "safe" time I would not have to worry about running into these things I was quickly becoming terrified of. And these ghosts had suddenly become aware of me.All of them.As if they were discomfited at scaring me, they all turned to look at me with impassive expressions on their faces, except for the girl I pointed at, and then each of them turned away and faded from sight. It was almost as if they had pulled a screen in front of themselves or stepped from one room to another by changing the focus of their attention. The girl with the reddish hair and the pink ribbon? She didn't disappear, instead she smiled and stayed fairly close listening to our conversations and watching, all in a completely non-threatening manner. No one seemed to notice her or see her throughout our time there, which I was eager to cut as short as possible.Threatening or not, I was leery of her and unwilling to let her close, always keeping my mother between us. I have no idea who she was and I was too scared to find out or even try to talk to her.Just two things I must mention about this graveyard not directly related to the ghosts or spirits I saw there:Firstly, the church that stood before it was where my Aunt Celia was married that summer. Secondly, this was where my Grandad was buried when he died of massive heart attack in his flat in August just after my mother's birthday. And no, I never saw him again. His spirit, despite staying in the flat many more days, never came to me. Nor, might I add, did the man in the helmet ever appear again to me.I'm sure most of this seems innocuous and far from dangerous to the reader, but you have to see it from the point of view of a 5 year old child. Not only that, you have to understand that before this I'd never encountered so many and so often. Only had I ever seen things swirling away, or faces peaking out my closet. But there was much more to be seen in England....ever so much more.For instance, the area along the Thames where the beheadings of many condemned folks that had stayed their last days in the Tower of London gave me nightmares throughout my time there. Things I'd rather never recount or remember. Things that still leave me shaking whenever I see the Tower of London in pictures or film. Rooms filled with ancient torture devices at Windsor Castle and other museums gave brief flashes of things that made me sit up in my bed at night drenched in sweat for years. Darker things did occur during my stay in the UK, but let me finish with the "Event" that seemed to mark the end of things as they had been, and none of the events eclipsed it.Though we stayed with the relations I mentioned and never went to stay with my uncle(Billy), we did however get to visit some distant relations. Distant in both lineage and in mileage. One set was in Scotland and was not spiritually noteworthy except to say that it felt as safe as if I was back in my old home, as though something protecting me. I would later discover that the reason for this was that the family was said to be protected by a few spirits and an "Elemental". For those of you good with a search engine you might discover my family name in Scotland from just the clues I have given you here.But the scariest experience I had was visiting second or third cousins of my mother's, Glynis and Roy. Once again I apologize for not knowing exactly. They are a nice couple with a home that had a past they had no clear answers for. At my aunt's wedding we were told by my aunt Celia about the "Ghost of the Bed". It was an antagonistic spirit that menaced only adult males that slept in the bedroom, not allowing them to sleep, shaking them, waking them with shrieking, attacking them and other more painful events. They'd look into the history of the house and it went back about two hundred years, it being one of the old homes in Wales with a history rich and mostly lost through time. Of course, Roy had only been told these things and had never tried to sleep there himself. A friend of his had tried and left in the middle of the night, never to return.No one stepped forward with more information as to why the spirit did what it did, whether it was male or female, or what had brought its darkness into the home in the first place. All this was recounted by Celia with dark glee, as she looked on the paranormal I would later find out as a fan of Hammer Horror films looks on schlocky movies as something to be sometimes laughed at and sometime horrified by. A non-believer and mundane in every sense of the word, who would later run experiments on haunted locations with me as a guinea pig on her many visits throughout my childhood.Terrified at what I could end up seeing, and now thoroughly exhausted from lack of sleep and decent food. But that's a story for another time. Suffice to say, the words "Cuisine" and "English" to not belong sitting back to back and are as unrelated as any two words can be. Want to know why Harry Potter is always eating candy and treats in the movies? Can't ever go wrong with English sweets and candy.The trip to Wales was long and arduous as we had to stay on the train for several hours and a few train changes and a bus ride. Before it was all over I had been menaced by my sister and brother with the idea of the ghost in the house...ghosts they didn't believe in or could see. Menaced with the idea of being put in the bedroom I was so scared of sleeping in. You know how that is, how children are."We're going to put you in there, Sean! We're going to make you sleep upstairs with the ghost!" they'd torment me, then wail like ghosts, holding their hands in grasping poses like a walking revenant out for human blood.I'd wail and run, scared out of my wits already at the very knowledge I was going to be near it. Certain in fact, despite my mother's claims they wouldn't, that they'd do it all the same and make me sleep in that accursed room.Well human endurance can only go so far when living on egg and chips, fish and salad and saveloy. I passed out on the last bus despite trying to stay awake in order to make sure I was able to make certain I was not put in the wrong room. My siblings had a nasty habit once they knew about the ghosts I could see of locking me in closets just to hear me shrieking in the darkness...darkness that was sometimes not void of...others. I was scared that they would force me into the room and make me face it as they had threatened.My fears were in vain, they never did go through with their threats.I awoke, as children do, slowly and softly to find myself in a bed already despite the fact i could tell by the ambient light that it was still daylight. And it was also sunny outside, one of the three days I mentioned. I was covered in a thick blanket that felt almost as heavy as one of those lead coats they throw on you when you get X-rays at the dentists office. I was warm and comfortable for several seconds before I realized where I was, then terror blossomed in my chest and my heart began to hammer against my little ribcage. I sat up, struggling under the weight of the blanket I now saw was doubled up and made of very heavy material. Don't ask, I have no idea what the material was or if it was a comforter. All I recall is that it was heavy and warm.Sitting up, I look around me at the room. The bed was old and I could hear the springs shift as I did. The headboard was metal, rather like the kind you see in old movies of hospitals, but it was larger and wider. It seemed so large to me at the time, disproportionately big for a child of my small stature. To my right was a window with the pulldown shade drawn from the lintel to within an inch of the sill. I could tell the window was open because of the way the shade moved slightly now and then from air flowing around it, causing the sun that was coming in to vary in intensity. Under the window was a low chest of drawers made of dark stained wood, it looked antique and sturdy. To my left was a tall dresser that was at least 4 feet high but with no mirror on it, also made of dark stained wood. That made me feel frightened for some reason, the lack of a mirror. Don't ask me why.Directly beside the bed on my left was a nightstand made of lighter wood with a single drawer in it. Set atop it was a glass of water and a couple of Welsh Cakes next to the glass. My stomach rumbled at the sight of them and as I reached for my first, I heard a sound and looked at the door for the first time which was just in front of the foot of the bed.The sound of my family, downstairs, laughing loudly at something. It seemed to come up to my as if mocking me, teasing me. Almost like I was put here on purpose to test me, to torture me and expose me to my fears. Because after all, to them it was not real. It was explained away as imagination how many times by my mother since coming to England? I'd long lost count. And I could hear my brother and sister laughing at something, the low voice of Roy interjecting something and then another burst of laughter.Well, I thought, I'll show them. I'll get away. I'll call them all stupid and mean for trying to scare me and laughing about it! Always picking on me, the littlest in the family. The butt of all their insults and tortures! How many times had they locked me in a closet with things reaching for me from the dark? Or in a room with a ghost that could see me as well as I could see it, all in the name of helping me get over my "fears"? So many times!Tears had been tracing down my face as I thought of this, but now they intensified from drops to streams that blurred my sight as my horror and feeling of betrayal intensified. My cheeks were soaked and stung slightly from the hot, salty tears.I moved to get up but paused... I felt it then. Through my whole body I felt it...like suddenly I was deep under water. The pressure was intense and almost like a nightmare in intensity. Like drowning out of water, sinking deeper and deeper every second, the crushing feeling growing tighter and tighter about me. Pressing on my little chest, my shoulders creaked as they were forced into my body and my wrists were crushed into my stomach, almost as if a gigantic hand was gripping me. Looking back now I have no idea how I survived.I tried to move, but my arms could not defeat whatever it was that held me. Another chorus of laughter from under the door drew my attention downward and I could see the gap beneath the door with light from the hallway illuminated a small patch of the wooden carpet and the edge of the rug that the bed sat on. Fighting to draw enough breath to scream for my mother, all I could do was sip the air a little at a time into my lungs and let it out. I tried making noise, little gasps of "Help!" "Mommy!" and calling for my sister and brother...but looking back they couldn't have been louder than a whimper. They were far from where I was and downstairs...and they would probably ignore me anyway as they usually did. I felt betrayed as well as terrified beyond comprehension...but it wasn't even close to what I was was in for.A sound, distant, but persistent and strange reached my ears then in the silence of the room. It didn't echo, it seemed as though the sound was sucked away as soon as each sound finished. It grew steadily louder, and by that I could tell it was getting closer. The grip hadn't lessened on me and in fact began to push DOWN so my little legs were bent at painful angles on the bed. The springs squeaked in response to my downward pressure into the bed and I heard my mother say:"I think I heard Sean upstairs, I'll check on him later. Going to step out for a cigarette...." and it trailed off as she must have gone outside, and the sound of a door opening and closing...then silence. They had all stepped outside, I could now hear the sounds of my brother and sister laughing distantly from the slightly open window to my right.My right hip protested the pain of being crushed in the semi-sitting position with my right leg splayed out to the right and my left extended in front of me. The noise I'd heard, now seemingly emboldened at being alone in the house, grew louder. I could finally tell at last what it sounded like...it was like a groan, only it sounded like a person groaning while inhaling rather than exhaling. And it didn't stop this time, it was inhaling and making the sound, getting louder and louder, closer, but I couldn't see from where. My eye were now rolling around in my eye sockets searching every corner of the room to see if i could find the source of the sound, all the while my mind was crying for my mother, my tears now soaking through the neck of my polo shirt in front of my chest.The groan stopped for an instant, then began again, louder this time and I sensed it was very near. I looked down at the doorway, something had attracted my attention despite the new, burning pain in my chest. What attracted my gaze was the light from under the doorway which was slowly...going...out. It was being blotted out as if by a shadow of something moving over the source from the left of the door to cover the light. Eventually the light was absorbed by a solid line of shadow, and I knew it could not have been a person.A person could not make those sounds.A person could not make this kind of completely eclipsing shadow over the light. There would be a shape of feet or legs or something in the light.The sound was now just outside the wooden door, louder than before, and something more. It was not a single groaning. It was the sound of several people. NO! It was a chorus of them, and it sounded now almost like a painful gasping into air starved lungs, only it never paused to finish taking the perpetual inward breath! The groan didn't sound like it stemmed from pain, no. It sounded almost like an engine getting going, as if it was drawing something it wanted into it. The louder it got, the more I hurt at the pressure of the crushing sensation.As I watched the shadow over the light was taken away as something DARKER began to slide under the door. I know what you're thinking. Darker than the shadow? Darker than a lack of light? YES! Darker! And fuller! I could see an amorphous mass sliding under the door that was darker than midnight and as it entered the room, the sunlight that came in around the shade in the window grew dimmer! The pressure on my chest surged angrily as I was suddenly flung back in the bed and banged my head against the slatted metal headboard, which in turn smashed the wall. The sound of it, though it should have been loud, was like a muffled clunk even to me! As if the sound had been sucked away, or muffled underwater, or with a pillow! Take your pick of metaphor, I'm sure you get what I mean.My head, now dazed from the collision, was too loopy and weak from lack of oxygen to appreciate the reality I could now breathe. All thoughts of escape had long gone and all I wanted was my mother to come rescue me. To drive it off and protect me, to enfold me in her arms. But I realized that would not happen. Despite her promises, she'd put me here or allowed me to be put here. Either way she didn't really care about me.Blearily turning may gaze downward I watched the foot of the bed for signs of it as I prayed,"Let me die fast so it can't touch me or take me! Please...just let me die!" I was so scared all my limbs had gone cold from shock.The groaning started at an all new intensity, revving upwards in the chorus of sound and my eyes grew wide in terror as the dark mass now surged upwards into the air as if standing! And it didn't stop! It stood, and spread out as if oozing into the air, sucking the warmth and oxygen from the room, the light growing dimmer and darker as I laid there numbly, panting in ultimate terror. My thighs grew hot as my urine burst free into my jeans and ran out of my pants and onto the bedding. The groaning changed to an almost overjoyed, triumphant tone and it spread to the left and right like bat wings...reaching around to engulf me in its wicked, hungry, embrace."please, please, please, please..." I realized I was panting, begging as my tears blurred my vision, the mass moved up the bed and the "wings" oozed in slowly to engulf me. All I heard was the groaning, it filled my ears then and seemed to crawl into my head and echo there. A fresh wave of tears made it so all I saw was the blur and the cold feeling in all my limbs, my head propped at a strange angle against the headboard, forcing me to watch as it closed in.The anticipation of its icy touch on my already cold skin repulsed me and I began to shiver uncontrollably. Then, just before I knew it was going to touch me, my vision cleared slightly and I could see it was about to touch my shoulders and embrace me. The noise it made surged one last time, bestial sounds of the predator about to make a kill......but it was all suddenly blotted out by the intense, white hot agony on top of my head! A burning, watery feeling far more intense than if you ever get a shower of hot water in the tub, and it was only happening to the top of my head. Wave upon wave of heat! An agony like the top of my head had just been ripped open with a welding torch or a blow torch, only it didn't fade! And the room was suddenly filled with a blinding white light, so bright my eyes had automatically drawn to slits to protect them!The whole room was filled with it, except for the stygian patch of nightmare before me on the bed. It had halted in mid reach and was now illuminated completely, I could somehow tell it was in pain.Now I could see it entirely, and I wish to heavens I never did. The thing was made up of the images of faces and bodies! All black against black but easily discernible! All caught mid scream, or wail, or groan, or some position of pain and writhing. Contorted in agony, moving slowly within the mass, undulating to the tune of their own trapped misfortune. All molded together into a thin sheet of ultimate darkness, pressed into a fabric of utter damnation! This thing wanted me to become a part of it! Don't ask me how I know, I just KNOW! And though what was in it may have once been human and had the potential for love and mercy, all that was left was the desire to add more to its flock of tortured souls. I have realized since then that the faces I saw, the darkness that it was, it was all merely a covering for the real force behind it. The thing hiding behind the curtain of souls.The light in the room intensified and the burn to my scalp lessened at last, allowing me to move slightly. The mass lept off the bed and seems to be sucked under the door, all the while thrashing left and right as it drew in it's "wings" to remove them from the reach of the light. It passed into the hallway, the groaning sound receding as sounds from outside and light returned to the room. I could hear my siblings playing and my mother talking to Glynis about something..No idea what it was but it felt so good to hear it no matter what it was.The light was dimming finally and I looked around the room to see where it as coming from, weakly swiveling my head around to try and glimpse the source. But I was against the wall, nothing should have been able to be behind me and that is exactly where it always seemed to be. Always behind and above me, always out of sight.My strength, what little the light had imparted, was flooding out of me rapidly. The thing was gone, I wanted to escape, get out of the room! Now! Reaching my right arm to the left egde of the bed I tried to grab on and pull myself out of bed. I failed as the last of the light and the burning sensation fled me, I tumbled out of bed and headed to the floor.I don't remember hitting the floor.In fact, I don't remember anything that happened for the next three days.My next memories were that I was in Sonia's little green jalopy, heading away from train station in her town and on our way to her house.It took a long time to piece together the story, but here's what I know. They think I'd fallen out of bed after peeing in it that first day. I had gotten up, cleaned myself up and my mother found me half clothed trying to change the sheets. They'd fed us supper, I ate hearty of the wonderful food Glynis had cooked then we'd gone to bed. Through it all I acted normallyThat ws but I remembered none of it. Perhaps it was shock. What I do remember is eating the Welsh Cakes. Glynis made them herself. Even made me a stack to eat. That my brother didn't like them and my sister was trying to stay in shape for gymnastics meant I had all I wanted.You can say I'm delusional, or that I'm not sane. You can say anything you like. I was never more scared than I was that day, that was because I was a little boy, but I know what I saw.In case you're wondering, did "It" stay in that house? No, in fact Glynis and Roy said that after we were there, during a visit to the US before moving to new Zealand, someone across the street had died and they figured it had gone to follow the person. Roy slept in the room once to make sure and nothing had happened. I had a different take on things but never spoke to them of what I knew. Wasn't worthwhile telling them the thing followed me and made my life hell, guilt never solved anything.I don't know what it was, I don't care to name it. Give it a name if you need one, I could care less.What I do care about is that from that day on my life was different. It couldn't get to me, so my family turned dark. I don't know if it was the thing that wouldn't let people sleep or not in the tale we were told, I also don't care. What I care about was that my family went from being what it had been to cruel and often times vicious. After we came home the darkness got to my father. I know this because he beat me until I was unable to keep control of my bodily function, even gave me a concussion......all on Christmas Day in 1977. Merry Christmas. The reason? Because I accidentally opened the wrong present.Car accidents followed, also. My father began to drive angry, regularly. I nearly went through a windshield with a full backpack on at age 9, the only thing stopping me was the fact the window wasn't made to shatter. 1970s construction...gotta love it. My mother began to regularly deal out damage to me because my siblings would blame me for things they wanted to see me punished for. And my siblings began to use me as a whipping boy when they were upset. As they explained it, and I am quoting my sister directly here:"Just coming into a room with you in it makes me want to...just hit you, Sean. Find something heavy and WHAM!" to this my brother quickly agreed with her.It made me feel worthless and I withdrew from their presence as much as I could. This seemed to make them more antagonistic, my brother acted as if he were always being egged on to find anything he could easily get away with hitting me in the head with. This even included putting a metal nut on his finger and lashing out at my head when no one was looking., especially the top of my head. Complaining to my mother was useless. I always received a tongue lashing to the effect that either it wasn't serious what was being done or a shout at my brother to stop it. No further punishment to dissuade such behavior was ever meted out.The only solace I had in this time came from my Cuban Grandfather. Papacito. He would protect me, when I was near him I was safest from all of them. Naturally, this dark thing made sure he was gone as soon as possible. My parents divorced suddenly, and my mother drove off my aunts and grandparents. Despite the fact they lived next door to us, she found a way to make them move.After that point the cataracts started to form, and though I could see the spiritual things somewhat as dim outlines I could not see them as clearly as before. No longer did they look like normal people. You see "It" didn't want me to see so easily anymore and it figured out how to reach me. At least that's what I think.Now I have ocular implants and I can see as any of you can see....mostly. Couple more laser treatments. No more cataracts. My ability to see ghosts seems as it was when I was 5.I know this because I was shopping one day after the first surgery and my left eye was unbandaged two days prior. A little girl ran past me giggling and knocked over produce as I watched, then ran through a cart loaded with produce as if it wasn't there. The person stocking the produce, a dour looking hispanic lady, never looked up to follow her. She only humphed in annoyance and picked up the peppers,putting them back where they belonged. I asked if she saw the girl and she gave me a puzzled look.You may be wondering does misfortune still follow me, are my steps dogged by this thing? No. It's gone now.And with good reason, I might add.But that, as they say, is another story.`

#paranormal stories #paranormal #metaphysical #psychic #Ghost #poltergeist #wraith #aura #ghosts #spirits #creepy #true story

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lookijustwanttowrite · 6 years ago

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Prompt 1: If you could book a flight tomorrow to anywhere in the world, where would you go and why?

581 words

This prompt give me problems. I don’t anticipate answering every single one of them with so much candor and literal approach, but it gives me too many questions. Can I take people with me? Do I still have to pay for it? Do I need a passport? How much luggage can I take? Because technically I can book a flight to anywhere in the world, I just have other limitations.

Honestly, I have no experience flying. I have never been on an airplane. I’ve never been out of the United States. I have no frame of reference for this prompt.

In high school Spanish we had a project to plan a week-long vacation in a Spanish-speaking country and I chose Argentina, so I suppose I could go there? Boy am I out of practice speaking Spanish, though.

If I can take people with me, it would be my husband and young child, somewhere English-speaking (for my Hubs) and without a measles outbreak. England, if I don’t need a passport and don’t have to pay for it. Otherwise, maybe somewhere in California? Or New Mexico? Neither of us have seen the Pacific Ocean and both places have very different cultures from our small Midwest hometown.

My husband thinks that the value of travel is overrated; that it’s become something that people, especially in the middle class, idolize. In some ways he’s right, but I think he forgets to take into account that the ability to travel is a status symbol, a mark of wealth. It is an immense privilege to travel, even to different states within the U.S. Even more so, traveling to other countries is a huge privilege. Obviously you need money to plan for such a trip, but also you need a passport for other countries, which requires the time to deal with bureaucracy. Then you need reliable time off, which is HIGHLY unlikely in most jobs. If you’ve managed to save enough to go on the trip, then you need everything to go right so that you don’t overspend because chances are you either just got out of debt, can’t take on more debt, or would be financially ruined by debt if you have to pay for any small thing that goes wrong. Or even just to maintain the ability to go on your trip, you need everything to go right for as long as your trip is planned, meaning no car break downs, no new clothes, no new shoes, no spoiled food, and no medical issues.

I’m exhausted even thinking about traveling. How do so many people afford it? We never could growing up, and my husband and I are barely reaching the point where we are financially able to travel, but now we have Small Child. I don’t want to travel right now, I want to build my home! I want to paint and plant and grow.

Traveling is important! And someday I would love to go to Europe or New Zealand, especially to see where Lord of the Rings was filmed. I want to learn about new cultures, and if my kids take Spanish classes I want to take them to Spanish-speaking countries so that they can be fluent and I can struggle to maintain. Maybe someday we can hike to Macchu Picchu, but today i want to stay home. I want to snuggle my Small Child. I want to plan for her growth. I want to plant my garden. I want to watch it grow.

#writing practice #prompt #give me feedback!#traveling #travel #travel is a privilege #criticism welcome #journal style #prompt response #prompt 1 #3-8-19

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workingontravel · 5 years ago

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It’s a bit of a love-hate relationship

(You can find a Swedish translation of this text here.)

I have often crossed routes with Gestalta Judd, who is one of the few in Europe who teaches bondage for a living. I wanted to speak to her because of her intimate knowledge of what has been coined as “rope nomadism”, which I think of as an interesting parallel to travelling for performing arts – but also because I was curious about how Brexit would affect her travel. Gestalta brought another subject to the table: her attempt to stay on the ground in 2019 for political reasons.

Gestalta Judd: My income is entirely based on doing rope, mostly teaching. I have to travel to teach – I wouldn’t make enough otherwise. What I usually do is a combination of workshops and performances, where the performances don’t really give much income. It’s really more of a break-even situation where I offset unpaid work with a paid job in the same place. This is how I usually manage to do creative things that I like, such as performing or photo and film.

I’ve been travelling for rope events since about 2014, but I was travelling quite a bit already before: for photographic modelling and stuff like that. So actually, I’ve been travelling my whole adult life. There is no clear pattern to how I travel, but I’ve been to most countries in Europe at some point. For a while, I did lots of trips to Prague in a row, and now I’ve done lots of trips to Norway. It’s similar for most teachers, I think. You teach what you have, and then you won’t come back to that particular area again until you have new content, or until the group has changed enough that there is new interest.

It was rope that made me go outside Europe; I’ve taught in Australia, for example. But I’ve never been to the States. One of the reasons is that I’m afraid of being turned away at the border and then both losing the payment for the job and not being reimbursed for the money I spent on the ticket. No one is ever going to get me a working visa to do anything considered adult. So, I’d have to go on a tourist visa and hope that they don’t google me, because Gestalta is a legal name and very uncommon. Even if I’d do something for free, if I’m there for an event that is making money, that’s already too much for the States. When I teach abroad, the travel is often calculated out of the workshop fee. This means that cheap flying and cheap buses are what generally allow this kind of teaching to happen. Since I get refunded and paid only if I show up, it’s lucky that I’ve never been too sick to go. If I had to cancel under those circumstances, it would be a trust thing. I think most organisers are decent people and would be able to discuss who was in a better financial position to cover the loss of the travelling cost. I bring as little as possible: my ropes, a bar of soap, my toothbrush, light clothes like leggings and stuff. If I’m going to a cold country, I try to take only one heavy outfit that I can wear over all my other clothes. Then I hope that I can borrow whatever else I need when I get there. While travelling, I try to sleep, or I take my headphones and just zone out completely for a while. If it’s a very long trip, I might try to do some writing, like workshop descriptions or such.

I would normally stay with one of the organisers or a student; whoever has a spare room or sofa. It’s very rare to get a hotel. It’s hard to afford that kind of thing. I often try to stay in places where there’s a kitchen and I can cook for myself and box it up to bring wherever I go. I’ve found that I get less tired when I’m eating what my body is used to, rather than having to rely on an unfamiliar diet. Every year for the last three years, I’ve been thinking that I will definitely stop travelling. But every year something new comes up. It’s a bit of a love-hate relationship. I absolutely can’t imagine what I would be doing if not rope. And I love doing it once I get there. But I’ve reached a point where the thought of travelling is actually horrible. And when I get home, I’m not really quite at home either, because I spend so little time there. I feel annoyed about the difficulty of putting down roots. The reason why I still want to continue is that I learn so much from the differences in how people construct their communities. I get to see rope from so many perspectives. And I have this familiarity with people globally, like they have become locals to me. There is no longer a strict divide between the teacher and the student like there used to be, when travelling teachers were less common. It’s more of an exchange now. It happens that I go to someone’s workshop and then the next day that person comes to my workshop. I used to feel more isolated. Being at a workshop in a room full of people talking about how great it is using this tool to connect with your partner, I sometimes had this strange sense of, “Oh but I’ve been travelling for so long I don’t really have any partners ’cause it’s impossible for me to sustain any meaningful connection with someone that I never see…” It was a bleak kind of feeling.

How much I travel varies greatly. At the heaviest, I could be flying twice a week, easily, and that could go on for months. At the lightest, I take months off and try not to go anywhere. If I do a big trip outside Europe, I try to earn enough to be able to rest when I come home. I have to be organised and hyper-focused when I work. If there’s too much going on outside what I’m focusing on, I start to forget things, and if I start to forget things, it’s over. Relationships at home just have to take a back seat. The times when I’ve been travelling the most, I either didn’t have any intense relationships or they broke up as a result of it. My long-term friends are used to sometimes not seeing or hearing from me for a while.

At the moment, I’m based in Leeds in the north of England. I just moved here a few months ago from Berlin. It was a bit of an accidental move. I thought I was just going to stay for the summer, partly to get an Irish passport in order to avoid getting my travelling opportunities limited by Brexit. We’re almost apathetic about Brexit now, just crossing our fingers for it not to happen, but I moved just in case. I thought I would hate living here. But I’ve been too busy to change my passport so I can’t leave yet, and also bizarrely I really love this slightly obscure town. We’ll see how long it continues.

As it happens, I’m fairly involved with the climate change movement in the UK – and I made a promise not to fly so much for 2019. In March, I did my first workshop outside UK for the year. For the first time in my international long-distance travelling, I decided that the workshop was paying enough for me to get the train. It’s my goal to continue doing that. Economically it will be interesting: I’ll have to look carefully at what jobs I can afford to take, or where I can make up for the extra cost. I’ve been justifying my way of travelling before by saying that I never fly for holidays, only for work. But it’s getting to a point where I feel that isn’t much of an excuse anymore. It’s not like I’m a surgeon saving lives. Not to say that my work lacks value, but it’s for pleasure whether it’s for me or for the people taking the workshop. The rope scene has lived through a very special time. Without really even thinking about it, we’ve been able to build friendships with people who don’t live in our country. It’s not like, “We’ll see each other in three years,” when you leave; it’s more of a casual “Yeah, see you soon.” It’s been a really short and unique time, and I don’t think it’s going to last unless we come up with some serious changes. This is sad, especially for a community that has such a niche interest. But if we’re doing something to make a change now, we are still making the choice. I think at the point where we’re forced into doing these changes, the survival of the rope community will be the least of our worries.

It’s time to start thinking collectively about what we can do as a community. There is no reason why every single person individually flies in for a big rope event when you have twenty people coming from Sweden and twenty people coming from Spain. I know it’s annoying to get a bus, but if they could share it, that would be very affordable. Yes, it would take an extra twenty hours of their time and they would be uncomfortable, and it would require central organising and someone actually taking charge, but maybe it’s the sort of thing that we need to consider now. Also, if people start to be a little bit more strict with what they allow themselves to do, then maybe train companies, bus companies and other alternatives to flying will have to catch up and make both prices and information more accessible. However, to truly make a shift in how people travel, the government needs to incentivise better transport options. Either air fares are too cheap or train fares are too expensive. They need to be swapped. Within the UK, train fares are obscenely expensive. I’m more or less cut off for economic reasons from travelling with train. For example, instead of travelling two hours from Leeds to London, I take a bus for six hours. I don’t really mind being stuck there, but the longer I travel, the more exhausting it will become. It’s not really a sacrifice for me at the moment to take three days out of my schedule to do a weekend workshop. But realistically, if I was taking the bus to another country in Europe, that’s a day of travel, and then I would probably want to arrive there a day earlier because I would just want to spend the day recovering. And then there are the two days for the workshop, and then a day of travelling back. And then I would probably want to spend another day recovering at home. So, there a two-day workshop has become a six-day job. I can really see that happening. The cost in terms of time and tiredness and that sort of emotional thing is the biggest concern, also when thinking about the amount of time that I’m already now away from friends and family. Another way to go about this would be to organise more: to try to stay for several weeks consecutively in one place or area. That would mean more time away from family and friends, but maybe then I could spend the next month at home with them without having to travel at all. Maybe that’s a sacrifice worth making, but it demands cooperation with and between different organisers. I don’t know if it will make a difference, but it’s exciting that the environmental movement in the UK is gaining such momentum. Today, we’re doing a protest against the bank HSBC and that they are still investing in fracking. There are some local fracking sites around here, and there were some induced earthquakes, so many groups are organising against it. But there are people in all of UK pretty much prepared to organise a new protest every week. Everyone is equally culpable, so it’s just to pick anything. Last week I was in London working, so then we did a protest against fast fashion. Then there was one because the BBC are not reporting enough on the environmental catastrophes we’re currently in. Here in Leeds, which is a small town, we did a protest for schools and young people. We thought maybe two hundred would come. A thousand showed up.

#workingontravel #trainsandboatsandplanes #english #gestaltajudd

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dilanandmano · 5 years ago

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This Blog is long time coming. Thought about what I should include in this blog for long time. First of all I am a Sri Lankan, American. Lived in the country for 16 years before I migrated to US. So I have better knowledge about the country, culture, food and its people more than the travel vlogers and bloggers out there who also only visitors to the country just like you, so they don't have the first hand knowledge what to do in the first place. I'm by no means trying to disrespect them, just felt like give all of you better understanding of the country and what to expect, since lot of people like to travel to the country these days.

I will try to make this step by step guideline type of info so all of you have better understanding on things next time you go to Sri Lanka.

first of all, Sri Lanka is beautiful tropical country. It full of culture,beaches, waterfalls, trees, mountains, delicious spicy food and most of all full of great and kids people. ( I will have a post to one of my videos so you have a better look about what I'm talking about)

Weather

Sri Lanka is a humid and hot weather country almost year around. So it is very important that you pack your cloths accordingly. I usually take thirsts and shorts. Just one or two pants if I need to go to a fancy place

Visa requirements

It is very important that you get visa before you visit the country. Yes you can get visa once you landed if you have a passport from one of the European countries, us, British or highly regarded countries ( please research before you go) but its $10.00 more ( I think) and you have to wait in the line, answer questions. This way, it will take 5 minutes ( at least with my experience) from time you submit the form and to get you email confirmation.

Link for the Visas

https://www.eta.org.lk/?gclid=CjwKCAjwzdLrBRBiEiwAEHrAYjUK1_tXEAkulaCaKicByNEuaS-jsq8OKCAp9p_WtYJ_IOlM5g3PmBoCA4YQAvD_BwE

Once you land

Once you landed and proceed to the exit area, you can find stalls to get phone, internet service and also money exchange services. But, if you want to get a good rate for your money, you need to enter the country and go to places outside. Don't worry, there are many places around Colombo. Do not go to s bank, because they give you the less money. Workers willingly come help you only to make money from you. They will help with your bags and do anything and expect q

Finding a ride in to the city as important as anything you going to do in Sri Lanka. ( a lot about this will talk about in later) If you can arrange a ride ride before you land, that the best. Drivers who stand outside will charge arm and a leg for the ride. They also will take the longer rout to charge you more. Public buses are all over but if you like to give up any kind of comfort, don't take this option.

The best options are if you didn't make the arrangements before you arrive is to call for Uber or pick-me.

Hotels

There are many cheaper hostels around the country now, but if you traveling with family or kids this is not a best option, since it tend to cater for backpackers. When you looking for hotels on search sites, take a look at outside of gale face area or central area. Sri Lanka is a small country, so its not far to the city center or to gale face area and you can save so much money that way. And the best way to enjoy the country and get out of the heat is to get away from Colombo. Go to Nuwere Eliya, Kanday or galle , but these places are full or tourists so the prices are little high, specially in the season.

Travel agents

Travel agents only idea is to show you tourist area in a short time, put you in middle class hotels, cramp you lot of things to see in a short period and send you home. For this, they will charge you so much money and the same time making money out of hotels by bringing you there. Do me a favor, do your own research. Seven to ten days is not enough to see everything and relax at the same time, trust me. At least 14 to 18 days if you in a short vacation need to enjoy your vacation. You don't need travel agents at all, most of them cant speak good English anyways. There are tons of videos on You-tube and other sites and tons of information available if you just research before you come. You can book everything on your own and plan everything. At the end of this article, I will name few places you should go, so look at some videos on those places and look at the hotel prices. Most of the time of you need to ride, the hotel you stay in can arrange that.

Very important

Do not, I mean do not ever trust took took driver, shop owners or anyone trying to sell something to you. They will charge 800% of what it really cost. Specially scammers you meet on the road trying to show you something or sell you something. DO NOT TRUST A WORD THEY SAY. Just ignore them completely. Like I said before use pick-me app on your phone or Uber if you want to go anywhere. If you really wanna find some information ask your hotel or just locals, they will help you anyway they can. Sri Lankan's are very friendly people, they just shy and most of them cant understanding English.

Food

You have to try sri lanka food. Spicy but one of the best food you ever eat. You will never forget the taste. So don't shy away from it. Again, you can watch tons of video on this subject too.

Places you should visit

Nuwere Eliya, Kandy and dalada maligawa, Sri pada, Kalaniya, Kathatagama, Anurada pura, Polonnaruwa, Sigiriya, Unawatuna, Yala national park, Alla, 9 arch bridge, train ride to nuwere eliya

( copy and past these names to your browser )

Watch the videos that I created, if you wanna get better understanding on things. And feel free to message me if you have any questions or need any help.

#srilanka #travel #food #guidelines

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citycabsjaipur-blog · 6 years ago

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How to Travel to India, Few Tips in Order To Enjoy Your Trip

Quality tips which makes you safe and secure

Life is fugacious and the world is vast. One day you might get out of the bed and have an aha moment that you failed to have your mitts on the things that you have always set your heart on for. By fits and starts, put together some time to hold you in esteem rate and appreciate the fact that you are still alive, in your salad days, on the loose and in fine fettle and; head out of your quotidian routine and snap up a plane ticket to the place you have never been to. Let your didactic soul take charge. Scoot not a thing on your bucket list passed over, for future crosses no one’s heart. Be brave heart to take risks, nothing can be the pinch hitter of experience. Don’t worry about money, in fact, by the sweat of your brow, the experiences that you will walk away with are worth more than money will ever be.

The things you see and experience on your journey will stay with you for life. Some memories are still so alive in your head that it feels like you are still there. You can get your hands on billions of off-centre ideas for your art or other creative manoeuvres. Being away from your usual surroundings will really stimulate your creativity and thinking.

Topsy-turvy, bamboozling, intoxicating, crazy, getting on your nerves, wonderful, sordid, beautiful, mesmerizing and out of this world. All these words sum up India. I am sure you have a long list of new ideas to work through in India. How can you possibly prepare yourself? Start with these tips for taking the ultimate travel plunge: going to India for the first time!

Tips to consider before heading into India

Here are some tips for a safe and sound journey if you are up to visit India:

Knowing the entry requirements first of all

To set foot in India, you have call for a valid passport, an Indian visa and a return ticket. If you’re looking in on as a tourist and your span of hang-on is not any more than 30 days, put in for Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA). To latch more onto ETA, visit the official website of Indian Government. Apply online prior to arrival.

Picking up the right route and arrange for cargo

India packs a lot into a whacking great space, and you'll never have enough time to see all of on one jaunt. Put on your thinking cap and consider what lights your fire, what you like doing and how much time you have, and trim your tour accordingly. Be hard-nosed about how much you can fit in. Flights, trains, local buses, taxis, auto rickshaws, getting into and around India is as flat as a pancake. India possess one of the broad-shouldered railway networks in the world. To come up against the real allure of India and bring off a few bucks, train is the top of the line choice. Keep in mind that traffic on Indian roads can be convoluted, so leave your hotel a few minutes before to put yourself off being late.

Make sure you pack right, if you are travelling to India, and you have more luggage than the weight allowed by your airline, you can avoid paying heavy charges. Choose a trustworthy parcel to India Company to send your luggage ahead. This will save you a quite a lot.

Plan According to the Weather

India comes up against a mixed bag of weather conditions, even though in general the prodigious country has four major seasons: summer, winter, monsoon and post-monsoon. Every zone has non-identical weather conditions, so there’s each time somewhere worth visiting, irrespective of the time of year. The Western Himalayas, such as Ladakh, and hill stations including Darjeeling, Shimla, Manali Nainital and Mussoorie can be called on in summer, while the favourite tourist stopping places including Mumbai, Kerala, Hampi, Goa, Rajasthan, Agra and Varanasi are best visited in winter.Book a taxi in Rajasthan for Budget Sightseeing

Beware of Fraudsters, Scammers and Touts

Based on where you knock around, scammers and fraudsters have a liability to run after the tourists. A habitual scam is to offer deals for an India tour. Do not get hoodwinked by them. Book your trip directly through the Ministry of Tourism or Government of India certified travel companies, not people who catch you up in the street. For state-specific tourist information, look over the Ministry of Tourism website.

The first wealth is health

To go on being healthy, look back on these basic precautions. Indian food is a bit piquant and it can be common to experience a rippling stomach; feast on wisely by eating freshly cooked food and drinking only from board up water bottles. To keep safe against pollution in the cities, wear a bandana and mask in the streets. It’s also a productive idea to travel with medications for diarrhoea, headache and other common infirmities. Also don’t forget to get the necessary shots before your trip. Talk to your doctor about what might be essential for you, and where you’re on the move. If your medicines fall dried up, don’t worry as there are pharmacies in all places.

Dress Modestly

In India, you should also dress depending on the region and traditions. Some tourist sites like a mosque, temple or other holy places entail you to dress adequately by placing a scarf over your head and taking off your shoes before getting into. In large cities you can wear whatever you wish for, but when heading into small towns, dress accordingly. It’s good to aim to fold in with the rest of the population.

Keep your cool

The single primary piece of advice for any India first-timer is to try to stay calm around, no matter what. Exasperations boil over without a hitch in India, and pulling the strings up, taking a deep breath and moving on, is vital to enjoying your time over here. If you’re getting in a sweat about losing some money or being boondoggled, think for a split second how much you’ve really lost and whether it’s worth getting that bustled about.

Safety

Use your sensations while talking to people. Avoid stepping out or moving by public transport at on the go hours, as you would anywhere in the world. Don’t hump a titanic amount of cash around with you. Make a photocopy of your passport and carry that with you every time before leaving your hotel. Also, make note of emergency numbers and keep them at your fingertips.

Going to India is a fun and if you are planning a long holiday then before travelling, considering these tips will make your trip easier and hassle free. Have fun!

Make Photos of All the Places You Visit

Don’t forget to pack your camera while arranging your traveling bag. An enthusiastic camera will help you create record of all the special and exciting moments you will spend in India. You will be finding a bunch of beautiful places such as hill stations, waterfalls, snow falls and holy places, so why not capturing them in your camera? That’s right in the Straight after that, get your family and friends traditional gifts from India. There are a lot of items you can take back home from India. The most famous of these are dry fruits, handicrafts, sweets, pottery crafts and traditional dresses and caps.

So, the land of colourful and rich culture & picturesque mountains is calling you right away, off you go!

#traveltoindia #indiatravel #car rental in jaipur #car hire services in jaipur #Car Rental Services Jaipur #ajmer tour package #Hire Cab Service for Jaipur to Ajmer #india tour packages #indiatour

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studylifeusa · 7 years ago

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How to Manage Your Finances When Studying in the U.S.

Photo by William Ivenon Unsplash

Studying in the US or anywhere abroad for that matter is often a childhood long dream for many.

Exploring new cities, countries while getting an awesome education seems like a highly desirable proposition.

Whilst planning your studies can be straightforward, managing your finances, on the other hand, is a whole different ball game.

For starters, studying in the US can be expensive and managing your finances can prove to be a bit tricky.

Add juggling multiple jobs, maintaining your grades for a scholarship, multiple subscription services like Spotify and Netflix into the mix and your situation maybe a right good mess.

In this article, we are going to touch on some money management strategies you can adopt to ensure you have a smooth ride.

Comprehensive Budget

A plethora of sites talk about how you need to allocate money for social events, eating out, the cinema, books, transport, etc. All these are extremely important but there are other things you need to consider when you estimate how much you might spend.

What is the average rent in the city or suburb you are planning to stay?

How much does plan B (in case utilities are costlier than anticipated, for example) set you back by?

What if your paid internship is far away?

How much does eating healthy cost? As opposed to just surviving?

How often do health insurance premiums rise?

When answering these questions, it’s always best to plan for the worst. Without compromising on your top priorities, try to see if you have enough capital in case life throws a spanner in the works. Because if it doesn’t, you can always use that capital constructively.

Thinking “I’ll learn how to cook when I get there” and not following through can be quite alright but adopting the same mindset to budgeting can prove to be costly to both you and your family.

Laying the Foundation

When traveling to the US, there are a few ways you can convert your currency. You can exchange your own currency for USD at the airport in your home country or even after arriving in the US. Another way you can bring some cash in, is in the form of travelers cheques. This is usually a very safe way to bring some cash. The other of course is through bank transfer. Wire transfers can cost you about $35 so this is another thing you need to budget for.

You can open a bank account near your university or college, or banks tend to setup stalls during orientation to assist you.

The supporting documents that might be required of you can include:

● Passport

● Address Proof

● Letter of enrollment

● A student ID or other ID

You will get a debit card which is straightforward to use. However, it’s important to remember it’s extremely difficult for international students to obtain credit cards. It is good practice to not rely on credit cards to get you through a semester. Students sometimes get concessions on fees which is why going through the banks on the premises can help.

ATM Fees, Overdraft fees and transfer fees are something you can learn about and compare before making a decision. It can be useful if your bank allows you a small overdraft buffer too.

If you are thinking, “Yeah I know all this, is there something else I can do?”

Absolutely. This is also where you can get really clever especially if you don’t trust yourself to stay accountable throughout the duration of your course.

Try to set up multiple savings accounts or sub accounts so you can divide your funds accordingly. You don’t need multiple debit cards but this can be a useful way to stay disciplined. Your tuition can be placed along with essentials in one account while you can allocate another for entertainment, automated payments and the likes.

This helps you gain a clearer understanding of where your expense variation lies and you never have to compromise on your essentials.

Track your expenditure

Now that you’ve planned, setup your account or accounts it’s pretty important to track exactly where you are spending your money. This is where technology can really prove its worth. There are quite a few money tracking apps around.

You need a budget – This is one of the cool DIY budgeting apps that are easy to use. It costs $6.99. monthly.

Setapp – Setapp has a number of useful research, productivity and money management tools and more tools get added fairly regularly too. There is a special discounted education plan for students to take advantage of as well.

HelloWallet – This app allows you to not only budget but come up with a roadmap to increase your net worth as well. This tool can cost you $9 a month but the iPhone app is free.

Digit – Digit creates and manages a savings account for you which can help you save your precious earnings for future tuition or other needs. It also understands when your bills are due and then withdraws money for savings when all of that is sorted.

One common scenario is when you are out with friends and different people end up paying for different things and it can be confusing to figure out who owes what. Apps like Splitwise are pretty useful in these situations.

Little Drops Make the Mighty Ocean

This is something every student heading to the US or any other country for that matter needs to stay aware of. Money doesn’t generally get spent in large spurts but tends to trickle away.

Something that seems like its “just $7.99” can add up to become a burden. $4 a day spent on things like chips, sodas and others equates to $120 a month. In order to better understand the big picture you need to get a grasp of the little things.

Which is why you need to be tactically frugal.

Try to take full advantage of discounts and coupons when you shop for groceries. Cooking at home is always a huge money saver and the healthier option.

This can apply to when you have to buy stationary or even text books. Make full use of the library or buy used books from places like amazon or even through college Facebook groups.

Adopting many of the techniques we suggested here a month or two before you go can better prepare you for obstacles that may arise. The value of money management apps shouldn’t be underestimated as they can really make the difference between having a healthy lifestyle and living off ice cream. Most of the points mentioned here are simple habits one can adopt to shape their lifestyle even after graduating.

Eugene Kalnyk is a former exchange student and ESL teacher. Now, he’s on the team behind Setapp, the first Mac app subscription service which gives students access to hand-picked apps for every job on their Macs. He’s passionate about Productivity, Education, and petting his cat first thing in the morning. He'll be happy to meet you on Twitter.

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janerchambers88 · 7 years ago

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Expert Advice: Top Tips for Attending a Destination Wedding

With wedding season officially underway and about one-fifth of couples opting to tie the knot somewhere exotic, it’s likely you’ll soon be invited to a wedding abroad. We’ve interviewed some or our favorite, seasoned bloggers to get the best advice on attending a destination wedding.

We asked them:

What is your favorite destination wedding location, and why?

What is your top tip for attending a destination wedding?

What is the one thing you can’t forget to pack?

Their answers are equal parts helpful and inspiring – so read on to make sure you’re completely prepared.

And when you’re looking for the perfect place to stay? Search on FlipKey for a vacation rental to suit your needs. Considering booking a rental for your big day? The options are endless for you, too.

Photo credit: A Jubilee Event

A Jubilee Event

Favorite destination wedding location: We’ve been fortunate enough to work with clients all over the world, but we are partial to the Caribbean as a destination location — especially Barbados! The island of Barbados (see 2600+ Barbados rentals) is nestled in the lower Antilles of the Caribbean and boasts everything you’d want. It has a variety of accommodations from intimate B&B’s to luxury 5 diamond properties to start, which makes guest stays easy. Barbados also has many unique locations for your wedding; from historic rum factories to exquisite restaurants and villas — Barbados has something for everyone. Versatility in a wedding destination is important.

Top tip for attending a destination wedding: Be realistic with the couple on whether you can afford to attend. If you’re on a budget, seek out ways to creatively save on travel, accommodations and other items surrounding the wedding. If circumstances might change for you and you can’t go, be sure to tell the couple as soon as you’ve made your decision!

One thing you shouldn’t forget to pack: If you’re in the tropics — don’t forget sunscreen! Seriously, though, so often guests forget to pick this up and by the time they remember — it’s too late. The sun is much stronger the closer to you get to the equator and it only takes a few minutes of rays to leave a nasty sunburn. Also, we recommend wedding guests pack simply for the weekend; you might feel compelled to throw everything in the suitcase, but you’re better off outfit planning and reusing pieces. Pack light and come for the party!

Glamour and Grace

Favorite destination wedding location: I’ve recently fallen in love with Rhode Island (see 200+ Rhode Island rentals). There is so much history in both Newport and Providence, it is a dream destination for lovers of vintage glam right here in the US. The Newport Mansions will take your guests back in time to a place of elaborate elegance and beauty that cannot be matched anywhere else in the country!

Top tip for attending a destination wedding: My tip for attending a destination wedding is to make the most of it! Be sure to get a thorough timeline of all the wedding-related activities and then use the rest of your time to explore the destination and really get the most out of the trip. Chances are there are other friends and family going, so team up on extra days at the vacation rental and fun excursions to extend celebrating a loved one’s big day with a trip of a lifetime.

One thing you shouldn’t forget to pack: Always pack a swimsuit. It doesn’t matter if you are going to the Arctic, you never know when a swimsuit will come in handy and you don’t want to be the only one left out of the hot tub!

Photo credit: @OfficialCocktailsDetails on Instagram

Cocktails & Details

Favorite destination wedding location: Favorite destination wedding location is Mexico (see 11,000+ rentals in Mexico), hands down. It’s really quick travel from anywhere in the States with few language or money barriers. Whether you choose to say “I do” at a private villa or at an all-inclusive resort, there are so many ways to personalize your event without making it cookie cutter as well as incorporating some of the local culture. We love Cancún, Playa Del Carmen, and Cabo.

Top tip for attending a destination wedding: Leave gifts and valuables at home. Not only are they a pain for you to travel with, but also for the couple getting married. Budget accordingly and follow instructions.

One thing you shouldn’t forget to pack: Pack extra space! Sounds weird, right? But definitely leave room for any gifts you may be given from the couple, the resort or souvenirs that you will want to bring home. This avoids shipping and heavy luggage fees (be sure to weigh your bag on a bathroom scale before you leave!) With the luggage rules wreaking havoc on everyone’s wardrobe, it’s best to pack smart— which also means packing a spare pair of clothes in your carry on. Purchase a portable charger or power bank to avoid having a dying phone throughout the day.

The Inspired Bride

Favorite destination wedding location: Tagaytay Highlands, Philippines (see 80+ rentals in Tagaytay Highlands)! This place offers not only a beautiful place for a romantic wedding but also in an affordable price range that makes it more amazing! I have never been to Tagaytay but with all the things I have read about it and the reviews, the Highlands is surely on top of the places I consider as a destination wedding location.

For a more “Local Destination Wedding”, I would choose Palm Springs, California (see 1600+ rentals in Palm Springs). The beach, the city, and the gorgeous summer vibe just meet perfectly at this place.

Top tip for attending a destination wedding: Enjoy the adventure! Know everything you need to know about the destination and carry only the essentials. Every destination has its own culture and novelties so soak it all in. After the wedding, it’s going to be you, the destination and a wonderful memory.

One thing you shouldn’t forget to pack: I wouldn’t go without an “emergency kit. The kit includes:

Comb – to make sure every strand is in place

Makeup – for touch ups

Blotting Paper – to reduce the shine

Earring Backs – just a few extras to make sure they stay on

Lip Balm – to make sure your lips are moist throughout the day

Dental Floss – to get the food stuck between your teeth

Nail File – to smooth out your nails

Lighter / Matches – a backup to light candles

Hand Sanitizer / Wipes – this is more convenient instead of going to the bathroom

Scissors – to cut that loose thread

Double-sided Tape – to hold up that dress