Life sucks. Travel instead. Here are my travel plans for the next 4 months which includes a country I will be visiting for the very first time!
The last post I wrote was a tough one to put together. I really appreciate everyone who read it and even left a few words of support. After hitting publish, a feeling of a weight off my shoulders enveloped me and I can finally get one with things.
Moving on to more positive things, I’m really looking forward to my travel plans for the next 4 months. I’ve been camping out in Colombo, Sri Lanka, since getting back from Bali last January and it is time to hit the road again and experience more stories, views, and eats.
I put together this itinerary fairly recently after I left my full-time job last December and have a much more flexible schedule as a freelancer. The itinerary includes two big trips to Australia (my first time down under!) and the U.S. To accompany those destinations, I’ve padded a few Asian countries around them because why not?
March – july 2019 travel plans
TOP 5 things I’m looking forward to
1. Friends & Family
My entire family lives in the Philippines and it is always nice when I come around for my annual visit. We’re also going to the new and improved Boracay island since it reopened following a massive clean up last year. The new look white sandy beaches look exquisite!
I left a big part of me in the U.S. after I was forced to leave the country in 2015 due to visa issues. I have been back almost every year since then but this visit will be my longest stay. The main focus will be to reconnect with all my friends and spend time in Missoula, MT and Austin, TX, both places I used to live in.
Another thing I’m very excited about is experiencing the Missoula Summer. This will be my first since I left town in 2013 to move to Texas. I have really missed Summers in Missoula – farmers markets, floating in the river, strolling around downtown, etc. It may not be the height of summer temperature wise in June but I’ll still be happy to be there nonetheless.
2. My first time in Australia
Fortuitous luck helped me get a visa to visit Australia for the first time and I will be taking full advantage of it. My girlfriend’s sister lives in Melbourne and we will be spending 2 weeks there exploring the vibrant city and the surrounding area. I’ve heard nothing but good things about Melbourne from friends and I couldn’t be more excited.
This stop will also mark setting foot on my fifth continent with only Europe and Antarctica left to conquer.
3. Qatar Airways Qsuite
Qatar Airways launched the undisputed, top-of-class Business Class product in the sky ‘
4. Craft Beer
I’ve missed craft beer so, so much since leaving the U.S. My waistline is thanking me for not drinking so much beer these days but I still miss having a nice cold Pale Ale or Blonde Ale on a hot day. I should get more than enough at each of my
5. A Fantastic Hamburger
This one was hard to pick because I’m looking forward to chomping down on so many things. But, the biggest thing I’m craving is a good hamburger. I can recall having only 3 – 4 memorable hamburger experiences in the last few years when it used to be a weekly occurrence back in the states.
If you have hamburger recommendations in any of the places I am visiting, please tell me in the comments below!
It’s time I get to packing. Even though I have been to most of these places before, please send me any and all recommendations for stories, views and eats in the comments below!
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Nico Atienza
Chief Storyteller
An expat remote worker based in Colombo, Sri Lanka with a penchant for window seats on planes, travel, and technology that makes everyone’s lives easier.
