Visiting Overseas Places

The joy of going traveling uplifts the spirit. Maybe that’s because it involves leaving the drudgery of everyday work and life behind you. Or it’s the chance to take in new cultures, find new people, taste different foods, and indulge in newly found experiences.

Whether it’s for work commitments or a holiday in the sun, at a beach, an adventure tour, getting away to paradise, a city, or a road trip, getting away from it all is one of life’s great joys.

While work was busy for Ace and me in Sydney there were opportunities most years for travel and enjoyment. It is good for the sole to take a break and recharge. Either through annual vacations or associated with work, we managed to get away most years to interesting locations.

We made a number of trips to Thailand over the years. It is Aces’ home country and a great value holiday location. These regular trips allowed me to feel comfortable and willing to retire in Thailand.

You can find below short post highlights of these journeys, and a few pictures that capture the locations and memories that were enjoyed when visiting – its better than writing too much about these:

Vienna, Austria & Athens, Greece – 2003
Bali, Indonesia – 2000, 2006, 2011, 2012
Angkor, Cambodia – 2007
Hong Kong – 2008
Saigon, Vietnam – 2010
Singapore – 2012
Thailand – various years & places – (2001, 02, 04, 05), 07, 08, 09, 10, 11, 2013

Some wonderful work trips took me to locations for Airport Council International (ACI) meetings or aviation conferences. This allowed me to soak up the joy of travel and the opportunity to meet new people, learn and experience new things:

1990-2000

Hong Kong Aviation Conference – 1993
Chicago, USA – Aviation Conference – 1995
Minneapolis, USA – Aviation Conference 1996
Washington, USA – APS work – 1998

2001 – 2013

Athens, Greece – Aviation Conference – 2003
Vancouver, Canada – Aviation Conference – 2004
Christchurch & Queenstown, New Zealand – APEC aviation meeting – March 2005
Mannheim, Germany – Zurich, Switzerland – family/visitor – October 2005
Geneva, Switzerland – Aviation conference – October 2005
Hong Kong – Aviation Conference – 2006
Vancouver, Canada- Winter Olympic planning – September 2009
Toronto, Canada – aviation meeting – September 2009
Frankfurt, Germany – ACI Committee meeting – 2010
Amsterdam, Netherlands – tourist – September 2011
Munich, Germany – ACI World meeting – September 2011
Abu Dhabi, UAE – ACI Regional meeting -November 2011
Cape Town, South Africa – ACI World meeting – February 2012
Singapore – ACI Regional meeting – May 2012
Houston/Dallas, Texas – family visit – August 2012
Washington, USA- ACI World meeting – August 2012
Phuket, Thailand – ACI Regional meeting – April 2013

These sojourns were additional to the travel adventures I was lucky to experience when living in Canada, such as:

Overseas backpacking adventure
- Spain, Portugal, Morocco, France, Germany, England – 1974/75
Across Canada – 4500 kilometers each – 1968 & 1990
Across the USA – 4,400 kilometers each – 1968 & 1982
Toronto to Florida – return – 4,000 kilometers – 1970

When I say on my home (front) page that I am a well-traveled sole-living Tranquil in Thailand, I don’t think it’s an exaggeration. These journeys have made me a more worldly individual and one that is grateful for these opportunities, I have traveled many roads and many miles but gained so much as a result.

Following are a few posts about these journey experiences.