Where to Next?

Last Updated on February 18, 2022 by Tina

Since the start of the month, I saw an increase in page views in my blog. An increase in page views means two things for me. First is that people are researching about travel again. Second, my ad revenues are increasing (more views equals more blog earnings). In the last three weeks, several Southeast Asian countries announced their reopening to fully vaccinated tourists.

The Philippines reopened its borders to vaccinated nationals of 150+ countries last week. Malaysia and Vietnam announced their plan to open to vaccinated foreign tourists next month. And last night, my best friend sent me a screenshot of a post saying that Singapore will start its VTL (vaccinated travel lane) for the Philippines on March 4. We’ve been talking about going to Singapore when it opens its borders to Filipino travelers, and it is finally happening. She is super excited!

All this news about Southeast Asian countries reopening got me thinking if I should start planning for international travel already. Should I start traveling again? Where to? During the first few months of the pandemic, I was very certain that the first country I will go to when the borders open is Singapore. If you know me, you know the reason why. So many things happened though, and now I am not sure if it will be my first destination. But one thing’s for sure, I am going there this year.

A while ago while I was taking a shower, a crazy idea crossed my mind. What if I go backpacking in Southeast Asia again and write about it in my blog? I think it will be an interesting read. I can start my journey in Singapore, then move to Malaysia, then to Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, and Laos. I can spend a month in each of these countries.

Another thought playing on my mind is living in Thailand, for a month or two, or a year. I can eat Pad Thai and Tom Yum soup anytime I want. Hmmm… but I also want to go to Spain and live there for a year, or longer. There are so many things I want to do and they all seem like crazy thoughts for now.

I am feeling very optimistic though. I think my stars are starting to align again. Who would have thought Singapore would open its borders to Filipinos that soon? I was expecting longer, to be honest. Now I am looking forward to the coming days. I have a feeling that 2022 is going to be a good year for me. It will be a lot better than 2019. I think 2022 will replace 2019 as my favorite year.

Sorry if this is such a nonsense post. I wasn’t planning on publishing a post this week because we’ve been busy with work. But I had to write something just so I don’t lose my writing momentum. Promise next week I’ll be back with better posts.