TravelStream™ news feed for member yhuang82 on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/yhuang82 en-us Copyright ©2010 TravelPod.com Mon, 12 Jan 2009 02:44:24 -0500 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/yhuang82/3/1227847200/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/yhuang82/3/1227847200/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/yhuang82/3/1227847200/tpod.html Mon, 12 Jan 2009 02:44:24 -0500 Asia/South Pacific

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Queenstown, South Island, New Zealand

queenstown is the unofficial adventure capital of the world...and i think i might be the only person to visit queenstown without jumping off of anything! oh well..

if you are not into jumping off of things, there are still other things to do. of course one of new zealand's most famous attractions is milford sound which is about a 4-5 hour bus ride away from queenstown. since it's in the rainforest, it rains 184 days out of the year. the day i went of course it was cold and rainy, but it was still pretty spectacular. there are waterfalls everywhere, and the fog made it look almost haunting.

queenstown also probably has the best nightlife of all of new zealand...and it's crazy! i normally don't like to go out that much, but for some reason, when i am here, i am ok with going out every night. a typical day in queenstown will probably involve sleeping in late, having a hangover, eating a giant fergburger in the afternoon, and preparing to go out again at night. for most other people they will also throw in jumping off a bridge, paragliding, river boarding or canyon swinging, etc. during the day.

anyway, i think queenstown has a very unique look and feel to it. it is surrounded by snowcapped mountains and it feels like a small town...but of all the places i have been in the south island so far, it seems that queenstown is the most fast paced...which is still kind of slow paced compared to the rest of the world.
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Cupertino, California, United States

well i am finally home! as badly as i wanted to go home in the last few weeks, i am just so incredibly sad that this whole trip was actually over...

so i always get asked what my favorite places are....it's really impossible to say.  all the countries that i have been to are all so unique, and i love them all for those different reasons.  i guess i will try my best to compile a list of "best ofs".  i am not gonna limit myself just to the places i traveled in the past 6 months, but will try to include everywhere i have been in my life:

food: taiwan, spain
scenery: new zealand, switzerland
city life: new york, barcelona, buenos aires, tokyo, hong kong, berlin
shopping: new york, hong kong
history and culture: beijing, berlin, vienna, greece
culture shock: lao, cambodia
friendliest people: lao, cambodia

so another question that i always get asked is if i was scared of doing this on my own.  maybe i was just always blissfully ignorant, but i don't think i was ever in a situation that i felt really scared (besides all those freaking bugs in asia).  these days it's so easy to get around, it doesn't seem like there's really anywhere that's truly "off the beaten track"...so really everywhere i went, i was always surrounded with a bunch of other travelers.  the majority of the time, they are also young backpackers who are on a budget, and are very like-minded and have common interests.  so really, it's so incredibly easy to make friends in hostels, so it doesn't really ever feel like you are completely on your own.  even when you are by yourself, there is something about going around and trying to figure things out on your own that makes the whole experience that much more special.  i guess really the scariest thing about this entire experience was just quitting my job, and actually making the decision to pause my life and just go on this trip.  

another thing that i think is really weird, is when i tell people that i quit my job to travel, they always automatically say something like, "you hated your job that much?" or "you just couldn't handle your boss anymore?"  i thought it was just so bizarre to automatically assume this.  i actually loved my job, and i was so incredibly heartbroken on my last day of work!  i just decided to do this simply because i love to travel, i have always loved to travel, and i really felt like i needed to take advantage of this opportunity in my life where i am young and pretty much have nothing holding me back from really doing what i love to do. 

a lot of people also wonder about other issues such as money, and of course the most ridiculous thing, if they are too old!!  anyway, once you get used to it, it's really not so hard to travel cheap.  you would be surprised how many people i have met who have traveled for 2 years and worked in coffee shops or bookstores when theye were at home.  if you are really strapped for cash, it's also pretty easy to find a job in a hostel or bar as you are traveling.  as for your age, i don't think anyone is too old to travel (although having major commitments like young kids or a fat mortgage make it extremely difficult).  the world just has way too much to offer, and there is too much to explore, it just seems absolutely insane to deprive yourself of these experiences because you think you are too old!   

I have been to a lot of different places in the past, but i feel like this is the first time i have really traveled.  i guess if i had to describe the difference between being a tourist and a traveler, this is what i would say:  a tourist takes trips to stay in fancy hotels, eat at fancy restaurants and snap pictures of different landmarks so they can bring them home to show their friends (i am guilty of this too, since i took over 7000 pics in 6 months)!  On the other hand, being a traveler is all about the local experience -- meeting the locals, learning the different customs, and embracing the culture.  of course the best thing about this entire experience is all the wonderful people that i met, and the new friends that i made, some of which i know i will be friends with for life.  it's strange how when you are traveling alone, you bond with strangers really quickly.  In a matter of a few days or even a few hours, you will suddenly feel like you have a new best friend because they are really all you have when you are alone and lost in a brand new city.  

anyway, i already really miss the carefree and exciting lifestyle of a traveler, where every single day is a random, new and unexpected experiece.  This is certainly not the last time i will ever travel in my life...but now it's time for me to take on my next adventure, where i will be going to live in the city my parents grew up in...the same city that they left 30 years ago to make a new life in america!!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/yhuang82/3/1230733380/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/yhuang82/3/1230733380/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/yhuang82/3/1230733380/tpod.html Tue, 06 Jan 2009 00:33:52 -0500 Asia/South Pacific

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Taipei, Taiwan

so coming back to taipei was not part of the original plan, but nevertheless, i am here with my entire family for the holidays! this is the first time the 5 of us have all been here together since 2003!!

anyway, taiwan is pretty much a food lover's paradise. there is amazing street food everywhere, and it's all so cheap!! i am actually really worried about what it's gonna be like when i move here in february...it's gonna be so hard to control myself when there is such great cheap food everywhere!!!
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Auckland, North Island, New Zealand

wow...i can't believe it's all finally over!! after years of dreaming about it, and months of planning, my amazing trip is actually over....it's really hard to wrap my head around this.

anyway, i am pretty exhausted from months of moving around. when i got to auckland, all i wanted to do was just chill out and relax for a few days. i had even booked and paid for a trip to the bay of islands and cape reinga several months ago, but i was just too lazy, and couldn't be bothered to go. instead, i ended up sleeping in, resting up and just walking around aimlessly. the best part was that i was able to meet up with some fellow travelers who i had met in europe and asia who are currently living in auckland! also, on my last night a bunch of us decided to have a fake christmas dinner as our last real meal together in NZ, awww.......

so i am still in denial that this is over...not sure when it's gonna kick in.
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Rotorua, North Island, New Zealand

man, rotorua stinks!! there are sulphur springs everywhere, so the entire city smells like rotten eggs. anyway, rotorua is a major hub for maori culture. on my first night there, i went to the Tamaki Heritage Experience where they put on a a maori show and had a little village setup for us to wander through. in the end we had an amazing traditional maori meal with delicious meat roasted underground!

nearby rotorua is also a town called matamata where they filmed the scenes for hobbiton in lord of the rings. the hobbit holes were actually built on a private sheep farm...most of the holes were taken down, but it's still easy to imagine how this little peice of farmland could have been transformed into a bustling town full of hobbits!

on my last day, i went to waitomo to check out the glow worm caves. they are supposed to be a big deal...but they're just caves...with worms...that glow....
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/yhuang82/3/1228385460/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/yhuang82/3/1228385460/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/yhuang82/3/1228385460/tpod.html Fri, 05 Dec 2008 05:15:30 -0500 Asia/South Pacific

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Taupo, North Island, New Zealand

I JUST JUMPED OUT OF A PLANE!!! if you know me, you probably know that i am the world's biggest chicken shit. i am scared of heights, water, going fast, bugs amongst other things....i never thought in a million years i'd ever go skydiving!! anyway, i thought i might be the only person to ever visit new zealand without jumping out of a plane, but at the last second i decided to just get off the bus at the airport and jump out of a plane! for some strange reason i felt totally calm about it....definitely wasn't what i expected it to be like!! something you all must try once in your life!!!!
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Wellington, North Island, New Zealand

finally, i have gotten to the north island and i can feel that my big trip is coming to an end, booo....=(

anyway, wellington is the capital of new zealand, and man, it's freaking windy here!! i guess of any city in nz, wellington is suppoed to be a bit more artsy fartsy...and of course for you movie nerds, you probably know that most of lord of the rings was filmed here. this is where peter jackson lives, and his studios are located here. anyway, you can take lots of movie tours here too....
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Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand

back in christchurch again...nothing much exciting here, just went to the botanical gardens and said goodbye to some new friends =(
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Wanaka, South Island, New Zealand

there is not much to do in wanake. there is a lake there, and of course there is puzzle world!! it's kind of fun where they have all these exhibits which are meant to be a bit "puzzling" the funniest one of course is the one where you and a friend go into a room, and each person stands on the opposite corner. when you look at the room, it just looks like a regular room, but someone in one corner will look huge while the other person will look tiny. pretty funny
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Franz Josef, South Island, New Zealand

i am in franz joseph right now, which is known for the giant glacier. most people who come here will hike the glacier or do an ice climb. since i am too cold and lazy to do either, i just walked on some trails nearby to get a view from across the glacier. anyway, i thought that was pretty nice too...and i didn't even have to freeze or pee on the ice. nice.
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