Travel 2009

With the big (material) purchase of the year behind me, I'm now ready to plan my international trip of the year. Two options: March 3-17 or March 31-April 15. The latter might be more appropriate if I want to catch the blooming cherry trees.

But the date is only second in my list of details to worry about. More importantly, I'm trying to figure out my itinerary. I know I want to stay in Tokyo for 5-7 days. That's a given. My dilemma is what to do with the other week: Do I take the train to Kyoto and spend a week checking out Kyoto/Nara/Osaka or do I spend a week in Seoul?

The Japan Rail Pass for two weeks is a whopping $500. Yes, $500! Plus, I'm scared to go to Kyoto/Nara/Osaka alone. Yes, I, who traveled alone around SE Asia for three weeks, am scared of all the katakana and hiragana that I'd be encountering in Japan. Go figure! But really, the $500 rail pass is what's killing me softly. However, my plane ticket to Japan is free (free miles, woot!) and my accommodations in Tokyo will be somewhat taken cared of. And since I'm already in Japan, shouldn't I go all out visiting the country that I have always, always, ALWAYS wanted to visit?

On the other hand, there's Seoul. I promised Cathy that I'd be back to see it all since my 10 hours in Seoul in May 2007 didn't do me or Seoul any justice. With more Kdramas under my belt, there are more "tourist spots" to see. Plus, my goal of finding a hot oppa in that city is still unfulfilled. So if I fly from Tokyo to Seoul, it would be cheaper than my flying from Seattle to Seoul on a future date. And this is cheaper than that darn JR Pass!

The final option is to go all out and do all three. I have the vacation days, I don't have a mortgage yet, I'm getting a tax refund, and life is so funky these days that any distraction from my day-to-day life would be a good thing. I just have to sell a kidney or an arm after all is said and done. ;P

It's so true that the hardest part of a trip is deciding to go. Ugh! But I'm thankful that I'm single and all the expenses is only times one. Imagine if I were married with two kids: that's $2,000 for just the rail pass! See? It's good to be single. Say it louder, Mina. IT'S GOOD TO BE SINGLE! ;P