Booked: Where I’m off to this summer

BY ONEIKA RAYMOND

An update on my summer travels.

Can you tell it’s been a busy school year? A new teaching job and a new life in fast-paced Hong Kong have left me with little time to indulge in my creative pursuits — ye olde blog being a prime example.  Posting over the last 10 months has been scanty, at best, and even the travels have slowed down: weekend eurotrippin’ and extended breaks in far flung destinations like Peru and Guatemala are but a distant memory.

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#sigh #suchislife #worldssmallestviolin

But don’t feel sorry for me just yet.  Because while I haven’t been doing much travel (or writing much about it), I have been quietly plotting my well-deserved summer holiday.  I have seven (yes, seven!) weeks of vacation and plan to make the most of them.

Curious as to where I’m going?  Read on…

United Kingdom (London)

A few weeks ago I confessed my newfound appreciation for my former home base of London.  I was there this past Easter and had such a good time that sharp pangs of regret pierced my heart as I boarded my Hong Kong-bound plane at Heathrow (maybe I’m being just a little dramatic, but I digress).  At any rate, I’ll be back in Londontown for a couple of weeks this summer and am looking forward to it.

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France (Bordeaux and Biarritz)

Liebling and I managed to snag some cheap plane tickets to Bordeaux and will spend a few days touring the region.  I don’t drink wine but plan to fulfill my civic duty by eating every baguette in sight (as one should do in France).  A stop in the seaside town of Biarritz is also in the cards, so I’ll have the chance to lounge on the beach and work on my tan. Comme la vie est belle! France is never a bad idea.

Biarritz Beach
Biarritz beach via Tony Hisgett on Flickr

Canada (Toronto)

I haven’t been to my hometown of Toronto in over 18 months, so I’m super excited to catch up with family and friends.  I’m also super excited to eat at all my favourite restaurants… namely Randy’s, which I’m convinced makes the best Jamaican beef patties in the city.

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USA (New York City)

No trip to North America is complete without a jaunt to the Big Apple, so it’s no surprise that NYC figured into my holiday plans.  I’ll be painting the town red with my best friends and hopefully will have the opportunity to meet up with a few of my favourite bloggers/vloggers based in the area.

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Germany (Berlin)

Remember when I casually mentioned getting engaged in Berlin last Christmas? Well, I perhaps should just as casually mention that I’m getting married this summer! I will officially become Mrs. Liebling in an intimate civil ceremony in Berlin at the end of July *cue girly squeal of excitement*.  Since we’re eschewing tradition and having a relatively small and simple wedding (only four guests! no church! no wedding reception!) I have been pretty successful at staying level-headed and avoiding Bridezilla-ville. While the paperwork involved with marrying a German was a bit of a doozy (fodder for another post!), the other prep has been a breeze.  All that’s left to do now is find a dress… and learn how to say “I do” in German!

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Austria (Hallstatt and Salzberg)

Liebling and I will finish out the summer with a mini-honeymoon/road trip through the Austrian Alps.  From Berlin we’ll drive to the Salzkammergut, a region in Austria known for its stunning views. Salzberg (birthplace of Mozart) and  Hallstatt (a UNESCO World Heritage Site) are found here and I’m already envisioning living out my “Sound of Music” fantasy in an alpine meadow.  Just call me Oneika Von Trapp

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Halstatt, Austria via nclint on Flickr

The adventure starts the Friday after next and it can’t come fast enough — I’m dubbing these 7 weeks the Supreme Summer of Fun!  My plan is to dust the cobwebs off from the ole blog and post prolifically so stay tuned for dispatches from the field. Got Instagram? If so, you can follow me there, too, at http://instagram.com/oneikatraveller.

Do you have any travel planned for this summer?

 

SHARING IS CARING

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