The ABCs of Travel from Oneika the Traveller

BY ONEIKA RAYMOND



The ABCs of Travel from Oneika the Traveller!


The ABC’s of travel gives bloggers the opportunity to share their favorite and most memorable travel moments from A-Z!  Thanks to Nicole from Nicole is the New Black for tagging me! I’ll be tagging 3 other bloggers at the end of this post so they can share their ABCs as well!

A: Age you went on your firstinternational trip: 11 months old! I travelled from my hometown of Toronto, Canada to the island paradise of Jamaica, my parents’ homeland.  I remember nothing from that trip but the photos are hilarious!

B: Best (foreign) beer you’vehad and where: Can you believe that I don’t drink beer at all? Apart from a few brief run-ins with vodka in my early twenties I don’t drink alcohol at all. Oops! Can I pass on this one?

C: Cuisine (favorite): I lurve Italian food, but I’m a carb fiend and love copious helpings of cheese so this probably comes as no surprise.  Last summer I went to Italy and proceeded to eat my weight in pizza dough nearly every day.  Italian food = pure bliss!
Pizza in Italy last summer

D: Destinations, favorite,least favorite and why: Eek! I have the hardest time with these sorts of questions! I’m terrible at giving absolutes, but one of my favourite countries in the world is France. It may be because I lived there for two years, but France will always have a special place in my heart and my experiences on the French Riviera (I lived in Nice for a year) shaped me as a person! My least favourite place probably has to be Dublin, Ireland. Not that I hated it or anything, but I came away from my brief stay there feeling relatively uninispired. Meh.
On the beach in Nice, France
E: Event you experienced abroadthat made you say “wow”:  Visiting the Atacama Desert when I went to nothern Chile last October.  The landscapes are absolutely stunning- I’ve seen nothing like it!

Chile’s Atacama Desert


F: Favorite mode oftransportation: I suffer from horrible motion sickness, but love riding trains.  There’s something tranquil about train travel, the chug-a-chug of the engine, the scenery speeding by the window…

G: Greatest feeling whiletraveling: Seeing something in person that I’ve only read about in books or seen on TV or film!  There’s this sense of wonderment and accomplishment that is such a rush.

H: Hottest place you’vetraveled to: Ugh, I’ve been to loads of hot places, but I’ve never experienced heat like I have in Hong Kong: it is oppressive, exhausting, and discouraging! August in Hong Kong is indescribable.  You can stand outside and not move, and within 30 seconds feel all your crevices bead with perspiration. Yup!

I: Incredible service you’veexperienced and where: I’ve had great service at the Hotel Sultania in Istanbul, Turkey.  The staff is probably the most attentive I’ve experienced!
 

J: Journey that took thelongest: The longest non-stop flight I’ve ever taken is Toronto to Hong Kong- 14.5 hours.  The longest journey I’ve done which included stopovers was when I was returning to Hong Kong from Croatia: I flew from Split, Croatia to Rome, then from Rome to Moscow, and THEN from Moscow to Hong Kong. I had a 8 hour layover in Rome and a two hour layover in Moscow. The journey in total took around 36 hours! Never again!

K: Keepsake from your travels:It’s crazy but I almost never buy any souvenirs or trinkets from the places I go to. I got a really nice knit bag from Guatemala this summer, but come to think of it, I have no idea where it is now. D’oh!
L: Let-down sight, why andwhere:  The Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.  They are pretty, no doubt, but after I took a picture in front of them I was like, okay, what now?
The over-hyped Petronas
M: Momentwhere you fell in love with travel: When I stepped off the plane at Paris’ Charles de Gaulle airport to begin a year-long study abroad in 2004.  It was my first time leaving North America and I was so excited!  That year was the beginning of an endless love affair with travel. 

 

N: Nicest hotel you’ve stayedin: I’ve stayed in a number of nice places, but the most opulent, over the top place I’ve stayed in is probably the Imperial Hotel in Vung Tau, Vietnam. We had a massive room that was ornately decorated in the most stately way.  The bed was huge and we had a large sitting area and bathroom.  The grounds of the hotel were simply ridiculous and everything was super clean.  Liebling STILL raves about the breakfast at the hotel- they had everything.

The lovely hotel pool in Vietnam
 
O: Obsession—what are youobsessed with taking pictures of while traveling?: I love taking photos of myself doing silly poses in front of famous landmarks! I also always have to take out my camera to take pictures of food.

P: Passport stamps, how manyand from where?  I have a lot! I’ve been to nearly fifty countries on six different continents. I think I’m on my fourth or fifth passport by now.

Q: Quirkiest attraction you’vevisited and where:   The Mummy Museum in Guanajuato, Mexico. Kinda yucky but very cool!

R: Recommended sight, event orexperience: Ziplining in Guatemala! I did it last summer and I was PETRIFIED since I’m scared of heights but it’s probably one of the cooler things I’ve done.

S: Splurge; something you haveno problem forking over money for while traveling: Food and lodging and very cute, one of a kind pieces of clothing that I know I can’t get back home!  I’m all about the overall experience and these things make me happy so I don’t deny myself these pleasures.

T: Touristy thing you’vedone: I love doing touristy stuff like walking tours and sightseeing buses. I think it’s such a great way to explore a new place and get your bearings!

U: Unforgettable travel memory: Getting dragged into a nude protest in Mexico City! These naked guys with the signs conveniently covering their naughty bits spotted me walking by the main plaza and pulled me into the fray.  Crazy but fun!
V: Visas, how many and forwhere? Too many to count, especially since I lived in Asia for two years and needed a visa for practically every country in Southeast Asia I visited.  My most expensive visa was for Chile- $132 USD! Ack! Apart from tourist visas, I had long-stay/work visas for France, Mexico, Hong Kong, and the UK.

W: Wine, best glass of winewhile traveling and where?  See the beer question above! I keep it dry and sober so have nothing to contribute. 🙂

X: eXcellent view and fromwhere?:  Hey! That’s cheating, “excellent” starts with an “e”, hee hee. One of the most striking views I’ve had was on a trip to Guanajuato, Mexico. This town is a UNESCO heritage sight and it’s not hard to see why!
Beautiful colours in Guanajuato, Mexico
 
Y: Years spent traveling? All my life.  But I’ve been an expat on and off since 2003, and probably will be one for life!
Z: Zealous sports fans andwhere?:  I live in London, UK now and the people here are pretty darn hardcore!


Tag you’re it! I’m tagging three fabulous ladies who live in very different places and who I would love to coordinate a bloggy meetup with.
  • The hilarious Deidre from Decoybetty who lives in Australia because her quirky posts make me laugh and her recipes make me feel inadequate in the kitchen (in a good way!).
  • The talented Kyle Hepp, who is based in Chile, because I love her photos and had the BEST time when I met up with her in Chile a few months ago.
  • The fashionista Andi from My Beautiful Adventures, hailing from North Carolina, because she looks so darn cute when she travels and always has the nicest things to say.
Can’t wait to hear your responses ladies!



Psst! Don’t forget to “like” me on Facebook if you haven’t already! Your support is much appreciated!

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202 Comments

  • Awww thank you SO much for your awesome tag! You look so so so beautiful in your pics!!! I didn't know your parents were from Jamaica. What a great country to hail from. I don't drink beer either bleh!

  • Fun! I think we feel the same way about Ireland. 🙂 Can I say that I loved seeing all of your various hairstyles? 🙂

  • Very cool! Loved hearing all about your travels–you are a lucky lady! (Oh, but I must defend Dublin–we loved it. But if you don't drink, I can see why your experience may have been different. 😉 )

  • Great post and I love the pictures. Nude protest in Mexico!! I am over here cracking up!

  • What a fun post! You have lots of cool experiences to fill in the A to As!

  • Fun post! 🙂 i also love italian food!! there is always something for everyone!! & i hate beer but im sure if i go to germany i will try a few just for the experience and let andre finish them.

  • Love that picturesque photo of you in Nice 🙂

    Also, love the naked protest…HAHAHA!

    I may have to do this list as well, it's mighty tempting.

  • I love your blog! I am currently living in Cambodia, but in the last few years I have visited over 13 countries. While nowhere near as many as you, I can definitely relate to your posts. Thanks for a great blog!

  • @Andi- No worries! Jamaica is a great place but I havent been back in soooo long! Definitely have to put it on my travel list!

    @Terri- Thanks! I'm always changing my hair, it never stays the same way for long!

    @Teresa- In Dublin's defense, I did get to go see a Riverdance show and it was spectacular!!

    @Nicole- It was pure ridiculousness! Thanks for tagging me, this was a fun post!

    @ramblinbess- Thanks!!

    @cata- I hear that German beer is supposed to be amazing!

    @Ashley- People say the beach in Nice sucks but it's views like that that keep me coming back!

    @Naomi- I wish I could have filmed it!

    @Beautiful- Thank you! Where in Cambodia? Have you been to Siem Reap? So cool!

  • Fun reading through your A-Zs! Here's to more travels for you in 2012!

  • Hi Oneika! Great post! You make me so jealous with your travel stories. I discovered your blog last year and have come back to it whenever I get travel itchy but am stuck at work. Lol! Maybe, now that you are in London (I live there! but am in Nigeria for the holidays), we could meet up and swap travel stories! HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

  • Oneika, I saw that Nicole tagged you, and so found my way over to your blog. Great post! And 50+ countries, six continent?!? Wow! Until I met you ladies I was feeling pretty proud about my 15+ countries. Now I see that I've been wasting time! Hehe.

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  • I'm so so so late on this but I'm so excited to do this meme! Expect it on my blog in the very near future! 🙂

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