Not Your Average Gal

Copywriter. Content Creator. Constant Sassypants.

Cambodia

Destination Known: Where We’re Going in July!

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We asked for your suggestions in helping us decide where to go this upcoming July. The response was great— with tons of fabulous, detailed advice and suggestions.

As I mentioned, we were thinking of heading back to South East Asia, specifically to Cambodia. But, with the help of some readers’ suggestions, we added a couple other fantastic cities to our itinerary. See? Following this blog is a big deal. Pat yourself on the back.

I’m happy to tell you guys…

This July we will be heading to:

  • Hanoi, Vietnam
  • Yangon, Myanmar (Burma)
  • Bagan, Myanmar (Burma)
  • Phnom Penh, Cambodia
  • Siem Reap, Cambodia
  • Seoul, South Korea

How cool is that?! Our general itinerary looks like this (for now):

July Adventure

We may need to adjust cities to accommodate the schedule, which means this could change. If we find we’re not giving enough time to really explore, we aren’t opposed to cutting things out. For now, this is ideally what we want to do.

AND WE’RE SO EXCITED!

More late night tuk-tuk rides are in our future.
More late night tuk-tuk rides are in our future.

 

We are going during low-season, so it should be less tourist-filled. But, that comes at a cost—it’s rainy season. And it will be hotter than eating ghost pepper chili in the middle of the desert. We’re South Florida residents now, so we’re prepared. Also, our plans may need to change if a cyclone hits. We’ve been known to have some bad luck with weather and traveling (aside from our wedding in England) so, we’re good at being flexible. Read: finding the nearest watering hole.

Tentative Sights To See:

Hanoi, Vietnam (3-4 days)

  • Halong Bay
  • Sapa (weather dependent)

Yangon & Bagan, Myanmar (Burma) (3-5 days)

  • Shwedagon Pagoda
  • Bagan Temples

Phnom Pehn & Siem Reap, Cambodia (7 days)

  • The Grand Palace
  • The Killing Fields
  • Angkor Wat (explore other temples we didn’t see)
  • Floating villages

Seoul, South Korea (2 days)

  • Gyeongbokgung Palace
  • Gangnam Style (Sorry. Had to say it.)

Have I ever told you guys what an AV Geek I am? My office looks out on the flight path into Ft. Lauderdale Airport. I usually can name what type of plane is flying past… *NERD ALERT.*

Anyway, you may not be as impressed by this, but I think it’s so neat.

Our flight paths and total miles:

Bagan, Myanmar (Burma) Bagan, Myanmar (Burma)

We don’t have all our flights booked yet, just the main ones to and from the States. Only paid $66.73 too. That’s for another post…

Thanks for all of your suggestions and input, obviously it helped. We don’t have a ton of insight on Seoul and we’re figuring out just how exactly we’re going to get to Myanmar (Burma) without wasting days of travel.

So, if you have any suggestions on places to go and explore while we’re there, comment below. I’d love to hear it!

Here’s to 5 months of exciting adventure planning!

 

Help Choose our Next Adventure for July

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Angkor Wat, Cambodia
Angkor Wat, Cambodia

Med school complicates everything, including having any control over our schedule.

  • Our wedding? The hubster had to move mountains to find out the schedule for the following semester so we could, you know, plan our nuptials. We never got a final answer and took a guess. A good guess! (Not joking…)
  • Honeymoon? Didn’t know what his break schedule would be until, you know, the week the Fall semester began.
  • Holidays together? HA. Hahahahahahahaha.

So, when we actually knew he would have a break in July 2015, my type-A-planner-little-heart burst with joy! WE CAN PLAN OUR NEXT ADVENTURE NOW!

<insert rhythmically challenged tap dancing here>

This is where YOU come in.

In general, we know we want to head back to SE Asia. We fell in love with Cambodia. We liked Thailand as well, but something about Cambodia pulled at our hearts. So, I think we want to head back and explore another city and then more countries in SE Asia.

My intention is to use miles to fly (hopefully in our first lie-flat seats). Nearly all our major miles are with Delta and it has a pretty good hold on the Asian region for flight options. I also want to use my points for hotels and spend as little as possible in other off-the-beaten-path guesthouses. Read: $5 a night. Nope. Not joking.

All that said, I’m not opposed to hearing from you about other places to explore.

South Korea. China. Japan. Hong Kong. Australia. Colombia. South Africa. Morocco. Czech Republic. Turkey. The Netherlands. France. My list goes on…

Ultimately, the decision will be ours. I gave my husband a deadline of mid-January to let me know where we should go and I’ll make all the plans and arrangements. That’s the fun part!

But I want to hear what YOU think.

Keep in mind we’re not luxury travelers. We like a nice combination of “roughing it” and splurging on an exotic day-trip or a nice night in a hotel with a great bar on the roof overlooking the night skyline. We probably won’t travel with more than a carry-on/backpack. We ideally would have 2 weeks to work with.

Now it’s your turn:

  • What other countries do you think we should consider?
  • Where would you recommend to go in SE Asia? 
  • Where have you gone and would you recommend? 

Once our decision is made, I’ll post it here to begin the planning festivities. Grab your party pants and get them ironed, you guys. This is going to be fun!

More smiling pics like this to come! Railay Beach, Thailand
More smiling pics like this to come!
Railay Beach, Thailand

Which Country do you Want to Visit First?

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madewithOver

If travel has taught me anything, it’s that I don’t need a lot of shit to be happy.

You know when you’re in IKEA… (Hold up. Imagine that for a moment. Ahhhhhh. Happy place.) …and you see the displays of living spaces? The ones that are between 300-500 square feet. And you’re all, “Yeah, right.”

IKEA markets that because people can and DO live in spaces that size. You know why? They don’t spend their money on tchotchkes from Bed, Bath and Beyond to fill corners of their house that they don’t actually use daily. They either live in cities that demand they live in places that size or they simply spend their money on things like the finer things in life: food, family and fun times. Imagine that?!

Ask the hubster. I’m constantly asking, “Do we need this?” “Should I really buy this?” I’m known to clean out cabinets I just cleared out months ago, that have nothing new in them, because I just feel like there’s “too much.”

I’m not the perfect example…

Sad, pathetic example #1

handbags
I donated most of my handbags this past weekend. Hey! I’ve had some of these for over 11 years. That counts for something, right?

I’m trying, I’m trying.

Anywhooo, in line with what traveling has taught me, what would you like to see from our recent travels? I will be writing about my adventures in England, Scotland, Cambodia and Thailand in the upcoming months. Which country do you want to see first?

Just leave a comment below and the country with the most comments, I’ll blog about first!

Easy peasy, lemon squeezy.

Which country would you like to hear about and see first? England, Scotland, Cambodia or Thailand.