We spent 3 weeks travelling around CR a few years ago and it is definitely worth a visit if you have never been.
We hiked out to the ranger station on the Osa Peninsula and spent a few nights there…it was a great experience. We used local transport a few times between cities and did not stay in any sort of all-inclusive and we never felt unsafe, except the first time we heard a howler monkey early in the morning when we were camping out at the ranger station.
If you like CR, try Thailand. It is a long way to travel but better value and incredible.
We liked CR and loved the part of Thailand we visited. I took the kids on a trip to Nicaragua quite a few years back. Not ready for prime time, but parts of it quite nice. Of all the countries I have visited (probably around 60, I think I counted once) the one that I would most like to return to is Vietnam (other than Italy, to which return every couple of years).
My business travel is ramping up. In March, NY then Amsterdam then Palo Alto then London. San Francisco and NY no doubt in April and who knows what else. Plus, I have to go see my mother in Memphis. I said to my assistant, the old days are coming back … with a vengeance.
Currently in CA (san Diego) for a work trip . The masks have come off here as of midnight. You can tell people are tired of wearing them
AT the airport and on the airplane though , 100 percent complience that I saw
We are currently in Florida, where Covid apparently does not exist. Very little mask-wearing of any kind, including indoors in restaurants and in places like the supermarket that still require masks. And, these are elderly people. We only eat at home or outdoor seating and wear KNi-95s to go inside. We look like aliens.
That could match FL currently being #5 in daily deaths per capita in the US for Covid according to the NYT (one might have to click on deaths per capita to get it listed that way). I’d guess a lot of those top states aren’t big on masking at this point TBH. MS, WV, AR, NM are #1-4:
Most of the Colorado counties, even Boulder, have or are dropping their mask mandates. Many people still wear them, at places like Ball Arena (NBA and NHL) require them to comply with NBA/NHL rules. Medical places still have the requirement, and of course all kinds of transportation.
The school I’m working at is trying to make a decision. I vote to do away with the requirement but encourage people to still wear them (that’s what happened in the fall).
I was just at the little Ralph’s in my neighborhood and there was only one unmasked shopper. It will be interesting to see what happens on Friday - back to only unvaccinated supposed to mask indoors. COVID positivity 7 day rate has dropped from near 30% a few weeks ago to under 10% yesterday. But that is still not a low rate! As my synagogue stated a couple of days ago:
The Task Force looked again at infection rates in the County, which, though dropping, still are far above (double, in fact) the rate when XXX inaugurated lunches on the patio and school snacks in October. In addition, according to County statistics, San Diego continues to experience outbreaks that can be traced to places where people congregate: schools and daycare centers, healthcare settings, businesses, government offices, retail stores, college dorms and organizational gatherings.
The Task Force decided unanimously to recommend keeping all of the current COVID policies in place. While California will be lifting its indoor mask mandate, XXX will continue to require that everyone who is indoors on its premises must be masked, and they must show proof of full vaccination and a booster. The “no food” mandate will continue for the rest of February.
The Task Force plans to meet next during the last week of the month.
A Deputy Chief Medical Officer of the county HHS department is on the task force.
I think the big issue will be when tourists start arriving for spring break and acting like there is no COVID.
My boss just came back from a conference in Orlando, vaxed and boosted - the day he came back, he tested positive for Covid. Again. This was his 2nd time to Orlando (also a conference, in Oct, when he came back tested positive). And he got Covid the first time (yes, 3 times!) going to FL to pick up his D who was on spring break and got Covid (badly).
When DS was in fourth or fifth grade we took him out of school for six weeks and went to Thailand and it was amazing as we travelled around a decent bit, including staying on a liveaboard boat a few days so I could scuba and they snorkeled. We had thought of including Vietnam and Cambodia initially but opted to use Phuket as a base and stay in Thailand. I have often thought of getting back to Thailand and I think we will try to add in Vietnam and Cambodia this time round. They both look amazing!
I just need for Japan to open up so I can book my 2 first class tickets by points, I did book for Jan 2021 but canceled the trip. I don’t know how long my husband and I will last to do very long trip, right now when we go to Europe we stop by the East Coast first, get my fill of lobsters for a few days, but also to cut down on flight time. What used to be 9-10 hours is now just 5-6 hours, much more doable, and there’s no need to get business class tickets( through points)either. We’re retired now so have time to kill, there’s no need to go anywhere in a hurry.
Both of my kids said they would take those tickets off my hands if we don’t use them, lol.
I didn’t love Cambodia as much. as Vietnam We were there for less time, but it felt like a depressed country at a deep psychic level. Vietnam is upbeat. As they unleash capitalist economics (but not democracy, it is still like China run by its Communist party). In Cambodia, their legacy is random, unpredictable killing in the era of the Khmer Rouge. As Joseph Seligman laid out in Helplessness, the lack of link between one’s actions and outcomes can lead to depression in individuals and it felt to me when I talked to folks that there was a kind of depression about the political economy (“Nothing good will ever happen. The government is so corrupt” etc.). It is five years since I was there, so things could have changed.
My thoughts about travel…is that I’m heading out pre-dawn for Maui & Big Island for a couple of weeks. Lots of snorkeling, some hiking, cooking (local foods, love to cook), whale watching, yoga, and a lot of watercolor painting using the islands as my muse.
I recommend Ultimate Whale Watch (slip 17) in Lahaina. You sit close to the water and it was a nice sized group. We prefer the early trip (check-in was 7am) and we liked our seats on the right hand (starboard) side. It was a lot of fun!
I am just catching up on this thread. @Creekland, maybe next trip to USVI, check out St. Croix. The same, but different from St. Thomas/St. John. My late brother spent most of his adult life there and my sister-in-law and niece are there. A little less of a tourism-based economy than the other two islands, which makes a difference.
I know we are definitely enjoying ourselves here. Between FL and USVI, USVI wins easily for our pick. It also beats the Bahamas, Dominican Republic, and every other “flat” island. We still want to compare to Barbados, Grenada, and maybe Dominica - plus BVI - and perhaps Belize.
The reason USVI beats FL is due to Island Time vs Rat Race. We’re definitely laid back Island Time folks. We lived in FL for 5 years and have vacationed there often, so it was a contender - until now. Besides, Caribbean snorkeling/diving easily surpasses FL’s for what we like to see.
USVI has pros with Island Time, beauty (above and below water), and all the islands around making it a sailor’s dream destination. H loves sailing. The two biggest cons are Hurricane Belt and lack of producing their own food (except fish). If something goes wrong in the world, I hate being somewhere that depends upon getting food from elsewhere.
That’s our list anyway. YMMV. And this is only for potentially buying a condo in the future. We’ll travel pretty much anywhere. I can’t recall a single vacation we’ve totally disliked. There are places we don’t need to return (Las Vegas comes to mind), but we just enjoy exploring the planet and all it has to offer.
We went out with Maui Ocean Rafting (slip 8) yesterday - I stopped counting after the 30th whale - at one point 3 passed under our raft - this photo is a screen grab from a video I shot of them passing under us - it was incredible! Sat starboard.
