PROMPT: Longest Trip

Daily writing prompt
What’s the longest trip you’ve ever taken?

So far, life is the longest trip I’ve ever taken. The challenge of this question is knowing what counts as a “trip.” I lived in India for over 12 years? Was that a trip? It didn’t feel like it. It felt like my home was in a different country. I think I once spent about two months one Summer in Hungary back in the 90’s? Was that a trip or family time? I’ve spent about a month (just under what would be required to do a “visa run” — more of a fresh stamp run) in Thailand. I suspect the latter is what the question aims at. While I’m pretty far toward the traveler end of the Traveler – Tribesman continuum, 30 days moving about without being someplace that feels home-like is where it starts to wear on me. (Of course, being a traveler, any place can feel homelike if I don’t need to think about where to eat on a daily basis or how to do laundry on a weekly basis.)

Of course, maybe the question is drug related. In which case, I once had psilocybe mushroom tea, and that trip lasted about five hours?

PROMPT: Top 10 Travel

Daily writing prompt
What are your top 10 travel destinations?

I am not sure whether this is meant to be aspirational, by frequency, or by the appeal of the place. I’m also not sure what level of granularity to use. So, I will arbitrarily go with the countries (and things that quack like a country) that I’ve most enjoyed traveling in, placed in no particular order: – Taiwan; – Vietnam; – India; – Peru; – United States; – Kenya; – Georgia (Republic of); – Thailand; – Korea; and Kyrgyzstan.

NOTE: This list is not stable, and I hope to add and knock off some in the near future.

DAILY PHOTO: Scenes from Yun Lai Viewpoint

Photograph of the entrance to Yun Lai Viewpoint with its Chinese lanterns and mountainous backdrop.
Photograph of mountains and instagram sign at Yun Lai Viewpoint near Pai, Thailand.
Photographs of mountain, sky, and a cafe taken at Yun Lai Viewpoint of Santichon outside of Pai, Thailand.

DAILY PHOTO: Boats in Ao Ton Sai, Koh Phi Phi

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Photograph of boats in Ao Ton Sai of Koh Phi Phi in Thailand.

DAILY PHOTO: Blossoms After the Harvest

Photograph of a farm on the outskirts of Pai, Thailand -- post rice harvest but with blossoming trees.

DAILY PHOTO: Hat Noparat Thara

Photograph of Noparat Thara Beach and the rocky islands nearby taken at Ao Nang, Thailand.
Photograph of Ao Nang Beach and the rocky promontory at Hat Noparat Thara.
Photograph of Ao Nang Beach and the rocky islands off Hat Noparat Thara.

DAILY PHOTO: Amarin Plaza Phra Phrom Shrine, Bangkok

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Photograph of a Phra Phrom (Brahma) shrine in the Ratchaprasong area of  Bangkok, Thailand.
Amarin Plaza shrine near Chit Lom Metro Station in Bangkok, Thailand.

The Fig Treatment [Free Verse]

Photograph of a Buddha head carving enveloped by Strangler Fig at Wat Mahathat in Ayutthaya, Thailand.
On a scale from
"this is cozy"
to
"my skull is cracking,"
I wonder how the fig tree
at Wat Mahathat treats
the Buddha's head?

DAILY PHOTO: A Temple in Chiang Mai

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Photograph of a Buddhist Temple in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

DAILY PHOTO: Boats at the Shore, Koh Phi Phi

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Photograph of Ton Sai Beach of Koh Phi Phi, Thailand at sunset with small boats arrayed along the shore.