My Travel Adventures From A to Z

Just like my previous Best of Travel 2011 post, I was recently nominated by Alexandra from Crazy, Sexy, Fun Traveler to do this post, where I mention my travel adventures from A to Z.  So, here’s my travel alphabet!

A: Age you went on your first international trip:

I’m not sure.  Living in Puerto Rico makes any travel an international trip.  To my best knowledge, my first international destination was the Dominican Republic, probably when I was 3 or 4 years old.

B: Best (foreign) beer you’ve had and where:

I’m not big on beers, so I don’t tend to drink them often.  But, I’ll say that my best foreign beer was Cervesa Gallo in Guatemala, only because I crossed the border between Belize and Guatemala illegally (didn’t have my passport) just to try that beer.  After risking some serious immigration problems, I made sure that beer tasted like gold!

C: Cuisine (favorite):

Peruvian and Italian (even though I haven’t been to Italy, yet)

D: Destinations, favorite, least favorite and why:

Thailand and Peru are my two favorite destinations because I’ve enjoyed them to the maximum and they truly match my travel style.  Least favorite is Honduras.  It didn’t offer me anything exciting (even though I had a few missadventures, including my worst travel accident).

E: Event you experienced abroad that made you say “wow”:

Watching the sunrise at Machu Picchu.  That was truly a “wow” moment that I’ll never forget.  In general, hiking the Inca Trail is an experience worthy of a “wow”.

F: Favorite mode of transportation:

I’m between trains and chicken buses.  Trains are just fun to ride, and chicken buses are simply interesting because they can easily come with surprises and just people watching along the ride is an event on itself.

G: Greatest feeling while traveling:

Making friends and learning about their history, culture, and about my own culture at the same time.  Also, getting those adrenaline rushes when doing extreme or outdoor sports.

H: Hottest place you’ve traveled to:

San Pedro Sula, Honduras.  Seriously, that place was an oven beyond tropical conditions!  At least that day I was there.

I: Incredible service you’ve experienced and where:

I’ve been so pampered here in Belize, but I think the best service I’ve had has been at The Placencia hotel in Placencia, Belize.  They did anything and everything for me!  And, check this out… they did my laundry, and it smelled soooo good for so long, that I wanted to go back to The Placencia just to do laundry again!  My backpack smelled like spring for weeks, seriously!

J: Journey that took the longest:

Flight wise, it was the flight from New York City to Seoul… 14 hours.  On the ground, it was the 12 hours bus from Trang to Bangkok.

K: Keepsake from your travels:

I collect local currency and jumping pictures!

L: Let-down sight, why and where:

Chichen Itza in Mexico.  The ruins are a great sight, no doubt about that, but the experience is far from great when you have thousands of vendors (not exaggerating) inside the ruins complex bugging you to buy their stuff.  They push and push and don’t give up.  That annoyed me and made it the Maya ruins I’ve enjoyed the least.  Plus, it was overcrowded!

M: Moment where you fell in love with travel:

I have two.  First in 2003, when I visited the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, I knew I needed to travel.  Then in 2008 when I visited Thailand, I knew that backpacking travel is the way I like to travel the most.

N: Nicest hotel you’ve stayed in:

The nicest one has been The Biltmore Hotel in Coral Gables, Florida. 

O: Obsession—what are you obsessed with taking pictures of while traveling?:

Buildings!  I can’t help it, I’m an architect!

P: Passport stamps, how many and from where?

I renewed my passport 3 months ago, and so far I have 8 stamps and 1 visa.  My previous passport was almost full, but not sure how many stamps it has.

Q: Quirkiest attraction you’ve visited and where:

Hmmm… hard one to pick.  While not an attraction itself, the quirkiest “attraction” must have been a gay bar in Mare Magnum in Barcelona.  That place was totally strange!

R: Recommended sight, event or experience:

Definitely, hiking the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu.

S: Splurge; something you have no problem forking over money for while traveling:

Having a good, unique, outdoor adventure experience.  If it thrills me, I’m in it!

T: Touristy thing you’ve done:

Doing the Sex and the City tour in NYC.  Yup, I did that…

U: Unforgettable travel memory:

Too many… from laying on the beach in the Thai islands, to diving the Blue Hole, to hiking the Inca Trail, to visiting the Wolf’s Lair, and more…

V: Visas, how many and for where?:

So far one, to India.

W: Wine, best glass of wine while traveling and where?:

I’m not big on wines either, so I never pay attention to the labels.  And even though I’ve had a few good wines, they all taste “ugh” to me.

X: eXcellent view and from where?:

The infinite landscape of the Andes Mountains from the Inca Trail.

Y: Years spent traveling?:

On and off, I’ve traveled pretty much all my life, but serious backpacking since 2008.

Z: Zealous sports fans and where?:

I’ve never seen more devoted fans to a sport than the hockey fans in Vancouver.  I witnessed the celebrations of game 5 of the 2011 Stanley Cup.

So, there it is!  Now, I’ll nominate a few fellow travel bloggers to do their own ABCs.

Aaron’s Worldwide Adventure

Danib is Going Nomad

Runaway Juno

LatinAbroad